I just got back from two days of exhilarating canyoning and rafting in Shikoku (the island to the south). It took a little over two hours to get to the company's building (Happy Raft), but it was totally worth it. We spent the first part of Saturday canyoning, which is by far one of the coolest experiences I have ever had. After donning full wet suits and helmets and heading up the mountain in a rickety old van, we hiked down to the canyoning base, where we took a quick dip in a mountain pool. Although the water was cold, the wet suits made the whole thing very comfortable. We started by going down some rock water slides and doing all sorts of roping. We also took a trip on a long zip line across a gorge, hanging at about 70 feet above the ground. The trip was topped of by a controlled 40m (130 foot) decent into a canyon. After a quick lunch of Okonomiyaki, we headed to our cabin for the night--a traditional Japanese house, complete with BBQ, which we used all night cooking up lots of good things. We awoke early the next day for rafting, and after a long delay at the bathroom (which almost made me miss the bus), we headed down to rafting starting area. Although I had rafted before in Colorado, rafting here was a completely different experience. We were on the river from about 9:30 in the morning up until dusk. I got a crazy high, not to mention some sore muscles and a nice sunburn. Apparently the river we did was rated a 3.5 (out of 5 in terms of difficulty), but it was a blast. In addition to the rafting we also did cliff-jumping and raftless rapid riding. The day was topped off by a trip to a local Onsen (Japanese hot spring) where we relaxed for awhile before heading back to Awaji. It was an incredible trip that was a wonderful way to top off my already amazing experience here on Awaji island. It's sad to be leaving in two days, but it had been a fun-filled and adventurous two-and-a-half months. (There will be videos up soon, YouTube seems to be down at the moment...)