ROAD TRIP (2/6) : Wetlands of Kushiro Shitsugen national park

From that day on, the weather will be an obstacle to my trip. All the visits I planned across Hokkaido are outdoor visits… What a pity.

Under the rain, that how I strated this second day.

KUSHIRO WETLAND

Kushiro Shitsugen national park covers 28 788 ha and includes Kushiro wetland and marsh, the hills and lakes around. The park’s fauna and flora are preserved internationally and by being part of a designated Japanese national park. Japanese cranes, the red headed cranes, can be viewed there where they reproduce. These cranes are a protected species and considered to be a national treasure in Japan. Their Ainu name (The Ainus are the aboriginal people of Hokkaido) means « deity of the marsh ». I think I’ve seen some but not in the park itself. Or maybe they were regular cranes. I don’t know anything about birds but I am sure I’ve seen them!

The bad weather didn’t discourage me at all and I visited the difeerents observatories expecting to be amazed.

For the following I need to warn you that I didn’t use any kind of drugs.

From Hosooka observatory we can see the full extent of the wetland. The frist ting I pictured out of it is this scene in Lion King when Mufasa shows Simba their kingdom. I have never seen the savanna but it looked to me like a green savanna.

The Disney hallucination over, I was really speechless in front of this landscape. The river flowing in the middle, the trees becoming rare with the distance, the extent of this huge wetland, the hills around, all of this was stunning. The view from this particular observatory is one of the most beautiful ones.

The second observatory I went to shows a more narrow view of the landscape. Actually the view wasn’t what I liked the most. I rather enjoyed the walk on the wooden path in the forest. It was very pleasant.

The last step of my visit in Kushiro Shitsugen national park was also a wooden path from Onnenai visitors centre. The best time of my day!
The pathway happens to be in the wetland. There are 3 circuits you can do to suit everyone. The short one is 500m long, the second one 2km long and the last one is 3km long. Along the way you can observe the vegetation change. It is also a very good spot to watch birds. Although I am not sure you could see much with this weather.

I did the short loop. The rain was getting stronger and I didn’t want to be stuck in the wild too many kilometres away from the car in case of a sudden downpour. Nevertheless not having sun wasn’t a problem. The rain brought a enchanting look to the wetland. The purple flowers stood out beautifully in this yellowish greenish landscape.

This little walk is very enjoyable. Plus I saw a baby deer!! I didn’t dare coming to close to it because I was afraid its parents would be around (I don’t know how the family system of deers works ok?! I didn’t want to risk it). This moment was magical. My heart was beating super fast with excitment and with fear of being pretty close from a wild animal.

Even though it rained all time long, this day in Kushiro Shitsugen national park was a great one. If it had been sunny, I may have done a canoe ride on the river. I also could have ridden a horse in the forest.

For my second night I decided to take a room in a hostel… After the amazing expeerience I had the night before, I needed some real rest so I could hike I planned the next day.

I spent the evening and the night in Teshigaka. For the first time since I’ve arrived in Japan I went to an onsen (hot springs). First I had a footbath in a little onsen located in a rest area on the road. I then had a full bath in a hotel. I have to admit that so far I avoided going to an onsen because I am not comfortable AT ALL with being naked in front of other people. Nonetheless, I found some courage and took the plundge! Turns out I was all alone in the hotel’s onsen. Perfect! I didn’t spend too much time in the bath because the water is very very hot and the room very humid that it became difficult for me to breathe at some point. It was like taking a hot bath that never ever gets cold while being in a hammam. It was a bit overwhelming but very pleasant anyway. I guess I need to get used to it.

Another first for me: sleeping on a futon in a typical Japanese bedroom with tatamis on the floor, a slidding door and some very thin walls. A futon is definitely more comfortable than a car seat but still less than a proper mattress. It’s like sleeping on a soft floor. Yet it suited me very well. It was always better than sleeping in the car.