The first day! Walking 1500kms to Tokyo on the Tokai Nature Trail/Tokai Shizen Hodo 東海自然歩道.

JAPAN THRU HIKE:
Hiking the Tokai Nature Trail 東海自然歩道。
Osaka to Tokyo 大阪～東京。
Day 1: Osaka Station to Mino-o Station.

We bid farewell to the Kyoto mountains for a while and take to the backroads* of Japan for a long walk to Tokyo from Osaka along the Tokai Nature Trail (or Tokai Shizen Hodo). It's an idea I've entertained on and off since arriving in Japan and discovered whilst living in the Mino-o area 20 odd years ago.
Just before Christmas, I'd become a little jaded with the Kyoto mountains and even though I only had thirty or so left to climb before completing the hundred I felt ready for a new challenge.
I would cross paths with the Tokai at times when hunting down the Kyoto 100 and I guess she finally lured me from my set path with promises of gentler climbs (not that I entirely believe her on that), a variety of vistas and new areas to explore that don't confine the hiker entirely to the remote mountain trails.
I won't be hiking the trail all at once. I'm juggling work and family and the prolonged gestation of my Hyakumeizan memoir. It'll be a section hike with the aim of completing it as a thru-hike if I make it to Tokyo within the calendar year; because as far as I can tell, as long as you complete a long-distance hike within a calendar year you can call it a thru-hike - a lazy man's thru-hike though this may be.
On the upside, spreading this trail out over the course of 2022 allows me the advantage of bringing it to you across the full-colour spectrum of the Japanese seasons - something a traditional attempt at hiking this trail wouldn't really allow due to its relatively short 'long distance.'
I've never researched the trail deeply. This trip will be my research. I believe this 'forgotten' trail is finally gaining a little international attention. Hopefully, this video series helps. Though the route may not always be deep in the wilderness, from what little I understand, I think it offers hikers both a challenge and a glimpse into the oft-overlooked rural areas of Japan.
So, follow along. The plan is to release a new episode at the end of each week. Shoot any questions my way. I'm as curious as you about this trail.
Oh, and as for this episode, we're not even on the Tokai. I just decided to walk from Osaka Station to Tokyo Station as a prelude/epilogue respectively to hopefully push my trail miles over the thousand-mile mark.

*not this episode

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Video Music: @epidemic sound