
Day 1 - Biwa to Tsuruga
Today was one of the glory days of cycle touring. The day dawned clear and warm and we headed for Tsuruga with the wind literally at our backs.
Route
Heading North along the shore of Biwako (Lake Biwa) the path was smooth and wide, the views spectacular and the feeling of all being well with the world was strong.
At the top of the lake we turned our bikes toward Tsuruga and entered the mountains. There is a good footpath/bikeway on route 161 as far as the turnoff to route 303. The tunnel on this road is mostly downhill this direction and has a dedicated bike lane. Turning left onto route 286 led us up the mountain valley through small communities and open fields exuding peace and quiet. At the top of the valley, fields give way to heavily forested mountains for the second climb of the day. Just after turning on to route 8 we crested the top of the climb and enjoyed an exciting downhill run into Tsuruga.


Stay and Eat
We found it challenging to find accommodation in Tsuruga that was within our preferred budget and suitable for our needs. A lot of accommodation options only offered telephone bookings. In the end we splurged on our most expensive accommodation of this tour at the Hotel Granbinario. I must admit the larger room size is a treat without the need to dance around each other when trying to unpack and pack our panniers. There is bike parking directly across the street in the train station building.
Kamereon Shyokudo provided a tasty lunch for our group. The Doria got the seal of approval from my beloved and I enjoyed the grilled chicken.
Our travelling companions selected Marusanya for our evening meal based on the pickled mackerel they'd received as a souvenir. Beloved reported the sashimi as a contender for the best meal of the trip so far. The scale and complexity of the menu is a bit to manage but the on screen ordering with pictures helps.
See and Do
We arrived in Tsuruga at lunch time which gave us ample time to explore the city. After a quick amble around the red rick warehouse and the park at the port we cycled across to Matsubara Park. It was pleasant rolling through the pine forest to get to the beach. The view from here is tranquil looking out over the bay. Interesting to see people trying and largely succeeding in feeding wild hawks.
Before dinner we wandered down the main street looking at the collection of Reiji Matsumoto manga inspired sculptures. Given Matsumoto was born in Fukuoka and died in Tokyo, the link to Tsuruga remains unclear.
The arrival of the shinkansen in March of this year has been accompanied by a revitalisation of the public spaces around the station and down the main shopping street. I guess it remains to be seen whether this translates into a sustained economic revival for the city.