I went to Hakodate almost on a whim and encountered a blizzard, so I ended my trip without taking many pictures. The weather at Goshougake Onsen, where I had visited just before that trip, was also not good from a photographic point of view. As a person who loves northern winters, I was frustrated.
Both schedule-driven trips and spur-of-the-moment trip have resulted in frustration. I had no choice but to make a trip based on the weather. My extremely busy days was over in January. I could decide new itinerary.
From the day after I returned from Hakodate, I looked the calendar and the weekly weather forecast every day. Finally, there was a forecast for clear skies from Sunday to Monday in mid-February. Again, there were seats available on the frequent flyer award ticket to Misawa, so I decided to go to Oirase Keiryu (mountain stream), which I had failed to visit last time.
I had already planned the route, but I wanted to get to Oirase earlier than the hotel shuttle bus because I was going on a local tour on the day of arrival. After looking at the local bus schedule, I found that I could get to Oirase on my own by connecting three local bus routes from Misawa Airport. The routes were Misawa Airport / Misawa Station / Towada City Central / Yakeyama. Although all routes were operated by the same company, the schedule and operations did not seem to take into account the needs for connecting, but I managed to reach Oirase.
The weather was as good as forecasted, but there were other problems to consider. It had been an unusually warm winter this year, with mid-March like temperatures already in mid-February, the icicles on the rock were finished, and there was little accumulated snow. I was able to take some beautiful pictures, but the less of the snow made them less impressive.
In the end, it may have been like “mickle fails that fools think”. This winter was a mild one, and no matter I tried, I could not help but feel unsatisfied.
Photography is one of the main purposes of a trip, but it may not be the only one. Going to an unfamiliar place, eating unfamiliar food, and drinking unfamiliar sake. In my case, I am not good at talking to strangers to socialize but I can still experience something out of the ordinary.
Ultimately, I think travel is an opportunity to think about what it means to life. Not something on the surface like frustration with the bus company’s schedule, but something a more inside in mind. I wish to think through unknown experiences, and through traveling, I can get essence of myself that lies deep within my emotions.
Perhaps it is my own immaturity that causes me to be frustrated during a trip to Hakodate in snow and rain storms that ended with only one photo shoot. I should have overcome my frustration, thought about something and reach to something. As Blaise Pascal said “man is a thinking reed”.
Although, in my case, it may be indeed “mickle fails that fools think”.
COLO’s Traveler Guide: Oirase Keiryu
The time and other information in this page are the timetable at the time of the visit.
Day 1
Haneda 0735 (Japan Airlines JAL153) >> Misawa 0855
Misawa Airport 0910 (bus) >> Misawa Station 0926
Misawa Station 1045 (bus) >> Towada Chuo 1114
Towada-Chuo 1124 (bus) >> Yakiyama 1215
– Oirase Keiryuu Tour
Overnight stay: Oirase Keiryu Hotel
Tips for Day 1
– The bus from Misawa Airport to Misawa Station was slightly delayed. The bus to Towada departed right in front of me at 0927 on the schedule.
– The “Towada City Machinaka Kotsu Hiroba” should work as a hub of local buses, but the bus going to Towada from Misawa does not stop there but stops at a nearby bus stop with a different name.
– The bus from Misawa to Towada was 7 minutes late, and I was a bit nervous because it was not difficult to imagine that my 3rd bus would wait to connect. In the end, it was a three-minute connection, so if the 2nd bus had been delayed by one more traffic signal, I would have missed the connection. As is in such cases, the bus to which I was transferring made a stop on the other side of the street.
Day 2
– Oirase Keiryu Tour
Oirase Keiryu Hotel 1030 (shuttle bus) >> Aomori Station 1230
Aomori station 1325 (bus) >> Aomori airport 1400
Aomori 1500 (Japan Airlines JAL146) >> Haneda 1625
Tips for the 2nd day
– When I arrived in front of Aomori station, I felt something unusual. Thinking about it for a while, I realized that it was the first time I came to Aomori without snow. I could kill time outdoors. I ate an apple pie (Aomori is famous for its apples) while looking at the clear Aomori Port.
– I do not like the bleak feeling when I arrive at Tokyo Haneda Airport on Sunday night, but weekday afternoon arrivals are rather peaceful.