Journey through Shimanami Kaido①Onomichi

Hello!
As I visited the Shimanami Kaido on the west side of the Seto Inland Sea around this spring, I would like to introduce tourist attractions with some pictures.

The "Shimanami Kaido (Nishiseto Expressway)" is a 59.4km long main road linking Onomichi City (Hiroshima Prefecture) and Imabari City (Ehime Prefecture). Ten bridges across the strait connect 6 islands.
The cycling trail, which runs along the main roads, has become popular in Japan and abroad as a bicycle trail that can cross the strait for the first time.
More than 20 years have passed since its opening and the number of travelers visiting there continues to grow, and it boasts a high profile that makes it one of CNN's seven largest cycling trails in the world.
(http://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/hiroshima-shimanami-kaido-cycling/index.html)
The source of that attraction is the unique islands that make up the seaways. This time, I would like to write about Hiroshima Onomichi City, the starting point of this highway.

【Access】
Onomichi has historically been developed as a logistics relay point, and access is relatively good.
The main transportation are the following four.
1. Car (about 1 hour 20 minutes by car from Sanyo Expressway, drop off at Onomichi JCT, Hiroshima to city north)
2. Shinkansen (By Sanyo Shinkansen, get off at Shin Onomichi Station (Only Kodama train stops), about 1 hour 30 minutes from Shin Osaka), then take a bus to the Onomichi Station (about 15 minutes)
3. Aircraft (After arriving at Hiroshima Airport, move to Mihara Station by bus (about 40 minutes), and then to Onomichi Station (15 minutes).
4. Express bus (11 hours from Shinjuku(Tokyo), 5 hours from Namba-cho(Osaka))

Considering these 4 routes, is the most reasonable transportation Shinkansen?
We were three to plan the cycling trip this time, but the other two excepted me to book the overnight express bus from the Shinjuku Bus Terminal for spending half a day to get to Onomichi, but I wanted to sightsee a little bit in Onomichi so I arrived the previous day with the early flight.
Once I flew to Hiroshima Airport, I moved from the airport to Mihara Station by bus, and then I entered Onomichi on a conventional line. The scenery from the train window of the Sanyo Main Line is so quaint.

【Highlights】
Onomichi features a very narrow seafront flatland and buildings lined with mountains. As soon as you leave the station, you will see a small mountain and castle tower. The tourist spots are basically within walking distance, and there is also a ropeway if you want to go to the summit of the mountain.
If you go to the top of the mountain by ropeway at first, it may be interesting to go through the Onomichi Hondori shopping street where the buildings of 20th century remain.
At ONOMICHI U2 on the way, there are bakery,  restaurant, cafe, hotel, etc. in the renovated building, always crowded with tourists.
Well, if you head to the observation deck on the summit, it may be convenient to go on a ropeway, but if you want to explore Onomichi, let's climb the steepy narrow "Cat alley".

The narrow alley that runs from the Kashiwa Shrine to the ropeway platform to the three-stories pagoda is the "Cat alley". 
If you look closely at the paved road, the place where the stamps of remaining cat's foot are left here and there ...
Besides this narrow alley, I took a walk around the city. Feeling like I was being watched, I turned around, and there were cats glancing at me a couple of times. Since there is a substancial cat population, I could find many products related to cats at the stores, bakeries and museums in the city.
If you are a cat person, why don't you stop by after visiting Cat Island in the Seto Inland Sea?


And then, I arrived at the summit before taking too much photos of the stamps.
At the top of the mountain, Senkoji Park overlooks the entire Onomichi, and it offers wonderful views both during the daytime and after sunset.
Even on the side of the castle tower (museum track) slightly away from the summit, you can see a wonderful night view over the Onomichi channel between Onomichi and Mukojima.

Passing through the paths I walked at daytime,

I felt nostalgia for the time when I got off the mountain and down to the shopping street. 

Try to eat famous Onomichi ramen if you are hungry.　There are many ways to enjoy it.

In addition, various events such as Gion Festival, Suigun Festival, Sumiyoshi Fireworks Festival, and Lighting Festival are held in summer. Come and enjoy the onomichi charm!

Next time, we will introduce Mukojima, Innoshima, Ikuguchijima on the Hiroshima Prefecture side of Onomichi to Shimanami Kaido!

Click here to know the detail of our fleets ( Japan Yacht Experience )

Click here to see our tour : Naoshima Yacht Cruising ＆ Shimanami Kaido Cycling 8 days ( standard tour with Peak Experience Japan )