Japanese Surgeon's Daily Life

Ojouka Relay Marathon

　　An enjoyable event started this year in my hometown, which relays the distance of a full marathon with multiple runners. There's a park in the heart of the city and the 1.5 km of circle was made in the park and the race was to go round 28 times, with only the starter having to run an extra 195 meters. I attended the race as one of the members of the Matsuyama Chuo Lions Club Team. The race wasn't competitive, but one of the events held as a part of the local festival. We joined the race with 10 members and I ran 3 circuits.
　　Going around and around the same circle didn't look nice at first for me, but it meant running in front of the cheering group about every 10 minutes. It was very nice to see runners or to see supporters from the runner in spite of my advanced idea to the contrary.

A Volcanic Eruption

　　One of the volcanos in Japan, Mt. Ontakesan, erupted on Sep. 27th leaving 51 dead and more than 10 missing. It appears that the eruption was the worst human suffering in Japan's volcanic disasters after World War 2. The control authority of volcanos is the Meteorological Agency and it was always monitoring the conditions of 47 active volcanos, but it couldn't issue a warning of the explosion in advance. I think that the volcanic eruption occurred at the worst timing. I've climbed this 3000 meters high volcano about 20 years ago and know the mountain well. Mt. Ontakesan is very picturesque in this season of the year with a blanket of colored leaves. The 27th was Saturday and additionally the time of the eruption was at noon. Lots of people were spending lunchtime around the summit viewing the magnificent scenery.
　　The rescue team, consisting of Japan's Self Defense Force, Police, and Firefighters are struggling to recover the victims' remains at present, but it's not easy due to thickly covered volcanic ash.

(Vocabulary)
Meteorological Agency 気象庁
human suffering 人的被害

Urlaub in Hokkaido

　　Ich habe Urlaub in Hokkaido gemacht. Ich habe mein Motorrad nach Hokkaido mit dem Flugzeug transportieren lassen. Ich bin zu Osaka Flughafen mit dem Motorrad gefahren und habe dort mein Motorrad abgegeben.
　　Mein Plan war, Hokkaido zu überqueren. Ich bin zum Ende von der Schiretoko Halbinsel, die in Osten Hokkaidos liegt, gereist. Der Eintritt im Ende von Schiretoko Halbinsel ist zum Schutz der Natur und den vielen Braunbären verboten, also habe ich ein Rundfahrtsschiff benutzt. In der Nähe habe Ich Kunaschiri Insel, die durch Russland besetzt wurde, gesehen. Das ist schade.
　　Es gibt viele heiße Quellen und Speisen in Hokkaido und das Motorradfahren in dieser Jahreszeit ist sehr angenehm, aber in diesem Sommer hat es viel geregnet. Das war auch schade.
　　Ich will einige Jahren später wurde eine Motorradreise in Hokkaido planen.

Family Tomb

　　My parents are 82 and 83 years old. They are still healthy and enjoy walking daily, but they began to have their tomb built the other day. My father is the second son and didn't succeed his father, so he needed his own tomb. I've not seen how tombs are designed and built, so it was interesting to see the passage of construction. The picture shows the construction of my family tomb at the halfway point. If nothing unexpected happens, my parents will enter the tomb first and my wife and I secondly. My father is fond of its location, because of the nice view from the tomb. I wondered if he would like to view the scenery after his death. The tomb is near my house and my jogging route. He might have thought of the easy accessibility when he chose the location.
　　My father asked me if I knew any stonemasons. I'm a member of Japan's 8th biggest Lions Club and more than 100 people belong to the club. Stonemason? Yes! My father got a contract with him in June and the design of the tomb was repeatedly modified, and now it's under construction. Below the tomb, a Catholic cemetery is located and my teachers from high school are buried there. The position looking down on their tombs pricks my conscience.

(Vocabulary)
prick sb's conscience  ＜人＞の良心をうずかせる

(Vocabulary from comments)
sort out
sort sth ↔ out ＜問題・困難な状況など＞を解決する
He needs to get a few health problems sorted out. 彼は健康上の問題をいくつか解決する必要がある．
sort sth ↔ out ＜…＞を整理する
I need to sort my desk out. デスクを整理する必要がある．
sort sth ↔ out ＜…＞を区別する, えり分ける
I've sorted out the papers that can be thrown away. 廃棄してもよい書類をえり分けた．
sort sth out from sth ＜…＞と＜…＞を分ける
sort sth ↔ out ＜…＞の段取りをつける, 手配をする

School Festival

　　I live in the same district as my high school. It was founded by the Dominican Order 63 years ago and most students continue to universities. My residence is located on the commuting route of the students and I heard of the school festival from a student who was passing by and I visited my high school today after a long interval.
　　The activities of students reminded me of my high school days. When I happened to walk in the entrance hall, the statue of Thomas Aquinas stood still just like 40 years ago. A funny legend came down in connection with the statue, which is, who rubs its nose before leaving the school will be sure to pass the entrance examination. That's why its nose is blackish.

Commuting? Touring?

　　In Hokkaido, I used my navigation device, ZUMO550, every day and now even in my hometown I have begun to set my ZUMO550 on my scooter every day. It might become my routine work before riding. Today, I attached the ZUMO550 to my scooter as usual before commuting. Seeing that, my wife wondered if I needed the device for commuting. She must have thought that I would never lose my way on the way to my office. Naturally, I remember the commuting route.
　　I do it just for fun. Putting my ZUMO550 on the meter panel of my scooter makes me high, just like before long riding in an unknown area. My commute route is listed as one of the advisable routes for riding on almost all of the roadmaps. The commuting time is 50 minutes or so and I can run through without any rest, but I always take a rest and drink a canned coffee. I'll show you pictures of my scooter at my favorite place below.

Highland Training and Chance Meeting

　　I'm writing about my second try to complete a marathon. After a glance at the finish of the Ehime Marathon in February last year, I started to think about joining the marathon and I joined the same marathon this year. My official record was DNF (did not finish) and 5 hours 45 minutes and 06 seconds at 40km. I stopped running the race because I ran out of time. Five months have passed since the regrettable DNF and I'm continuing my training to complete the marathon.
　　Today, I ran with my friend in highland Hirota Village, which is located 20km south of Matsuyama City and has a cooler climate. It's suitable for jogging in this season of the year, so my friends and I went up to the village and started jogging. Our training base was an Italian restaurant equipped with an accommodation facility. After exercising, we took a shower and enjoyed the sunset view from the mountain.
　　At that time, 30 or 40 high school girls came up to us in a chartered bus. They were the representatives from Tokushima Prefecture, who were going to attend the chorus contest the next day. They were supposed to stay there that night. No sooner had they arrived than they began to sing their repertoire. We were asked to stay just in front of them and listen to their chorus for some time. It was a wonderful chance encounter.

(Vocabulary)
chance [形] 《[名]の前でのみ》偶然の, 思いがけない = accidental
a chance meeting 偶然の出会い

Ozu City and Amazing Encounter

　　One of my staff members will get married to a guy living in another city next month, so she will quit her job in my office. She is so efficient at the office job that I'm sorry to let her go, but she is naturally happy. We planned a small party for her near her home, in the heart of Ozu City.
　　The district in which my office is located belongs to Ozu City, but I live in Matsuyama City and I am not familiar with Ozu City, so I took a walk around the party location to get to know the city for some time. Several pictures I took in Ozu City will be shown below.
　　Ozu City is a castle town and I wondered how many old streets and houses have remained unchanged since my childhood. I felt as if I had stepped into the times of my childhood. I felt something nostalgic about the atmosphere of the alleys.
　　I happened to find a small cheap information board in front of a shabby parking lot. Summing it up, the board reads about two brothers, who had been born in Ozu City about 200 years ago, along with their achievements. What surprised me was that I had written about the younger one long ago and had admired him in my entry (link). However, I didn't know his name and I knew him only by his achievement. I learned his name and his birthplace for the first time then.

(Vocabulary)
alley (alleyway とも) 路地, 裏通り

http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2010/04/neufbrisach-.html

The Last Day

　　On Aug. 11th, the last day of my trip, it became clear, arguably the best weather during my trip. Somehow every time I visited Hokkaido with my motorcycle, it was the last day that the best weather came. I ate breakfast relaxed in my hotel and packed my bag and my scooter's underseat storage pace. I had enough time before my flight, but I wanted to spend some time in the airport and left my hotel.
　　In the reverse sequence of coming, I stopped by the gas station, which I dropped in at a week before just after picking my scooter up at the cargo terminal and filled the tank up. A gas station staff member threw the gasoline away from my scooter and issued a discard certification of the gasoline. This certification was an essential paper for embarkation of my scooter.
　　Pictures show the procedure of the embarkation of motorcycles. Motorcycles were fixed on a special pallet and taken into the cargo area of the plane.

(Vocabulary)
somehow どういうわけか
Somehow I knew she would say that. 彼女がそう言うだろうとなぜか私にはわかっていた．

　今回も晴れたのは最終日だった。どうしてこうなるのか。朝食はホテルでゆっくりと摂ったが空港でゆっくりしたいためすぐに出発。来たときとは逆の順で手続きをする。スタンドによってガソリンを廃棄して、ANA貨物ターミナルへ。写真はバイクをパレットに固定しているところ。また来たいな～と思いつつ搭乗。

Simukappu Village

　　After lunch in Rokugounomori, I entered Shimukappu Village, and the sky got darker. I believed that I would be sure to be caught in the heavy rain sooner rather than later. I parked my scooter at a rest place, "Michinoeki Shizen Taikan Shimukappu". There were about 20 riders other than us, who were changing their jackets into rain jackets and wrapping their possessions in nylon bags. I also did so and restarted. Crossing the Hidakatouge Pass, the torrential rain started and I wasn't able to take pictures until my hotel this day. I arrived at today's hotel in Chitose City wet to the skin.

　空の色が暗くなってきた。占冠村の道の駅では雨準備にとりかかるライダー数名を見た。覚悟して２３７号線を下るようだ。日高峠を越えてからの雨は尋常では無かった。実は、この後の写真がないのだ。いかに酷い雨だったか想像できよう。びしょ濡れで最後のホテル、新千歳クラウンプラザホテルに到着。この夜は我々のためだけに店を開けてくれた日本料理店で豪華な夕食だったが、写真写りが悪いので一枚だけ酒の写真をＵｐ。

To Furano Town

　　What do you think is the most interesting thing concerning Hokkaido for motorcycle riders? Beautiful scenery? Yes, of course, but the straight and sparse traffic roads are also the magnet for them. Both straight and sparse traffic are the conditions which you don't get in Japan other than Hokkaido. The pictures show my friends riding, which were shot randomly from my motorcycle, not being focused at them with my left hand, because I also was riding. They are two of about 30 pictures which I took in such a way.
　　Do you see grey clouds ahead in the distance? This morning, the weather forecast of my today's destination said that it would rain heavily!! I felt gloomy to hear that. The clouds ahead implied the correctness of the forecast. I braced myself for it, but before that I turned left for "Rokugounomori", a kind of theme park associated with a famous TV drama, which had been shot in Furano Town intermittently for 19 years (1983-2002). The yellow flag in the picture was given from the park, praying for safe riding.

(Vocabulary)
brace [他]〈人〉に心の準備をさせる
be braced for sth ＜…＞に対する心の準備ができている
brace yourself  心の準備をする, 気をしっかり持つ

　ライダーにとって北海道の魅力は何だろう。美しい景色はもちろんだが、すいている道路、そして直線路ではないだろうか。写真は富良野の田園地帯を走っている仲間二人を後ろから撮ったもの。走りながらなので構図はピントは考慮できず、たくさん撮った中の２枚をＵｐする。前方に見える山に暗雲がかかっているのが見えるだろうか。実は天気予報では太平洋側は大雨となっていた。これからその大雨のエリアに突入することになるが、まずは麓郷の森へと左へ折れた。
　富良野町は日本の人気ドラマの舞台となったところで、そのセットが麓郷の森に移築展示されている。観光客はとても多かった。入り口のスタッフが我々の姿を見て、まず渡してくれたのが写真に示す黄色い旗。交通安全の旗だった。

Wild Hot Springs

　　After leaving Aoi ike, I dropped in at an observatory, Bougakudai, from which I could see a magnificent view of the active volcano, Tokachidake. It was spewing white smoke from several points near its summit. It seemed a long climb to the top of the hill, but you can apparently reach the top in 3 hours or so, according to the climbers there. There were about 20 cars in the parking lot, but only a few people were there. Most people must have been climbing up.
　　Next, I visited Fukiage Onsen hot spring, which had been created in the forest. Some people were bathing, so I took pictures, not directly but from behind trees, so that the people did not appear in the pictures. Next I dropped in at Tokachidake Onsen hot spring, which was just spewing at the foot of Mt. Tokachidake. I wanted to soak in it under the sunshine filtering through the foliage, but riding just after bathing was likely to cause a cold and I refrained from it. Then, I started for Furano town.

(Vocabulary)
the sunshine filtering through foliage 木漏れ日

　青い池を出てまず立ち寄ったのが十勝岳望岳台と呼ばれる展望台。確かに煙を吐いている十勝岳が美しく遠望できる。そして吹上温泉に寄った。森の中に作られた実にワイルドな温泉で、入っている人がいたので温泉の写真を撮るのはやめた。森の中から人が写らないように撮った。次に立ち寄ったのは十勝岳温泉。入浴したかったが天気が悪化してきたこと、入浴後にバイクに乗ると湯冷めするだろうと思われどちらの温泉も見るだけとなった。そして、富良野を目指した。

Aoi Ike, Literally Blue Pond

　　Aoi ike literally means blue pond, which was formed by the construction of a barrier against the pyroclastic flow from the active volcano, Tokachidake, in case of its eruption. The mechanism of water changing into blue is still unexplained. The pond was beautiful with withered tree residues like Taishouike Pond in Kamikouchi in Nagano Prefecture.
　　It was a TV program dealing with domestic trips that  told me about this tiny pond. I thought it was located in a deserted area, but there were lots of tourists. A fairly large parking space was provided near the pond. The 5 minutes' walk took us to the pond and when I got back to the parking lot a friend was waiting for me, whom I had met a few years ago in Asahikawa City. Both of us are patriots and on the same wavelength with each other. I parted with him, promising to get together again. Then I went up on and on into the mountainous area in the center of Hokkaido.

(Vocabulary)
pyroclastic flow 火砕流
wither〈植物・花などが〉しおれる, 枯れる; [他] …をしおれさせる, 枯らす
The grass had withered. 芝生が枯れていた．

　青い池、テレビの旅情報で知った観光地。番組ではひっそりとした穴場のような言い方だったが、人の多さに驚いた。水の色が青くなる理由はよくわかっていないそうだ。上高地の大正池のような立ち枯れの木があり、美しい。広い駐車場が用意されており、池の周辺を散策して駐車場へ戻ると見知った顔が。写真と名前は伏せるがフェイスブック上の知りあいだ。何年ぶりだろうか、旭川で宴会をしたときに出会った方で、彼とは日本が好きという点で波長が合う。再会を期して別れた。そして山へ向かった。道はどんどん高度を上げていく、、、

Souunkyo 層雲峡

　　Souunkyo is located just at the center of Hokkaido. It's well known for its hot spring and surrounding vertical rock walls, and naturally it's one of the representative hot springs in Hokkaido. When I woke up, the sky was clear as you see in the pictures. I thought that I should pack the scooter's store box under the seat with my rain suit, but,,,
　　It appeared that several riders had arrived at the hotel later than us. I found several motorcycles in the parking lot for cycles. The one farthest right is from my home prefecture, Ehime. At the aerial tram station several buses were parked. So many people seemed to have climbed up to Mt. Kurodake, which formed a part of the Mt.Daisetsuzan area. They would enjoy a magnificent view from the summit.
　　Taking a walk in such a scenic area under a clear sky was really refreshing, but my hunger got to the point where I couldn't take it anymore. I got back to my hotel and began preparation for my departure. The breakfast was great, needless to say.

(Vocabulary)
tram (tramcarとも) (米) ロープウェー [同意] cable car ; 路面電車 [同意] streetcar(米)

　北海道のほぼ中央にある層雲峡。垂直の岩壁に囲まれている。起きてみると快晴で、今日こそは合羽を着なくても大丈夫だと思われたのだが、、、、
　昨夜は我々よりも遅く到着したライダーもかなりいたようで、バイクの台数が増えていた。写真の一番右は愛媛ナンバーだ。少し早く起きて３０分ほど散歩。黒岳へのロープウェイには既にバスが到着し、登山客がいた。気持ちの良い朝だ。

Maruseppu 丸瀬布

　　After riding for some time through the forest, I arrived at the small town of Maruseppu. I took a short rest there and headed for Souunkyo Hot Spa, which was the destination of the day. I wore my rain jacket all day, but it didn't rain. After the usual drinking, I went to bed, praying for the next day's good weather.

森の中をしばらく走り丸瀬布道の駅に出た。少し休憩して今日の投宿場所の層雲峡温泉に向かう。丸瀬布からは高速道路のような道で快適。合羽を着て行動したが、この日だけは雨が降らなかった。翌日も晴れることを祈った。

Lost Village Kounomai 4 鴻之舞探訪４

　　Looking around the lots of remains of the lost village, I recalled Besshi Copper Mine, which had been run by Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. and had contributed to the modern development of Japan along with Kounomai Gold Mine. Both mines were already closed. The fact that the guardian deity of Kounomai was derived from Ehime Prefecture, in which Besshi Copper Mine was located, would imply the connection of the two mines. I found a monument of the shrine. It stood on the roadside in obscurity. It appeared that the fabric of the shrine had fallen down and only the stone stairs remained.
　　However, the present status of both mines are completely different. Besshi Copper Mine was shaped into a mine theme park and now it is one of the main tourist spots in Ehime. I took a walk in the park last year and wrote about it.
　　Several former residents in Kounomai, including our guide, were struggling to preserve their native land as a historic heritage site. Our guide told us stories about his childhood with a faraway eye.
　　The paths around the remains were accessible with the grass tidily mowed. It seemed a considerably hard work for the aged to keep the grass mowed and I asked him about it. He replied that the mine company would do that regularly without any charge. I admired the company's spirit! Anyway it's really regrettable to leave those remains buried deep in the forest.

(Vocabulary)
Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. 住友金属鉱山株式会社
in obscurity  世に知られずに, 世に埋もれて
with［through］（one's）faraway［distant］eyes 遠くを見るような目で

　失われた町の遺物を巡りながら、愛媛県の別子銅山を思い出した。鴻之舞鉱山と同様に近代日本の発展に貢献し、また同じく住友金属鉱山によって経営されていた鉱山である。現在では閉山してしまった点も又同様である。鴻之舞鉱山の守り神として愛媛の大山祇神社が鎮座していたこと、決して無縁ではあるまい。県道沿いに大山祇神社の跡を示す石碑が立っていた。立ち入り禁止であったがこの奧に跡地があるのだろう。神社の建物は朽ちてしまい、石造りの階段が残っているだけだという。

　しかし、現在の様子は全く違っている。別子銅山はその跡地が観光地化され、テーマパークになっている。去年、その跡地を歩き、記事にしたのでリンクさせておく。

　鴻之舞は元の住民による保存活動がなされており、案内をしてくれたスタッフも鴻之舞出身で、小さい頃にはこの町で過ごしたという。遠くを眺めるような、印象的な目で失われた町を案内してくれた。観光客に歩いてもらうために脇道の草刈りは欠かせないが、人力では大変な作業だ。住友金属鉱山が無償で協力してくれて重機により道路を維持しているという。同社の心意気も見上げたものである。このまま埋もれさせてしまうのはなんとも惜しい歴史遺産である。

Lost Village Kounomai 3 鴻之舞探訪３

　　A diorama of Kounomai village, which had existed there before, was displayed in the historic house which used to be utilized as an Ekitei, which I wrote about in the previous but one entry. Seeing it, the village was fairly big and seemed to be prosperous, but their ruins were apparently disappearing. Other old stuff was also on display and a comic magazine caught my eye, in which a character from Kounomai village showed up.
　　After the tour of Ekitei, as we were about to leave for the present Kounomai village, we wanted someone to guide us around the lost village. It didn't hurt to ask for a guide, though I had no reservation. Then, one of the staff members spoke to us, "Shall I show you to the ruins?" He gave us an elaborate tour of the lost village, and it was very fortunate. If we had gone on alone, we wouldn't have been able to find the ruins. They were so deeply buried in the forest. Most buildings were made of wood and those moldered away. Without advance knowledge, we would be astonished to see them just like the discoverer of Machu Picchu.
　　I saw the entrance of the mine pit, a folk house, the ruins of the school and a decent swimming pool, and other things. I'll post pictures of them.

(Vocabulary)
diorama  /dàɪərǽmə, -rmə [C] ジオラマ (歴史・物語の一場面などを表す立体模型)
It doesn't hurt to ask.  聞くだけ聞いてみたら？
molder （徐々に）ぼろぼろになる, 朽ちる, 腐る

　駅逓跡の建物内にはジオラマがあった。それをみると、かなり大きな町だったはずだが、聞けばもう消えかかっているという。当時使っていた様々な日用品や、鴻之舞のことが書かれている日本では有名な漫画も展示してあった。駅逓跡を出て、鴻之舞方面へ向かおうとしたら、職員が案内してくれるという。後で気がついたことだが、ガイドがいなければ町の痕跡をほとんど何も発見できなかっただろう。ガイドを得たのはとても幸運なことであった。

　さて、鴻之舞であるが、道路から見える構造物は少なく、道道を漫然と走っていたのではここに町があったなどとは気がつかない。多くの建物が木造であったため、大部分は朽ちてしまい、石造りの部分だけが残っているのだという。道路脇の森林の中には人々の暮らしていた跡が次々と出現した。予備知識なくここを歩いていたら腰を抜かすだろう。まるでマチュピチュ遺跡を初めて見つけた探検家のように。

　炭鉱坑道入り口、住居跡、学校やプールの跡(最後の写真)まであった。いくつか写真をＵｐする。

Lost Village Kounomai 1 鴻之舞探訪１

　　One day in June the word "Ekitei" caught my eye when I was surfing on Facebook. I saw it several years ago at the Historical Village of Hokkaido, but it was transferred from its original site and rebuilt in the open museum. However, the one which I found on the net was original and I became eager to visit it then. I made a suggestion of visiting it to my friends and they were open to my suggestion.
　　It appeared that there used to have been a fairly prosperous town, called Kounomai, half a century ago in the mountainous region near Monbetsu City. The Ekitei, which I wrote about in the previous entry, was essential for people who had lived there and I knew that several people were struggling to preserve this historic facility.
　　In the early 20th century, several gold deposits were found on the east coast of Hokkaido and a so-called gold rush occurred. The town of Kounomai was formed in that way. The mine had been owned by Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. and a total of 13,000 had lived at its peak in the town.
　　Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. also had a copper mine near my hometown. Additionally, the guardian deity of the town was derived from Ooyamazumi Shrine in my prefecture. It was my surprise. Kounomai and Ehime Prefecture had two connections with each other.

(Vocabulary)
make a suggestion 提案する
open to suggestions  提案を喜んで受け入れる
deposit 鉱床
Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. 住友金属鉱山株式会社




　６月のある日、フェイスブックを眺めていたら駅逓という言葉が目にとまった。以前、札幌のテーマパークで初めて聞いて覚えていた言葉である。テーマパークでは再建された建物やその構造を見ることができたが実物を見たことは無かった。それで写真で見た上藻別駅逓をネットで調べてみたのである。それは紋別市から山の中に入ったところにあった。そして、その駅逓跡の建物を保存しようとする団体が存在することを知り、友人たちと相談してここに立ち寄ってみることにした。保存会の資料を見ると、ここには半世紀前、かなり繁栄した町「鴻之舞」があったという。
　２０世紀初頭に金の鉱床が発見された北海道オホーツク沿岸ではいわゆるゴールドラッシュが起こり、鴻之舞という集落が形成され住友金属鉱山の所有する鉱山町として栄えた。かつては１３０００人が住んでいたが今は廃村となっている。
　住友金属鉱山は愛媛県にも別子銅山を持ち、鴻之舞にある神社は大山祇神社、つまり愛媛県大三島にある有名な神社から分祀されたものだった。驚いた。これら二つの共通点があれば訪れないわけにはいかない。
　写真は上藻別駅逓保存会の皆さん。左のスタッフに駅逓を、中央の方に鴻之舞を案内していただいた。(続く)

Kamimobetsu Ekitei 上藻別駅逓

　　I had heard of "Kamimobetsu Ekitei" from my friend who lives in Monbetsu City a few weeks before this trip. "Kamimobetsu" is the name of a place and I had wrote about "Ekitei" before (link). Ekitei had contributed to the development of the fabric of society in the 19th and early 20th century of Hokkaido by conducting the transportation of burdens and mail, offering accommodations, and serving meals not only for humans but for horses. During my investigation of the Ekitei, I knew of Kounomai Village, in which Kamimobetsu Ekitei was located and which had all but evaporated at present. I wanted to see how the village looked.

駅逓とは、明治から昭和初期まで北海道辺地の交通補助機関として、宿泊、人馬継立、郵便などの業務を行った制度。その運営者は、駅逓取扱人（半官半民）。上藻別駅逓はこの地域に住む人々の生活を守ってきた。制度は昭和２１年に廃止された。紋別に住むフェイスブック繋がりの知人の情報でこの場所を知り訪れた。このあと、ものすごい発見が続く。

 

Notoro Cape

　　I rode along the seashore from Abashiri City to Monbetsu City. My road map told me that the road around Notoro Cape, which is located between both cities, was not jammed and comfortable for riders, so we went round to the cape. As you see in the following pictures, it was really refreshing scenery around the cape. The sky wasn't perfect, but it wasn't raining.
　　After lunch on the lakeshore of Saroma, I entered the city of Monbetsu. The first thing I did in the city was to get the blue flag of Hokuren, about which I'll write later. Anyway, I got 3 flags of 4.
　　I steered toward the mountainous region at Monbetsu and I had one of the destinations of this trip here.