As we were leaving the Daikannon at Kamaishi, I gave Lester a call in Morioka.  I think the last time we got together was back in November and I figured that since we would be in the general vicinity we’d stop by and have some dinner.  After asking his girlfriend if he could come out and play with his friends, I said I’d give him a call when we arrived in Morioka.  Before that though, Craig and I had to make it to our 3rd and final stop on our sightseeing tour of Iwate, Jodogahama Beach in Miyako City.

After stopping by a Lawson’s to get some quick energy we hit the road again.  By this time we’d been on the road for 6 or 7 hours.  I was a little worried that we wouldn’t have enough light to check out the beach, but there was really nothing we could do about getting their any faster.  We cut through the mountains, going through 15-20 tunnels of various sizes and lengths.

Jodogahama Beach (the green marker) isn’t your typical sandy beach, rather a brief respite from the rocky cliffs that line Iwate’s coast.  The park surrounding the beach looked nice; large with lots of small trails going in every direction.  You can also rent boats and navigate the bay.  Surely it’s a beautiful place to visit in the spring and summer.

Jodogahama Beach, Miyako City, Iwate Prefecture

Having taken our fill of photos, we set off for Morioka, and dinner.  We followed the Shimohei River back into the mountains, encountering quite a bit of snow as we progressed inland.  I would’ve liked to make it up to Ryusendo Cave, but we just didn’t have the time.

Finally making it into Morioka, we met up with Lester and Rie and feasted on some yakiniku.  Yakiniku is probably my favourite dining experience in Japan.  The only thing that would’ve made it a perfect meal was a nice tall frosty beer, but alas I was the driver.

Feeling adequately recharged for the drive home, we said farewell to Morioka and headed south back to Miyagi Prefecture, this time on the expressway.  Craig helped keep me awake by talking movies, and before we knew it we were back home.  The longest 600 kilometers I’ve ever driven, we were on the road for 14 hours, driving 11 of them.  I slept well that night!