Our objective was to get to Mie prefecture and although there are much easier ways to cross into Mie prefecture from Aichi prefecture, the runAway Japan team decided to take on crossing Ise Bay by kayak. Dean and Megan started the team out on the journey kayaking down the Kiso River. From there they would follow the current into Ise Bay so that they could cross it to make it over to Mie prefecture. This is much more difficult to physically accomplish versus what it looks like when we planned it, or even writing it down now.
What started as a leisurely kayak ride with a beautiful view quickly transformed into an adrenaline pumping challenge once we made it into Ise Bay. We had to get out of the current of the Kiso River which we had enjoyed up to this point and cross the bay at the point where another river, the Ibi River, flows into it. We were paddling against the wind, against the current, and fighting our way to safety. There was a section where we weren’t even able to film because we were needing all of our strength and focus to make it. Imagine paddling as hard as you can, and not making it even one meter closer to shore. It was physically and mentally exhausting because there was no turning back no matter how hard it got. We had to make it across, and we did it!
After we made it to shore and took some time to catch our breath, Duncan took Megan’s spot in the kayak and we followed the coast to Tsu the capital of Mie prefecture. We successfully paddled all the way to Tsu, but getting onto land was an unexpected hassle! Luckily, a friendly local man came to our rescue so we could finally make it safely onto land with our kayak and our belongings. After all of the adventures of the day, we took a relaxing evening to eat dinner together and share a beer to celebrate surviving our adventure of the day!
