4am kayak launched in moonlight. A slow paddle in river calm. Soon the scent of white and pink barringtonia. Further, the simple beauty of a small waterfall made more beautiful because it felt like a secret only six of us knew. Back the way we came, the sky brightening. The night’s blooms letting go of their brief time; the water catching them and extending their magic. This is my new hanami.
Sagaribana is a type of barringtonia plant that blooms only from around June 20 to July 20, and only at night. The fragrant blooms drop by 5 or 6 am so it’s even more fleeting than cherry blossoms. This captivating flower is the main reason why we’re braving Iriomote’s heat and humidity in June. And it was worth it.
Active Adventures
But Iriomote, a 50-minute ferry ride from Ishigaki, is known for more active adventures. Among its mangroves, waterfalls, rivers and reefs, days can be filled with kayaking, hiking, snorkeling and canyoning. The most popular is Pinaisara Falls which requires a 30-minute leisurely kayak then a 20-minute moderate hike. Once at the basin of the falls, you can cool off with a dip in its clear water or even jump off a rock into the basin.
After eating the packed lunch, we made our way back while on the lookout among the mangrove roots for tiny, land-hopping fish (our guide called them tumtumni) and small, scurrying black crabs. Then we were driven east to where water buffalo-driven carts would take us across the shallow strait to lush Yubu Island. As the water buffalo slowly but powerfully pulled us across, the driver serenaded us with a sanshin, a 3-stringed Okinawan instrument. At Manta Ray Beach Café, we cooled down with good gelato that we had to consume quickly before it melted.
The next day, we were driven to where the road ended at Shirahama Port and took the 10-minute ferry to Funauki. After a short walk, we found a spot on the pristine Ida Beach and snorkeled. The corals were mostly all the way on the west side of the beach, parallel to the shore. There, I saw what I thought was a fast-flying underwater bird which turned out to be a panicked sea turtle.
There are other waterfalls, like Yutsun and Nakara, that can be reached by kayak and a hike. There are also caves to be explored and canyons climbed. Iriomote also has two other memorable beaches: Tsukigahama, just after high tide and still with some morning shade from trees. There’s no coral here but we had the calm beach to ourselves. Right after lunch, Hoshizuna (star sand) beach at low tide allowed us to spend hours exploring further out to sea and among tide pools.
Above: Tsukigahama Beach.
Below: Hoshizuna Beach
The next day was our early morning kayak and sagaribana viewing. In the afternoon, we had a snorkeling cruise near Barasu Island, a very tiny island made of coral. The first snorkeling spot had a sea turtle leisurely munching away without regard for the snorkelers. The second spot had a very extensive reef system. Both sites had a good variety of colorful fish.
All of these tours were arranged with Iriomote Osanpo Kibun, our guide from which also owns and manages the hotel we stayed at: Nest Iriomote. Though the hotel at 3 rooms was small, we had a very comfortable stay as the room was big and had every modern comfort. Our guide also helped make dinner reservations for every night we were there. Pre-booking about 2 weeks before arrival is recommended as the restaurants fill up. My favorite would be Hook by Bridge which was in a simple, one-storey structure but had a killer view just before sunset. Of course, it helps that the food was great too. We had poached fish (acqua pazza) where the broth was later used to cook our risotto.
After dinner, we walked to the most scenic area of Iriomote Island, Unarizaki Park Observatory. With other local residents, we caught the last of the sun’s rays as the surf pounded against the cliffs and storm clouds dumped rain in the distance. Our Yaeyama Islands vacation was coming to a close, but we were leaving sated.
Written by Diana Koa – All photos credit to Diana Koa
*The opinions expressed in the above article do not reflect the views of JNTO. All content and images are property of the writer unless otherwise specified.
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