Local support gives Ben Vasquez a ‘big pick me up’ 100 days into Japan journey

Gibraltarian Benjamin Vasquez embarked on an epic walk in late March that will take him 3,200km across the length of mainland Japan to raise money for the British Red Cross. 

Mr Vasquez hiked from the southernmost point in Kagoshima and will finish at the northernmost point in Hokkaido.

As he nears the end of his journey he reflects on the kindness of local residents as a major source of motivation after marking his 100th day on the road. 

He spent 89 of those days walking and took 11 rest days, including a stop in Tokyo and breaks forced by difficult weather conditions. 

“Today marks my 100th day on the road, which just frankly feels absurd to think about,” he said when he spoke to the Chronicle earlier this month. 

“I saw the number on my screen this morning. I just almost didn't believe it, because frankly, I still feel like I'm new to this.” 

“On Google Maps on my phone screen, it's about an inch away, which is kind of agonising to think it's still another month of walking, but is such a huge motivator. The end finally feels in reach, finally feels like I'm capable of doing this.” 

“I'm walking with a real pep in my step. Really excited to get there.” 

He has spent the past month walking along the 1,000-kilometre Michinoku Coastal Trail, where news of his journey spread between communities along the route. 

“People are now recognising me, so I get honked at as I'm walking. A lot of people stick their heads out the window and they shout, Journey Man, good luck, good luck, which is really sweet,” he said. 

“It's genuinely a big motivator.” 

Some residents have stopped to offer him rice balls and other food, the attention has made him feel  a “bit like a local celebrity, which is really weird”. 

But it is also, “super heartwarming” and a “big pick me up”. 

“It breaks my heart, because I genuinely don't have the words in my Japanese vocabulary to thank them. I'm so grateful,” he said.  

“I just have no way to share my gratitude with them, because it's such a big pick-me-up to be in a foreign country, to feel slightly down, and just to be constantly shown such thoughtful gestures, even if I'm eating at a restaurant, if my cups empty, another the customers will fetch me another glass of water.” 

“It makes a huge difference to just feel so welcome.” 

The journey has also brought difficult and potentially dangerous conditions. 

“As of yesterday, I have seen one bear, had two earthquakes, and camped through two typhoons, and the typhoons have been the worst,” he said. 

“I've spent four of my 11 break days huddled in a tent, being battered by the wind, just praying that the wind wouldn't take the tent with me in it.” 

“And then I fell asleep and literally woke up in a puddle of water, the air mattress floating with everything just soaked, which was brutal.” 

Despite the difficulties, he said the storms left the surrounding countryside lush and green. 

“I'd say for every challenge there's been about 10 upsides,” he said. 

Among those upside moments was an invitation from a couple who heard where he was from and attempted to make a Japanese-style paella for him. He said the meal provided a welcome taste of home, even though it was not entirely authentic. 

Earthquakes have brought the additional concern of possible tsunamis, particularly while he has been travelling through an area badly affected by the 2011 disaster. 

“The terrifying thing are tsunamis. I'm currently just walking through a tsunami hotspot, so after every earthquake, you kind of hold your breath, you're sitting there, basted breath for five minutes to see if they, they do this tsunami evacuation warning, and I don't even speak Japanese, so I'm getting all these emergency alerts on my phone,” he said. 

“Public speakers are blaring with warnings, and I'm not picking up any of it. I have no idea what to do.” 

“It's quite sad, in a sense, because the place I'm in was absolutely ravaged by the 2011 tsunami, and I was walking through this lovely green field, which just stretched for ages, and I came across a farmer, and he told me it was all city before the 2011 tsunami.” 

“Just absolutely swept it away, and now it's barren. There's nothing there, just a coastal field for miles and miles, which is devastating,” he added.  

Although he is looking forward to completing the journey and having a permanent roof over his head again, a place away from all the elements, he said reaching the end had begun to feel more daunting than setting out. 

Among those feelings is the sense that the time's flown by for him and that he has missed so much.  

“A whole world cup will have gone by the time I finished, and the border is going to be down, which is a really strange thought to think about how this thing that's been standing my entire life and in the 100 days I'm gone will have vanished,” he said. 

“But yeah, I'm really lucky that I've got such a beautiful home to look forward to going back to, filled with so many people that I can't wait to see.” 

He is hoping to be done by August, and admits that he is finding the end of the trail scarier than the beginning.  

“The end means finally having to get a job,” he said. 

“I'm also just really going to miss waking up with a clear purpose every day, waking up knowing, okay, this is what I'm doing, I'm walking this far, and just how rewarding it feels at the end of each day.” 

He hopes to continue his challenge, with about 500km to go, without taking any further rest days, fearing that another lengthy stop could make it difficult to regain his rhythm. 

His shoes are being held together with glue and he often goes to sleep unsure whether his body will allow him to walk again the following morning. 

“But you wake up, you put one foot in front of the other, the steps turn to meters, the meters turn to miles, and the miles of turns to this,” he said. 

“I'm nearly there now. I think the trick is you just can't think of the journey in its entirety.” 

“It feels so overwhelming, so you just take it step by step. You can always do another step, and then before you know it, you're there.” 

To follow Mr Vasquez on the rest of his journey, visit Substack.  

To donate, visit Just Giving.