2008 Trips
As we settle into our new home, we are overwhelmed at the kindness and openness of our neighbors, and thankful for the opportunities we have to invite others share this amazing experience. Being our first year here in this village with its unique climate, the biggest challenge has been predicting the best time to plan all the activities we dream about. Below is a list of the programs that are confirmed.
- Nozoriko Off-road Mountain Bike & Onsen (July)
- Father's Day Survival Adventure (June)
- Spring Countryside Bike & Walk (May/June)
- Family Bike Adventure (July)
- Fall Bike & Hike Adventure (October)
- Thatch Roof Preservation Volunteer Project (October)
Other plans for 2008 can be found on our 2008 Calendar. If a trip looks interesting, but the dates don't fit your schedule, let us know as some trips are also available on request.
Nozoriko Mountain Bike (July 19 - 21)
Join us as we stake out a new route from Kusatsu onsen village over the only mountain pass (navigable only by foot or bike) into the remote Akiyamago Vally. This trip will be 3 days / 2 nights. Accommodation at a family inn at Kusatsu on night one, and a bear hunter's lodge in Akiyama on night two. Hot-springs will be abundant, including one that requires digging into the riverbed.
This is a challenging ride for anyone with an average level of fitness that is willing to push themselves. On-road altitude gain of up to 800m over 50km, and off-road downhill ride which may require some walking over terrain impassible by bike will give you a greater sense of accomplishment than if you just stay home and spend your three-day weekend surfing the web. Nightly hot-spring baths and hearty meals (bear-meat stew anyone?) will make you all-but-forget your saddle-sore butt.
More details coming soon.
Father's Day Survival Adventure (June 14,15)
Spend Father's Day together with your children in the "wilderness" of Sakae Mura. This 2-day trip includes everything you will need to survive (for 2 days) without the comforts of modern civilization. You and your children will have a chance to work in the mountains repairing old trails as well as experience the basics of camping and survival, fromnavigation with a map and compass, building a fire and shelter, to fishing, gathering edible plants, and cooking in the wild.
- Mountain Volunteer Work (trail maintenance)
- Nature Crafts (make useful tools from materials around you)
- Fishing for Dinner
- Shelter and Fire Making
- Navigation with Map & Compass
- Identify Edible Plants - cook & eat them
More details coming soon.
Spring Countryside Bike & Walk (May 31 - June 4)
Take six days to relax and enjoy the best of country life that Japan has to offer. This program is designed to offer a perfect balance between bicycle touring, allowing you to see more of the beautiful Japanese country side, and relaxed walking and cultural activities, allowing you to experience more of the rural Japan lifestyle.
Family Bike Adventure (July 11 - 14)
This is a bike adventure built for families. Shorter distances allow children and their parents an opportunity to challenge themselves, while still having time to take in the beauty of rural Japan. Participants will have an opportunity to see and learn about traditional country life in Japan through participation - to have fun while getting a first-hand taste of the history and culture that are all but lost in modern metropolitan cities of Japan. Our trips are designed with educational aspects as well, based on exploratory and experiential learning models.
Winter Programs
* Traditional Snow-Country Experience in JapanSee and experience traditional life in one of the snowiest regions on earth. This customizable adventure will have you walking, skiing, and sledding through rural mountain villages famous for record snowfalls of up to eight meters. You will learn how people endured five months of winter in the past, and how life has changed in recent decades. Overnight trips have the option of building and sleeping in your own snow-cave within walking distance of a hot bath and traditional meal.
Completed Fall Programs
Fall Colors Bike & Hike (Oct 20-26 - 2, 3, or 7 Day)
This was an adventurous getaway for travellers who wanted to work their body but still have time to relax and take in the beauty of Japan in Autumn. Participants had an opportunity to see and learn about traditional country life in Japan - to taste the history and culture that are all but lost in modern metropolitan cities of Japan.
Thatched Roof Preservation Project (Oct 27, 28)
Volunteers gathered to harvest kaya in the infamous Akiyamago vally and help preserve a protected national treasure, while learning about traditional archtecture and life in Japan. Free meals and accomodation in family run inns were planned for all volunteers. The event was cancelled due to rain, but half of the thirty registrants came anyway to enjoy the relaxed pace of country life and a tour of Akiyamago in Autumn.
We believe in A Better Way
One Life Japan's goal is to promote the recognition and exploration of possibility - the possibility within ourselves and within society to create a better life.
Possibility is born with an awareness and understanding of the whole process of life - its vast expanse with all its subtleties, with its extraordinary beauty, its sorrows, its joys, and its challenges. This understanding is the first step to cultivating the capacity to think freely without culturally learned fears and formulas, to begin to answer for oneself what is real, and what is true.
We make use of the uniqueness, contrasts, and beauty of Japan's culture, nature, and history to introduce a holistic view, promoting an awareness of complexity, ecology, culture, and self.