japantrip 2009 part 2

A bit late but i finally found some time to write up something about the trip. Expect more the coming days... I hope...

After the flight and arriving in tokyo to rest for a day, we flew to shin chitose, hokkaido. There was no snow so we were somewhat disappointed. After fixing the rental car we drove back to the airport to get wait and pick up the last member of the party. Driving on the left of the road with steering wheel right was different... (stupid direction indicator and windshield wiper lever also switched sides) After completing the party we found out the gods left us with a surprise... a nice coat of snow covering everything...

So the drive to noboribetsu, our first hokkaido destination and a hotspring resort, took longer than expected. As the snow fell recently the roads were not cleared and I had to drive by following the tracks other cars made.
After the expressway and a part of mountainous roads we finally arrived. We stayed at a ryokan which claims to have hotspring heaven. The different outdoor and indoor baths were hot and great. Great for warming you up after a long trip. First up was a buffet dinner with lots of hokkaido specialties like crab, squid etc... we went for a walk to help digestion.

The oni guarding? noboribetsu owakudani

The valley where people were not allowed in due to sulfur.

Sheep at noboribetsu also covered in snow

After the walk some necessary warming up was needed. So after a evening dip and a morning dip the morning after the next destination awaited...