Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
YOROSHIMA
(
与路島
; Yoro-shima). At their closest points, it's only about 2 miles (3 kilomet-
ers) due west from Ukeshima to Yoro Island, although sailing from Uke's Ikeji Port to Yoro
Port (
与路港
; Yoro-kō) it's closer to 6 miles (10 kilometers). In any case, it's not far. Somewhat
like Uke, Yoro is also somewhat of a rectangle although a better formed one. It's a little island,
about 4 miles (6.4 kilometers) from end to end, north to south, and in most places about 1.25
miles (2 kilometers) wide from east to west. Also like Uke Island, it's mountainous and vir-
tually uninhabited. The only settlement is Yoro town, which has a population of about 150.
There's a post office, an elementary and a junior high school. No other services are available.
Interestingly, like Ukeshima, the island is criss-crossed with unpaved jeep tracks, so get-
ting around, at least with the right type of vehicle, is possible. The whole island is ringed
by beautiful but very remote beaches. This is particularly so on Yoro's western side. Less
than 1.25 miles (2 kilometers) east of Yoro town and only 2,460 feet/750 meters) from Yoro's
closest point is the tiny islet of Hanmyashima. We'll look at it next.
HANMYASHIMA
(
ハンミャ島
; Hanmyashima). Another miniscule, uninhabited, islet, this
one is just of the east coast of Yoroshima. Alternatively, it could be reached in less than 1.25
miles (2 kilometers) from the western shore of Ukeshima. Of course, if you did go there, from
either island, what's there? Not much. Hanmya Islet is mostly rock and a bit of sand, with just
a touch of vegetation. It's oblong in shape, about 2,300 feet (700 meters) in length and 660
feet (200 meters) in width.
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KIKAIJIMA OR KIKAIGASHIMA
喜界島
For the Ryukyus, where size is always relative, Kikaijima (
喜界島
; Kikai-jima or Kikaiga-shi-
ma) is a moderately large island. Its shape is something like that of an elongated pear or per-
haps a triangle. Better yet, how about the shape of an arrowhead or an eggplant? You get
the idea. It's wider at the bottom than at the top. It's about 9 miles (15 kilometers) long and
its width varies from around 2-2.5 miles (3.2-4 kilometers) through its northern two-thirds
to approximately 6 miles (10 kilometers) at its lower southern one-third. Kikai's area is 22
square miles (57 square kilometers) and its population a little more than 8,000.
That's actually quite a few people for an essentially small place. The reason for the relat-
ively high population is that unlike so many of the Amamis, Kikaijima is not mountainous.
It's mostly level, with the exception of one good-sized high ridge which occupies about one-
third of the central east side of the island. The escarpment is crowned along its length with
a scenic road connecting a couple of parks. But for this exception, most of the rest of Kikai
is fully settled, with close to two dozen villages, and highly developed, with almost its entire
