40Km 成田 Narita 栄町 Sakae-machi 利根川 Tonegawa
near Narita, Chiba (Japan)
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I remember when I ran a half marathon for the first time, I thought, "I'm more amazed by people who finish a marathon in 5 hours than people who finish in 2 hours and 10 minutes, because running for 5 hours must be incredibly tough. How many times does it cross your mind to give up for 5 hours? You have to be very mentally strong to run for 4 and a half hours and keep going without stopping until the finish line." I've always thought that pain and fatigue are in the head, and that no matter how broken you are, a strong mentality can pull your body down, whereas no matter how physically prepared you are, doubts creep in halfway through a race, you'll never be able to finish. Every day I'm more confident when I go out for a run, no matter how far I go, and running a marathon, and even longer distances, is inevitable. As long as I continue to enjoy running and cycling, I'll keep trying to reach further and new interesting places.
Today's route is divided into three parts. In the very short first, I went to the entrance gate of Naritasan; then, in the longer second, I went to the Tone or Tonegawa River from Narita and back; and finally, in the third, I wandered around Narita New Town for a 40-kilometer stretch.
Regarding the first part, Naritasan Shinsho-ji Temple is a very popular Buddhist temple complex. It was founded in 940 by Kancho Daisojo. It has a strong connection to kabuki theater, through the famous actor Ichikawa Danjuro I, the greatest kabuki actor, who attributed the birth of his first son to prayers at this temple. The temple is located at the end of Omotesando, an 800-meter street that connects the temple to Narita Train Station. It is a traditional Japanese-style shopping street. The street slopes downhill with the temple at the bottom and the train station at the top, so walking down the street, you can see the temple's enormous pagoda in the background. The Great Peace Pagoda, built in 1984, is a 58-meter tower. The first floor houses the entrance, where an exhibition on the history of Naritasan and its connection to kabuki is located.
Afterwards, I went to the Tone River. The Tone River (利根川) is one of the great rivers of Japan. Its basin is the largest in Japan, and at 322 km long, it is the second longest river in Japan. In the past, the Tone River was famous for periodically producing major floods, frequently changing its course as a result. To control flooding and facilitate navigation, a series of major works began in the 17th century, at the time when the Kanto region became the political center of Japan. This river represents the border between Ibaraki and Chiba prefectures. To do so, I ran to Sakae-Machi, one of the northernmost towns in Chiba prefecture. If, as I did, you take the wide street that passes through Manzaki from Narita, you have a very safe path to the river. Along the Tone River, I ran for a few kilometers without straying far from the area I had entered, and I returned along the same path.
After returning to Narita, I found myself in the old town, where there's a huge Aeon Mall, not far from Naritasan Temple. To continue running, I headed to Narita New Town, the new area, as it has wide streets that are comfortable for running. I made it to the other Aeon Mall in Narita, in front of the municipal library, and turned around on my way back. I had to run some unnecessary circles in order to reach 40 kilometers, since I had set my goal and didn't want to stop at 38 or 39.
When I finish, I feel quite tired, but far from my limit. I'm surprised at how strong I feel. Obviously, I wasn't very fast; I kept a conservative pace that would have allowed me to reach 40 kilometers, but I feel like I still have room for distance and, of course, speed. Along with these long runs, I should do intervals and other workouts. I've never done any running workouts other than long run after long run, which is what I enjoy and what makes me feel good. However, with the goal of improving, I might do other workouts as well.
In short, I finally reached a number I've been chasing for a while, but I'm always chasing more, always running towards new interesting or beautiful places.
Waypoints



Omotesando
Calle tradicional japonesa con comercios locales y comercios clásicos. Desde esta calle se ve la gran pagoda de la paz del templo Naritasan. Se encuentra entre la estación de Narita y el templo.



Puerta Naritasan
Entrada al templo. Si bien la recepción y el servicio de goshuin, amuletos y demás habré a las 9:00, el conjunto de templos está abierto las 24 horas, por lo que se puede venir a cualquier hora del día



Naritasan
Templo más popular de Narita y uno de los más grandes y bonitos de todo Japón



Sendero
Sendero en el camino hacia Sakae-Machi. Lo vi al pasar por aquí pero no lo recorrí, ya que para seguir a Sakae hay que seguir recto



Santuario
Encontré este santiago por el camino, aunque no tenía nada especial aproveché para sacar algunas fotos
Comments (5)
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Una ruta muy bonita con esa calle comercial tan especial y ese sendero tan bonito.
Enhorabuena por conseguir esos 40 km!!
Enhorabuena !!
Una ruta muy interesante y bonita!
Enhorabuena!!
Muy buena ruta! La puerta de Naritasan es impresionante y el Santuario en Sakae es precioso.
El río, el sendero y disfrutar de la belleza de los cerezos en flor unido al logro de esos 40km hacen que esta ruta sea impresionante.
もうすぐマラソン出来るよ!
Que tremendo relato hermano! Felicidades! Leí casa renglón con atención!!💪🏾💪🏾💪🏾🏃🏃🏃
Sigue disfrutando tu recorrido por la vida... junto a las carreras que te llevan a sacar lo mejor de ti!🤗🤗🤗
Eres un crack!🫡🫡🫡