Mikawa Bike Ride

I rode the JR Tokaido line out to Okazaki today, and headed toward Nishio. The ride today was completely flat, and it was warm and sunny. I had a low battery on my phone, so I conserved power by following the main roads. Traffic was not too heavy, the roads were wide, and I was surrounded by farmland all day. There were plenty of stoplights.

I made it to 金蓮寺 Konren-ji, home of Aichi’s oldest wooden building 弥陀堂 Amitabha (Buddha) Hall, and one of Aichi’s three national treasures (the other two are in Inuyama).

I was greeted with a cup of tea, and a monk explained the history of the area. He recommended some other famous sites. There are many temples in the vicinity. Inside the main building, there were illustrated Meiji-era boards of local youth being sent off to war.

I crossed the Yahagi River and was in Hekinan. There were tall silos, great ships smelled like grain.

The purpose for my visit here was to investigate the Kinuura Tunnel, Japan’s first (1973) tunnel that used pre-fabricated box culverts that were buried under the sea. It connects the East Wharf of the Kinuura Port in Hekinan（碧南市東埠頭）with Handa’s Central Wharf（半田市衣浦港の中央ふ頭）. The pedestrian/bike tunnel plays an AM radio station as you descend the 11 flights of stairs. I think the sign said the length was 480m.