Yakushima Newsletter July 2009

www.yakumonkey.com NEWSLETTER Issue #7

THE ECLIPSE The major event for July is the eclipse of the sun which takes place in the morning of July 22nd. It has been the cause of much debate in Yakushima about how to balance the delicacy of nature with the expected numbers of eclipse watchers. In the end a lottery system was created so that 4,500 special ticket holders could see the eclipse in Yakushima. Any more and the island's infrastructure would be unable to hold up under the strain. As a result of this from July 19th to July 25th access by ferry and jet foil is controlled by the town hall. If you do not have permission, you may be denied boarding during these dates. Flights do not have the same restrictions although they sold out long ago.

JULY 2009 Yakushima is in Onoaida where it will last 4 min 6 seconds. Next best is at Kamiyama school in Hara which is eclipsed at almost exactly 10.56 for 3 min 51 secs.

Watch out for the Yakushima eclipse souvenirs. There are special edition bottles of Shochu which are presented in their very own eclipse boxes.

In this Issue

As can be seen from the illustration above the trajectory of the eclipse runs over Yakushima and many of the smaller islands of the Ryukyu island chain. There are also limited edition eclipse stamps to collect. The best place to see the eclipse on

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The Eclipse

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Road Closures

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Shuttle bus

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Summer festivals

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Sea Turtles

Summer Festivals July 18th Hirauchi Seaside onsen festival is from 6 pm.

July 19th 'Hama' festival at Isso port. There is a boat parade from 9 am and from 10.30 am there is a fish market and show.

July 19th & 20th Anbo festival begins at 7 pm in Anbo port. The fireworks are on the 20th.

Arakawa Trail Entrance Travel Restrictions The stretch of road between Arakawa junction and the Arakawa Trail Entrance is closed to traffic and walkers from July18th to September 22nd for a total of 67 days. The only way you can get to the Trail entrance is by shuttle bus, organised coach or taxi. By taxi: Taxis need a special 'ticket' which costs 250 yen and without it will not be allowed up. By bus: A shuttle bus will run from Yakusugi museum to Arakawa Trail Entrance and will cost (one way) ¥1000 for adults and ¥500 for (Elementary School) children. If you intend on returning on the bus you must purchase two oneway tickets prior to travelling. Both of the above tickets for the taxi and bus can only be

bought the day before at the following places: • Airport Tourist Information Centre [Tel: 49-4010] Open 8.30am – 6pm • Miyanoura Tourist Information Centre [Tel: 42-1019] Open 8.30am – 5pm • Anbo Tourist Information Centre [Tel: 46-2333] Open 8.30am – 5pm • Yakusugi Museum [Tel: 463113] Open 9am – 6pm • Yakushima Environmental Culture Village Centre [Tel: 42-2900] Open 9am - 6pm

6 buses - 4.45am, 5am, 5.15am, 5.30am (connects with the Matsubanda bus), 5.45 am (connects with the Yakushima Kotsu bus), 6am. From Arakawa Trail Entrance: 13 buses 1.30pm, 2.30pm, 3pm, 3.30pm, 3.45pm, 4pm, 4.15pm, 4.30pm (connects with the Matsubanda bus), 4.45pm, 5pm (connects with the Yakushima Kotsu bus), 5.15pm, 5.30pm and 6pm.

Turtle egg laying season continues

If you don't use the ticket, you can get a refund. One half of the ticket is retained and is a coupon for use in Yakushima (so don't throw it away!)

The Shuttle bus Timetable:

Yakushima is a place of international importance when it comes to turtles. Last year the beaches in Nagata saw around 5,700 turtles landings, 3,000 of which laid eggs.

From Yakusugi museum car park:

If you wish to see the spectacular sight of a

turtle laying its eggs, the Yakushima Umigame Center runs a nightly program of lecture/video/viewing at Inagahama beach in Nagata. This gets very busy so it is now necessary to pre-book at the tourist information office or via your accommodation. The numbers of turtles coming ashore to lay eggs gradually dwindles as the month progresses and by the end of July the Umigame center stops the viewing program. There are more details about the whole turtle visit experience in the guide book.

Shiratani Unsuikyo Access Road

repairs to winter damage are expected to be completed. But also note that if there is heavy rainfall (continuous rainfall of 100 mm or more) the road will be closed. So be prepared with a plan B should the access be restricted. One way would be to climb up the Kusugawa trail to Shiratani and avoid the road altogether.

Yakumonkey Guide on sale in Yakushima The guide book is now available to buy in Yakushima in the trail store at Yakusugiland and other outlets on the island.

The road to Shiratani from Miyanoura is still only open to traffic between 8 am and 5 pm until July 31st.

After this time the

If you buy it elsewhere look around for the lowest price as some booksellers are trying

to sell it way above the published price.

and I can then inform everyone else.

In Japan, amazon.co.jp bring the price up and down like a yo-yo.

Thank you.

In the US, Barnes and Noble have it at $14.15 and lulu.com at $15.38. In Europe, you should be able to find it for around €12.50 or £10.95. Should you have any difficulty locating a copy of the guide wherever you may be let me know and I will see if I can help. Updates on the information in the guide book will be on yakumonkey.com website at 'the guide book page' link. Changes so far are to parts of the Matsubanda bus timetable which was revised after the guide book was published. Also the relocation of 'Andes' hiking store in Anbo and the closure of Cafe Green Shower in Yudomari. If you come across any changes to details in the guide book, please let me know at www.yakumonkey.com

Copyright © Clive Witham 2009