I'VE ARRIVED TO TOHOKU!

I woke up and ate the fruit filled Danish I bought the night before for breakfast along with some instant milk tea. It looked overcast and windy outside. I headed towards the coast, passing some onsen resorts along the way. I was covering over 100km today so I wanted to keep a pretty good pace.

Sure enough the weather didn’t get any better all day, the sun came out here and there. The coastal route was a bit rough because of the headwind which was also cold, but there was some very nice scenery. Lots of cliffs and rocks jutting out of the sea. I tried to ride at a faster pace than normal to stay warm, the wind was really cold. It was mostly level the whole way which was good, not much climbs just relentless headwind. Along the way, you pass many fishing villages and little ports.

About a half of the way there, my chain somehow came off the derailleur and slipped out of the outer bracket. So I spent a little time trying to put the chain back into the derailleur. My hands were dirty after that. Afterwards I was getting hungry and I wanted to wash my hands so I found a roadside cafe but it was closed. I washed my hands in the bathroom but there was no soap. I found a spray cleaner and used it but it didn't work...smelled like bleach. I kept going and eventually reached a small town with a supermarket. I ate a very quick late lunch, then kept riding fast. After the rocky coastline ended, I passed a tiny beach resort town with a bunch of resorts built along the shoreline. I took another break there and pushed on into the wind.

I passed several rivers and saw some people fishing the mouth of the river. Finally the sign for Sakata City appeared. It took several more km to reach the actual city of Sakata. It was perfect timing because it was getting colder and colder. I found the minshuku and checked in, there wasn't much going on around there. I took a nice hot bath and then decided to go lout for food. I walked to the grocery store down the street but there wasn’t much left in the bento section, I must’ve been a bit too late. I saw a Sukiya sign that said 1km ahead so I had to follow it. The red and yellow glow of their sign appeared a few miles later. I decided to get their beef bowl with cheese and salad. I got some strawberry milk afterwards from Lawsons next doorsf then went back to the minshuku.