とある理由から、小学生の夏休みに毎年通っていた下田の民宿に宿泊したくて、予約の電話をした。しかし、ご主人が大病を患っているらしく、今年は年内いっぱい休業しているとのことであった。
For some reason, I thought I wanted to stay at a Japanese inn in Shimoda that I used to visit every summer vacation during my elementary school years. So, I called to make a reservation. However, the mother of the inn told me that the
owner (her husband) suffered from a serious illness and the inn had been
closed for this year.
宿の休業とは、不測の事態であった。既にレンタカーを予約しており、変更には余分な費用が掛かってしまう。また、ここに行ってからここに泊まって、子供の頃に遊んだ吉佐美の大浜でスキンダイビングなどと、旅程を思い描いてもいた。果てさて、どうしたものか。
The closure of the inn was an unexpected event. As I had already booked a rental car, rescheduling will incur additional costs. In addition, already I had also envisioned a trip that included staying it, then skin diving at Ohama Beach in
Kisami, where I used to play during my childhood. Anyway, what should I do?
海水浴のシーズンが過ぎてしまったためだろう。目的地周辺の宿は、その日は定休日だからと予約はことごとく断られる。思案に暮れて、伊豆半島のスキンダイビングのYouTubeを手当たり次第に閲覧していると、引き込まれる景色に遭遇した。試しに、その地区の宿に連絡してみる。無事に宿泊の予定が成立した。I guessed that it was because the swimming season had passed. Every inn
near my destination refused my reservation due to the closed day. As I was at a loss, I randomly browsed YouTube videos about skin diving on the Izu
Peninsula. Then I encountered a captivating view. I tried to call an inn in the
area. Yes, I could got the reservation.
伊豆急下田駅の改札を出ると、早速、駅に併設された水槽の中からミノカサゴが迎えてくれる。When I exited the ticket gate at Izukyu-Shimoda Station, I was greeted by a
lionfish in an aquarium attached to the station.
I often saw them when scuba diving in Kawana. But, when I observed it again
川奈のスキューバではよく拝見するが、陸で改めて間近に観察してみると、派手ながらも綺麗な容姿が具にわかる。長い鰭は優雅である。その割りに、大きな口辺りが意外と不細工なので、却って愛嬌を感じてしまう。
up close on land, I could clearly recognize that it had a flashy yet beautiful
appearance. The long fins were elegant. Despite that, the large mouth was
surprisingly ugly. This actually made it seem more charming for me.
７時５９分到着の伊豆急線に乗車すれば、駅にあるニッポンレンタカーがちょうど８時に開店する。すぐに手続きを済ませ、浮島海岸へ向けて車を馳せる。
I boarded the Izukyu Line which arrived at 7:59 at Izukyu-Shimoda Station, and the Nippon Rent-A-Car next to it opened at exactly 8:00. After I quickly completed the procedures, I started to drive to Futou Beach.
道程は、伊豆半島の南東から西海岸への内陸横断となる。猛暑日はまだ続いているものの、既に９月である。道路は空いており、ネットでは1時間40分と換算されていた移動時間が１時間ほどで済んでしまった。
The road of journey crosses inland from the southeast of the Izu Peninsula to the west coast Although the extremely hot days continue, it was already
September. The roads were empty. The travel time, which had been calculated online as 1 hour and 40 minutes, only took about an hour.
青空から注ぐ日差しにも、潮の香りの含んだ大気にも、何となくまだ明け方の眠気が残っている。これでは潜るには早いので、取り敢えず辺り一帯を散策してみる。The sunlight pouring in from the blue sky and the air carrying the scent of the
sea somehow still included a feeling of early morning sleepiness. It was too
early to dive, so I decided to take a walk around the area.
想像を超えたダイナミックな地形に圧倒される。伊豆半島がジオパークであることを陸上から実感できるダイビング関連のスポットは、今の私が知るところ、ここだけである。
I was overwhelmed by the dynamic terrain that exceeds your imagination. As far as I know, here was the only diving spot where I could truly experience the Izu Peninsula as a geopark from land.
潜れるスポットは駐車場の前に広がる岩場と、砂州を挟んで左に伸びる岩場の2ヶ所であった。
There were two diving spots: the rocky area in front of the parking lot and the
rocky area stretching out to the left across the sandbar.
漸く、日差しが皮膚を熱する頃になる。まずは、動画で拝見した幽玄な風景を堪能しようと、洞窟を備えた右側の海岸に潜ることにする。
Finally, the sunlight began to heat up my skin. First, I decided to dive into the
right side of the coast with the cave to enjoy the mysterious scenery I saw in the video.
