Noboribetsu - Hell Valley

Well this is embarrassing! I wrote a few post on Noboribetsu and forgetfully left out the main attraction! Yeah, I'm the type of traveller that needs to be dragged to visit the Eiffel Tower when I visit Paris. (Trus Story!). I hate  main attraction because they are usually crowded, expensive, and over rate. 

So to get me warm up, maybe I'll write above the geyser hole next to our inn first. It was just, well, next door.  I can't remember if I visited it last time, but the very small park has one dark hole in it. 

And this is what the hole looks like. You can hear the steam and bubbling sound coming out of it. It sounds like it's going to explode any time. You can't really get close to it as it's blocked off. Every once it a while, some steam/water comes out burning hot! The sound was so loud. It really gives you the imaginary image of how hot our earth's core is, and how powerful it is. 

Ok, so off to the main attraction. We wanted to go on the first day, but it was filled with elderly tourist walking at super slow speed in the winter that we decided to come back when it was less crowded. On the day we visit, it was filled with Korean tourist. At the start/end of the path, there is a shrine. It was easier to walk in a sense cause the path is covered in broad walk. But it also means that the snow turned into ice, and it was super slippery, and sloppy, and you hold on to the rails like crazy. 

Hell Valley is the main attraction in Noboribetsu. It's free, so do visit it. You can walk here day time or night time! They illuminate the place at night. It's just a small valley, and you can walk into it and out in less than an hour. 

All around it, you will smell the scent of sulphur, and see the mountains surrounding it. The path just leads you in, and around the hot geyser in the center. 

This is where the center of the heat seems to be coming from. You can boil an egg here and eat it for long life. We've done all those cliches things before, in the comfort of a small town called Yunomine in Wakayama.

Ok! And that's it for Noboribetsu! Next stop, another hot spring resort called Jozankei!

Noboribetsu - Interesting Characters Around Town

Since I did a post on Otaru's interesting character around town, I thought I'll do a similar one of Noboribetsu. So let's start with little Jizo in the snow. I have mentioned it before in the hiking in the snow post. I love Jizo. I just think it's so thoughtful to have a guardian taking care of you while you walk. It's like you are never alone, so you don't have to be afraid. 

But before we get carried away here, Noboribetsu is famously known as Hell Valley! So Demons are them main attraction here. You can see the very first and visible one as you enter the Noboribetsu area, right at the highway, a super large red demon points you towards the down and welcomes you into Hell Valley! Which reminds me, after all the post on Noboribetsu, I've totally forgotten to blog about the main attraction itself - Hell Valley! Face palm. Stay tune!

 

But let us get the demon out of the way first. So in order of appearance, and apart from the night demons I have mentioned in my previous night post, above is the blue demon and its (I assume) kid. See, demons are also family oriented! We came across them after our natural hot spring footpath. As we walk back to town via a not-so-crowded highway, there are carparks and little shrines along the way. The blue giants were found at one of the carpark. For comparison, you can see a small car parked at the left side of the photo. That's how huge these giants are. 

We also came across a shrine that has two demons guarding it. So above is the green demon.

And here is the red/orange demon. I guess maybe in their folklore, all these demons actually live in the Hell Valley, and this was their home before humans inhabitate it. Now they have become popular tourist attraction and souvenirs to tourist instead. Still, it's nice to see them around. 

Noboribetsu - Lunch

We'll end our Noboribetsu adventure with a food blog on the lunch we had at our 2nd day there. After our morning hike, we were starving. So we walked back to town to look for lunch. Above is a bbq scallop we had for lunch. It cost around 500yen each. 

My friend, who was there a few days earlier, had actually left a social media message for me to try the ramen there. We found the shop, but sadly, it was closed on that day. So ended up in a seafood bbq shop instead. They were bbq-ing scallop outside the store, and the smell was delicious, so we ordered a few to go with our rice set.

My husband had the scallop sashimi rice. Look at those juicy succulent scallops! Oh my! 

I ordered the minced tuna without hesitating, cause this is one dish I love in Japan, which I can't get in Singapore with the same quality. It came with a raw egg! Yummy! The meal wasn't that filling. It was just sufficient to last us till dinner. Since dinner was at the inn and buffet style, this light lunch was just nice for us. The next day, we left Noboribetsu via bus back to Sapporo. Continue reading to see where we went next!

Noboribetsu - Natural Hotspring Footpath

One of the highlight of our hike was a natural hot spring footpath at the end point. You could smell it even before seeing it. The walking path got narrower and downhill, cross a small section of a road, and further down we went. Soon we came across it. Again, there weren't many people around, which is always a good thing for us. Above is a photo taken from my hubby just as we approach the hot spring. In the photo, you can see me looking out into the stream of hot water. Isn't that cool?

The stream has steam coming off it along the way. That's me again on the top photo. The colour of the stream was also kinda cloudy, and there were no fish in it. The travel site said you can soak your tired legs here. Problem was, we didn't know how hot was it. 

The sign here also says please be careful with your leg inside the water. 

So what they meant was that you should be careful, especially when there are eruption at the top, cause the hot rocks might slow down and making the water hot, and when it reach the footpath, it would be burning. 

In case you can't read Japanese, there is also a nice English translation. 

But lucky for us, we show one guy soaking his leg just as we were approaching the footpath area. Since I reach there first, i tested the water with my hands, and started taking off my shoes. It was a nice soak, especially  in the cold! It was nice that they made the wooden edges for you so that you can step in and out off, or even take a relaxing rest on it. Putting your legs in was not a problem at all. Putting it back in while it's wet, plus winter, plus sand and stone was a lot more challenging. But I managed. My husband couldn't be bothered with it. Luckily it was almost noon time, so the weather has kinda cleared up. The whole hike had been a wonderful experience! If you are there in the winter, its highly recommended. Bring proper footwear, wear gloves, and bring a phone for emergency. Make sure you set off early, and get back before it starts to get dark. You know, all the common sense things. Never take your own safety for granted. Be well prepared if you ever go hiking, 

Noboribetsu - Hiking In The Snow

I remembered we walked to the famous Hell Valley on our first day in Noboribetsu, but it was so crowded with tourist and older people that the walk was really slow. We were also losing sunlight, so we headed towards the opposite path instead and up into the hill side. Climbing stairs in the winter snow is not an easy task! Luckily we have spikes on our shoes. Please get spikes if you plan to hike in the snow! Anyway, we came across picnic ground with nobody in them. It was such a beautiful, peaceful, and quiet site as compared to Hell Valley.

The map indicate that this was the national park, and recommended good location for picnic. We don't recommend picnic in winter, but the hiking path look so inviting! OK, maybe inviting may not be the word for everyone, but it definitely looked like something I've never done before. Even the thought of falling and slipping in the snow in the wilderness didn't seems to stopped me. It did ran across my mind. But this was a once in a life time occasion! But sadly, it was getting dark. And we had 2 days in Noboribetsu. So we came back the next morning to hike the path.

This is the start of the path. The sign on the right seems to indicate that there is a big hot spring pool inside. I didn't do my research for this part of Noboribetsu. I thought there was only Hell Valley to see here. I was only planning on soaking in the hot spring and maybe walk the broadwalk of Hell Valley which can be done in less than an hour....But that snow path leading into nowhere, that looked so inviting! 

Here shows a sample of some of the path. Covered in deep snow, and slippery with stairs and slope along the way. Luckily there were ropes around to help you steady yourself and also pull yourself up. Just the one photo was enough to satisfied the hike. So beautiful. This is  my kinda of winter wonderland! Not the Christmas village in Sapporo, not the Christmas lighting! But hiking in the snow into the woods alone. Bucket list item. 

At different section of the path, there are signs to show you where you have arrived, and the scenes best viewed here, or common known as "Photo Spot". We only came across a few people on our hike.

So apparently the big hot spring pool that was mentioned at the entrance leads us here.

Frankly this was better than Hell Valley. It was surreal.  And so I will leave you here for today, with 5 other photos that captured the winter scenes of our hike. This was one of those albums that I wanted to just upload everything to show. Cause coming from a tropical country, seeing snow, especially this much and in the wild, is something very rare for me. So I got to treasure it. 

Trees without leaves in the winter are so beautiful in their own unique way. 

Coloured seeds, browned plants, and snow make such a pretty photo.

Snow on log, with the big hot spring pool behind it.

Hot spring river next to walking path and a slight rainbow. More on the hot spring in next post.

Jizo, protecting us along the path.

Noboribetsu - Night View

Noboribetsu only has one main shopping street, and that is where we wonder to at night. All the shops can be found there. The lights at night are kinda traditional of a small town, yet very Japanese feel to it. 

Some shops have traditional lanterns out front and they make it look so pretty. Hell gods were everywhere in this small town.

This is one of the biggest souvenir shop there, and it was there when I first visited Noboribetsu maybe in 2004. This trip was in 2016, so 12 years in business! Not too bad.

There are demons alter everywhere. Just pay respect.

Right outside our hotel, there is another robotic hell demon short show as well. It plays at a fixed interval every night and attracts the crowd due to its loud noises and visual effect. 

Apparently hell demons are very forgetful and they leave their baton everywhere. You can also buy there for souvenirs. 

Here's my husband outside the convenient store with a demon mascot. The umbrella he is holding was provided by the hotel we were staying at. 

And pudding seems to be the popular produce here! I bought a few cause I love them. I love the black sugar that comes with it and the creamy texture. The one above is actually made of quail egg! I always though pudding were made of just milk. Now I know better! When I buy some to from Meidiya in Singapore to make at home, the recipe actually calls for one egg yolk! And it does make the pudding more solid and more firm. And after trying japanese pudding, it was kinda hard to go back to my normal one cause the japanese black sugar is just to die for! Not only does it provide the sweetness, but it also has a bitter taste and burned fragrant to it!

Here's another pudding I tried. The bottle may looked familiar, cause I actually brought them home. Whenever I make caramel, I use them so that I can experience back the Noboribetsu moment! Best idea for souvenir cause it cost nothing but the space to carry them back....

Noboribetsu Hotels

After our Otaru day trip, it was time to venture further from the city. Next stop, Hell Valley! Also known as Noboribetsu. We took a direct bus there from Sapporo station. You have to reserve before hand and pay for it. There are other resorts where transport is actually provided free of charge. Do check their website (english and japanese) to see if you can get a free ride there. If you or a Japanese speaker call them, it would also be easier sometimes. The bus ride there took a few hours, and we took in the view of the winter wonderland as we went along.

Noboribetsu is a hot spring resort. This was also my 2nd time here. The first time here, I stayed at the big hotel you see here in the photo above. It cost me around SGD200+ per person per night! This time round, I was a lot smarter. I stayed at an inn opposite the big hotel, paid a fraction of the price, and still get access to the big hotel's facilities! Smart move! I've left the two hotel's link below for your preference. Unless you want a high end buffet dinner with snow crab and staff, I would recommend you stay at the inn instead. The reception is super friendly too, so it adds a personal touch to the whole experience. 

We checked in, and as usual, a small snack was waiting for us in the room. Same snack you would get in the big hotel too! Don't waste your money!

Tea is provided in the room, but my husband needed to try all the alcohol that Japan has to offer. There are a few convenient shops on the main street. So just pop in and get whatever you need. They sell souvenirs, snacks, beer, custard etc. 

The inn provided a good hearty dinner and breakfast, just like any nice ryokan would. Everything is clean and simple, and although you don't get snow crab and stuff, you do get more traditional fermented seafood. I really like the food here as its simple yet delicious. We stayed two nights at the inn, so that our trip wasn't so rush. My last trip here, I hardly knew what the town looked like cause we only stayed one night. 

Above is the big hotel opposite the inn. Needless to say, I went there everyday. It looked the same as when I was there the first time. The main hall, the puppet show robot, and the hot spring inside. The only different now is, I had to run across the road in my yukata and slippers in the winter weather to get to the hot spring, and then run back after! I didn't mind. I got a lot of stare when I did that on my afternoon trip to the onsen when the town was still filled with tourist. Chinese tourist was saying how crazy it was that I was just wearing my slippers in the cold winter. Actually, it wasn't that bad. 

The big hotel is actually a resort. That means you can check-in and not leave the premise, and still get everything you need for a holiday. They have a big store inside that sells everything. Milk for after your hot spring soak, famous custard pudding, and lots and lots of souvenirs and local produce. And no, they are not cheap!

The also have an entertainment centre inside, and a huge arcade. Here's me and Doraemon at the arcade. This is what I wear when I rush across the street everything I wanted to go to the hot spring. I love the hot spring here cause they have a transparent glass that looked out into the hell valley! I came on the next afternoon just to see the view. And because it was in the afternoon, there weren't many people around, so it was a really relaxing experience. 

Ref:
Takimoto Inn
Dao-Ichi Takimotokan