We went up a volcano today! I've never seen one before and it was amazing, with smoke shooting out of it and everything (see piccies in the gallery). We caught a bus out to the biggest mountain in Hokkaido, Asahidake (not massive by any means but satisfyingly pointy), and travelled part way up by cable car, which again I've never done before and which adds another string to our 'how many forms of transport can we travel by on this trip' bow. We walked around part of it, near the top but not reaching the summit due to poor choice of footwear ("I'm going up a mountain today. I know, sandals will be just the thing").
We even managed to hitch back to Asahikawa despite there being practically no cars about, thus saving us hefty bus fares which I promptly spent on espresso. Hurrah! The plan is to rest up tomorrow, and maybe even the day after, and then hitch to Sapporo (south of here and the fun-lovin' capital of Hokkaido) on our way to Honshu Island (Toyko, Kyoto).