The Hokkaido Association for Japan Exchange and Teaching
Archive for September, 2009
The Fall Meeting of 2009
Sep 10th
The Fall Meeting of 2009 will be held in Obihiro in the Tokachi region, famous for its buta-don, agriculture, temperature extremes and long straight roads. There’s a lot of delicious food to be sampled here, from the nama-caramels that people form long lines for at Hanabatake Bokujo, to the giant sweet potatoes at confection shop Cranberry, to meat products and beyond. There’s also a zoo and racetrack and various other surprises around town and along the backroads.
The Fall Meeting is an important one, as it’s the first for this year’s newbie JET crop, so it’s your first real chance to socialize on a wider scale and become familiar with the activities that HAJET offers. The musical auditions are hosted at this meeting, and other veteran JETS tend to be high in attendance, which provides a great opportunity for asking questions about HEC, the Iwamizawa International Festival, the JLPT exam, and whatever else you might be interested in. Saturday night’s enkai features a costume contest as a special event, with proceeds going to benefit HEC. This year’s theme is the letter O! Start planning your costume ideas now, and make sure to bring any homemade sweets for the Dessert Auction later!
Southwestern Welcome Party 2009
Sep 10th
Southwestern Welcome Party 2009
Higashi Onuma Camp Ground at Lake Onuma
When: Saturday 19th September – Sunday 20th of September.
Where: The banks of Lake Onuma at the free campsite Higashi Onuma Camp Ground 東大沼キャンプ場
Price: 500 yen for non-HAJET members, free for all others (for the Saturday night meal).
-Directions-
Driving (From North/Yakumo-Mori-Oshamanbe): Head south on Route 5 towards Hakodate. After you pass through Mori and a few kms past Lucky Pierot (on your left) you will see a turn off for Onuma and Route 43 on your left. Take it. Follow it for about 3kms. You will cross a trainline just before a T-intersection. Take the left option, and follow the lake around in a clockwise direction for about 5 kms. The campground will be on your right. There is a giant car park. Park your car there, and walk to the camp site (which will hopefully be as far from the car park as possible)
Driving (From South/Hakodate): Head north on Route 5 towards Mori (from Hakodate/Nanae). Travel through the large tunnel and continue heading north. Don’t turn at the intersection directly after the tunnel (You can, but the directions are less straight forward). Instead, travel north for about 4kms until you see a turnoff for Route 43 on your right. Take it. Follow it for about 3kms. You will cross a trainline just before a T-intersection. Take the left option, and follow the lake around in a clockwise direction for about 5 kms. The campground will be on your right. There is a giant car park. Park your car there, and walk to the camp site (which will hopefully be as far from the car park as possible)
Car Pooling! If anyone is driving to the event, and has a spare seat (and a desire to help your fellow car-less JET) post on here, and we’ll see if a car pool can be organised. Eco-get!
-Train-
There is a station that is almost within walking distance of the campground (Choushiguchi 銚子口which can be reached from Onuma or Mori station) but, the trains aren’t very frequent. The simplest (and therefore the most expensive) option is to catch a train bound for Onuma 大沼 station and use a car/taxi from there.
The limited express between Hakodate-Sapporo via Muroran/Tomakomai/Chitose stops at the Onuma station. The limited express takes about 3 hours from Sapporo (and ¥8070) or 20 minutes (and ¥1640) from Hakodate. Trains leave roughly every 90mins-2 hrs.
It is about 6kms from the Onuma station to the campground, so not really walking distance, but I will pick SOUTH-BOUND people up from the station that arrive on the Super Hokuto 14 スーパー北斗14号 at 16:23. I will also pick up NORTH-BOUND people that arrive on the Hokuto 15 北斗1５号 at 15:42 from the Onuma station.
For those that wish to arrive at other times, there it is a 6km taxi ride (which was quoted at less than ¥2000 by the drivers at the rank) that can be shared. Remember that it is a free campsite, so what you save in camp-fees goes towards the cost of transport.
-Bus-
Still researching bus time tables. Please be patient.
-Activities-
Apart from lounging/drinking/eating..
Hiking: Sadly, due to an eruption less than 10 years ago, climbing of Mt Komaga (Komagatake 駒ヶ岳) is not possible. I can’t tell you how much I want to climb this.. but, I guess it wouldn’t be a good thing to get caught (even though the tracks are quite visible, and I SWEAR I could see people on the mountain)
Boating: Being on a lake, means that canoeing/kayaking is on offer. Both are available for hire (for a price ¥3500-¥4500 for two hours with a guide).
Biking: Bicycles are available for hire for those who wish to do a scenic ride around the lake. (there are even tandems!) Not sure of the price
There is horse riding available too for those who are keen (¥5000 45mins, ¥9000 90mins)
Hang-gliding/ Para-gliding! is offered at the nearby Nanae Niyama Ski Resort. Further investigation is underway, but it seems that you must firstly possess your own equipment/skills.
Northern Welcome Party 2009
Sep 8th
Northern Welcome Party 2009
Aibetsu Campsite, Aiyama
Host: Rebecca Jolliffe (Northern Representative)
Type: Party – Barbecue
Network: Global
Price: ¥1000 per tent and ¥500 for dinner for non-hajet members
Start Time: Saturday, September 12, 2009 at 5:00pm
End Time: Sunday, September 13, 2009 at 1:00pm
Location: Aibetsu Autocamp
Street: Aiyama 1 ward, Aibetsu-cho, Kamikawa-gun, Hokkaido.
City/Town: Aibetsu, Japan
Aibetsu auto camp is a wonderful family campsite. It’s surrounded by beautiful mountains and the campsite has a pond, a river and a cafe. It has all the necessary amenities you could want for camping. Its noted for its pristine condition and tranquil atmosphere. But there are areas we can go to play games and drink by the river.
Bring your own booze, tents available for rent.
DIRECTIONS
1. By Bus from Asahikawa
Take Bus 81 from Asahikawa Station. It’s bus stop 3 directly in front of the station to your right.
Get off at 国道分岐点. If you are stuck, please ask the bus driver for Aibetsu Auto camp. Or conversely, print the stop off, and hand it to the driver.
Once you arrive, cross over the bridge, and take the first right until you come to the camp site. there will be a sign, but its in Katakana, so please learn your katakana. 愛別オートキャンプ。(we should be able to pick you up from the bus stop by running a car shuttling service. So if you wish, please wait at the bus stop and contact the organiser. please be patient! people are volunteering their time and their cars for you).
Bus Times from Asahikawa Station to Sounkyo (this is the bus which runs to Aibestu)
9:15, 10:45, 12:15, 14:35, 15:45, 16:35, 18:40
2. By Train. You can also take a train from Asahikawa station to Naka Aibestu. To do this, you have to get on a train bound for Kamikawa, and get off at Naka-Aibetsu station. Please note that not all trains bound for kamikawa stop at naka aibetsu, so please be certain to take only the trains we list here for you. When you get to Naka Aibetsu station, please contact the organizers and we will come as soon as possible to pick you up. please be patient.
So Naka Aibetsu – 中愛別. remember that the trains will be bound for KAMIKAWA, not AIBETSU.
Train times(bound for KAMIKAWA):
06:58, 09:12, 12:44, 13:43, 16:07, 18:15, 20:46, 21:49
3. By Car. This is by far the easiest way. From Asahikawa, get on to route 39 and keep driving until you get to Aibetsu. keep going and you will cross a bridge about 15 minutes past Aibetsu. There is a sign, but if you stay on that road, cross the river and take the first right. keep following it, and you will hit Aibetsu autocamp. From Sounkyo (for eastern jets), also go down 39, and it will be on your left before the bridge. There will be a sign, and keep your eyes open for a sign of Aizan 愛山. you drive through aizan and then you will see the sign. If you get in to trouble, ring the organizers. The Auto camp is a little over an hour away from Asahikawa.
Facebook Event page: Northern Welcome Party
Description of campsite (in Japanese)
Any questions: beckyjolliffe [at] gmail.com
Eastern Welcome Party 2009
Sep 1st
Eastern Welcome Party 2009
Camp Kimuaneppu at Lake Saroma
Where: Camp Kimuaneppu (キムアネップキャンプ場) on the southeastern side of Lake Saroma
When: September 5-6 (although some folks will be there on the 4th as well)
What to bring: Yourself (in case you forget), your camping gear, swimming togs/suits, bug repellent, sports paraphernalia, games, guitars, a change of clothes, a towel, hiking gear, a mini grill, anything else you might deem worthy. Also bring food and beverages. Food’s only provided on Saturday night. There aren’t too many conbini in the near vicinity so I swing by one on the way in and stock up.
Activities: John will be leading a hike up a nearby “mountain” that offers some great views of the lake, Saroma Pumpkin Festival, trips to the museums in Abashiri, park golf (!), sunset walks, onsens, baked goods, HEC fundraisers
The group bbq on Saturday night will consist of vegetarian friendly food. Bring your own meat if you want it. Also, let me know if you have any other dietary restrictions.
Transportation: I highly encourage carpools. There is no public transport that goes directly to the site. If you can get to any of the neighboring towns (Saroma, Tokoro, Yubetsu, Abashiri), we can find someone to get you. Please contact me with specific questions.
Price:
500 yen for the Saturday night meal (free for HAJET members); if you need a tent, they’re 1000 yen (tents will be able to sleep 3 comfortably)
