A lesson in Japanese roadsigns

At first glance, this looks like "road closed", doesn't it? But look at the beautiful winding mountain road on the other side, and the perfect weather. It couldn't possibly be mere accident that there's just enough space between the barricades to ride a motorcycle through, could it? Same road, a few kilometers on: This looks even more convincingly like "road closed." In fact, to the uninititated, the Japanese "通行止" would seem to mean exactly that. But no, "通行止" really means "closed to those in vehicles with more than the optimal number of wheels(2), and to those without adventure in their hearts." We only had to move three of these roadblocks. It was great riding, though a little harrowing to be leading the pack on this particular run. Not to worry, we are responsible citizens--we moved the barricades back into place after riding through.