This
is an archive of the diaries of the journey, documented with writings and pictures
from Tom, Paul and Ben as they travelled.
Here you can read all about ups and downs of their expedition, some of the highlights of which are detailed below to whet your appetite.
A 6.9 earthquake hit Hiroshima in late-march when the team was climbing nearby. The team persevered through 2 Typhoons, up many active volcanoes, and a stretch of 14 mountains in 13 days of constant trekking in the Northern Alps.
They have slept in a ‘love-hotel’, in toilets, in the Hilton, with icicles in their tents, in temples, on a baseball field and on the occasional comfy futon.
They have clambered over landslides, up a holy ‘Men-only’ mountain, waded through rivers and snow, bush-wacked through bamboo forests. They read Harry Potter to stave off boredom whilst walking along long, long roads.
They have got food from bins, supermarket tasters, McDonalds, and have also eaten sushi, steaks, and Italian food when it’s been available, but have lived for long periods on ‘GORP’ (good old raisins and peanuts) and noodles.
They received great support and publicity throughout their journey from the warm and hospitable Japanese and JETs (Japanese English Teachers), so much so that the shorts-wearing Gaijin (foreigners) were frequently recognised and offered food, drink, money, lifts (regretfully turned down) and places to stay as they walked.
And then of course there's more mountains, and more walking.
Read too of the frustrating climax of the journey when the months of hiking and climbing had finally taken their toll and then the worst weather for 35 years in Hokkaido conspired against them at the end.
Go to the Calendar page
to go direct to any day's entry that you're interested in. Click
on the day you'd like to find out about, and you'll go to the appropriate
section of the Diary. Or just click straight on the
link to the month that you would like to read about direct from the menu above
and read about the trek day-by-day.
Pages may take a moment or two to load, so please be patient.
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