A good start to the day with our friendly neighbours bringing us some BBQ beef for breakfast. The weather forecast for today was for rain so we were a bit unsure as to what to do... stay put or move on. We decided to move on and were very lucky as it didn't rain all day. Just a few drops as we pulled into our current camp. It is definitely raining now though. Once again, many tunnels, the longest was 5km, the worst was 3 km and mostly uphill. Tough going. We did...

One word for today, tunnels! We played at the beach in the morning for a bit then set off along the main road (no alternatives for this stretch). A beautiful stretch of coastline, lush green forest interspersed with tiny fishing villages and many many tunnels. The longest two were 3 kilometres long each. It is quite an eerie feeling being so deep inside a tunnel like that; the noise is horrendous, the fumes not so pleasant. Thankfully, we came prepared with refl...

Today started off wet and we pondered staying another night at the hotel. But I was keen to get started so we did! A minor gear hiccup saw Shane having to come up with a creative solution to fitting both the pannier and the bike trailer at the same time then we were on the road. Actually it was a bike path that ran along the Toyohira river for about 20 km and took us all the way out of Sapporo without seeing a soul. Passed a few dairy farms then used the paved ...

We seem to have settled into a bit of a routine. Big buffet breakfast, hang around the hotel room for a bit then head to the park for a play and a walk around. There are always other kids at the playground but they seem shy of Elsie and vice versa. However, she's loving having both mummy and daddy to boss around! Then back to the hotel room for more gear sorting and organising plus some sushi and random bits and pieces for lunch from the 7 Eleven. Then this ...

Another chilled day hanging out at the park and putting the bikes together in the hotel room. Hotel staff look at us like we're crazy walking our bikes through the lobby for a trial run to make sure everything works. Navigated our way through the crowds of pedestrians, cars and other cyclists (none of whom wear helmets). Shane seems to have quickly mastered the art of zipping through the gaps while I hang back terrified I'm going to take out some poor old lady wi...