バイクで走れない道、筑波の自転車専用道[BROMPTON M6L 2019]

バイクで走れない道、筑波の自転車専用道[BROMPTON M6L 2019]

JR Shinjuku Station, South Exit.
W800 is under repair so I went out for a bike ride.
I put my bike on the train and headed toward Tsukuba.
Riding up Mt. Tsukuba on a dedicated bicycle path,
Cycling 60km to Tsuchiura station.
I go out with BROMPTON, a folding bicycle.
On a bicycle that folds up extremely easily,
It can be folded in about 15 seconds.
You need a cover to put the bike on the train.
A cycling bag can be stored inside the frame.
After covering the bike with a cover,
Attach the hand straps.
Train with strap on shoulder.
JR Shinjuku station, Chuo line rapid bound for Tokyo.
First, take Chuo Line to Tokyo Station.
JR Tokyo station, Limited Express Tokiwa 51.
From Tokyo station, take Joban line to Tomobe station.
Ekiben for breakfast is served in the train.
Ekiben is a standard "Beef Domannaka", calorie intake.
It rained early in the morning, but it has cleared up.
Arrived at Tomobe station on time, transferring.
JR Tomobe station, Mito Line bound for Oyama.
Mito line to Iwase station, where there is a bicycle path.
JR Iwase station.
It took 3 hours from Shinjuku to the starting point, Iwase station.
Bicycles are assembled in front of the station.
Easy to assemble, really useful bike.
From here we start cycling about 60 km.
JR Iwase station, in front of the station.
First we head for the bicycle path.
Cross the railroad crossing and go around to the back side of Iwase station.
The red paved road is for bicycles only.
Tsukuba Rinrin road, near JR Iwase station.
Pedestrians and bicycles only sign stands.
This road continues for about 40 km to Tsuchiura station.
There are some places along the way where it intersects with farm roads and other roads,
The bicycle path is a priority road and is more comfortable to ride on.
Almost straight dedicated road with gentle curves, if any.
You can concentrate on pedaling your bicycle.
Rinrin Road Former Tsukuba Railway Amabiki station.
This road is the site of abandoned railroad line where the railroad used to run.
This is the site of the Tsukuba Railway, which was abandoned in 1987.
Therefore, the remains of the platform still remain as railroad remains.
There is almost no slope because it is the remains of a railroad track.
Railroad grades are expressed in ‰ (per mil, thousandths).
1‰ means a slope that rises 1 meter in 1000 meters.
Normal railroads are about 35‰ maximum, so the road is almost flat.
There are many fields around as it is a railroad track.
Scenic road continues.
Bike path continues to the end of the overlook.
Bike paths of this scale are rarely seen in Kanto area.
This is the best road that you can never ride a bike on.
We take a break because we have run about 20km in an hour from Iwase station.
Rinrin Road Former Tsukuba Railway Tsukuba Station.
The station at the foot of Mt. Tsukuba is a rest area.
Mt. Tsukuba can be seen from the platform ruins.
They eat a ration of food in preparation for climbing Mt.
I am depressed because a hard slope is waiting for me.
From here, we turn off the bike path and head toward Mt.
Riding toward the ropeway at Mt.
Climbing up the old road "Tsukuba road".
Mt. Tsukuba is a mountain 877m above sea level,
The ropeway stop is at 533m above sea level.
The current elevation is 40m, so the difference in elevation is about 500m.
We are climbing up a residential slope with a nostalgic feel.
Gradually the slope becomes harder and harder, so I climb up by standing and rowing.
Climbing in lightest gear.
When the torii gate appears on the way, it is the halfway point of the slope.
After the torii gate, the slope becomes steep.
Ibaraki Prefectural Road 139, Tsukuba road, near the torii gate.
After the torii gate, the slope increases at once.
Pedaling too hard on the steep slope,
The slope is so steep that the front wheel loses contact with the ground.
It is a normal residential area, so there are quite a few cars driving around.
To avoid cars, you need to get off your bicycle.
Once off the bicycle, it is extremely difficult to get back on again.
The severity of the slope can be seen by looking at the height of the road and the houses.
If you go forward one house distance, you are at the height of the second floor.
It is a slope like climbing stairs.
Climbing up the "Tsukuba Road," you come to the stairs at the end.
Stairs are climbed by carrying a bicycle.
BROMPTON weighs about 12kg, so it is easy to carry.
Finally, I climbed up the "Tsukuba Road".
This is "Tsukuba-do", a pathway that has continued since the Edo period.
Retro post office on this historic road.
You can see that it has climbed a long way from the plain.
Ibaraki Prefectural Road 45, near Mt. Tsukuba Shrine.
After Tsukuba road, we drive on a public road.
The slope is not as severe as the previous one, but it is still hilly.
Taking a break, we continue to climb Mt.
Climbed up to the mountainside.
The view is gradually getting better.
A little over an hour after Tsukuba Station, they finally reached the goal.
Mt. Tsukuba ropeway foot station (Tsutsujigaoka station).
Park the bicycle and take the ropeway.
Ropeway stop is located near the parking lot.
It takes about 6 minutes to get to the top of Mt.
During busy times, the bus runs every 10 minutes.
It is the end of November, but the autumn leaves were a little bit over.
Mt. Tsukuba Nyotaiyama station.
Heading to the observation terrace to take pictures.
Exquisite cloud cover.
We can see the flat land we were running on earlier.
There was a lot of moisture in the air and a beautiful curtain of sun.
I walked around the summit area for a bit and descended early.
Riding the ropeway back to the parking lot.
Ropeway was full both going up and down.
Fuji was seen on the right side of the mountain, though very small.
We descend Mt. Tsukuba and return to the plain.
Wearing a windbreaker as the descent continues.
It was all I could do just to pedal my bike on the way up,
I noticed that the autumn leaves were beautiful on the way down.
On the way down, you can see the view of the plain of Tsukuba.
Descending carefully as there are many sharp curves.
We are now descending to the middle of Mt.Tsukuba.
From here on, the road is not for motorcycles.
Kazakabe Pass Omote-Tsukuba skyline.
There is a sign prohibiting motorcycles on the left.
Bicycles are allowed on this road.
As the name "skyline" implies, this road runs along a ridge.
The road continues to be a pleasant ride with moderate ups and downs.
As the climb approaches, the road continues to change gears.
BROMPTON is a 6-speed vehicle with 3 internal gears and 2 external gears.
It is a real pleasure to make full use of a slightly complicated gearbox.
Going down the Omote-Tsukuba skyline, you will come to a mountain pass.
This pass is famous for bicycle riders in northern Kanto area.
Ibaraki Prefectural Road 138, Fudo Pass.
There was not a single cyclist on this day.
It is all downhill from here to "Rin-Rin Road".
The road is narrow, so you need to be careful of oncoming cars.
The scenery is good, so you can enjoy the descent.
The road surface was wet in the shaded areas.
Fall is slippery due to scattered wood chips and fallen leaves.
There are grating, etc., so run carefully.
Finally down to level ground.
Tired from climbing the mountain, I run in search of a place to eat.
Route 125, Owada, Tsukuba, Ibaraki.
Once on the national highway, looking for a place to eat.
After driving for a few minutes, I find a restaurant and enter.
Restaurant & cafe New Takane.
Restaurant has a nostalgic feel and relaxing atmosphere.
The menu was extensive. I ordered pork gingerbread.
Ginger yaki was the best for my tired body.
By the time I left the restaurant, it was evening sunlight.
Back to "Rinrin Road" where we originally ran.
Tsukuba Rinrin Road Oda, Tsukuba City, Ibaraki Prefecture.
We are back on the flat road, no more hills.
Looking back again at Mt.
I am deeply moved to think that I have reached the top of that mountain.
From here, we run about 15km to Tsuchiura station.
About 15km is the distance that can be run without a break.
Rinrin Road Former Tsukuba Railway, Hitachi Fujisawa Station.
On the way, we passed the remains of a number of stations.
There are people at every station ruins, so there is no sadness of abandoned line.
Rinrin Road, former Tsukuba Railway, Mushikake station.
Many locals used this abandoned railway site.
I felt that this line was still an active "road".
Rinrin Road Former Tsukuba Railway Manabe signal station.
Tsuchiura station is getting closer and taller buildings are increasing.
Finally, we are approaching the end of Rinrin Road.
Crossing the traffic light, we reach the goal, Tsuchiura station.
Finally arriving at Tsuchiura station.
About 60km from Iwase station via Mt.
JR Tsuchiura station, west exit.
Move to the place to fold up bicycles.
From Tsuchiura station, we will go home by wheelbarrow.
Disassembling is a tedious work when you are tired,
BROMPTON is easy to do, so it’s easy to relax.
It is expensive but very useful bike.
The bike is put in a wheeled bag and goes to the platform.
JR Tsuchiura station, Tokiwa 74 limited express train.
This trip was different from touring by motorcycle.
I know that for many of you, wheeling is a hurdle,
Rin-Rin Road also has a bike rental service.
Cycling without luggage is possible and recommended.
I hope this is helpful for outdoor travel.
Thank you for watching to the end.
Train (Shinjuku Station→Iwase Station) 3,560 yen
Train (Tsuchiura Station→Shinjuku Station) 2,360 yen
Beef Bento Boxed Lunch: 1355 yen
Mt. Tsukuba ropeway round trip: 1,300 yen
Restaurant New Takane Ginger-yaki set meal: 1,300 yen
Beer: 226 yen

W800がエンジンオーバーホールで長期間乗れないので、自転車でサイクリングに出かけました。
出かけた場所は筑波にある40kmもの長さを誇るサイクリングロードです。

りんりんロード公式ページ（コース案内）
https://www.ringringroad.com/about/

乗っている自転車（BROMPTON）
https://jp.brompton.com/

タイムチャート
00:00 コースと自転車の紹介
01:09 新宿駅から岩瀬駅へ
02:29 りんりんロード（岩瀬駅から筑波山駅）
06:01 筑波山
11:58 休憩
12:45 つくばりんりんロード（筑波山駅から土浦駅）
14:56 費用などの紹介