I got this e-mail from a woman who is not yet on island. She asks:
Are there walking, jogging, biking paths? If you live off-base, are there lots of pedestrian friendly (double jogging stroller, two dog friendly) areas, or are the streets and sidewalks pretty narrow?
What say you?
Could anyone tell me where I could take my road bike to get a tone up? Thank you
The perimeter road on Torii Station is a decent run/walk The total loops is like 3.5 miles or so, with only a small section being on a busier road. The rest is on the outer road and basically not a lot of traffic at all. Overall it offers a fairly safe walking/running route, better than most places you’ll find.
If you live in or near the Yomitan/Kadena Rotary area, there is a nice park to walk/job/bike.
For anyone that likes to rollerskate using the old school quad skates, there is a Roller Derby team in Okinawa now called the Kokeshi Roller Dolls. They are recruiting players and officials. Contact them at kokeshirollerdolls@hotmail.com if you are interested! Talk about a workout!!
Hi Kelly,
Not sure if you’re here in Okinawa or if you’ll even get this message, but I thought I would try and contact you anyway. Myself and a friend of mine sometimes run trails and are currently attempting to get together a small group of avid female trail runners, so if you’re interested in joining us, please contact me @ myersnz1@yahoo.com.
I am also looking for some good bike trails!
Near my house (Uruma city) I like to bike along the road (I forget the number) that runs along the ocean and goes into the other islands. Just the path that leads to and from the islands, is 3.5 miles one way, so its a decent ride or jog! Today im going to tackle 10 miles. (keep in mind with a 27lbs toddler and seat on the back of my bike=) But like a few others I would love to pull this post out of the chest, and get some new reviews on bike paths!
Does anyone have a used or new elliptical that they would like to sell? If so, please e-mail at jdumonster@yahoo.com and or call 098-9780-2646 and ask for Ja.
Any good trails to mountain bike on?
How about trails to bike on?
Well, to throw another somewhat-related question out there… anywhere good to rollerblade/skate?? Do any of these running tracks allow skates? I played Roller Derby for a while before I came here, and so far am glad I left my quads with my mom (since my gear would just eat up my already limited space)… but it’s a fantastic workout if I can find a good place to skate again. Outdoors or indoors; I have wheels for either. I’m surprised to be at a base that doesn’t have a roller-rink, yet has a skateboard park…. (And Poo on whoever put up the no skating sign on Perimeter Rd =P)
Do any of you know of if there are (off road) trails to run there? We are PCSing this summer from Anacortes, WA. Here in Anacortes I run with friends and we usually run 5-7 miles on trails (much easier on the joints than that concrete or asphalt!). The runs posted on the web site listed look great- but would love to hear if there are any trails…
Thank you! Kelly
You can try the Active Parenting Room at Risner Gym on Kadena Air Base. The room has 6 machines (treadmills, cycles, and either the elliptical or step machine) and an enclosed area for the kids so you can keep an eye on them while you exercise. They can play with the toys there or watch a DVD. Kadena is about 20 minutes or so from Futenma if there’s no traffic.
A good alternative to the gym is the Stroller Strides classes on Kadena.
http://classes.strollerstrides.net/location.aspx?webUsername=kadenaairbase
Stephanie, tommorrow I’ll be adding a post about a local co-op for Gunner’s gym on Foster — so check again in the morning!
What about gymns? My husband and I like to work out together, but we need to dump our three little kids somewhere. Are there good gymns on base that have child care? We’ll be living near camp Futenma.
I just googled Comprehensive Park on and struck gold with this blog. It’s for runners in Okinawa. There are even pictures of the trails.
Check it out:
http://homepage.mac.com/psminkey/running/page4/page4.html
I would also say narrow. Although, there are places to drive to in order to walk or jog! From Yomitan, Cape Zanpa has walking paths with gorgeous views of cliffs and beach. I usually go running on the roads of Torii Station. They are wide, there’s little traffic, a nice view, and not loads of neighborhood dogs.
Yesterday, my husband and I went to Comprehensive Park for the first time. I would love to live near it (or for it to live near me!) because there are tons of paths to jog, walk, bike on. Lots of strollers there too! It’s on the east side of the island near (in?) Awase.
I say narrow. The streets are mainly narrow. And not too many curb cuts. Not even on-base. My Zooper sits alone rusting itself silly. My double stroller is the opposite of a side-by-side stroller. What would you call that? One in front of the other stroller?
As for paths and such. There’s a path along Araha Beach that is fairly wide. It’s a few kilometers total and is a good-looking path.
As for a double stroller with two dogs, that sounds like a lot for this scene. Maybe I’m just neurotic though.