TOKYO >> A group of 332 hikers from Tokyo, Osaka and other points gathered at Jodogahama Beach in Miyako in June for a walking event to commemorate the fifth year since the opening of the Michinoku Coastal Trail.

This nature trail winds for approximately 1,000 kilometers (more than 621 miles) along the Pacific coast of the Tohoku region. It is of one the long-­distance trails developed nationwide by the Environment Ministry and links the prefectures of Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima.

The trail was developed as part of the reconstruction work following the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, and in June 2019, the entire route linking Hachinohe, Aomori prefecture, in the north, and Soma, Fukushima prefecture, in the south, was opened to the public.

The fifth anniversary “Michinoku Coastal Trail Walk in Miyako with Pokemon Local Acts” was organized by the Environment Ministry and the Michinoku Coastal Trail walk committee. The event consisted of two courses, an 8-kilometer long course and a 5-kilometer short course, both centering on the scenic Jodogahama Beach and ending at the Roadside Station Miyako Seatopia Naado.

Walkers who completed the course had their photo taken with the official “Iwate Support Pokemon” Geodude, as well as the ever popular Pikachu.

“The entrance to Jodogahama was very beautiful,” said Yutaka Kakuchi, a 52-year-old office worker from Hachinohe who completed the 8-kilometer course. “We were blessed with good weather and were able to walk comfortably.”