Lake Nojiri is one of Nagano's best kept secrets.

When summer temperatures are high in the major cities

and cooling down is on everybody's minds

look no further than going to Lake Nojiri

where temperatures rarely reach 30 degrees Celsius.

This off the beaten track location offers a wide variety of summer activities

from walking in lush green forests

to water sports, to cycling, to eating delicious food,

there's something for everyone.

My name is Raina Ong, staff writer for japan-guide.com

and today I'm on assignment exploring the area around lake Nojiri.

Here's the trip itinerary

On Day 1, we'll take the shinkansen to Nagano Station

where we will pick up our rental car.

Then, we'll make the scenic drive towards Lake Nojiri.

Our first stop will be lunch at a restaurant called Hokkori.

And then in the afternoon we'll go kayaking around the west side of the lake.

To end the day, we'll have dinner and spend the night

at the lakeside hotel called El Bosco.

Day 2 starts off after breakfast with a visit to Nojiriko Terrace

which is located midway up Mount Madarao

to take in the beautiful view of the entire area.

After that, we'll drive to the information center at Kurohime Station

where we'll go on a bicycle tour through rice fields

and eventually to Naena Waterfall

before returning to Kurohime Station.

With that, our trip comes to an end as we take our car back to Nagano Station.

So, follow along as I go on a 2-day summer getaway to Lake Nojiri.

Day 1

As we enter the town of Shinanomachi

our first stop is lunch at a quaint restaurant called Hokkori

an intimate restaurant run by a classically trained chef and his wife.

Each of the dishes highlights different locally grown ingredients.

As the seasons change, so does the menu, and I'm excited to get a taste of summer.

So I have my meal in front of me, and it's looking really really beautiful.

That's all I can say.

This meal is made up of mostly seasonal and local produce, like this asparagus right here

was grown in Shinanomachi as well as the soba flour that makes up the soba manju right here.

As well as this flower bean right here typically grows in the highlands.

Japanese rolled eggs.

My favorite.

Next we're moving on to the lake, which in summer is a great destination for water sports.

Here, I'll be taking a guided kayak tour offered by the Guesthouse LAMP

which is located on the west side of Lake Nojiri.

You can bring your own swimwear, or just rent everything like I'm doing.

So in the summer, water sports is a popular this to do here on Lake Nojiri.

And today I'm here with my guide and we're going kayaking!

I'm on the eastern side of the lake right now and the view here is just absolutely gorgeous.

Day 2

We've lucked out today with blue skies and

I'm on Nojiriko Terrace

on one of the five mountains that make up the Hokushingogaku Mountain Range.

And behind me I get to see all the other four mountains. How cool is that?

In the afternoon we're going on a bicycle adventure starting

from the tourist information center at Kurohime Station.

Here we'll rent bicycles, get a map of the cycling route

and meet our cycling guide.

I don't know if you can hear me because the waterfall is kind of loud

but Naenataki and the Seki River in front of me together form

a natural border between Nagano Prefecture and Niigata Prefecture

which means that I'm in two places at the same time!

And that concludes our trip to Lake Nojiri.

Thanks for joining me.

I hope this video has been enjoyable and perhaps even inspires some ideas should you decide

to plan a trip to Lake Nojiri.

For more information about Lake Nojiri or to watch another video

click the links on the screen now

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Happy travels.