I Have a Plan - Sort Of

It's been a long time since I've updated this page, mostly because I've been crazy busy for the past two weekends, which is when I usually get to update it. I've also been busy booking places to stay on the trip, and I'd say I'm a little more than half way through that process, which is pretty good. I have some gaps in there though, and I'm trying to figure out how exactly I'm going to go about sleeping in those cases. As I see it there a few options.

My first option (which is really a group of related options) is to either fax or call the places I haven't been able to book online through sites like Rakuten. Fax is a better option, as I've heard generally Japanese speakers are often more comfortable with written English. The downside is I don't really have anywhere where I can fax the document and wait to make sure I get the return fax. And although my Japanese is improving in very basic scenarios thanks to JapanesePod, I'm not quite delusional or drunk enough at the moment to think I can call one of these places up and sound coherent. My friend Yuuji has offered to call some of the places up for me and take care of it in Japanese for me, and in some of the busier areas where things might get filled up, I may take him up on that offer. Another thought is to try and have some of my previous hotels, or even the Tourist Information Center at Narita Airport to call them up on my behalf.

My second option is to try and book a place using my extremely limited Japanese at the Tourist Information Centers that are located by the train station in most towns throughout Japan. This could be difficult - I'm well aware most of the clerks won't speak a word of English. The thought of me standing there repeating minshuku or ryokan to a confused attendant is somewhat funny though. And I'm thinking with a phrasebook it's possible that I could pull this one off in a bind.

The third option, which I'm considering more and more, is to simply attempt stealth camping or nojuku, which is what my friend over at 546km is planning on doing for the whole trip. In places like the Kiso Valley, I think this might be my only option if I can't find a place to stay. Figuring out gear for this scenario is a little more complicated though, and I really don't want to carry all the extra weight of a tent for limited use. One thing I've considered is just going the way of many ultra-light hikers and using a bivy as a shelter. One option I definitely don't want to pursue is sleeping outside, no shelter, in the rain. 

All in all I will probably pursue a mixture of all three options and see where that takes me. Sleeping outside could potentially suck, depending on weather and the availability of stealth camping sites. But it may also be a great cost saver in a country where even budget accommodations aren't very budget. More to come, including pictures of an Appalachian Trail Hike I've done a few times over the past few weeks.

Estimated Distance Walked Since Last Post: 39 miles

Total Distance Walked: 58.28 miles