Okinawa and the Ryukyu Islands. Robert Walker
of Higashi Onsen shown on page 35.
7 KUROSHIMA 黒島
The most distant of the Mishima mini archipelago, “Black Island” is sometimes said to be a “mini Yakushima” for it also an almost perfectly round, mountainous though not super tall lush and green island, only it is smaller than Yakushima. Kuroshima (黒島; Kuro-shima) ranges between 2.5–3.5 miles (4–5.5 kilometers) in diameter. Its area has been measured at 6 square miles (15.5 square kilometers) and its circumference 8 square miles (20 square kilometers).
There are two villages on the island, Ōsato (大里; Ō-sato) and Katadomari (片泊; Katado mari). Between them they have a total population of about 175. The thrice weekly ferry from Kagoshima stops at both villages. There are four minshuku in Ōsato and three in Katadomari.
It takes about five hours to reach Kuroshima as the ferry Mishima (the “M” Line) stops at Takeshima and Iōjima along the way. Westbound, coming from Iōjima, it first stops on Kuroshima’s northeast side, at Ōsato. On most days the arrival time is scheduled for 2:25PM, although one day a week it is one hour earlier than that. After a 20-minute unloading and reloading of freight and passengers, the ferry continues for 20 minutes (5 mile/8 kilometers) to the island’s central west side, arriving just after 3:00PM at Katadomari, docking for the night.
The next morning (once a week, two days later), the “M” Line ferry departs Katadomari at 8:00AM and 20 minutes later makes its first 20-minute stop back at Ōsato. Departing there at 8:40AM, it continues on its eastbound journey for one hour (23 miles/37 kilometers) to Iōjima, arriving at 9:40AM. At 10:00AM, it departs and sails 25 minutes (9 miles/14 kilometers) to Takeshima. A 10:45AM departure and an almost three-hour sail north (58 miles/93 kilometers) brings the Mishima back to Kagoshima at 1:35PM, altogether taking about five and a half hours.
Kuroshima Island’s name “black” refers to the black volcanic soil, and black sand and black basalt rock beaches, found here. As for “beaches,” they’re really nonexistent. Almost entirely, the island’s 12-mile (20-kilometer) circumference is ringed by steep cliffs and a narrow rocky coastline. Although it must be said that the island’s strong suit is not beaches, it can be said that it is good for hikers. Because the mountains are not exceptionally tall, Kuroshima is criss-crossed and encircled by a number of good roads and paths. The island’s central highlands section has a half dozen peaks ranging in height from 1,837-feet (560-meter) Mt Eboshi (鳥帽子山; Eboshi-yama) to 1,936-feet (590-meter) Mt Yokodake (橫冶山; Yoko-daké yama) to 2,041-feet (622-meter) Yagura Peak (櫓岳; Yagura-daké).
Virtually every section of Kuroshoma is accessible to hikers, bikers, motorcyclists or drivers. It’s a very pleasant and scenic island on which to get around, all 6 square miles (15 square kilometers) of it.
That wraps up our coverage of the Mishima Group and of the Ōsumi chain. From here, we’ll return to Kagoshima and wait for the next Monday or Friday night departure of the Tokara, the ship that will take us to the Toshima group of islands, otherwise known as the Tokara Archipelago.
Chapter 2
THE TOKARA ISLANDS 吐噶喇列島
Remote isles, volcanic peaks
1 Kuchinoshima 口之島
2 Kogajajima 小臥蛇島
3 Gajajima 臥蛇島
4 Nakanoshima 中之島
5 Tairajima 平島
6 Suwanosejima 諏訪之瀬島
7 Akusekijima 悪石島
8 Kojima 小島
9 Kotakarajima 小宝島
10 Takarajima 宝島
11 Kaminoneshima 上ノ根島
12 Yokoatejima 横当島
Tokara Islands (吐噶喇列島 orトカラ列島; Tokara-rettō, also called Shichi-tō (七島), which means “Seven Islands,” consists of 12 very small islands scattered across 100 miles (160 kilometers) of Japanese waters between the northeastern group of the Ōsumi’s and the Amami’s northernmost and largest island, Amami-Ōshima. Seven islands are inhabited, five are not. The group is also commonly called the Toshima Islands (十島; Toshima-mura) although that name is more properly applied to the Japanese administrative district, which is the village of Toshima.
Toshima means “ten islands,” a reference to the former administrative union of the present seven inhabited islands plus the Mishima, the three inhabited islands of the Ōsumi’s northwestern group. Although the political boundaries were realigned some years ago, the name Toshima has stuck. The total area of all 12 islands of the present Tokara group is 39 square miles (100 square kilometers). The population of all the Tokara Islands combined is about 650, which averages some 30–170 people on each inhabited island. The largest island in the group is Nakanoshima. It has an area of 13 square miles (34 square kilometers) and a population of about 170.
By and large, the islands of the Tokara group are infrequently visited. Inter-island traffic primarily consists of residents on shopping trips to Kagoshima, “mainland” fishermen pursuing a few days of new waters, and adventurous travelers seeking uncrowded hot springs (onsen). What little settlement there is consists of fishing villages and some limited sugar cane farming and cattle raising. There are no commercial flights to any of the Tokaras, although there is an abandoned airstrip on Suwanosejima. In general, the islands can only be reached on the twice weekly service of the Tokara-Toshima ferry (フェリーとしま; Ferie To-shima).
Here’s how it works. The Tokaras are roughly aligned in an arc from the northeast to the southwest and are clustered into several lesser groups. Year round, at 10 minutes before midnight every Monday and Friday, except during bad weather, the ferry departs Kagoshima on its 125-mile (204-kilometer) overnight journey to Kuchinoshima, the most northerly of the Tokara Island group, about 40 miles (60 kilometers) southwest of Yakushima and Kuchinoerabujima. Kuchinoshima is at the top of the first and largest Tokara cluster of seven islands. The ferry arrives there a little more than six hours later, at 6:05AM. Fifteen minutes afterwards, at 6:20AM, the ship is underway on its 11-mile (18-kilometer) journey southwest to the next island, Nakanoshima, arriving at 7:10AM. There’s no reason to stop at either Kogajajima or Gajajima, the pair of uninhabited islets 14 and 19 miles (22 and 30 kilometers) due west, but you’ll see them off in the distance if the sky is clear.
After passengers and cargo have been unloaded and reloaded at Nakanoshima, the ferry departs at 7:30AM for Tairajima, about 19 miles (30 kilometers) southwest, arriving at 8:50AM. After a ten-minute stop, at 9:00AM, it’s 9 miles (15 kilometers) southeast to Suwanosejima, arriving about 9:50AM. Passengers and cargo are again discharged and boarded. Departing at 10:00AM, it takes a little less than an hour to sail the 12 miles (20 kilometers) due south to Akusekijima, with the arrival time usually about 10:50AM. Akusekijima is the last island in this little Tokara subgroup.
The western approach to Kuchinoshima on the ferry.
The Tokara, lifeline of the Tokara Island group.
Treasure Island (1911 Edition)
This classic edition was published by New York’s C. Scribner’s Sons. The cover and its illustrations were by Newell Convers Wyeth (1882–1945), one of America’s greatest illustrators and the father of Andrew Newell Wyeth (1917–2009) and grandfather of Jamie Wyeth (1946–). It would be quite a treasure to own this