Project 47: Kumamoto’s Ultimate Motorcycle Odyssey – 5 Days of Epic Roads, Shrines & Wild Camps

Project 47: Kumamoto’s Ultimate Motorcycle Odyssey – 5 Days of Epic Roads, Shrines & Wild Camps

[Music] japan is a unique country made up of 47 prefectures My goal is to ride them all This is Project 47 Hey welcome folks to episode number three of Project 47 Coming to you from Kumamoto Prefecture Well no technically we’re still in Miyazaki right now but Kumamoto is about 150 m that way I came here last night to camp so I wouldn’t have to ride too far to get to the starting point And um it got cold again last night Look at my bike Look at this It’s frozen Like what’s with this It’s April No man No it’s actually it’s already getting kind of warm See I’m not even wearing gloves Um I literally just woke up like 10 minutes ago But so once all that burns off we’re going to jump on the road head into Kumamoto Now this is one of the cooler prefectures in this area because it’s got the Japan’s largest active volcano It’s got all these waterfalls Uh there’s islands that that chain off from the side of it which we’re going to be able to ride across bridges to get to There’s so much cool stuff to see here in Kumamoto I can’t wait to show you all And um yeah it’s going to be a lot of fun Probably 5 6 days I’ll bring up the map shortly and show you once I start riding But uh this should be a good one Let’s go Oh yeah We’re in Kumamuto now So let’s begin So I kind of kicked off here next to this mountain name escapes me at the moment so that we could start the day straight in Kumalto without having to ride all the way up here And the idea today is to uh curve down into this next town and let’s start swinging north up to Mount Aso which is Japan’s largest active volcano So then we’ll be heading north to that Cruise up there somewhere probably uh cruise around check that whole area out cuz it’s a massive caldera So it’s a huge area and uh see where you can find uh some cool stuff there I expect that’s probably going to take most of day one Hopefully we’ll see some uh cherry blossoms in bloom too But mountain views smooth road plenty of corners This will wake you up in the morning Heat Heat Heat The road down the mountain filled with switchbacks and long sweeping corners was pure heaven As the alpine mountain views gave way to dense band of forests I began to notice more and more Sakura trees in full bloom Then I saw a cool looking park absolutely filled with cherry blossoms I had to stop and take a look [Music] [Laughter] [Music] [Laughter] [Music] What a beautiful place huh This is incredible Walking the suspension bridge over a beautiful river cherry blossoms And this is only like 20 minutes into this video went to this trip I should say probably like 30 seconds into the video cuz you know editing What a beautiful spot So looks like we got a few hours to cover to get up to to Asso It’s about 2 and a half three hours so we should get up there be able to ride around before it gets dark Look at this So beautiful Welcome to Kumamoto folks Oh well the cops are doing training or something That’s cool That’s a lot of cops Keep them over there Keep them away from me As I kicked onto Route 445 the road opened up lined with cherry blossoms and beautiful forest roads and carving through small towns But then the route turned into one of the most technical mountain roads I’ve ridden in Japan so far It was fun as hell scary and intense I was in heaven Heat Heat Heat Heat Heat Heat [Music] Heat Heat Heat Heat The ride over the mountain pass took a little under 2 hours to make I was exhausted but stoked I needed a coffee and a little break Luckily I found a convenience store nearby Ah man that road was something else I need a hot coffee break So much fun and so exhausting at the same time But what a day Pretty much just ridden but it’s been just awesome Can’t wait to see what else we find Another hour to go We’ll hit our first destination for today Wow Cherry blossoms were the first destination and the ride itself has been the journey I rode on for another hour and a half or so just cruising along nice winding roads With spring in the air there are other riders out everywhere Everyone seems so stoked and happy to share a wave The wave pool was getting full There’s something special about riding a motorcycle My next destination was a mountain road that was supposedly famously lined with thousands of cherry blossoms It wasn’t far from the volcano and I was looking forward to checking it out Right So we came here to this spot which I thought was just going to be a winding road with old cherry blossoms everywhere You can see it like on this map It’s like all this that pink section there But it’s a little early It’s funny man cuz they’re like in bloom just 100 kilometers down the street and then you come here and they’re um they’re just getting ready probably next week So just slightly early but uh still beautiful zone And I don’t know if you’ll be able to see it but off in the distance out there that’s Mount Asoff That’s where we’re going to head to next and try to uh camp for the night It was a bummer that the cherry blossoms weren’t in bloom but the roads still look pretty cool and I thought why not ride it The road was full of other drivers so I couldn’t enjoy it as much as I wanted to but it was still a lot of fun One of my neighbors had grown up in this area and told me about a cool spring that she and her family used to go and play in as kids I figured I’d go there and check it out It sounded like a pretty cool place So that’s our destination up there for tonight Somewhere in that But first we’re going to go check out this spring that my uh friend Mayumi told me about [Music] This place is so Beautiful Really really beautiful and unexpected I never would have known it was here if uh my son hadn’t told me Super cool Got a waterfall [Music] That’s so cool [Music] [Applause] [Music] You look at the size of this thing That’s as tall as I am You could buy like two old houses in Japan for the price of that thing That’s nuts Update on what we’re going to do The wind is kicking up really strong and I don’t think I’m going to find anywhere up top the volcano tonight Uh I haven’t got that much longer to go with daylight So I found a cool campsite not too far from here We’re going to go there pitch up for the night But before we do that we’re going to go check out this giant motorcycle There it is I see it There we go [Music] Look at this big bad boy She needs a little TLC though [Music] That’s so cool I thought I was going to camp here tonight I don’t know what it is That’s cool I would stop in there but I don’t need a service station right now I just wanted to see it With no supermarkets in the area I figured I’d just stop by the nearest Lawson grab some supplies and then head off to the campsite I was pretty tired and was looking forward to setting up and having a cold beer See if we can find something for a barbecue I do like a protein bar in the morning What’s that one Okay that looks all right And that little thing of butter peanuts It’s good to rehydrate And I tell you what I like that beer That was a good one But I don’t need to green Not far to go now We can set up the tent crack a cold beer and call this day one done Looks like a pretty cool campsite The owner sounded nice too which is always a bonus Before heading to the campsite I couldn’t resist but put the drone up and get some footage of us The afternoon light was beautiful Heat Heat [Music] What a cool spot What [Music] More more lifestyle Yeah [Music] [Music] Okay So isn’t it equal to a lovely man It’s a sad story but a lovely man So we got the camp set up Just got to do a few things So set up to copy data and things like that And the owner just um Alexan just came over and gave me this And I met my my neighbor who’s over there And we’re going to have a beer tonight So that should be fun So I figured out what this is It’s a musical instrument Now I’m going to try to play it Don’t expect much [Music] I think I got a lot to learn All right Oh so what kind of car is Hiratasan and I spent a few more hours laughing joking and telling stories He’s a very interesting man You can check his YouTube channel out here if you like But sleep was kicking my ass and it was time for bed So I said my good nights and made my way back to my tent Day one had been epic [Music] All right good morning guys Try to tow quietly not to wake up uh the other campers but it’s about 5:00 in the morning Looks like it’s been a bit of cloud roll through today But for the first time as long as I can remember my my tent’s dry Got a great night’s sleep But uh I’m going to pack up and head up the volcano [Music] Leaving the camp Had a great night’s sleep Met some really nice people And now we’re going to head off and try to get a coffee on the road again Favorite place to be Well second favorite place to be I love to be home with my wife and dogs too That’s my favorite place to be Other than that being on the road that’s the second best car All right let’s do it guys We got some cherry blossoms Got a volcano Got the GV Look it’s going to be an awesome day I was trying not to let the weather put a dampener on my spirits Sure the forecast called for rain here on the south of Aso but to the north it looked like it might get better And here I was riding up this volcano these beautiful roads no one around It was kind of ominous really Very cool Today was going to be an epic day I could feel it Heaven Absolute heaven Oh look at that view That’s gorgeous Wow this is wild man What a place Look at all the the scars from the volcanic eruptions and stuff in the landscape Holy surreal Yesterday when I stuck the drone up the sun was out It was beautiful blue sky in the back Now we got this hazed out gray but it’s still like it’s almost more interesting now It’s more ominous The fact there’s no one else around is making it even more ominous and awesome Oh this is cool as hell Oh I love it I haven’t really got my bearings straight but I think just off there that’s the actual main part of the volcano where it uh that’s where it’s uh the crater is Do not enter Oh no Can’t go in Ah Okay It must be venting too much All right Cool We’re going to pull up over here and take a look So can’t go up to the crater itself But we’re going to stop and have a quick look Ski Access to the crater was closed due to a excessive amount of gas venting At this altitude the temperatures had dropped quite dramatically and it was pretty cold I decided I’d check out the local shrine before heading further north and checking out a view from across the valley This whole region had a ring of mountains and that means one thing some epic mountain roads Yeah let’s go Oh what a place Nice mountain You can actually take a horse ride here Look at the horses Hey voices I actually tried to camp there once and they kicked me out But that’s be Oh look at this guy She’s a beauty Hey buddy What a beautiful horse What incredible views Oh just epic looking road Mountains I got to like stop looking up at the mountains Stop paying attention to these awesome roads Oh a little trail break there The road was spectacular Like a serpent tearing through this tortured landscape Around every corner was another epic view I was in heaven There’s a really cool kind of terrifically kind of symmetrical little volcano there See that That’s epic They just burned off all the grass So it’s uh it was blacked out before all this was uh controlled fires but that thing is super cool Oh I can actually see a little bit of sun coming through The weather might clear up Oh this is incredible These are huge Heat Heat Cool Missile Oh man already just such an awesome day just cuz the roads just so good I think this being a cool motor would just be me riding these roads and [ __ ] stoing out riding Hey she’s wearing the same helmet I have that helmet Hey wave gun is soaring People are stoops After another hour of riding spectacular roads I made it to my next waypoint Daiko Lookout And man was it worth it [Music] [Music] [Music] Look at that So that’s where we just came from We rode from that mountain over there We’re over the back side of that mountain Now we’re over on this side We’re going to continue off the north of this and head up to a place called Nabataki As I left Daiko something wonderful happened The sky turned blue All right let’s zoom all for the wave count Here we go Oh looks like it’s uh got a few people here [Music] Sunny days Come back [Music] Yeah Oh man that is beautiful That is well cool [Music] So I don’t know how much my voice is getting fixed up in all that noise in the background but [Music] you spin around this way This cave here is actually the magma that’s flowed and stuffed and towards this waterfall [Music] [Music] All right that was cool But time to hit the road Let’s go Heat All right we’re here at Kikuchi Gorge Two guys at the parking lot were awesome We just hung out for a bit and had chat [Music] I think this is me for the next 20 30 minutes Going to sign off and just enjoy this This is so beautiful Kikuchi was so peaceful I didn’t want to leave But the rain was forecast to come in pretty heavy around sunset and I decided to head to Kumamoto City and grab a hotel for the night Maybe go out and get some good food and a few beers I took a quick look at the map and saw something wonderful A road called the Kuchi Aso Skyline Whenever you see skyline on a road in Japan it means it’s going to be good Heat Heat always wonder why a Hello Kitty doesn’t have a mouth though There you go guys GV 350S It’s faster than a McLaren It’s so strange how the the countryside can be so insanely beautiful and diverse and then the city could just look like this All right So we are in Kumamoto City Got a nice hotel by the castle which I’m going to go check out in the morning It was raining pretty good just before and then stopped now So I’m going to head off to Isizakaya Hopefully get some food and a beer Should be fun I’ll see you in there Okay so we’re down here at Isizakaya and this place specializes in horse meat So we’re going to have a horsemeat pizza and some raw horsemeat I think I’m not sure Some of the kanjis I can’t read So we’ll see what comes Should be fun I am so hungry I haven’t eaten anything all day really I think I had some peanuts this morning Oh looks delicious All right You see that horse meat We grow egg That’s good All right let’s try this This is the This is the horse pizza just told me it’s delicious Holy [ __ ] dude That is so good I’m not sure Man the staff here are awesome Everyone’s so friendly I love this place already All right so what we have here is raw horsemeat And I can either do it with this sauce here or with salt So I’m going to try it with a little bit of both But I do love raw horse meat It’s so good But I’ve never tried the pumalto one which is what this area is famous for So I’m really looking forward to trying that Look how red that is It’s like no fat on it Yeah So basically I went to like three different places that were recommended to me by the hotel and all of them were booked They wouldn’t accept even one person at the counter I walked in here they made space for me and the food is awesome Everything’s good The staff are incredible How cute is she Fantastic And the food is just incredible So that’s the thing I love about when you travel is you just walk around and find places that are cool And this is definitely one of the cool spots Okay that was a very cool restaurant If you’re coming to Kumamoto check out is our guy there Awesome food Not cheap but awesome Cool stuff All right good morning guys Day three has begun I stayed in this cool hotel last night and parked the bike out front It was really nice The only place around that let me do that And now we’re going to head up that way to check out Kumamoto Castle So that should be pretty cool What a nice man Okay so we’re going to go try the castle again See whether or not we can get in this time This is wild man Just going to check out a castle and it feels like I’m getting ready to go on a Disneyland ride or something All these people That’s cool [Applause] [Applause] All right that was cool as hell [Music] I enjoyed that [Music] From the outside Kumamoto Castle is impressive as hell but inside it was just a modern museum Not what I was expecting Still cool though Finally hitting the road Beautiful day today We’re going to head on over towards the Amoxa Islands and see if we can’t find anything on the way to stop that looks interesting Should be a fun ride once we get out of the city All right man It feels good to be back on the road again All right now we’re moving again Hell yeah That feels better these staged rice terrace fields All right this this looks cool I’m going to check this out This is uh so I saw this on Google Maps and it looks like it’s this cool kind of It looks like it’s this cool kind of cave with like a shrine in it So Oh look at this thing This looks cool Yeah look at that That’s wild What a face on this dude Heat Heat [Music] This goes [Music] cave is breathtaking The site was made famous when the great swordsman and philosopher Mousashi Miiamoto came here in 1642 He spent nearly a year here meditating and writing the book of five rings He died shortly after The statues you see lining the cliffs were dedicated to Masashi and took 24 years to construct Over time earthquakes have caused many of the statues to lose their heads [Music] Heat [Music] Heat [Music] Heat up here [Music] Guys I can’t lie I think this may be the coolest shrine I’ve ever been to This one’s blown me away Just look at this place It’s so simple It’s so unique This is incredible I’m glad I came here man Kumamoto just doesn’t disappoint Snoopy Hello nice to meet you It’s nice to meet you too First time It’s very cool Yeah I think the best the best shrine [Music] Have fun Byebye Byebye [Music] Byebye [Music] Have a nice day You too Have a nice day Nice to meet you When I got back to the bike I met another rider We chatted for a while and shared stories of the road The best thing about travel is not the places you go but the people you meet along the way I still had a long way to go to get to the Amoxa Islands and to the free campsite I had pinned on my maps It didn’t look like there was a lot to see along the way so I figured I’d just get into cruise mode enjoy the coastal ride I couldn’t wait to ride over some of the bridges that join the islands together Waiting for the castle to open this morning had cost me a lot of time I knew I had to make tracks if I wanted to make that campsite and enjoy a sunset with a cold beer After a couple hours in the saddle and god knows how many epic bridge crossings I came across a cool little shrine just nestled in the water at the side of the road It was the perfect spot to take a break and rest a little bit [Music] The shrine was a perfect break I felt completely refreshed Now I just needed to find somewhere to grab some supplies for tonight’s barbecue and head off to the campsite So we went and did a uh did a little shop and uh picked up some supplies got some some stuff to cook on the grill I really wanted to get like some chicken and things like that but they didn’t have that They just had some uh call yakitori which is like uh shish kebabs chicken shish kebabs and some kind of you know barbecue sausages and stuff like that So it’s not the meal I was hoping for but it will do And I got some beer and a few snacks things like that So it should be good to go Oh it says we’re here now Is it Is there camping spaces available Yeah I see plenty of camping spots available Oh I reckon by that statue over there That’s me Oh yeah this is amazing There’s toilets back there But I like this idea I can park my bike right up next to the statue here Maybe on the other side of it Yeah this is me Woohoo All right Look at this place Man I almost got the kick out of gear All right we’re Yeah I’ll take this [Music] What a spot Yeah I got toilets over there [Music] Hell yeah Okay this is me The wind’s not even blowing here Sweet All right almost beer time [Music] Oh just kind of sky [Music] color Oh [Music] sky to sky [Music] Oh I just met a really nice uh lady with her son and their dog and they’re having a barbecue and camping just over the way and they invited me to come have a beer So we’re going to go over there and say good day to them and maybe share some food and a few stories Should be fun This place is so cool Japan is so cool I love Japan Japanese people are so cool [Music] Bye-bye [Music] [Music] All right guys So I just got back from hanging with Yoko and Jihiro What a wonderful uh family They um they kept feeding me and pouring beers into me so I end up drinking three beers or so I think Um just hospitality like you wouldn’t believe It’s such wonderful people Um yeah just had a great time The kid was so goddamn adorable and you guys are wonderful lady So so wonderful to be just sort of welcomed into like a a little situation like that Get to meet these people and see into their lives And Japan is so cool like that You just randomly come across people and they’re so friendly and so giving like far out man Really cool That was a great end to the day Yeah I’m going to um finish copying my data across from today and get some sleep I’m exhausted and a little bit drunk but yeah it was wonderful Very cool time All right guys See you tomorrow [Music] Hey good morning How’s it going About 6:00 a.m here right now and it’s absolutely spectacular Check out the sunrise [Music] Today I’m going to head off and ride that way and out over the islands in the distance I’m going to try contacting Honda today and see whether they’ll let me come and tour the factory where the the beautiful GB is made and I think tomorrow will be our last day for this trip So got one more day after this So it should be a lot of fun All right time to make coffee While I sat there enjoying the morning sunlight waiting for my kettle to boil I thought about what I wanted to do today I definitely needed to find a waterfall I knew today was going to be about riding the coast roads maybe checking out one of the old churches and trying to find a few mountain roads to play on But there wasn’t a lot to see and do in a ma So I decided to set myself a challenge today I was going to find some ramen I’ve been thinking about it for a few days and hadn’t really come across anywhere But I didn’t want to just go to Google Maps I thought it’d be more fun to try to find a place maybe ask some people for their favorite spot I guess I was a little inspired by Luton Michael’s trip Yeah No maps [Music] Right at that moment Chihro came over to ask me if I wanted to go check out some fish and maybe go to the local shop together I could never say no to that kid [Music] All right a little bit of a late start this morning but yeah we’re going to cruise through Ambaka Islands now And would you just look at this day It’s so gorgeous like the wind backed off of ground to be seen Doesn’t get much better than this So I called up uh Honda and uh tried to arrange like a tour of the factory and in Honda’s style they said “No thank you Not uh not uh not something that we do.” So so that’s off I’m sorry guys I was really hoping to show you where the GV gets made Cruising along the coast road in the morning felt fantastic but I knew I was going to have to head inland if I was going to find a waterfall today All right let’s hop off this coast road As beautiful as it is go see if we can find this waterfall And just like that the scenery changed yet again We went from that beautiful coast road to now we’re rolling through a valley I’d barely ridden 10 km before I saw a sign for a waterfall Turned out the waterfall was nestled behind a cool campsite Shortly after I parked the bike the manager now came over to say hello We became fast friends [Music] Nice [Music] to meet you Now was a lot of fun to hang out with A true outdoorsman diver hiker and keen to try surfing We were kind of kindred spirits in a way The campsite looks super cool too Well worth checking out if you come to the area I got so wrapped up in the conversation though I forgot to ask him for his favorite ramen shop [Music] Tearing through these mountain roads and bouncing back and forth between the forest and the coast was amazing But there wasn’t a ramen shop to be found anywhere and I was getting pretty hungry I’d read about an old church here on Amaxa that was well worth visiting So I figured I would just head there and see if I could find ramen on the way The OA Cathedral or OA Ten Shudolf is one of the first churches built after a 250-year ban on Christianity which was lifted in 1873 The present building with its romanes style architecture was completed in 1933 by Father Luis Garnia using his own money plus contributions from local Christians [Music] Originally from the south of France he spent 50 years in Amaxa after being appointed as the chief priest in 1892 He lived the same life as the villages impoverished and he preached in the Amaxa dialect He died here without ever returning to his homeland Yeah that was a wild feeling man like uh walking in there there’s no one there So I kind of felt like I was trespassing in someone’s house or something The church was cool and the island was exceptional to ride but I was on a mission I needed to find ramen I was hungry Hey see what’s I know Such a cute piece [Music] Okay The lady at the service station was awesome She told me about her favorite ramen place in Amaka City I had a target Now it was go time I’m guessing that this is maybe a Moxa city No this is Hondao Okay As the city gave way to more and more countryside I began to get worried I just ridden through Honda But where was the Mako Surely it wouldn’t be too much further Oh man I just realized the town I thought was called Hondo was Amaxa And I went past it I was on cruise mode That’s where the ramen place was It’s like 30 minutes back down the road Guess I’m going to go 30 minutes back down the road All right I want to eat ramen I’m doing it I will not fail in my mission But one cool thing about coming here and stopping was that I noticed there’s a campsite just over there So I’m going to swing over real quick And uh I see someone there They went there was no one answering the phone but I see someone doing something over there now So I’m going to go over and see if it’s available to camp here tonight cuz this would be an epic spot swim New change plan for today We are going to head back into the city which I rode past like an idiot and we’re going to find that ramen We’re going to find our ramen I don’t give a [ __ ] at this point Then we’re going to come back catch up with the dude pay for the campsite set up camp We’ll probably we’ll hit a supermarket on the way so we can get some food for the barbecue enjoy the sunset and have a barbecue Then tomorrow morning I’m going to buzz up to the shrine enjoy the sunrise up there and then come back down pack up the tent and we’ll hit the road for day number five and wrap this uh wrap this trip up All right on a mission It’s going to be good Let’s do it All right so that’s the town So somewhere in there is a delicious or not delicious but ramen place Does it say ramen next door No it’s a cake shop It’s got to be on this road Man everything looks closed This is scary I don’t want to fail Where are you Wait a sec That’s a family mart and that’s a big intersection Oh All right So I don’t see anything on that side So I’m going to go left I’m going to go left Oh I’m excited I think I found it I think I found it Oh it’s exciting There’s a family m It’s a big intersection Where are you Ramen Where are you Where are you Where Where are you I don’t see it No no no no no no no Where Where Where Where I don’t see it Did I miss it I don’t see it That’s not it No no no no no Oh it’s not this spot Oh what to do Town All right screw it We’re going to go right here I’m going to get so turned around I’ll end up somewhere else other than where I want to be Oh what What What Yes Yes Oh yes Robin found a ramen shop I found it Yeah baby That’s it It’s there Woo Yeah Oh please be open Is it open Ah screw it I’m going to go check It’s got to be open A So it’s actually closed but he’s going to make me some ramen How cool is that Oh so there Okay Christmas Yeah Yeah [Music] Yeah Yeah So good Pork broth base This is good It’s fried rice I’m stoked can’t talk eating After I finished eating Shikakawasan and I talked bikes for a while He even walked me out to my bike cuz he wanted to take a look I was blown away by his hospitality What an amazing man With my stomach full from the ramen and the fried rice I decided to forego shopping and just grab a beer from the convenience store I wanted to get back to the campsite and enjoy the sunset It looked like it’d be spectacular [Music] We made it Yes we made it [Music] Let’s set up tent Phew Look where we are It’s the Amoxa Islands Check that out It’s just islands and islands Oceans right there [Music] Heat Heat [Music] [Laughter] [Music] [Music] [Music] Okay good morning It’s day five Got a little bit of cloud but not too much Yeah it’s a beautiful spot Look at that So we’re going to head up to a shrine on top of a mountain now Says it’s about 30 minutes ride up an old twisty mountain road It should be fun first thing in the morning All right here we go guys Day five Kicking off with what looks like might be a very cool mountain ride Oh man we’re getting right up the top here Look at this Elevation is insane Oh I can see the shrine Well I got beaten up here I guess that’s what happens when you wake up at 4:30 and then put your head back on the pillow [Music] Heat [Music] Heat [Music] All right that was epic What a beautiful spot What a great way to start the day Stoked I came up here And now we’re going to head back down the mountain go to the campsite pack everything up and get on the road [Music] The plan for day five was a simple one I needed to get off Amaxa Islands check out a shrine and find a waterfall I couldn’t ride all day because I had to get home to Miyazaki But I really enjoyed the challenge yesterday of trying to find ramen without a map It took me back to when I was younger and Google Maps didn’t exist So I figured today I would use a similar kind of idea and try to find a waterfall without the maps At some point the plan was to put a pin up in the mountain somewhere just to help me navigate out of the city and then the search would be off Hey I see Lawson Yeah buddy It’s a cafe latte mega kind of time But now I’m like extra happy cuz I’m going to have a mega cafe latte hot Loy Oh yeah baby Oh I’ve been waiting for this Okay so we got our coffee Feeling much better about life in general And now it’s time to head on over to a cool shrine by the ocean Everybody look at these things Roen crew Look at those wheels All right Now I don’t have to listen to that crappy music anymore That’s a nice relief [Music] Try Kamoto Okay So the wind feels like it’s coming this way It might have a little bit of a crosswind on this bridge It’s coming from that way Actually shows how good I am at telling where the wind’s coming from The ride off was fairly uneventful Just a slow meandering cruise along the coast road in weekday traffic But what a day for it huh [Music] Yeah Let’s just go right up in here Yep there it is Okay Oh it’s dead low tide so it’s not as pretty as I was hoping Ano Surugi Shrine had been on my list of things to see for quite some time The shrine dates back to the year 713 and is known as the sword shrine I should have checked the tides though It was still cold I got to walk out there look at the gates from underneath my boots getting covered in mud But this is what it should have looked like Hi how’s it going We are doing like a road trip started from Tokyo all all across Japan Oh sweet Along the coastline Oh nice Yeah it’s a beautiful coastline Yeah Uh it’s great Good Perfect timing too The weather’s getting good now We want to see the Sakura too RD 350 when I was in college Okay Yeah Cool That’s like a two-stroke Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah No they’re good little bikes Yeah Woo Man 3 weeks ago it was – 6 where I was camping And All right guys Thank you so much and have a great trip Yeah Is it photo Yeah for sure All right Yeah Yeah Maki the best prefecture One of the coolest things about traveling around by motorcycle is it draws people to you It was time for me to get back on the road and track down that waterfall It was the last piece of the puzzle to finish this 5-day trip Now I decided like yesterday not to go ahead and use Google Maps to find a waterfall but I decided I would drop a pin up in this ravine on the map Somewhere up there in the ravine had to be a river and that meant there had to be a waterfall I would just use the maps to get me through all this urban sprawl I was stuck in You see that’s where I saw I saw this ravine with a river in it on the maps and sort of put a pin in I think a fair bit a fair bit further up That’s a weird It’s not a waterfall but I mean it’s falling water It’s just falling over concrete I can’t count that We might uh we may end up riding this road find a waterfall and uh and wrap up the video there So I think that’ll be a sweet ending if we can find a waterfall But it’s got to be a good one I don’t want to find like some lackluster waterfall It’s got to be something that makes me just want to go “Wow this is the GB’s heavenly place man.” Nope That’s a onen I think Yeah or a restaurant maybe I think it was on sand I couldn’t I didn’t quite catch the sign on the way past We got to be a little bit weary about cars coming in the opposite direction especially coming downhill They’ll be carrying speed Might blow some dust off my horn on this one Yeah I remember the back tire skipped out then Yeah there’s some gravel on it Super technical super fun Now you got to remember Louis you’re you’re trying to find a waterfall You keep finding weirds though That’s kind of a waterfall but it’s not spectacular So The [ __ ] Sorry about that They just came right at me and almost took me out then I think what blew me away about that was that they were they saw me I think they saw me They may not They must [ __ ] doing something else But instead of like trying to swerve a little wider than their line they just turned in tighter on their line right into me All right that’s done [ __ ] hell Almost got killed All right shake it off Man I thought I was going to get sent straight to the barrier then Just sandwiched in That was close Oh man That was close That was closer than I’m comfortable with to be honest guys I’ve had the other ones that are have been close as well but That one felt like I was about to get killed All right [ __ ] it I’m good Okay so a quick situation update I’ve had a chance to calm down a little bit I’m ready to keep riding Man that was so close They clipped the back the mirror hit the back of my bike on uh this little bag here Just scuffed it up a little bit And if they’d hit me any harder I was going to go over that bar I would have gone over that barrier and into the ravine I think All right [ __ ] it We’re going to get back on the road Keep going I got to find a waterfall now Even more so I want to go chill at a waterfall Look at this scene Feel like I could be in like Alaska or Canada right now Just checking all the little signs on the side of the road Any that says waterfall The word for waterfall in Japanese is [ __ ] Sometimes you’ll see a big sign it’ll say falls or whatever but a lot of times you’ll get these tiny little signs that just have the kanji on them So it’s the best way to find waterfalls is to uh just keep an eye on those little signs It’s got to be something up here I mean we’re up in the mountains There’s rivers running all over the place There’s a car coming Okay What do we got on this sign here Oh waterfall 16 km Yep 10 km down this way [Music] Oh I hear something I hear something It sounds like a waterfall It’s definitely a lot of water flowing down here This way It said 6K so I’m guessing it’s not down that road Oh we got another sign Okay what’s this one say Okay that’s just a township sign Okay so it says the waterfall name but it doesn’t have an arrow or anything So me flip up the helmet so I can hear better Okay I can hear something Surely this is not what it brought me here to look at the view of some trees It’s got to be down there All right let’s continue up and see if we can find another something up the road Ah there it is Ah I saw it Okay let’s hopefully this road will wind around What’s this say Cook Ah [ __ ] It’s a hike in I think I think we got to hike Oh man it’s a big waterfall Okay Okay So looking at this sign here my Japanese I can speak and understand well enough but I don’t read fluently But what I’m getting from this is it says from here 2 km down the road there is a parking lot That’s a paid parking lot for this waterfall But if you go ahead from here and walk in you get the good stuff You get the real deal So I’m thinking that means if we hike in from here we get to go to the basin which is what I want to go I don’t want to sit up top and just look at it from a wooden deck So that’s what we’re going to do We’re going to hike it in We got a little bridge Water looks amazing [Music] Look at this water Oh this gorgeous [Music] And it’s just one beautiful spot after another Look at that That is a waterfall up there That is spectacular [Music] [Music] Heat Heat [Music] Heat Heat [Music] Yeah we’re done Kumamoto in 5 days baby What an epic way to finish This waterfall is insane I love it man It’s been awesome journey I’ve had the most amazing time And thank you for joining If you’ve liked the uh episode please subscribe like comment you know all that good stuff Share it around and I’ll see you on the next episode of Project 47 Episode four coming up Yeah baby [Music] Man I’m so happy right now Thank you for watching Making Project 47 is absolutely epic but gas and campsites etc add up fast If you’re living the journey why not join as a team rider for just 140 or a buck a month You’ll help keep me on the road and get some exclusive behindthe-scenes clips plus a sweet badge Hit that membership link below and uh let’s keep rolling together

Buckle up for the ultimate Kumamoto adventure in this full-length Project 47 feature, combining five unforgettable days of solo motorcycle touring across Japan’s stunning Kumamoto Prefecture on my Honda GB350s! From cherry blossom-lined mountain roads to volcanic craters, sacred shrines, and remote island camps, this unedited epic captures every moment of the ride. Cruise through iconic spots like Mt. Aso, Kumamoto Castle, and the Amakusa Islands, chase sunsets and waterfalls without GPS, and share fireside stories with locals. Expect raw thrills, a near-death moment, no-tech ramen hunts, and the soul of Japan’s countryside. Part of Project 47—my mission to ride all 47 prefectures. Watch the daily episodes for bite-sized adventures or dive into this full-length journey! #Project47 #KumamotoAdventure #MotorcycleJapan #JapanOnTwoWheels #SoloTravel
What’s Inside:
Day 1: Carve sakura-filled mountain roads, visit Mt. Aso’s Shirakawa Springs, tackle Route 445, and camp with a fellow rider.

Day 2: Climb Mt. Aso’s crater, explore Nabegataki Waterfall and Kikuchi Gorge, then feast on horse meat sashimi in Kumamoto City.

Day 3: Tour Kumamoto Castle, find peace at Miyamoto Musashi’s Reigandō Cave, and camp by the Amakusa sea with locals.

Day 4: Go off-grid in Amakusa, hunt ramen without maps, visit Oe Cathedral and Todoroki Falls, and camp under a killer sunset.

Day 5: Chase a sunrise at Kuatake Shrine, explore Einoo Shrine, and hunt a hidden waterfall in the mountains—no GPS, just vibes.

Why Watch?
If you’re into motorcycle touring, off-grid challenges, Japan’s hidden gems, or raw travel moments, this video’s got it all. From spiritual shrines to heart-pounding roads and serendipitous encounters, it’s Japan like you’ve never seen. Hit that bell to follow the Project 47 journey! #HondaGB350 #MtAso #AmakusaIslands #JapanCamping #OffGridTravel