Around Izu Honto

A view of a stream and bridge from a similar bridge.

I nice stroll through a bamboo forest.

This may look like a normal river, but the river bed was cemented, and each of these rocks were carefully placed and cemented down.  This is Japanese style.  They like to control the environment so it looks "more natural".

A canal in Shimoda.  Shimoda is where Admiral Perry first landed in Japan.  He was the famous American that insisted Japan end it's 200 year isolation - I'm not sure anything good came of that decision...

The southernmost tip of Isu Honto is also the furthest south I've been in Japan thus far.

Dogoshima has these really nice islands, as well as some cool caves.

...and a REALLY small, cute onsen.  This thing gets PACKED at sunset, as people sit in it to relax and watch the sunset from it's cliff-top perch.

A paddleboat passes a cute god-inhabited island in Shimoda.

The water down in Izu Honto is a very nice blue.

And the beaches aren't bad either.

Along the coastal road there was a sign implying it was a place for sledding... this is what it meant!  I guess they aren't worried about dune erosion here in Japan.