A Month of Spectacular Highs and Painful Lows

I think if I’d left April completely unscathed, I would start to think I was the luckiest man on Earth.

From the success of the Cyclethon raising $1m for the Immune Deficiency Foundation, and the Abroad in Japan book being the No.1 bestselling book in the UK for three weeks running, to a birthday hike down the Nakasendo trail, it really was a month to good to be true.

Then in the last week of April, I got the worst food poisoning I’ve ever had and spent almost a week lying on the floor feeling rather humbled 😅

I believe the suspect might actually be a piece of blue cheese of all things - either that or some pork. All I know is, being physically sick on a moving train felt like being in some sort of shitty gameshow, as the train rocked from side to side while I lay on the bathroom floor. (Thank god it was a clean Japanese train at least).

But I’d hoped to do a post celebration liveshow at the end of the month, but I could barely walk across the room unfortunately. Still, thank god it didn’t happen on the cycle - for that I’m eternally grateful!

Today though, I’m here to tell you what I’ve been up to (lying on a floor aside) and to convince you to hike the legendary Nakasendo trail yourself!

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A few years ago we produced a video on the Nakasendo Trail with Ryotaro. A stunning route though the central Japan Alps of 69 post towns, that was once the main route between Tokyo and Kyoto. 

Unfortunately, due to time constraints on the shoot we didn’t get to hike it, so much as rock up in a Toyota and speed run each of the three main towns of Tsumago, Magome and Naraijuku, and in the years since, I’ve been consumed by the idea of hiking it.

I decided what better time to do it than the week of my 34th birthday and post cyclotron celebration. In hindsight, it was a bit of a daft move as my legs were still broken, and I suspect the physical exhaustion from cycling 1,000km then hiking 50km led to my body failing to handle the food poisoning.

ALAS, no regrets.

Joining our small group was a surprise guest - Ali Plumb, the BBC’s resident film expert who spends his days interviewing Tom Cruise, Harrison Ford, Emma Stone and Quentin Tarantino to name a few over on BBC Radio 1. (Here: https://youtu.be/fx_-l6xq2KI?si=jtk9Gu63ALfFL2yX )

And having convinced him to come to Japan, I invited him along and he relished the chance to trudge alongside us through the mountains.

The weather certainly wasn’t kind raining almost for the entirety of the trip, but the misty mountains and forests enshrouded in clouds gave an almost enchanting atmosphere to it all.

We started at a town called Nakatsugawa, passing through Magome and Tsumago and stayed overnight in Kiso Fukushima, before hiking the next day further north to Naraijuku, capping it off with a train ride to our end point of Matsumoto, with the iconic black castle.

From Tokyo it’s a 90 minute Shinkansen to Nagoya, followed by an hour long journey into the mountains of Gifu - all super accessible. My only advice is to try and book hotels/lodgings a good few weeks ahead, as we found something of a short supply (perhaps given it was April when things get crazy travel wise).

Ali spent two weeks in Japan and claimed the Nakasendo hike to be his favourite stretch; there’s no doubt escaping the city and taking in quiet mountain towns at a gentle pace, sleepy hamlets and gushing streams, is a perspective on Japan not enough folks get to experience.

I can’t recommend it enough and I’m happy to answer any questions you guys might have below.

While I didn’t film it this time (outside of one Instagram reel), the video with Ryotaro does a great job explaining the area and showcasing the towns (in much better bloody weather as well).

Give it a watch if you’re thinking of doing it! Be sure to set aside 3 nights if you can.

Watch Nakasendo Episode: https://youtu.be/VY5uZWFc_UQ?si=meh8f2Ar1-nT6Eqy

And Ali will be appearing on two upcoming Abroad in Japan Podcast episodes chatting about his perfect two weeks in Japan, as well as us chatting about Japanese TV and films including the recent Shogun! (Sad to see it end).

We’ve got also got a very exciting month ahead and a fair few videos coming out, including:

- A big night out in Tokyo with Che Guevara Natsuki himself, revealing nightlife etiquette and tips for travellers to Japan

- A dedicated in-depth travel episode covering Hiroshima (our first time back since 2018 for a travel video)

- The long awaited Q&A video celebrating 3millions subscribers

- Hopefully the cycle video (good luck Paul we believe in you)

- And no less than two absolutely nerve-racking MASSIVE unrelated projects that get underway in May. (More on that in a few weeks).

- If I feel 100% better this weekend, a public live show catching up with the world from the ramen shop

We may also have an epic event in the pipeline which I’ll be promoting on Patreon first-come-first-served as well. As always, best to remain frustratingly tight lipped until the time is right!

Until then guys, have a great first day of May and for the love of god, stay away from poorly refrigerated blue cheese.

Chris