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Oh never mind, I just found this super detailed blog by a Taiwanese traveller specifically dedicated to this:
http://cyclinghenro.weebly.com/
Super detailed, most info in English, including even elevation profiles, maps, ... I think it covers all my needs related to the trail itself.
Still, I wonder whether it's a good idea to try this with a foldable... :)
My relatives have made many month long trips here and always cycled. I’m talking about trips like Kumamoto to Osaka and farther.
They’ve always brought their own bikes from abroad. Put it this way, the first year was the only time I saw them with folding bikes (albeit they were pretty small, but I’m not sure the size you’re talking about). Since then, they have always brought hybrid GIANT bikes.
Thanks, maybe it would be best to try it on a shorter weekend trip or so to get a feeling for how it works on actually steep roads outside Tokyo. I'm still not a big fan of electric bikes somehow (and don't own one either), although this may really be one of the cases where they make total sense :D
If you're in Tokyo, the trails along the Tamagawa are fun to ride for day-trips. There are paved trails (with a few gravel bits) going pretty far north, and then, if you want to see how things go on steeper stuff, you can get on roads and do the killer climb up to Okutamako if you want to go further.
This trip is an out-and-back about 80km each way, 160km total, but you could do something like this and break it up into a couple days. If you go a teensy bit further than shown on the map you could put your foot over the line into Yamanashi-ken
I haven’t done this particular ride but I have done a ton of riding in both Kansai and Kanto though I haven’t ever ridden a foldable; I ride a cyclocross bike and put paniers on for longer trips. Not sure about Shikoku, but in general riding is a great way to get around Japan. Drivers are generally pretty courteous, even though the roads can be pretty narrow. Also tunnels… avoid them if you can, but often you can’t. Make sure your bike is well lit and that you’re wearing reflective gear.
The one thing you want to be careful about is the weather. If you already live here, then you know, but in case you don’t, it’s currently 32-38C every day, and will remain so for the summer. I did a longer (1000km) trip in August one year, and it was pretty miserable, plus you can end up waylaid for a couple days by a typhoon depending on timing.
I can’t imagine that visiting a bunch of temples along that route would be at all offensive to practicing buddhists - people visit temples all the time and as long as you’re not being disruptive, I can’t imagine any problems. I’ve always felt more than welcome at temples. Sounds like a really nice way to see Shikoku!
One thing about a foldable is I imagine it might be easier to pack to bring on trains, assuming at least some parts of your trip will be on the train. Otherwise, buy a bike bag and get ready to disassemble and reassemble your bike for any parts of your travel that involve a train.
If you haven’t looked at it yet japancycling.org is a good resource for cyclists. I remember reading it before I moved here 20 years ago, and it had a lot of good info - not just routes, but things that might not be apparent if you haven’t cycled here before (e.g. bike bags).
Thanks, that's a lot of useful info! Yes, weather is my main concern, heat but also typhoons. I played with the idea of hiking this trail for a while, but I rarely get 2 months off for such things. My experience from other trips into nature (car, hiking/public transport) so far was that roads are usually in quite a good condition (I once went all the way up Aso-san by car with a friend, which felt kind of weird from a European perspective, but also convenient I guess?). So, from that perspective an urban bike might do it. Traffic is also a good point, though.
Maybe ~March would be a good time.