Hassle-free cycling spots abound throughout Tokyo
2005-12-08
It doesn't take a diehard cyclist - or even your own bike - to get into the saddle and ride in the megalopolis. Tokyo has a wealth of motorists-free courses to choose from. Exer-scapes highlights a few to help you get on track.
Why restrict cycling to a zip to the store on the mamachari? Would-be, novice and even veteran cyclists unable to square their two-wheel cravings with the hustle and bustle of Tokyo life may be pleasantly surprised.
There are ways to get around the dizzying topography, ominous traffic and big-city time constraints. Tokyo is awash with user-friendly, motorist-free and easily accessible places to peddle in peace. Many will rent or even loan bikes. All it takes is a little initiative and exploration to find out where. Major riversides are a good place to start: Hanami and leisure fishing aren't all urban planners had in mind for their use. Walking and riding routes along Western Tokyo's Tama River (between Futako-Tamagawa and Tamagawa stations) or further upriver in Chofu are good examples. And Meguro River (near Gotanda Station) offers a more than 4-kilometer stretch for cycling pleasure. That's not all.
Perhaps the most-cycled inner-city route is the 3.3-km Palace Cycling Course. It skirts the Imperial Palace, its princely pines and majestic moat in the heart of the city. On rain-free Sundays, motorized traffic is barred from Iwaidabashi's Uchibori-dori to Hirakawa gateway between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. for hassle-free biking. It should be noted, however, that cyclists are still expected to obey the rules of the road.
Not only is it a no-charge affair, you can bring your own bike or borrow one - for free - from a center near the Imperial Palace. (Metro Nijubashimae or JR Tokyo Station.)
Another hot urban cycling spot is Yoyogi Park near JR Harajuku station. The former 1964 Olympic Village's 2-km course snakes around the bucolic outer garden of nearby Meiji Jingu Shrine (JR Shinanomachi, Sendagaya or Metro Gaiemmae stations). It's reserved exclusively for cyclists on Sundays and holidays. Jingu Gaien Cycling Center offers bikes of every ilk on Sundays for use on the course.
To the pleasure of many two-wheeling bipeds, Setagaya City has never gotten over hosting the 1964 Summer Olympic cycling events. The more than 400,000-square-meter Komazawa Olympic Park, where they took place, is a reminder. The bucolic spread includes a 2-km cycling course and rental bicycles for kids as well as adults. (JR Komazawa Daigaku Station.)
The city's 11.7-km Nogawa Nature Path along the Nogawa River also welcomes cyclists. It links Futako Tamagawa Ryokuchi Sports Ground with Mitaka City's Nogawa Park. The Seishonen Cycling Course Bicycle Rental Site lends bicycles for free on Sundays and Holidays.
Who says Tokyo is not kid-friendly? Setagaya's Kinuta Park offers a course and bike-renting center exclusively for youngsters that are junior high school aged and below. (Tokyu No.01 bus to Kinuta Koen Ryokuchi Iriguchi.)
If you want out of the big city all together but panic at the thought of escaping by bike, try the Japan Cycle Sports Center in Shizuoka. About 5,000 yen (not including admission) and a two-hour train ride get you there from central Tokyo.
This is a 1.6 million-square-meter cycle-themed paradise at Izu's Shuzenji Temple (15 minutes by the Tomei bus line from Shuzenji Station). It sports a 5-km professional course, complete with a 12%-grade calf-cramping "Heartbreak Hill." There's also a separate course for mountain biking. Designed with the whole family in mind, peddle-themed fun rides range from foot-powered boats to a "Cycle-coaster."
These are just a few cycling havens the megalopolis and surrounding areas have to offer. There are countless more just waiting to be gleaned from resources, cycling clubs or maybe even the local ward or city office.
Japan's Bicycle Culture Center has a wealth of dated but still valuable information about cycling for beginners at: http://www.cycle-info.bpaj.or.jp/english/index.html. Click on the cyclists at http://www.outdoorjapan.com for details on urban and rural bike routes throughout the country. Japan Cycling Navigator offers a helpful guide geared more towards touring the nation at: http://www.japancycling.org/v2/.
