Yuru Camp△ 3 – 05 – Yakiniku Aromatherapy

Nadeshiko has a little more solo time at the campsite, and uses it wisely. The firewood sold at the camp office is too big for Rin’s adorable stove, so Nadeshiko uses Rin’s trusty billhook to split the logs, which is a gentler and more precise process than hacking at them with a hatchet. She then makes some quick, easy, and scrumptious amazake cookies to go with her green tea.

After looking at some of the photos Ayano sent her and musing on how it’s funny seeing her older and newer best friends hanging out, Nadeshiko is doodling her dinner plan when she hears the familiar rattle of two low-displacement motorbike engines: Rin and Ayano have finally arrived and the trio has reunited at last. Mere moments after dismounting her bike, Ayano collapses, and leaves setting up her lightweight tent to the other two.

Once the tents are up, the preparation of their great beef feast can commence. Nadeshiko poaches the packaged Hamamatsu Hamburg steaks in water while Rin prepares her pressure cooker beef stew, a method suggested by her mom. The steaks are finished over the fire on sticks, and the meal is completed with omurice and onion sauce.

Inspired by the Dam Curry, Nadeshiko plates everything up into Hatanagi Dam Beef Stew Omelet-Hamburg Rice, with the added fluorish of a chili pepper representing the scary Hatanagi Ootsuribashi (bridge). Like the bridge, the pepper is spicy (i.e. scary) at first, but ends up being a rewarding experience, cutting through the meaty umami. She also makes a candle out of the excess steak fat, adding a warm light and beefy perfume to the feast.

When all the feasting is done and it’s time to turn in, Nadeshiko and Ayano have some quality time together, though it doesn’t last long as after 180 km of traveling, Ayano is absolutely gassed. Even so, Nadeshiko appreciates the time she has with her old friend, and turns in herself. Perhaps fortunately, there is no exploration of the, shall we say digestive aftermath of eating so much beef!

Post-credits, Ayano emerges from her caterpillar-like down sleeping bag to find Nadeshiko is already up. They sit together with hot amazake and watch the world slowly wake up with them, gradually growing brighter and brighter. I get that too, and I’ve been trying to get up earlier more often myself so I can experience this truly magical time. This was a lovely cozy way to cap the previous episodes of travel and adventure.

Yuru Camp△ 3 – 04 – The Grandriders

After a fun train ride munching on snacks with fellow travelers and watching the rare public merging of trains to go up the mountain, Nadeshiko follows the route to her campsite, but along the way is a scary dark tunnel.

The locals don’t do her any favors by sticking homemade ghosts in the tunnel to scare the Bejeesus out of her. Once she’s through and checks into the campsite, she checks out the Nagashima Dam, then hops back on the train to see the “egg” in her dam curry.

Rin and Ayano’s motorbike adventure continues with yet another suspension bridge (Ikawa Ohashi) then Ayano breaks her pledge to skip lunch. That said, it’s actually a very good idea for them to eat, since the road has been much tougher than they expected.

After an oden lunch they continue their ride, which takes them through seven tunnels to Lake Hatanagi. As they walk along a closed muddy road to reach the last bridge on the list, Ayano acknowledges that both of their grandpas rode bikes too.

The Lake Hatanaagi Ootsuribashi turns out to be the scariest bridge by far, what with its minimalist construction and tendency to creak with each step and sway in the wind. Rin and Ayano press on, doing what they set out to do, even though it only gets more terrifying the further out they get.

Between this ordeal and Nadeshiko’s haunted tunnel experience, things are decidedly less chill this week (at least relative to your typical Yuru Camp) but honestly that’s okay, because it makes the relief once those ordeals are done that much more sweet.

The “egg” of Nadeshiko’s dam curry is Okuoikojo Station, dramatically situated on an island in the middle of the lake—the yolk of the egg. While Nadeshiko’s smartphone is no match for the fancy real cameras of other visitors, she still whips it out to take a panorama, because this is the kind of place panorama mode was designed for.

Rin and Ayano again demonstrate excellent judgment by turning straight back to the bridge and going back the moment they spot a bear warning sign. We don’t need out Grandriders eaten, no sir! Instead they head to the hot springs to soak and warm up after so many hours in the saddle.

Their next stop is the campsite 34 kilometers away, where they’ll finally meet up with Nadeshiko. But during their bath, the two really seem to click, gently teasing each other for the faces they made on the bridge before expressing their heartfelt gratitude for being able to share this adventure. No doubt they’ll be going on more together.