Why is waking up on a travel day always so refreshingly invigorating? In my usual retired life, I could never muster the energy to do anything from the moment I wake up, but when it comes to a sauna trip, it is a different story. The fulfillment of doing what I love, and above all the fact that high-quality hot springs and sauna reset the fatigue deep in the body, is surely proof that I am getting the kind of superb sleep I need. I wake at my usual hour, but the energy I feel the moment I open my eyes in bed is entirely different from everyday life. I leap straight out of bed, get ready, and start the car. My destination is Taketori Onsen Akari no Yu in Yawata, Kyoto Prefecture. I drive toward its 6:00 a.m. opening. With the windows open, I let the cold early-morning air hit my face as I speed along roads that are still light on traffic. On days when I visit facilities that open early in the morning, my standard style is to structure the day in three parts: morning sauna, daytime sauna, and night sauna. First, at Taketori Onsen Akari no Yu, I will violently, no, gently, shake my sleeping body awake. At exactly 6:00 a.m., the opening time. When I arrive, there are already a fair number of cars in the parking lot, and I can see a few fellow travelers heading toward the entrance. While thinking, “So you know how wonderful morning sauna is too,” I slipped through the noren following after them. After checking in, I headed into the large bath area. The entire facility feels exceptionally clean, with a refreshing scent of wood drifting through the building. In the changing room, I became fully naked in a matter of seconds and made my way into the bathing area. The indoor baths are also spacious, lined with a wide variety of tubs. Sauna, cold plunge bath, natural hot spring, everything you need is in place in a perfect lineup. First, I thoroughly washed myself, then sank into the high-carbonation bath and slowly began waking my body up. I could feel the fizzy bubbles clinging to my skin as my blood circulation gradually improved. From there, I moved to the natural hot spring and enjoyed a luxurious soak while bathing my whole body in the morning sun filtering through the trees. Once the core of my body had warmed up, I finally opened the door to the sauna room. The dry sauna, with its lighting set at a moderate level, has a large stove standing proudly at the front, and automatic löyly is performed every 30 minutes. The moment I stepped inside, my impression was that the humidity felt a little lacking. It seemed like it might take a bit of time before I started sweating. But that is fine. Gazing absentmindedly at the TV showing a morning news program, I slowly and steadily let the heat seep into my body. Why do I love morning sauna so much? Because it allows me to feel life directly. In the morning, compared with evening sauna, it takes a long time before the sweat starts flowing. Even if my mind thinks I am awake and have started moving, the cells deep in my body are still in a deep sleep. I endure the sauna heat, savoring the process as sweat gradually, gently begins to rise. It is truly a ritual in which the sleeping cells one after another wake up. After sitting there for a while, my body finally seemed ready, and sweat poured from me like a waterfall. Proof that my cells had fully awakened. Reaching my limit, I dashed out of the sauna room. I immediately rinsed off the sweat in the shower and headed for the long-awaited cold plunge bath. The cold plunge bath here is named Ishimizu. I was told that it uses pure spring water from this area, at the foot of Iwashimizu Hachimangu. My expectations were already at the highest level before I even got in. The thermometer showed 16°C. I lowered my body into the water quietly. ...Wonderful. Not too cold, yet not lukewarm either, with an ideal temperature that makes you feel like you could stay in forever, and the mellow texture on the skin that is characteristic of spring water. In addition, it has more than enough depth and width. The spaciousness of a cold plunge bath is an extremely important factor in determining the quality of a sauna experience. There is a world of difference between squeezing into a cramped cold plunge bath while worrying about other people’s movements, and stretching out your arms and legs in a roomy one. This cold plunge bath leaves nothing to be desired in terms of temperature, size, or water quality. I absorbed the blessings of the spring water with every cell in my body and cooled myself down until I felt sharp and refreshed. After leaving the cold plunge bath, I sank deeply into a chair in the outdoor area. As I intoxicated myself with my own sauna passion, which was almost abnormal, having gone out of my way to come all the way here for the 6:00 a.m. opening, I sank deeply into a world of sublime totonou. This morning sauna session ended after 2 sets. The purpose of the morning is simply to wake the body up, and if I were to exhaust myself here, it would interfere with the harsh sauna journey that lies ahead.

After leaving the facility, I returned to the hotel where I was staying. I finished breakfast properly and spent the time slowly on the bed until the very last minute before checkout. During that time, I was planning the route to the facilities I would visit next, along with several possible itineraries. A sauna trip is a series of unexpected events. Sometimes a facility you actually visit turns out to be disappointing and you leave early, while other times a place you intended to stop by only briefly is so wonderful that you change your plans dramatically and end up staying much longer. At times, you may even plan to enjoy yourself until night, only to be so satisfied with a daytime facility that you decide, “That’s enough for today,” and head straight home. That is precisely why running through simulations for every possible scenario is essential to making a trip truly fulfilling. What kind of encounters and what kind of sublime experiences are waiting for me today? With that never-ending excitement in my heart, I pressed the accelerator and headed toward the next facility awaiting me. My next destination is Sumire no Yu, a natural hot spring in Saito, Ibaraki City, Osaka Prefecture.