The other day, I shared the first article in our Boxster touring series written by my husband, and today brings the second installment. Please enjoy it if you like.

From Mount Haruna to Mount Akagi in the Boxster

On the morning of the second day, we left Takasaki city and headed toward Mount Haruna. This mountain is said to be the model for Mount Akina featured in the manga Initial D.

From Takasaki city, we climbed the mountain via Prefectural Route 211. There were quite a few cars ahead, but many kindly let us pass, allowing us to climb at a pretty good pace.

While taking a restroom break at Haruna Park, we noticed a 987 Cayman parked ahead. Then, the owner approached us. A very friendly person, apparently local to the area, who seemed to know the surrounding roads well. When we mentioned we were heading north, he shared various nearby routes and spots to check out.

After chatting about cars, we handed him a business card for this blog and left Haruna Park. We enjoyed the straight stretch of Prefectural Route 33, then descended toward Ikaho Onsen. I had hoped to blast through the famous five consecutive hairpins as if I were driving an AE86, but unfortunately, there were many tourist cars, so I couldn’t fully enjoy it, which was a bit disappointing.

Passing through Shibukawa city, we then headed for Mount Akagi. I half-joked to myself, hoping to run into the Akagi Red Suns (laughs), as we climbed Prefectural Route 4. It’s a winding road with a satisfying driving challenge. However, the weather started to worsen around this time, forcing us to keep the soft top closed for a while.

We took a break by the shore of Lake Onuma on Mount Akagi. We wanted to visit Akagi Shrine, but it looked crowded, so we left to avoid the crowds. Then we drove the Boxster onto Prefectural Route 251. This road is quite something. Although there are some gravel patches, traffic is light, and it’s a technical downhill with A-grade corners.

I pressed the Sport Plus button to put the Boxster into battle mode. With auto-blip, the sharp GTS blip echoed through the mountains of Akagi as we sped along. On roads like this, the Boxster is, to put it mildly, simply the best.

I’ve heard that “Porsche’s steering wheel is like a ski pole.” The steering wheel merely initiates the turn. The car actually corners through the load transfer on all four wheels. That’s Porsche. You brake to load the front, gently turn the wheel, and the characteristic Porsche progressive feedback builds up. You can feel the tire grip through the steering as if holding it in your hands. In the latter half of the corner, you gradually open the throttle, shifting load to the rear and accelerating hard.

Rather than rushing or forcing every input, performing this sequence smoothly and gently lets the Porsche run truly fast—and above all, it feels amazing. Porsche responds so fluidly to the driver’s movements that once you experience it, you can’t stop.

We had a late lunch at the Shirasawa Roadside Station, though it was just buying some Kashiwa mochi (oak leaf-wrapped rice cakes) and eating them in the car. More than that, there were so many roads we wanted to drive, so we hurried on. Still, those Kashiwa mochi were delicious.

From Mount Nikkoshirane to Irohazaka

We drove via Route 120, passing Mount Nikkoshirane and heading toward Lake Chuzenji. It was my first time driving around here, but the large-scale mountain winding roads were fantastic. Thanks to the rain and light traffic, we could really enjoy the Boxster to the fullest.

After passing Lake Chuzenji, we headed to the famous Irohazaka, also well-known from Initial D. This road is split into separate one-way routes for ascending and descending.

In Kansai, parts of the Oku-Biwako Parkway have a similar setup.

This route features a series of tight hairpin corners. It’s a very technical mountain pass. At first, I had a clear lap and enjoyed the downhill at my own pace, but I quickly caught up to the car ahead. From then on, an eco car and a minivan formed a long queue that lasted until the end of the slope.

Fighting drowsiness with wide eyes, I descended the mountain, and this run on Irohazaka ended rather anticlimactically.

Kiri-furi Highlands and then to Aizuwakamatsu

Next, we headed north on Prefectural Route 169 toward Kiri-furi Highlands. This is another fantastic road. Traffic was minimal, the pavement was excellent, and the road was wide. Above all, the exhilarating route cutting through the highlands was wonderful. Although the weather was poor this time, it’s a legendary road I want to drive again on a clear day.

We then took Route 121 and moved on to Route 400. This section is also superb—a large-scale fast road rarely experienced in Kansai. There were almost no other cars, so we sped along at a high pace. This too is a legendary road I want to revisit. As we continued from Route 400 to Route 401, the road narrowed in places, but it was still wide enough for medium-sized trucks, so there was no problem.

As we climbed steadily toward the pass, the weather suddenly turned. It was a torrential downpour unlike anything I’d experienced before. Fog and rain worsened visibility, and the only guide was the taillights of a local kei truck ahead. The road had turned into a river; just driving normally sent water splashing high, and the steering started to get unsettled.

Thinking about what it would be like if I had come here in a GT3 was a little scary. For such tough touring, cup tires are probably a bit too much.

Carefully driving through, we crossed the pass and descended into Aizu city. Waiting for the Boxster after the storm was Prefectural Route 128, a fast road cutting straight through the countryside as far as the eye can see. It felt like a warm welcome.

As dusk began to fall, we finally arrived at the hotel. Taking care of the muddy Boxster, we turned off the engine and ended the third day of touring.

Route Map for This Trip