Date: 19th May 2019

Nakasuka

The next part of the Michinoku Coastal Train (Hachinohe Section) after Ashigezaki Observatory was Nakasuka, also known as Hana no Nagisa (Floral Beach) due to the flowers that blooms along the shore. Most flowers typically bloom around early summer between June and July and includes flowers like the beach morning glory, sukashiyuri (the orange lilies), nikkokisuge (a species of daylily), and hanashobu (Japanese water iris). Unfortunately, there were only tiny flower buds at the time of my visit – but the view of the coastline was still beautiful!

Osuka Beach

Next is the Osuka Beach, also known as the “singing beach” as the sand “squeaks” with every step you take. The sound is said to be a proof of how clean the sand is. I was a bit confused on whether I should be walking on the beach, or to go off the shore and walk along the road where the umineko bus passes. But the map says that the trail is on the beach itself, so I ended up walking on the 2km sandy beach. Not a pleasant walk though walking on the sandy beach with heavy shoes, sinking you down with every step. At the end of it, I had to remove my shoes to remove the sand. The pristine blue sea is clearly visible here, so that was a plus. Swimming is prohibited here, though I thought I saw some surfers here.

Info

Useful sites:

• Tohoku Ministry of the Environment page. Here you can find details and map of each section of the trail. There are also details in the website on how you can obtain the trail map either by post or at some information centres.
• Hachinohe Section (Tohoku Ministry of the Environment)
• Tohoku Pacific Coast
• Explore Tohoku Facebook Page – by Robin Lewis, one of the first hikers to complete the entire trail

Access

The start of the Michinoku Coastal Trail – Same Station can be accessed via the JR Hachinohe Line. It takes only 25 minutes (240 yen) from Hachinohe Station to Same Station. If you are not keen on walking and just want to visit certain spots along the trail, you can take the one-coin umineko bus which runs from Same Station to Tanesashi Kaigan Station everyday between mid April to mid November (only during weekends and holidays in winter). The bus details are in this page including the timetable.