Season 8

The mountain ranges known as the Japanese Alps are a spectacular backdrop to our ride across Nagano Prefecture, its forests glowing with the late autumn colors. With many 3,000m peaks, Nagano is popular with climbers and we're given a brief taste by a world-class mountain guide. We'll meet people drawn to live here by the forests, including a man who left a top cabinet making career in Tokyo to craft uniquely distinctive furniture from these wild trees, and a group of friends who devote their spare time to caring for the woods.

In the city of Hiroshima we visit a community where the families who survived the devastation of the atomic bomb in the Second World War managed to revive their traditional farming specialty. In the islands to the south, we meet a potter uniquely making glazes from cast-off oyster shells, and in the mountains, a farmer tells of his passion for making animals happy. The last individual we encounter who has stuck to his own path in life is a carver of traditional instruments seeking the perfect sound.

After 30 years in Japan, Michael Rice recently settled in Odawara, where he runs a cycling cafe. He shows us Odawara Castle, and introduces artisans making traditional local specialties such as Kamaboko fish paste and paper lanterns. After Yabitsu Pass, a popular day trip for Tokyo cyclists, Michael explores nearby places he has yet to visit, including Manazuru, a small town on this beautiful coast known for its easy-going lifestyle and commitment to guarding the surrounding unspoiled nature.

Our cyclists picked 10 of their favorite scenes, and viewers voted on our website for the ones they most wanted to see again. There are 2 episodes showing the top picks, along with some previously unseen footage. In this one, we see the 2 that gained most votes overall. Interestingly, they're both about food, featuring unique regional dishes. There's an unusual type of country sashimi, and a huge pork dish from one of the southern islands.

Our cyclists picked 10 of their personal favorite scenes, and viewers voted on our website for the ones they most wanted to see again. There are 2 episodes showing the top picks, along with some previously unseen footage. In this episode, we see the 2 scenes that were most popular among Facebook and YouTube users, in which our cyclists discover a curious temple in downtown Tokyo, and learn the story behind the living jewels in Niigata Prefecure's rice paddies.