Japan 4.9: Goko Five Lakes hike twice. An Insect's Life.

Yesterday I went on the Shiretoko Goko Five Lakes hike, along with a small group and a tour guide.  Bears have the potential to show up on the trail, and therefore you must have a guide through June and July.  Since I was going on August 2, I did not need a guide anymore, but I figured it would be better to be safe than sorry.  If a bear is spotted, they close down the trail.

I was picked up early in the morning and joined a group of about eight other people.  We were driven to the Goko Lakes.  Once there, you have to go through a fifteen minute video and lecture that all people walking the trails had to go through.  If you saw a bear, turn around and walk back.  Clap your hands loudly and/or holler and then listen for a response.

  The guide was nice and spoke a few words of English.  He would stop fairly often during the first part of the hike to talk about plants.  He pointed to this tree, showing bear claw marks.



After a short while, we came across the first lake.  The guide spotted a yellow frog, but it jumped down from the top leaf and I was only able to get an obscured picture.



I took quick pictures, because the guide would call for me when the group would move on and I hadn't.  He encountered a single bird along the trail.  Most of the other lakes were unremarkable, but one had nice lilies.



The very last portion of the trail had been barred off, as there was a bear sighting.  The trail was shut down for other visitors that had just come.  Then, we walked around on an elevated boardwalk that we would've connected with to finish the trail, but there really wasn't much to see there.  Mountains in the distance, the last lake, and lots of foliage.



Later in the day I went to a nearby waterfall.



I woke up today with nothing to do.  Originally the cruise had been scheduled for today, but since it was canceled and rescheduled for two days ago, this day was left empty.  I very much wanted to do the Goko trail again and take my time, stopping to photograph insects.  When I woke up, I checked their website, and the trail was closed as of 7:35 AM.  There had been bear sightings.  I ate breakfast and this was still the case when I was done.  I spoke on the phone briefly to Stephanie and decided to check one last time before I napped.  It had just reopened!

I quickly grabbed my gear and headed out despite the forecast of possible rain.  It never rained.  I walked very slowly through the trail.  This time I was able to complete the last portion.  It was only five minutes that I had missed.

These are the insects that I saw throughout both days:



This last one isn't a great picture, but I caught the spider eating a fly caught in its web.