Bus VS Local Trains In Fukushima Prefecture, Yamagata Prefecture And Miyagi Prefecture - Part 1

This week, two teams take part in an exciting “bus versus train” adventure. They will race from Fukushima City Hall in Fukushima Prefecture to the ruins of Sendai Castle in Miyagi Prefecture. They must complete missions at five “checkpoints” along the way and each team is given 10,000 yen to spend on taxis. 

The first checkpoint the teams need to clear is Marue Orchard, which is 10km away from Fukushima City Hall. The bus team finds out there is no direct bus to Marue Orchard. They must go to Fukushima Station and then take a bus to a bus station near the checkpoint. They are the first to leave the starting point.

The train team goes to the information centre and the participants are advised to walk to Soneda Station, catch the 10.30am train and then head to Hirano Station. They will then have to walk about 2.5km from Hirano Station to Marue Orchard. The train team also does some advance planning. After they complete the mission at the first checkpoint, they aim to go to Niwasaka Station, 6km away, and board the 1pm train to get to the next checkpoint in Yonezawa. If they miss the 1pm train, they must wait three hours for the next train.

The bus team members reach the station and find out that they can take the 1.30pm bus - three hours later - from Nakano Station to Zatou Town. They can choose to walk but the station is 7km away. They have another option - to take the 10.30am bus towards Niwasaka Station, alight at the Kitakayaba bus stop and walk 4km to Marue Orchard.

In the meantime, the train team walks to Soneda Station, catches the 10.30am train and reaches Hirano Station. Marue Orchard is about 2.5km away on foot. The bus team, meanwhile, arrives at Kitakayaba and starts walking 4km to the first checkpoint. 

The train team arrives at Marue Orchard first. This orchard in Fukushima is a popular tourist spot for picking fruit. The mission is to eat three types of fruits whose total sugar content adds up to at least 50 per cent. The participants can choose three fruits among five seasonal fruits; they include Kosui pear, Sakura white peach, Kyoho grapes and Steuben grapes. They go with the Kyoho grapes first, which turn out to have a sugar content of 18 per cent. The second fruit they choose, Kosui pear, has a sugar content of 12 per cent.

While the train team is doing the challenge, the bus team arrives. They choose the Steuben grapes first, the sugar content of which is 20 per cent. They however want to try peaches also as Fukushima is known for its peaches. So the team heads to the peach farm, which is 1km away from the entrance of Marue Orchard. The Sakura white peach they pick has a sugar content of 15 per cent. They decide to go with the Steuben grapes again as the third fruit.

The train team, meanwhile, picks the Kyoho grapes once more but this lot’s sugar content is 14 only. The mission is not successful so they have to restart the challenge and choose the fruits to eat again. This time, they select Kyoho grapes only. The first grape has a 19 per cent sugar content, the second 18 per cent and the third 14 per cent. They get a score of 51, which means they have successfully completed the mission. 

The second checkpoint is a place called Tokiwa in Yonezawa City of Yamagata Prefecture. The train team will now head to Niwasaka Station to catch the 1pm train to Yonezawa. They decide to walk to the station, which is 6km away.

The bus team clears the mission soon after, as the Steuben grapes they chose as the third fruit have a sugar content of 18. To get to the second checkpoint, they must pass the border between Fukushima and Yamagata. However, there are no buses that cross the border to Yonezawa. They must walk to the Sekiba bus stop, then take a bus to the Suginotaira bus station. 

Unfortunately, the train team misjudges the distance to Niwasaka Station and misses the 1pm train. They are just 700m away from the station when the train leaves. The next train will depart at 4pm.

It is now 1.15pm and the bus team sees that the next bus to Suginotaira is only at 2.25pm. So they decide to walk 3km directly to Suginotaira and later cross the border by taxi. They book a taxi in advance and it will pick them up from Suginotaira. 

As the train team must wait for three hours for the next train, they drop by a restaurant which specialises in its own blend of miso. 

Meanwhile, the bus team reaches Suginotaira after walking for two hours from the first checkpoint. They are thrilled to see their taxi already waiting for them and take it to cross the border to Yamagata Prefecture. 

Tips:

1)    The lobby of Fukushima City Hall is a popular scenic spot to view the Ou Mountains
2)    Peaches are a must-try fruit when visiting Fukushima