Temple Protocol

1. For all temples you visit if on the meguri or not, you will enter through a main gate. This is the first sign you are visiting a buddhist temple, not a shinto shrine. Bow when you enter and leave the gate to the temple area.

2. Wash hands and clean your mouth in water, which is always located near the entrance to the temple area.

3. When arriving at the temple the henro may stop at the belfry and ring the bell to let Buddha and the temple's main deities know that they have arrived. Apparently you should only ring the bell when you enter and not when you leave, as ringing the bell as you leave may shatter and spoil any enlightenment experience you might have had while at the temple. I wish I had known this beforehand.

4. Proceed to the Hondo (main shrine)

5. Place one Osame-fuda in the box provided. These are the slips of paper on which you write your name, address and a wish or prayer. This is an important step, and in fact the temples on Shikoku are often called Fudasho, ie places where the Fuda are offered. The first image to the right show the colours of the osame-fuda, they correspond to how many times the henro has completed the meguri. I met several people who had been 4-5 times, and one person who had completed 21 meguri!

6. Osaisen (coins) should be dropped in a box in front of the shrine. Senko (incense stick) as well as a candle should be lit in memory of your ancestors.

7. Chant the Hannya-shingyo (heart sutra) once.

佛説摩訶般若波羅蜜多心經 BUSSETSU MA KA HAN NYA HA RA MI TA SHIN GYOU The Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom Sutra. 観自在菩薩,行深般若波羅蜜多時, KAN JI ZAI BO SA GYOU JIN HAN NYA HA RA MI TA JI When the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara was practicing the deep Perfection of Wisdom, 照見五蘊皆空,度一切苦厄, SHOU KEN GO UN KAI KUU DO ISSAI KU YAKU he intuitively perceived that the five aggregates are all empty; thus passed beyond all sufferings and difficulty. 舎利子,色不異空,空不異色, SHA RI SHI SHIKI FU I KUU KUU FU I SHIKI Sariputra, form does not differ from emptiness, and emptiness does not differ from form. 色即是空,空即是色, SHIKI SOKU ZE KUU KUU SOKU ZE SHIKI Form is emptiness, and emptiness is form; 受想行識,亦復如是,　 JU SOU GYOU SHIKI YAKU BU NYO ZE the same is true for feelings, perceptions, formations, and consciousness. 舎利子,是諸法空相, SHA RI SHI ZE SHO HOU KUU SOU Sariputra, these are the characteristics of the emptiness of all dharmas: 不生不滅,不垢不浄,不増不減, FU SHOU FU METSU FU KU FU JOU FU ZOU FU GEN They neither arise nor cease, are neither defiled nor pure, neither increase nor decrease. 是故空中,無色無受想行識, ZE KO KUU JUU MU SHIKI MU JU SOU GYOU SHIKI Therefore, in emptiness there is no form, no feelings, perceptions, formations, or consciousness; 無眼耳鼻舌身意,無色聲香味触法, MU GEN NI BI ZESSHIN NI MU SHIKI SHOU KOU MI SOKU HOU No eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, or mind; No form, sound, smell, taste, touch, or mind object; 無眼界,乃至無意識界, MU GEN KAI NAI SHI MU I SHIKI KAI No eye sense-sphere, until we come to no consciousness sense-sphere, 無無明,亦無無明盡,乃至無老死,亦無老死盡, MU MU MYOU YAKU MU MU MYOU JIN NAI SHI MU ROU SHI YAKU MU ROU SHI JIN No ignorance nor the ending of ignorance, until we come to no old age and death nor the ending of old age and death; 無苦集滅道, MU KU JUU METSU DOU No Truth of Suffering, Cause of Suffering, Cessation of Suffering, nor Path to the Cessation of Suffering. 無智亦無得,以無所得故, MU CHI YAKU MU TOKU I MU SHO TOKKO There is no wisdom, nor is there attainment, for there is nothing to be attained. 菩提薩埵,依般若波羅蜜多故, BO DAI SATTA E HAN NYA HA RA MI TA KO Because Bodhisattvas rely on the Perfection of Wisdom. 心無罣礙,無罣礙故, SHIN MU KE GE MU KE GE KO Nothing obstructs their minds. Because obstructions exist not, 無有恐怖,遠離一切顛倒夢想,究竟涅槃, MU U KU FU ON RI ISSAI TEN DOU MU SOU KUU GYOU NE HAN they have no fear and pass far beyond all illusions and imagination and awaken to ultimate Nirvana. 三世諸佛。依般若波羅蜜多故, SAN ZE SHO BUTSU E HAN NYA HA RA MI TA KO All the Buddhas of the past, present, and future, by relying on the Perfection of Wisdom, 得阿耨多羅三藐三菩提, TOKU A NOKU TA RA SAN MYAKU SAN BO DAI attain Unsurpassed Perfect Enlightenment. 故知般若波羅蜜多, KO CHI HAN NYA HA RA MI TA Therefore, know that the Perfection of Wisdom 是大神咒,是大明咒,是無上咒,是無等等咒, ZE DAI JIN SHU ZE DAI MYOU SHU ZE MU JOU SHU ZE MU TOU DOU SHU is the great mysterious mantra, the great mantra of illumination, the supreme mantra, the unequaled mantra 能除一切苦,真實不虚, NO JO ISSAI KU SHIN JITSU FU KO which can remove all suffering, and is true and not false. 故説般若波羅蜜多咒,即説咒曰, KO SETSU HAN NYA HA RA MI TA SHU SOKU SESSHU WATSU Therefore is said the Mantra of the Perfection of Wisdom: 羯諦羯諦,波羅羯諦,波羅僧羯諦,菩提薩婆訶, GYA TEI GYA TEI HA RA GYA TEI HA RA SOU GYA TEI BO JI SO WA KA GATE GATE PARAGATE PARASAMGATE BODHI SVAHA 般若心經 HAN NYA SHIN GYOU The Heart Sutra.

8. Recite the mantra/shingon of the main deity of the temple 7 times.
9. Recite the Komyo-shingon sutra 3 times.光明真言 - Light Mantra

唵阿謨伽尾盧左曩摩訶母捺囉麽抳鉢納麽入嚩攞鉢囉韈哆野吽
On abokya beiroshanō makabodara mani handoma jimbara harabaritaya un

Om, the Lord of the Great Sun, Mudra (hand gesture, seal of the Buddha), Mani Jewel, Light and Lotus! Turn the Wheel of Eternal Compassion to all Beings. Hum
10. Kigan and eko prayers. (Kigan menas prayer, eko is to "transfer merit to all beings")

11. Head to the Daishido shrine, (enshrines an image of Kobo Daishi)

12. Offer osame-fuda, money, incense and candles once more.
13. Chant the Hannya-Shingyo sutra once.
14. Chant the Gohogo Mantra at least 21 times.南無大師遍照金剛
namu daishi henjo kongo
Homage to the Great Master, the Vajra of all-pervading spiritual radiance
15. Kigan (the concluding prayer to invoke the power of deity and extend it to all beings)
16. Chant a goeika. (A buddhist hymn which consists of several stanzas. Each temple has different kinds of verses admiring its deity (Honzon), praising the power of the deity and adoring the nature of the temple. It is chanted with a small bell and stick.)

17. Leave for the temple office and ask ask for the seal in your nokyocho.

So how much of all this did I manage? Well, I made sure I at least bowed on entering and leaving, washed my hands, lit an incense stick and after I read the guide book I started to leave an osame fuda at each temple. I would have a prayer or thought at each temple, and get my nokyocho stamped, but as for reciting any mantras or sutras, I passed on this. And as reciting mantras is about THE most important part of shingon buddhism, I was missing a large part of the pilgrim experience here.

So maybe my 88 sins have not all been cleansed yet....

Day 15 - Koya San

54.5 km; 3hr 0min; (18.1km/h)

After having the usual combini breakfast in the hotel room, its back to the road and very quickly on the outskirts of Wakayama. Very soon on route 3 which is back in the nirvana land of rolling hills, terraced rice fields and mist rising from the trees. Just about manages not to rain, until I arrive at the info office in Koya san.

Route 3 has one steep section, but the main climb is on route 480, after joining 370 from the south. So all the routes meet here, yet still the traffic is not great. Virtually all the visitors to Koya san will ascend the mountain tram to the north of the town, and as its a weekday with poor weather this keeps this also keeps the traffic low. But its still Golden Week, where are the crowds?
The last 5km of the climb are never ending bends and turns on a very smooth road, the gradient is only around 7-8% so its very comfortable climb. Still, Koya san is around 1000m and so higher than anywhere I visited on Shikoku
. As the ride started from sea level plus a few minor hills in between, so its a good ride to complete my adventure.

The western entrance to Koya san has a huge and very impressive main gate, yet I could hardly see it through the clouds, almost fog by the time I got to the top!

When you arrive in Koya san you will most likely be dropped off by the bus by the information center. They're very helpful here and can arrange a nights stay in one of the many shukobo here, you just pick a point on the price scale. Its more expensive than staying in the temples on Shikoku, 10,000 yen was the bottom end of the scale.

They book me a place at Shojoshin-in, I am very happy with this as I took many photos of this temple when I visited the town on a previous visit. Its at the eastern end of town, just before the path to the Okunoin. Bath not ready till 4pm, but I check in and leave my bike to walk around town.

Have a slow lunch as the rain eases, then I take my time among the giant cedars of the forested cemetery on the 2km path to the Okunoin. There are over 200,000 grave stones here from military commanders to ordinary people. There is even a gravestone from a pesticide company, saying sorry for all the termites and ants they have killed over the years.

Kobo Daishi was laid to rest, or according to legend started his eternal meditation on March 21st 835 ad at the age of 62. It is believed he is still alive, and 2 meals are prepared for him each day. A great many people, buddhist or not, come to this temple to pray and pay homage to the daishi. It is the central sanctuary of the Daishi faith.

It is an impressive place to end my journey, after following in the footsteps of Kobo daishi to arrive at his resting place here in the Okunoin. After this, I will be back on my own journey again without the guidance of the daishi.

One more official stamp in the nokyocho, but I don't stop there as there are some blank washi pages and so I visit the Hondo and the Konpon Datto (the great Stuppa) where I really do get my final stamps in my nokyocho.

After enjoying the rest of the afternoon amongst the beautiful buildings and forest of the town, its time for a bath then evening meal at 5:30pm. In Shikoku the meals were communal which was nice as I got to talk with other henro, but here I am given a room to myself. Very exclusive, but I would have liked to talk about the journey with other pilgrims about my last 2 weeks at this point. The very tasty and substantial vegetarian meal is served by a monk.

The town of Koya shuts down at 5:00pm, the doors to the temple close at 6pm, so it really is a place of peace and meditation. No party here, at the end of my journey, but quiet reflection on a great journey.

Ceremony is at 6am in the temple tomorrow morning, I will thank Kobo daishi for leading me safely on this wonderful pilgrimage. This is one tour I could repeat in the future, but for now I'll take the photos and memories, and hopefully persuade other cyclists to become ohenro if only for 2-3 weeks. But who knows, one lap of Shikoku in the footsteps of Kobo daishi might be the first of your 21 circuits, or 41 or....

Day 14 - Kechigan

97.4 km; 4hr 32min; (21.4km/h) Temples 84-88-1

Kechigan means "pilgramage completed", and that's what I managed to do today after more than 1400km of cycling!

Wake early, and its obvious that my final day on Shikoku will be a wet one. The rain started later in the night, and the wind has dropped, so its not going to clear. I'll be able to make use of the most useful of my osettai, a pair of waterproofs to cover my panniers. Thanks Akiko san, hope you finished your meguri safely! Osettai are small gifts given to henro on the pilgrimage and range from sweets, money, towels to meals or somewhere to stay overnight. A pilgrim must accept the gift, and offer the osame fuda, the slip of paper with the image of Kobo Daishi, to the person offering the gift.

The first nokoyocho is the earliest, 6:55am as the monk is obviously aware that I had stayed nearby and was eager to move on and complete my meguri. I meet another Japanese cycle henro who I passed yesterday, he ended up doing the same as me by pushing his bike up the footpath! I don't know where he stayed though, theres many possibilities on this large hill. So the descent is great on the closed roads, especially with break pads, and I fly past the tollbooth at the bottom, though almost have fear that they will call the police for this serious crime of cycling on a road for cars.

Temple 85, Yakuriji, also causes problems as its another temple with the possibility of using a ropeway/mountain tram to climb the 366m hill. I wanted to cycle along route 145, but as its raining hard I'm not using the maps as often and end up on route 146 and at the start of the tramway. Its not far, and I am determined to walk/cycle to all the temples today and head up the very steep path beside the tramtracks. Some of this is rideable, again a few steps, but I wouldn't advise this route try to cycle up 145 instead. At the temple I enjoy the falling rain and chat with henro on the steps, but we can't sit here all day and we must leave the shelter and travel onwards.

I remembere 86 & 87 being very wet, and having a nice pagoda, but not much else. SO after these were visited and respected there was only one temple left. The climb is really gentle and only 16km from 87. On the way up I see 3 Japanese macaque monkeys in the thick bamboo by the side of the road. Quite a surprise, as I was only just beyond the outskirts of Takamatsu.

Up and up, then I arrive at Okuboji. Initially no one around, I visit the Hondo and Daishido as usual and stamp my nokyocho with no special ceremony or certificate. I end up buying an extra stamp on a piece of washi paper, but it feels unnecessary.

I take many photos, and meet several people who are now finishing their walks. One couple has taken 3 years to reach this point, breaking the meguri up into 10 sections. You will find Japanese are amazed to learn that I have a 2 week holiday, long weekends are the norm and short 3-4 day holidays to Okinawa or Hawaii are the common way to go on holiday.

Great udon lunch across the road, put some dry socks on and feel recharged before heading eastward - towards temple 1!

Yes, the full meguri is a circle, and ideally you must complete the circle. It also makes a lot of sense for me to do this and leave the island via Tokushima to Koya san now that I have plenty of time. If I had been rushed, I might have headed back to Takamatsu and caught the train home, but I'm glad I didn't have to go back to Takamatsu.

It's a totally different feeling now as I cycle through the terraced rice fields, enjoying the scenery free from visiting the temples and the rituals of the meguri. One noticeable climb up to 1.7km tunnel on route 318, then I7m back in Tokushima ken and soon enough I'm back on route 12 where I was 14 days ago, and counting down the temples from 7 down to 1! Its a great feeling, all down hill and mixed feelings for the henro setting out today. Mixed, as its still raining and they don't get the amazing views and scenery I had on day 1, but also glad to know that they are starting out on a great journey to discover Shikoku, Kobo Daishi and perhaps themselves.

At Ryozenji, temple 1, I can give my final osame-fuda and more incense and pay respects to this small but perfect temple. Kechigan accomplished, yet still theres a blank space in my nokyocho - Koya san.

I leave Shikoku on the 4:30 ferry from Tokushima, 2 hour sailing over to Wakayama. Amazing Japanese attention to detail is appreciated even here as I put my bike in the ferry. Small blocks are put beneath my tyres to stop it rolling, as they are fall all the vehicles on the boat, and strips of material are wrapped around my bike frame to stop the ropes damaging the paintwork.

Its very nice to stay at Tokyu inn, Wakayama with the comfort of a good hotel and views of the castle and the rest of the city.

Js msta shikoku.

Day 13 - Steps, repairs and more steps

99.2 km; 5hr 7min; (19.3km/h) Temples 76-83

Konpira san is a great place to stay and well worth the very small detour from the main pilgrimage route. In fact it's not really a detour at all, you would go further than this distance between temples on most days.

More overnight rain, and when it stops I head up the 785 steps to this very impressive shrine. Shame not all the temples on Shikoku are of this scale, but then I suppose it would take much, much longer to get round. Sure, there are lots of steps here, but if you've made it this far on the pilgrimage you've climbed many more steps than this already, you'll find it light work! The steps are lined with souvenir shops, I am here early and can only imagine the scenes down here will be overflowing with people later in the day. You can climb another 260m to get to the top of the mountain, but as its cloudy there won't be a great view today and I head carefully down the sea of steps and rejoin the meguri with the idea of reaching temple 88 tomorrow.

Early temples are on the flat, easy to locate and we hit the gills again with temples 81 & 82. Its really noticable that the signposts to temples are much clearer in Kagawa ken, on a par with Tokushimas helpful henro signs. Initial high ambitions of completing all the temples today quickly evaporates as I hit the lower slopes of Shiromineji. Along with Negoriji, these two temples stand atop a range of hills which jut out of the flat plains in the northern region of Kagawa ken.
The descent here is very dangerous now due to my non existant brake pads, I still haven't found good replacements. I can hardly brake at all, going round hairpins is becoming quite worrying. Clearly something to take on my next tour, pads wear down quickly with the extra weight and wet conditions.
Then amidst the highways of Takamatsu, a golden superstore comes into view with a "Sports Bikes" shop at its front. All 4 pads are down to the metal now, my rims must be severely weakened after the last few days. But with the new pads, its amazing being able to slow down and stop at will, I was stupid to let them wear down so far without replacements.

I finish the day at 83, Ichinomiyaji, which now I do not remember without seeing the photos. Many temples are like that, and this one is my first ride with heavy traffic along busy roads of Takamatsu, the part I do remember.

Head on towards 84, Yashimaji, which again is set on a 300m bump jutting out of the plains. with the intention of camping near the top. At the bottom of the climb I'm told by a kitchen worker from roadside restaurant that bikes aren't allowed up the road. Of course I take his advice, then try to cycle up heedless and reach the tollbooth where I hope to sneak past the sleeping guard. But no such luck. Yes its true, this road to the top of the hill and Yashimaji is car only. I can't work out why, unless they've had too many accidents on the descent from people cycling to fast.

Anyway there's no way to get the bike up this way, so I decide to take the henro footpath to the top, which is not too far from the road but takes a direct route to the summit. Its steep, far too steep to ride in places and a few steps here and there but otherwise its a smooth paved path and some parts are rideable so its possible to get rider, bike and gear to the top with a bit of effort.

I'm rewarded with a great view of the setting sun over the inland sea, and then a night view of Takamatsu (its best view?) and a deserted temple grounds which I can explore at will. Decent camping area, again its under cover so ready for the approaching rain clouds.

I understand now that after the great distances between temples in Kochi ken, when I see the temples all clustered together on the map in Ehime or Kagawa ken, its easy to think "oh this temple is close to that one, easy route to the next one" and soon enough you've worked out its easy and quick to get between a lot of temples, but it all takes time. Best to just plan one temple ahead, then around 3pm take a good look at the next 20km and try to locate a good place to stay for the night.

Day 12 - Floating on a cloud down to Kukais' birthplace

99.1 km; 4hr 39min; (21.2km/h) Temples 65-75

The overnight rain starts later than the previous night, and so it fails to cease raining until later as well. This means its the first time to cycle in the rain, which is very light, on the meguri so far. I actually enjoy the rain it makes a a change from all that sun and heat, and it seems to bring out the small crabs on the mountain roads! Many of them have or course been crushed under passing vehicles, and they all wave their pincers menacingly at me when I get close, but I doubt they could do much damage to my triple layer panaracer tyres.


Its a good 5km climb up to Sankakuji but not too steep. Theres a good crowd of henro all in good spirits despite the weather, again I think they are enjoying the change in weather conditions. The descent in wet conditions takes the remainder of my brake blocks away, more adjustments are needed here. I pass a few mamachari bike shops on the road, but none of them have replacements. I'll be using my feet to stop soon.

Temple 66 is Unpenji, the floating cloud temple, and its aptly named today. Its the highest temple of the meguri and one of the 3 temples with a convenient ropeway to the summit. You could cycle up the south face, or of course walk up to this temple, but I take the easy route and enjoy the rest in the cable car once again. 2000 yen though, its not cheap, and it's not the most impressive of temples either once you get up there.

Things pick up on the descent though, the weather clears up and its only a few km between temples so it'll be another good haul for the day when we're through.

Most notable is temple 71, Iyadaniji which has 370 steps to get to the hondo. Another temple which is tough for the aging car henro. Hayai desu ne, that's the phrase I hear most of all today as I easily get between the temples faster than the cars and almost as fast as the motorbike henros. Great pace and cruising between the temples, but not rushed at all, and the target is to get to temple 75 before the nokyo close for another day. Comfortably flat, minor hills in this area so no surprise 2km climbs like the end of day 10.

It's always nice to finally accept the end of the days cycling and temple visiting, and relax at the final temple, but this s is even better to difinish at 75, Zentsuji today. Its the birthplace of Kobo Daishi, when he was known as Kukai, and its by far the most impressive and largest temple complex on Shikoku. Many shrines, a huge pagoda, 1500 year old camphor trees adorn the extensive grounds. I am too late to visit the tunnel-path to enlightenment as it closed at 5pm, but I'm sure it would be an experience similar to my visit to Zenkoji in Nagano a few weeks ago.

The shukobo is full here, but that turns out to be fortuitous as I meet another cycle henro who reminds me that the nearby town of Konpira san and the hill Konpira san is a major tourist attraction in the area, and so we head around 7km south towards Kotohira san, aware that the rain clouds are massing behind us.

First have some really tasy udon at the back of an udon factory, then its another great camping spot with a view over the city of Kotohira, beside the oldest surviving Kabuki house in Japan - onsen just 200m away in the hotel, I am really loving this cycle touring in Shikoku now.

Day 11 - Mountain Mist

88.5 km; 4hr 35min; (19.2km/h) Temples 60-64

Very light rain fell overnight until about 7*30am so it was dry in time for the ride to day, despite the late(!) start. Very comfortable sleeping on the grassy field, another camp spot I would recommend to anyone traveling this area.

Breakfast at combini, then its temples 61, 62 & 63 which are tightly clustered
before the serious climb of the day up to Yokomineji. You can leave your bags at temple 63, just ask the monks nicely and they will be happy to oblidge.

Long climb this one, the first section takes you up to a lake which has the best views of the day by far. Take your photos here, the rest of the climb is dense bamboo an dine forest! The ascent, descent and relax at the temple takes a full 3 hours so its a good thing not all the temples are as difficult to get to as this one. The descent is very tricky, its very steep, many cars and the roads are still damp from the mornings rain, so its slow going - and heavy on my brake pads - I'm down to the metal here and need to adjust them to get some more life out of them before they're replaced.
Chilly as well at the top, but the warmth returns as I arrive on the lower slopes.

After the descent and reloading the panniers on my bike its a case of eating lots of combini food/mos burger/evening snack and riding towards the foot of temple 65. The road along route 11 is a long drag, but a quick look to the right and the view of the high mountains, which are never clear from clouds today, is enough to raise the spirits.

I end the day in Iyomashima town which is the least scenic nights stay I have on the entire meguri. First attempts to find accommodation at a hotel and ryokan are full, but very helpful taxi drivers phone around for me and find that Hotel London, a business ryokan, has a room for me. Nice to have a bed, wash my clothes and dry my tent out!
At least that's what I planned, and indeed washing my clothes was the easy part. But there was only one drying machine - and every other henro in the ryokan had the same idea, it turned into quite a battle to get to the dryer to load the clothes, just like a student accommodation block. Even when I did manage to load my wet clothes, someone removed them before they were fully dry and so I gave up and went to sleep, waking at 4am and doing the drying then! So I was stuck in my yukata all evening, I even had the indignity of being called a 'ojiisan' (old man) by some younger female henros. Obviously this was due to my old persons attire and not my youthful physique.

Day 10 - Spirited Away fom Matsuyama

129.6 km; 5hr 42min; (22.6km/h) Temples 44-59

A mixed day today, great descents then confused and backtracking followed by great coastline then a time trial finish across the rice fields.

The rising sun is my alarm clock as usual now. I'm going to buy one of those self inflating ground mats before my next tour, they're super comfortable even on a concrete floor and roll up into a tiny space. Thanks Nakata san! Glad not to be feeling any effects from last nights sake session.

Look for my sunglasses everywhere, but not to be found. I cycle about a km then head back to the hotel, look around the car park where I first parked my bike but then give them up as lost. Pretty scratched up anyway, I'm always losing or sitting on sunglasses.

Very nice to visit the mountain temples, such as temple 44 Daihoji, early in the morning while the morning mist still lingers on the mountain tops, it adds to the ambiance of the surroundings. Beyond here there's a small bump in the road, then its descend the 800m we climbed yesterday and travel north towards Matsumoto. Among the best descents here, and even more pleased that its downhill all the way, a feared steep ridge beyond the main road never appears and we are soon down the mountain and on the flat plains again.

The temple bagging goes into full effect today. I somehow miss temple 49, due to it being so close to 48 and 50. NO help from Family Mart or passers by, but now I realise I was asking directions for Ishiteji which is temple 51 so they were pointing me beyond temple 49. What would happen if I missed a temple on the route, would I go back one day just to complete my nokyocho? I'm not sure, but it would always nag me if single temple had been missed. Anyway its a short backtrack so the order is 50, 49, 51.

Ishiteji is among the most memorable temples on Shikoku, and must be one of the highlights of Matsuyama. Large in scale in every way, very impressive pagoda and huge temple lanterns on the hondo. Also one of the biggest incense burners by the hondo, the air is really thick with smoke here.

I stop by Dogo onsen, which is one of the oldest and best-known onsen hot springs in Japan, with a history stretching back over 3,000 years. The main building in the anime movie Spirited Away was modeled on the building. However its Golden Week, and the queues are large. It would take me one hour to get into the baths and as I would only get sweaty again cycling after the bath it doesn't seem worth the wait. Plus there are many temples waiting on my meguri! So instead I eat opposite the onsen and watch the passers by, the rickshaw runners trying to attract business and the various street artists playing to the large tourist presence here.
This would be a great place to end a day on the road, but its midday for me so I head on after refueling with some nice udon.

Temples 52 and 53 are still in the Matsuyama city limits then the urbanity clears up and we have some excellent coastal riding around the north-westerly part of Shikoku. The roads here were much more pleasant than expected - not heavy traffic, views across the inland sea and many sandy beaches beside the road.

Why so many temples around Imabari? I don't know but there's a large cluster of unremarkable temples around this area. I realise that I can get as far as temple 59 before 5pm, and as this would leave me a clear run in the morning to the big ascent to temple 60, the peddles are turning faster between temples as the pace increases.
Its all going well, until temple 58 - Senyuji, as up till this point I had been sailing around these coastal temples at great ease. But the approach to Senyuji suddenly rose, and the road signs still said 2km to go! Not far, but 2km up hill the time really ticks by and then a long hike up from the car park to the temple really turns the plan upside down. I never race around the actual temple area, its always good to relax and treat the temples with respect, but after I've got my nokyocho stamped its a semi-run back down to the bike then follow the henro signs towards temple 59.
No time to look at the maps now, I put all my faith in the henro footpath signs. They have to be the shortest route, and there doesn't seem to be any major obstructions in the journey here, but its a real maze of roads if I miss a sign I'll be lost in the concrete and have to end up spending the night somewhere in the edge of this urban area.
It all goes well, the signs are small but I don't miss one and I make it to 59, Kokubinji before 5pm. I'm not the only henor racing here, there are several other latecomers as I relax and head south to the next onsen marked on the road map.

Theres a large michi no eki not too far south of temple 59 with a great onsen, decent food and a huge area to camp on. I meet some American cycle tourists here, they'd cycled New York to San Francisco last year but over here there route seems less definite. They've cycled over the bridges from the mainland and hope to get to Osaka.

Sunglasses reappear, wrapped up in my tent - this is not the last time I manage to do this. Good thing I didn't buy the 30,000yen Oakleys in the Imabari bike shop earlier!