Ashihama (芦浜) remains wild and isolated. You can hear the deer, see the eagles soaring, and see telltale signs of wild boar everywhere. If Chubu Electric Power had had their way then it would have become the site of a nuclear power plant. But they didn’t. The Fukushima meltdown changed all that. Today it remains a beautiful hidden cove just over a one hour hike from Nishiki Port (錦港) in Mie prefecture.

This hike will be one that I remember. The last time I came here I was a different person – a cyclist dabbling in hiking and dreaming of becoming a travel photographer. No daughter or signs of children anywhere on the horizon.

I’ve wanted to take my wife to Ashihama for a long time but being able to take my wife and daughter is a blessing. When she’s older we’ll camp for the night just like I did on my first visit back in 2013.

I was introduced to Ashihama by a good friend that regularly hikes with his son and daughter – they did this hike on foot when they were three years old – and their way of life has become a blueprint for how we want to raise our daughter. Out in nature and the natural world, with the freedom to explore, learn, and the occasional risk.

Ashihama is a wonderful place for her to do just that.

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