“Hell Valley” and the Dai-ichi Takimotokan, Noboribetsu

After visiting the morning market in Hakodate I head back to the hotel to finish packing and check out.

The train station is right next door and I arrive early to find the train already parked at the platform. I board and settle in for the trip to Noboribetsu..

It’s an interesting train ride. We tunnel through the mountains and the weather seems ever-changing. Here a blanket of snow, there late fall fields laying fallow. We pass blizzards and clear streets and through the windows I can almost feel the temperature drop as we head further north towards Sapporo.

In Noboribetsu I walk from the train station to the adjacent bus station where a man helps me to buy a ticket and points me to where I can board for the bus to the onsen. There’s already a line.

The bus arrives shortly and I manage to secure a seat, offring it up later to an elderly woman who boards after. There’s not enough room for everyone in line and I wonder if they run continuous buses when there’s demand.

I reach the onsen at noon; check-in isn’t until 14h. I add my bags to the many that take up a roped off section of the lobby. I ask about a map of the area. The attendant suggests I walk up to Hell Valley (Jigokudani) and then up to the Oyunuma lookout and along the scenic pathway to the Oyunuma book natural footbath before heading back down to town and the hotel. It should take about two hours. Perfect.

It’s started to snow and I walk down from the onsen into town to pick up something to eat. At the 7-Eleven I buy a couple of rice balls. The cashier heats them up and I eat them just outside the store, the buns warming my hands as I hold them.

I walk back up the hill to Hell Valley and follow the path to the end. Steam emits from vents in the earth, the landscape all copper and grey.

At the end of the path I stop at a steaming pool and linger, warmed by the heat emanating from it. A few others gather around to abosrb the heat before turning back to walk down the path.

I climb a set of steps to a small park covered in snow. A husky wanders away from its owners, dragging its leash. They call after it but it pays them no heed. I step in to catch it before it goes too far and hand the leash back over to them. It didn’t look like it was planning to go far.

The path to Oyunuma is blocked because of the snow and I walk back down to a tourist shop to ask if there are other paths I can take up to the lake. The woman manning the shop is happy and enthusiastic to let me know that the lake is closed. She tells me I can walk down the road and take a left to get to the footbath, if I’m interested.

I head back to town, past the Buddhist shrine and its two guardian demons. I miss a turn and have to walk back up the street of shops before I realize my mistake. I had hoped to check my directions at a police stand near the turnoff, but it’s unmanned.

I follow a small path into the woods to the footbath. A family sits by the brook, their feet in the water, winter coats bundled around their bodies. A gentle waterfall feeds the bath. I haven’t brought a towel with me to dry my feet and so skip the bath myself.

The path continues into the woods, but it’s closed. I imagine it’s the loop that continues down from Oyunuma and lament the fact that I can’t coninue on.

Turning back I walk back down the road past the parent and demon statue where another family takes pictures of each other and the Bourou Noguchi Noboribetsu hotel climbing back up to the hotel. Before heading back to check in, I stop at the Yuzawa Shrine across the street, climbing the steps up to the complex itself. There, a stone is monument dedicated to Takimoto Kinzo, the founder of the first hot spring inn in Noboribetsu, stands in the courtyard off to the side..

Back at the hotel I join the line to check in. A father stands before me with his young daughter. She pulls faces at me and I pull faces at her. She laughs each time and turns away before turning back with another face of her own.

I check into my room. It’s a decent size with views out front towards the town. I take a quick tour of the complex, checking out the game room and stores before heading back to my room to change into a yukata to visit the grand bath.

The baths are beautiful, with a generous shower area and a host of different baths with different temperatures and levels of sulfur. Floor to ceiling windows look out over Hell Valley, reminding me of those at the Rio Serrano in Patagonia.

I take my time, soaking in the different baths warming and cooling myself before discovering the outdoor pool. I linger in the pool, watching the snow fall around me, reach out to catch the odd snowflake on my tongue. It’s a beautiful place, and it feels so nice to be submerged in the warm water as the air cools my face.

It’s a beautiful place, and an amazing way to spend Christmas day.

•

Dinner is at 18h and I head down in my yukata. Afterwards, I feel a little worse for the wear and head to bed immediately after.

The morning dawns clear, the skye a pale blue. A layer of snow coats the town, but the sun seems to already be working on melting it. Breakfast is a lavish affair and I can’t finish it before I head back to my room to take a nap before checking out.

I gather my things and walk to the bus station. A line forms behind me. The bus isn’t full and everyone has a seat, but luggage fills every available space in the aisles. Arriving earlier at the station I change my onward ticket to Sapporo to a 1242 train; the 1129 is sold out. Either way I’d have to hang out in Sapporo for a bit before checking into the Airbnb.

At the station I kill time in the waiting room, buying some delicious bean bread to snack on, debating whether to commit to something more substantial. I thumb through some tourist brochures and watch as crowds gather to board the next train and crowds assemble after alighting from the train, waiting for the bus to take them up the hill to the hotels and onsens.

Arriving in Sapporo I look for a place to park myself until 16h when I can check into the Airbnb. I find a coffee shop attached to a parking garage and make my way there carefully on the snow-covered sidwealks.

The doors to the Taxi Garage Cafe are open but it’s not serving. They let me sit at a table anyway, and I set about finding another place to park myself as I warm up from the cold. There are flyers for various DJ nights and shows and I’m a little interested in coming back in the evening to check out the scene.

As I wait my cousin texts me to let me know that the Airbnb is ready. I’m meeting them there before we head to the mountains to ski Rusutsu and Niseko. It’s our first time skiing in Japan (my first time skiing outside of the States) and I can’t wait. 🇯🇵