It was a cold, foggy and still morning when we pushed off the dock at Kusakabe and waved goodbye to Plainsong. Dean optimistically hoisted the mainsail but I suspected it may have been in vain. The day had already begun for the ship folk and we took our place amongst the pack and were on our way.
Local fishing boats fascinate me and I love to see how a style is adopted by everyone in the country. Then you change countries and the style changes. For the Japanese it is the addition of a sail on their boats. Even for recreational motor boats that wouldn’t look out of place in Australia, many distinguish themselves as Japanese with the addition of an aft sail.
For a while the sun seemed to be winning out over the fog which had began to melt away, then suddenly we found it was becoming heavier again. And with that the cold was seeping into our bones. We rugged up and warmed our insides with miso soup and made use of our electronic hand warmers.
All sorts of boats are out on the sea. Lots of cargo boats and tankers, many many small fishing craft (no AIS), and a smattering of brightly painted ferries.
Most of the water was perfectly still but occasionally we would go through areas of turbulance. In the video below you may be able to see when Run to Paradise is swung around a bit in the eddy’s.
We were happily chugging along towards the Great Seto Bridge when all of a sudden a voice was blaring out over a loud speaker just behind us. Nearly jumping out of our skin, Dean shrugged a “we don’t understand” at the tug from which it was coming from. The message was repeated in English. “Keep to the North side of the channel”. We thought we were, Dean gave the thumbs up to indicate we understood, then moved out of the channel. The tug was clearing the way for a massive 300m ship. Most ships here are much smaller, so this larger size must require an escort within the confines of the inland sea. Happy with our response, it then went off to yell at some fishing boats on the opposite side of the channel.
Ironically we weren’t actually even going under Seto Bridge through the main shipping lane. We were going under the next passage through. But so be it.The photo below shows the main shipping lane. If you squint through the fog you may be able to see all of the little fishing boats hanging around under there as well. Since they don’t have AIS we couldn’t really tell if they were actually in the fishing lane or around it. In the foreground there are also hundreds of cormorants in the water.
Looking at the photo below the main shipping lane is beyond the small island on the left. We are heading towards a channel on the otherside of the island on the right hand side of the image. This is a hell of a long bridge!
The Great Seto Bridge or Seto Ohashi Bridge is 13km long. It is actually a series of eleven bridges across five islands of the inland sea. It is double decker with two lanes of traffic each way on the upper level and one rail track each way on the lower level and takes about 20 minutes to drive over. It is a very impressive looking bridge and we could see it disappearing into the the distance in the fog. There was also a bit of a current through there and we whooshed through at about 7kn.
The vision of a bridge was first touted during the 1800’s but wasn’t seriously planned until a tragic ferry accident in dense fog resulted in the deaths of 171 people in 1955, Construction finally began in 1978 until 1988.
Safely through our channel, low and behold who was crossing us, but our friend the giant ship with its tug still buzzing around it clearing the way!
As to be expected all hazards in the Seto Naikai are well marked.
There are many islands here and it would have been lovely on a clear day. When we were close enough we could see some beautiful buildings along the shores.
We were heading to Tajima Island and were due to arrive at about 1730. The marina closed at 1700 but we knew where the visitors dock was located. Apparently we also had the option to anchor off the beach. Unfortunately the rain that was due didn’t hold off, and our last hour, gentle but freezing cold rain fell.
As we were approaching Tajima Island we could see hundreds of cormorants sitting in the water all over the bay. They were in smaller groups of 20-30 and it was quite comical to watch them. They would all duck dive at the same time, and then within a few seconds of each other they would begin popping up. They weren’t too bothered by us and would just paddle out of our way or duck dive and pop up somewhere nearby.
On the point of the island where we entered the channel, a picturesque shrine looked out across the bay. Aquaculture was marked on the map. Sometimes it is there, sometimes not. The seaweed farms for instance are seasonal. In this case they were there but well marked with buoys and flags.
We hadn’t decided if we were going to anchor or tie up to the marina dock. What decided it for us were signs floating on buoys in the water where the anchorage was with a clear warning message written in Japanese. I motored close while Dean took a photo so we could put it through the interpreter. It said in red letters “No personal watercraft”. We think that meant no jet skis in the area, but being unsure we opted to tie up to the easily accessable visitors dock.
Safely in for the night at Utsumi, we shut ourselves downstairs and put on the heater and had a nice hot dinner! We were forecast for a cold, wet and windy weekend, but hoped to have a bit of a weather break to explore what looks to be a beautiful little place. We have been to Japan quite a few times, but travelling by yacht it has been nice to visit places that aren’t tourist destinations, foreign tourists that is.
In the morning when Dean checked in, they were expecting us!! Customs had contacted them and asked them to call when we arrived. Understanding Customs better and deciding to embrace the process, our paperwork is already filled in and left at reception for collection. Dean confirmed the signs in the bay are an indication that jet skis aren’t allowed, and while you are able to anchor there they prefer you to come to the marina.
The picture below shows us on the dock, and the beach in the background is where we could have anchored off.
The marina costs about $26/night. There are clean toilets and hot showers. For additional an fee we could have used the electricity and water. A motor boat on the dock just near us has a typical Japanese sail set up. Dean also liked the aft anchor with winch.
Luckily we got a break in the weather as we hoped. First we went over to Sunny Burgers at the marina and had a burger. There were squid burgers and a multitude of different kinds of fish burgers but I stuck to a tasty old pork burger! When the lady gave it to me she was pointing to what I thought were serviettes and I’m saying yes thank you pointing out I already had a serviette. Clearly not understanding she grabbed the thing and placed my burger into it. It is so you can eat and not have the juices drip on you!! Clearly I am a bit slow because I have had these a couple of times now at other places and I have been taking my burger out and eating it. Sort of takes the fun out of things not to go home smelling of burger juice….
We then meandered around to have a bit of an explore until the rain set back in. Along the beach is a designated camping area though most of the campers were packing up due to the cold wet weather. There were plenty of showers (coin operated), toilets, cute little pavillions covered in wisteria that was about to burst out in blooms. Even the weeds looked pretty.
There was a series of ceramic tiles decorating the walkway. These were some of my favourites.
As we walked to the other side of the pennisula we could see the bridge that links the island to Fukuyama on the mainland.
Apparently you can also anchor in this bay as well, however it had quite extensive fish farming, that although well marked with buoys, I don’t think I would have liked to chance.
Just before the rain returned we got back to the marina. And there was Run to Paradise looking pretty, but sticking out as the biggest boat by far!
Run to Paradise 