Kohama Coast to Sanrigahama Coast

 

Toda is a fairly large village at the western end of Kohama Beach. Big enough to have a Junior High School, as well as an Elementary school.

It only has a tiny fishing harbour, so I am guessing it is primarily based around agriculture. It is, like everywhere else, on the Japanese coast, well protected against the sea by concrete fortifications.

On my way out of the village, I stopped in at the village shrine, a fairly standard Hachiman Shrine with nothing special to see and no signboard with info. Actually, at some point, I crossed the boundary into Kiami.

The road continues alongside the beach for quite a way....

Kannon Rock is apparently a popular sunset photo spot. There are countless rocks that share the name Kannon Rock. Some have a resemblance to the Goddess of Mercy, Kannon. Many, like this one, do not

The cormorants seem to spend a lot of time here, judging by the amount of guano....

Now Sanrigahama Beach begins....

Sanrigahama Park has this large stone sculpture. Seems to have been influenced by Stonehenge. Up ahead an abandoned resort hotel.....

The previous post in this series on day 33 of my walk along the Chugoku Kannon Pilgrimage was on the scenic Ebisu Shrine in Todakohama.

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namBa H!PS

 

Though sometimes I make spelling mistakes, the title of this post is not one of them.. .... this is really how the building is named.

It was designed by one of my favorite Japanese architects, Shin Takamatsu, a Shimane- born architect.

It is an entertainment complex and opened in 2007.

The red structure running up inside the hourglass-shaped cavity is actually a free-fall type of amusement park ride called YABAFO.

The complex is home to restaurants, spas, pachinko parlors, and karaoke. There is even a golf studio and the exterior of the building is used for rock climbing events.

The above photo seems to be a love hotel. I spotted the composition while walking around Namba Hips...

The previous post in this series on Osaka was on Namba Hatch, the nearby music venue...

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Ebisu Shrine on Miyagajima Island

 

Miyagajima is a small island connected to the mainland by a sandbar that at the highest tides disappears beneath the water.

However, the tides along this stretch of Japan Sea coastline are really quite small and my guess is the highest tides of the year probably cut off access for just a few hours on a few days a year.

That has not stopped some local tourist websites claiming it to be the San-in Mont St. Michel.

The Ebisu Shrine, a branch of Miho Shrine, was established at another site in 1709.

It was moved here in 1867....

There is nothing of note at the shrine, though the views of the shrine are quite cool and the views from the shrine are good...

The previous post was on the walk over the headland from Iinoura.

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Upper Saigo Bay

 

The main port of Dogo Island in the Japan Sea off the coast of Shimane is Saigo.

The mouth of Saigo Bay is less than 300 meters wide, but the bay opens up with a long arms headong West and North.

These shots were taken at the northern edge of the bay where the main road that encircles the island passes.

This was the first day of my 3 day walk around the circumference of the island.

The Sea of Japan coast has some of the best and most dramatic coastline in all of Japan, with Shimane and the Oki Islands ranking near the top.

It was a beautiful, still day, enabling clear views....

The Oki Islands are a favored destination for scuba divers..... or if you dont dive, you can take an underwater viewing boat...

The previous post in this series on the Oki Islands was on one of the mysterious, unique trees on Dogo.

If you would like to subscribe by email just leave your email address in the comments below. It will not be published and made public. I post new content almost everyday, and send out an email about twice a month with short descriptions and links to the last ten posts.