Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
flights. The usual mode of transport is the ferry
Mishima
(
みしま
), also known as the “M”
Line, which makes the trip from Kagoshima three times a week. The regular departure time
is 9:30
AM
although on certain days it is 8:30
AM
, so you must double check.
The sailing distance to the first destination of Takeshima is 60 miles (94 kilometers) and
travel time from Kagoshima is not quite three hours. There's a 20 minute discharge and re-
board time at Takeshima and then it's only 9 miles (14 kilometers) and a quick 25 minutes
to Iōjima, arriving around 1:00
PM
. After a 20-minute stop, from Iōjima it's another 22 miles
(35 kilometers) and one hour to the island of Kuroshima and its first eastside port, Ōsato.
After the usual 20-minute unload/reload, the ship departs for the brief 5-mile (8-kilometer)
20-minute sail to Kuroshima's second port, Katadomari, on the island's west side. It usually
arrives about 3:00
PM
.
Thus, the sequence is Kagoshima → Takeshima → Iōjima → Kuroshima (two ports), where
the ship overnights. In general, two times a week, the next day, she reverses the journey, start-
ing from Katadomari → then Ōsato → Iōjima → Takeshima → and finally Kagoshima. Sailing
times are roughly similar except that on the return journeys the M Line starts the day around
8:00
AM
and arrives back in Kagoshima around 1:30
PM
. In general, on one out of the three
weekly sailings, the ship waits two days before making the return journey. Therefore, pay at-
tention to the ferry schedule on your days of travel. It's easy to confuse it and find yourself
stuck an extra day.
Note that with this ferry schedule, unless you've got your own watercraft, or you hire a
local fisherman (which is not difficult to do, but very expensive) or are a real good swimmer,
visiting each island means staying there at least one overnight, if not a couple of days. That's
not generally a big problem as there are a couple of
minshuku
on each island and after all, it's
why you came out here.
There's really no other way off these islands once you've landed. And there are no other
public services on any of the Mishima Islands: no taxis or buses, no rental cars, no scooters or
bikes, and no banks or ATMs, so bring adequate cash. You'll probably eat at your
minshuku
as almost all include meals in their daily rates. Most visitors come to snorkel or dive, soak
in
onsen
or just hike and peacefully relax. There are some rather obscure ties to very ancient
Japanese history but these will be of interest mostly to Japanese nationals and historians.
5
TAKESHIMA
竹島
Takeshima (
竹島
; Také-shima), whose name translates as “Bamboo,” is quite a small island
and is infrequently visited. Its most recent census listed the population at 83 residents. It is
