will i am's delayed diary

In a major change of direction, our third day was spent in the mountains. Drove about an hour up to the Daisetsuzan Asahidake Ropeway station. Mist covered most of road up the mountain as we had started our journey pretty early. The ride up to the Sugatami Station only took a short ten minutes, but the view was breathtaking. As beautiful as I remember it. The Sugatami Station is 1,600 metres above sea level, and is the starting point for hiking to the summit. For the less adventurous, there's a short circuit around Sugatami Pond that only requires a pair of gum boots. Now they charge JPY300 for boot rental, but they provide insoles as a value-add. During my last trip, the rangers didn't mark the trail, so KH and I didn't complete the circuit. The wind chill prompted me to wear another layer of clothes, and the glare made me put on my sunnies, which was a mistake! I took off my glasses and put it my jacket's inner pocket, which wasn't a pocket at all. So whe...

KH had planned a day of physical exertion on Mount Asahi-dake . Before leaving Furano, we topped up our fuel. Our first experience was at a full-service Japanese petrol station by Idemitsu. Upon driving in, grim-looking staff gave a deep bow and directed us to an available island. While one guy was filling our tank, another jumped to the front and started to rub our windscreen rigorously. Bug splatter is really difficult to clean. When we were ready to go, they gave us another deep bow. Didn't even need to get out of the car. Fantastic. The drive up to Asahi-dake Ropeway was quite leisurely with many slopes and tunnels. The slopes have timber fencing at regular intervals to avoid snowfall from inundating roads during winter. Along the way are also parking areas where drivers can stop to put on snow chains on their wheels. The gondolas at the Asahi-dake Ropeway were large and empty. Perhaps not the season to be at Asahi-dake. But even in spring, the snow on Mount Asah...