Okinawa and the Ryukyu Islands. Robert Walker
before noon, it departs about 12:10 after a 20-minute stop. The next port is Wadomari, 30 miles (48 kilometers) and about two hours later, at 2:00PM on the island of Okinoerabu (沖之永良部島; Oki-no-érabu-jima), where the ship loads and unloads for half an hour.
Departing Okinoerabu about 2:30PM, the ship continues 35 miles (56 kilometers) north, approximately two hours, to Tokuno (德之島; Toku-no-shima), where it arrives at 4:30PM. The ferry discharges and reloads passengers and freight, taking about 30 minutes, then leaves at 5:00PM. The next leg is 68 miles (109 kilometers), about three and a half hours north, to Amami City, arriving at 8:30PM. Here, there’s about a 45-minute stop for restocking. At 9:20PM the ship departs Nazé Port and sails 240 miles (384 kilometers) through the night, with no further stops, arriving at Kagoshima City at 8:30AM the next morning.
Sailing the route from north to south, each day a ship leaves Kagoshima Port at 6:00PM, arriving non-stop on Amami at 5:00AM the next morning. At 5:50AM, the ship departs Nazé for Tokuno and arrives at 9:10AM. Half an hour later, at 9:40AM, it departs for Okinoerabu, arriving at 11:30AM. The ship stops there for 30 minutes, then departs at 12:00 noon. An hour and forty minutes later, it arrives at Yoron-tō. Some 20–30 minutes later, at around 2:00PM, the ship sails approximately two and a half hours south to Okinawa’s Motobu Port, arriving near 4:30PM. Loading and reloading there for half an hour, the ship departs about 5:00PM for its last leg to Naha Port, arriving two hours later, at 7:00PM. The ship docks for the night, then departs at 7:00AM the next morning, starting the cycle all over again.
There are over 250 miles (400 kilometers) of picture postcard vistas along the convoluted coastline of Amami-Ōshima.
Let’s look at the Amami Archipelago in detail, for it is very beautiful. Although the islands are not tropical for the most part, they receive more than adequate rainfall and thus are lush and green. Their climates vary from mild temperate to subtropical. Here’s a run-down of the islands traveling from north to south.
1 AMAMI-ŌSHIMA 奄美大島
Commonly called Ōshima (“Big Island”), this is the northernmost island in the Amami group. It has an area of 275 square miles (713 square kilometers) and is the largest island in the Amami Archipelago and second largest (after Okinawa) in all the Ryukyus. At its greatest length, it is approximately 38 miles (60 kilometers) long. Its width varies from almost 19 miles (30 kilometers) to as little as 10 (16 kilometers), and at one place in the north it narrows to a less than 1-mile (1-kilometer)-wide isthmus. A triangular-shaped island, Ōshima’s irregular coastline gives it an expansive circumference of 265 miles (426 kilometers). The island’s highest point is Mt Yūwan (湯湾岳; Yūwan-daké), which rises to a height of 2,277 feet (694 meters).
Marix Line’s “Queen Coral 8” on its way around the Anami Island chain.
In addition to being the largest Amami Island by area, Ōshima is by far the largest Amami in terms of population. Ōshima has approximately 66,000 residents, a number that dwarfs the populations of all the other Amamis combined. A large majority of the inhabitants (47,000) live in the main city of Amami (奄美市; Amami-shi), which is located on the island’s northwest side. Prior to 2006 the city was known as Nazé (名瀬; Nazé), but it was renamed after its merger with two surrounding towns, Kasari (笠利町; Kasari-chō) and Sumiyō (住用村; Sumiyōson). Many people still refer to Amami City as Nazé and that’s what the port is almost always called.
The city has plenty of good hotels and restaurants and is especially lively after dark. There is a host of bars and clubs downtown, all located within easy walking distance of one another, where anyone can pleasantly spend a few evenings. The people are friendly and don’t see many Western tourists. In virtually every pub and club, you’ll be asked where you are from and what you are doing in Nazé.
Amost all of Amami-Ōshima (奄美大島; Amami-Ō-shima) is mountainous. In fact, over 90 percent of the island is covered in dense vegetation and only a small percentage is level enough to support sugar cane growing or other agriculture. Luckily for golfers, there’s one nicely created carve-out of the jungle just for them. Only a few miles north of Nazé, there’s a beautifully sited club, the Amami-Ōshima Country Club, high in the hills overlooking the East China Sea. Day passes are available, but of course it’s easier to ask on weekdays. On weekends the club is extremely popular with Ōshima’s “in-crowd” and tee times are limited. There’s an excellent restaurant in the clubhouse and a nice 19th hole bar as well.
The ocean approach to Ōshima’s Nazé harbor passes by tiny Yagi Island, which hosts a small resort hotel.
Golf at the Amami-Ōshima Country Club.
Due to its pristine condition, Ōshima is well known in Japan as a nature lover’s destination. There are several large reserves. One is the Kinsakubaru Virgin Forest (金作原原 生林; Kinsakubaru gensei-rin), which features several hundred hectacres of jungle with well-marked paths for hiking. It’s just south of Nazé. The forest contains many semi-tropical plant species, including vast growths of dinosaur-era giant tree ferns. For vast quantities of dinosaur-era sago palms, there’s a great hillside in Tatsugō Town (龍 郷町; Tatsugō-chō) that’s covered in them. Primaeval, although perhaps not as primor-dial as the preceding two dinosaur forests, another very interesting preserve is the man-grove forest at the estuary of Sumiyō River (住用村川; Sumiyō-gawa) at the town of Sumiyō. It’s a popular place to rent kayaks and explore the river/swamp/ocean outlet.
Moving from brackish waters to salty ones, Ō Island is ringed by coral reefs and is also popular with divers, although its more northern location means that most divers, snorkelers, beach-goers and swimmers will visit in the summertime. If you are a beach lover, you’ll most likely be exploring Ōshima’s northern end, where you will find innumerable coves, bays, points and capes. It’s probably the most twisted and hairpin-turned section of the island. Virtually around every bend of the road there’s another beach and another scenic vista. Two of the finest views of endless ocean and uncrowded beaches may be found just north of the airport, from Cape Ayamaru (あやまる岬; Ayamaru-misaki) to Cape Kasari (笠利崎 or 用岬); Kasari-zaki or Yō-misaki), at the northernmost tip of the island.
On account of its unique topography, the northern Ayamaru-zaki cape is almost always windy and is a top spot for paragliders.
It almost does not matter where you may stop and explore the coast on this isolated end of the island for you will find a good beach at every turn. In fact, just below the airport, where you can watch the planes come and go, you’ll find as beautiful and untrammeled a beach as any you might see anywhere on Ōshima.
Amami-Ōshima truly has something for just about everyone. Although for those not accustomed to the Ryukyu Islands it may seem small, it’s not. Driving the northern one-third end of the island above Nazé and stopping along the way for a dip, a hike or to take a photo will take a whole day. A grand circle of the north, usually following the coast, will easily run 80 miles (128 kilometers) or more. If you take even a few of the side roads, you’ll put 95 or 110 miles (152 or 176 kilometers) on your car’s odometer.
Casually exploring by car the southern two-thirds of the island will take longer. Following the coast and primarily driving a circle route will easily occupy two days and cover some 125–155 miles (200–248 kilometers). Again, if you branch out on to just a few of the interior roads, you’ll drive over 188 miles (300 kilometers). Although there are no major highways and the roads can be relatively narrow in places, they are well maintained and safe. All that’s required is some moderation in speed, especially if it’s been raining, for then they are