November 11, 2025
Day 70 — Matsuyama to Michikajima Island
Marilee here.
We had a restful day off in Matsuyama, visiting the castle and strolling through the downtown covered shopping arcades. Almost every city we’ve visited seems to have a covered shopping arcade that stretches for several blocks through the downtown, and they offer a clue to the economic health of the region: in Wakayama and Tokushima, they were mostly deserted, with rows of shuttered stores. Matsuyama and Kochi were much livelier, with lots of interesting shops and many shoppers.
Today would be our last day on Shikoku. We’ve really enjoyed this small island — although I have to admit my enthusiasm for pulling over to explore every temple or shrine has diminished somewhat. There are so many! Hats off to the dedicated pilgrims we pass along the roads, trudging to all 88 temples.
We’ve also enjoyed being on a dedicated cycling route for much of our time on Shikoku. Overall, it’s meant that sidewalks are wider and road shoulders more consistent, plus it felt like drivers were more aware of cyclists and pedestrians along the roads, thanks to the presence of the Shikoku pilgrims.
Our goal for the day was to get to Imabari, the starting point for the Shimanami Kaido, a famous cycling route between Shikuko and Honshu that takes riders over seven suspension bridges, jumping from tiny island to island on the way. From Imabari we planned to bike over the first couple of bridges and then stay at a campground on one of the small islands on the route.
The ride to Imabari was pleasant— mostly coastal, with some inland hills to remind our legs that they had a job to do.
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Once past Imabari we felt like the day was really getting started: the goodbye to Shikoku and the hello-again to Honshu, once we’d zoomed over these bridges and through these islands.
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We stopped at a Michi No Eki after descending from the first bridge and had a late lunch. Attached to the restaurant was a big seafood market, filled with tanks brimming with live sea creatures.
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Then it was back on the bikes for the final kilometres to our planned destination. We’d heard about a campground only accessible from the bike lane of the second bridge, and so we followed a path branching off midway through the second bridge. It was only signed “Michikajima Island” — no mention of camping, but when we’d swooped down a few switchbacks for get to sea level from the height of the bridge, there it was, with a few campers already setting up tents. We joined them, putting the tent up in time to enjoy the last warmth of the setting sun, overlooking the ocean. The days are getting very short, so camping means early dinners and bedtime.
Today's ride: 67 km (42 miles)
Total: 3,593 km (2,231 miles)
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