Petals & Pedals: The Secret Sakura Cycle Path Along Tafuse River

#cherryblossom25 #kyushutrip #japan #spring The best way to experience Tafuse River’s cherry blossoms isn’t on foot—it’s on two wheels. A hidden cycling path runs parallel to Tafusegawa-dori, where overhanging sakura branches form a natural tunnel so thick with blooms that riders emerge coated in pink confetti. Local cyclists know to come at magic hour (6:30-7:00 AM), when the morning mist rises off the river and the JR Nagasaki Line trains rumble past, their windows flashing through the floral curtain like a flipbook of spring. Stop at the unmanned "Sakura Juice Stand" where a retired farmer leaves chilled bottles of homemade ume-blossom tea in a cooler. The path’s sweetest surprise? A tiny red bridge near the railway crossing where petals collect in heart-shaped eddies—Saga’s answer to Paris’ Pont des Arts.