One Life Japan provides bike, hike, and walking Adventure Facilitation to help you see, taste, feel, and experience the rest of Japan.
We have been helping visitors venture into lesser visited rural areas since 2005 - between the bullet train stops and beyond the postcards and tourist hotspots, introducing the people, places, and lifestyle and culture. For us it's about the moments shared with locals, and in the breathtaking vistas that await off the main roads and the stories that unfold long the way - slowing down and eperince it in a relaxed, active, and adventureful way on foot or by bicycle.
We want to help you to explore, not to dictate exactly what you should look at and adhere to strict time schedules. We go with the flow and adjust according to your interest. We facilitate interaction with locals, and ensure that even if you do get "lost", you will never be truly lost, allowing you to explore without worry.
We travel by bicycle and on foot, but the main focus is not to log as many kilometers as possible, rather bicycle and walking are simply the preferred mode of travel to allow you to keep it slow, so you can enjoy the area. While not opposed to some challenge, to keep a focus on adventure, We provide e-assist bicycles in addtion to regular cross bikes. When the distances between locations are too far to allow a relaxing ride or walk, alternative transportation is available to provide shortcuts to ensure your cycling or walking time is spent in the best locations.
We can plan and faclitate adventures in the countless rural areas across Japan, but our base, main playground, and the community we know best, and can make you feel at home is a rural area of Northern Nagano. - Iiyama, Nozawa Onsen Village, Sakae Mura, Kijima Daira, and Tsunan Town.
Kevin, the founder and head facilitator, has been living, studying, working, and adventuring in Japan for nearly three decades, having studied and worked in in Kyushu, Shokoku and Tokyo. In 2006 he and his wife moved to a small rural village in Northern Nagano's Snow Country to begin farming rice, shoveling snow, and lay the foundation for One Life Japan.
Using has an uncanny ability to intuit which path will lead to the next great adventure. It's not all intuition though, he also relies on his community ties, personal experience and careful research, trip planning, and preparation. Kevin speaks Japanese and English, with the ability to charm even the most serious of local farmers into a conversation about politics, food, or life in the mountains
Kevin has journied extensivly by foot, bicycle, van, train, ferry, and even hitchiking throughout Japan, and led adventures from the islands ofKyushu, to the summit of Japan's highest mountains, through blzzards and typhoons. Still his passion is for the less extreme, slow paced realxing adventures that connect people with place, and when his mojo is working, he has been known to even work in an unplanned home-cooked dinner and peek into the real life of the locals.
Kevin is trained as an American Wilderness First Responder, and an Outward Bound Japan instructor. In a previous life, before making the leap to rural life, Kevin worked in Tokyo for a major Japanese finance firm, and in web development. After receiving a Masters Degree in Sustainability Studies in Sweden, he worked for one of Japan's leading Sustainability Consultancy in Tokyo. He draws on these past regular-life experiences in Japan to inform his current lust for travel.
Kevin was instrumental in all our very special memories of the most fantastic Japan experiences. Hoping we can come visit you guys soon.
Kristina and me went on a bike tour with Kevin 10 years ago (wow time flies!) and it remains my favorite ever trip
The journey is as much about discovering new landscapes as it is about rediscovering ourselves. Whether you’re cruising on a bike, exploring on foot, or simply soaking in a hot bath, you’re not just a guest on our tours; you’re like family, and part of a community of explorers, dreamers, and storytellers. - Kevin