Job Discussion Forums

[littlefish]

Got a few qu's for you folks who have experience in hiking,camping and hitching in Hokkaido. I'll be there for four to six weeks kicking of late June. Already got the LP-Hiking in Japan book.

1. I'm interested in 'Sansai' which is a general term for foods you can find in the mountains (berries, plants, etc). Does anyone know of any field guide books?

2. What to bring? I will be spending a significant amount of time in the mountains. Will a summer sleeping bag with a few extra thermals do the job? Any other must have items? Is camping gas (eg alps) avail? Is camping wild, tolerated, regulated?

3. Any info on bears? Do people 'bear bag' their food stash and hoist it up a tree or.......? Are there trees at altitude?

4. What about bugs and mozies? Would a mozi head net be useful?

If I were a bear, I might also be kinda curious about that mozi lotion smell coming from that wee little tent over there? Any thoughts?

5. Would like to do some 'busking'. Does anyone know of any bustling little mountain communities that get a lot of traffic? Any experiences?

6. Any suggestions on places (mountains/ beaches/islands) that are worth a visit?

Well, I think that's about it. Any info would be much appreciated? Cheers,
glenn

[shmooj]

Went skiing there... can't really help you.

Wow, two posts... 9 months apart... what happened? Was it a boy or a girl?

[markle]

Yipeee!
Finally a question about Japan that I have actual experience (albiet brief)

I had 3 days hiking near Niseko. Absolutely loved it, very picturesque(sp?) but we were very lucky. The weather is a little tricky up there, when we arrived in the early evening the place was blanketed in thick fog and it had been like that for 3 weeks, the hostel manager (BTW the hostel, Niseko Annapura(?) is a YHA hostel, is not the cheapest but I would thoughly recommend it if only for the meals, served with a glass of wine no less I've a worst food at five star hotels but I digress, and the friendly manager) at first said the the weather the following day would be the same but later in the night he said that there was hope that it would clear up. Next morning was white out but the manager drove us up the mountain and it cleared up, in fact I got burnt firetruck red so sunscreen might not be a bad idea.
That area is pretty well travelled so the tracks are pretty well marked. Had a bear bell so I never had any trouble there but I get the impression that foxes might present more of a problem (food wise).

[shmooj]

Wow... that's exactly where we went skiing.. Very beautiful place.

Somewhere on the web is a website of an adventure company run by a NZ guy (I think) and his Japanese wife. They are based in or at least near Niseko. You might want to have a look for this. Unfortunately, I don't know of the URL.