{
  "id": "biei-patchwork-road",
  "name": "Biei Patchwork Road",
  "area": "Farming hills northwest of central Biei, Hokkaido",
  "status": "recommended",
  "priority": "high",
  "tags": [
    "Scenery",
    "Walking"
  ],
  "summary": "Explore working farmland through a short scenic drive and designated viewpoints, not roadside photo hunting. Ken and Mary Tree and Seven Stars Tree remain officially listed; the neighboring birch avenue was removed in January 2025. [S3][S4][S7]",
  "why_go": "Rolling fields form a changing agricultural mosaic: wheat, potatoes, beans and sugar beet rotate between plots. This suits landscape enthusiasts more than visitors seeking organized entertainment or guaranteed flower displays. [S5]",
  "season": {
    "late_june": "Typically green wheat and developing crops, with white or pink potato flowers possible from late June into mid-July. Location and flowering vary annually. [S5][S6]",
    "july": "Wheat progressively turns gold, with harvest typically beginning around late July. Crop rotation means last year's photograph cannot predict this year's colors. [S5]",
    "early_august": "Expect harvested patches, remaining green crops and possibly short-lived straw bales; their presence is not guaranteed. [S5]",
    "best_window": "Recommend a clear weekday in early or mid-July for contrasting crop colors. This is neither a bloom forecast nor a lavender itinerary."
  },
  "visit_duration": "Allow 2-3 hours locally for three brief stops and driving; roughly 4-5 hours including the Furano round trip. Planning estimates.",
  "drive_from_furano": "Estimate 45-60 minutes from central Furano to Hokusei-no-Oka via Route 237 in normal summer traffic, excluding walking. Official guidance gives about 40 minutes Furano-Biei plus approximately seven minutes from Biei Station to the park. Add a 20-30-minute peak-season buffer. [S2][S10]",
  "best_time_of_day": "Recommend a weekday morning, using parking only when open. July-August weekends and holidays can fill the small lots. [S2][S3]",
  "visit_plan": [
    "Start at Hokusei-no-Oka View Park: park properly and spend 25-40 minutes enjoying the public park and observation area. [S2]",
    "Continue to Ken and Mary Tree for a short look from permitted visitor space. Stop only if its designated parking has room. [S3]",
    "Drive onward on permitted paved roads to Seven Stars Tree; use its designated parking and remain outside the fields. Skip it if full. [S4]",
    "Return to Biei town on open paved roads. Do not add unverified farm-track shortcuts or roadside tree stops."
  ],
  "practicalities": [
    {
      "label": "Hours and season",
      "text": "Current undated listing: Hokusei-no-Oka is year-round, with its observation deck closed during snowy conditions and information point operating May-September. Daily hours are unspecified; 2027 arrangements are unconfirmed. [S2]"
    },
    {
      "label": "Costs",
      "text": "Hokusei admission is listed free; Ken and Mary and Seven Stars list free parking. Publication years are unspecified; these are not confirmed 2027 tariffs. [S2][S3][S4]"
    },
    {
      "label": "Parking and access",
      "text": "Hokusei lists 30 car spaces plus a second lot of approximately ten below the observation deck. Use signed lots exclusively; no shoulder waiting, field entrances or improvised overflow parking. [S2]"
    },
    {
      "label": "Facilities and accessibility",
      "text": "Hokusei lists toilets, unavailable in winter. Do not assume toilets at individual trees. Step-free observation-deck access and accessible toilet provision were not verified; restaurant hours were not researched. [S2][S3][S4]"
    },
    {
      "label": "Reservations",
      "text": "No reservation requirement is published for these independent sightseeing stops. Parking availability is not guaranteed. [S2][S3][S4]"
    },
    {
      "label": "Changed landmarks and restricted roads",
      "text": "The birch avenue beside Seven Stars Tree was felled on January 14, 2025; it was not Seven Stars Tree itself. Reporting also confirms the separate Philosophy Tree was previously felled. [S7] Mild Seven Hill remains featured in October 2026, but its published permission covers only a limited private viewing area; exclude it from this simple parking-based route. [S8][S12] Parent-and-Child trees appear in July 2026 official photography, but visitor parking was not verified. [S11] The bi.ble-Seven Stars road's December 2025 notice concerns winter non-plowing, not a confirmed summer closure. [S9]"
    }
  ],
  "recommendations": [
    "Make Hokusei the main stop rather than collecting every named tree.",
    "Navigate to parking entrances, not map pins positioned inside fields.",
    "Continue driving if a lot is full; never wait on the road.",
    "Use a longer lens from permitted space instead of approaching crops.",
    "Carry water and sun protection; choose another day if visibility is poor."
  ],
  "weather_plan": "Light cloud can still suit field photography. In heavy rain, fog or thunderstorms, postpone this outdoor outing rather than making unsafe roadside stops.",
  "safety_and_etiquette": [
    "Never enter fields, including apparently empty or harvested ground. Soil carried on footwear can harm crops. [S1][S5]",
    "Farm tracks and gravel agricultural roads are not visitor access routes. Remain on permitted paved roads and designated visitor paths. [S1]",
    "Keep agricultural vehicle routes clear; avoid sudden braking, roadway portraits and obstructive tripods. [S3][S4]",
    "Biei's published guidance prohibits drone flights in principle without prior permission. [S1]"
  ],
  "pair_with": [
    "Shikisai no Oka",
    "Shirogane Blue Pond"
  ],
  "skip_if": "You primarily want guaranteed lavender, field-entry photographs or an all-weather attraction.",
  "recheck_for_2027": [
    "Roadworks, temporary restrictions and parking signs immediately before visiting.",
    "Hokusei observation-deck access, toilets, information-point hours and fees.",
    "Current crop reports rather than old photographs or bloom calendars."
  ],
  "confidence_notes": [
    "Access reflects published information checked October 26, 2026, not a 2027 guarantee.",
    "Mild Seven Hill's limited-access notice is from 2022; its 2026 scenic article does not establish current parking permission or verify historical tree-removal details.",
    "This plan deliberately omits locations without verified visitor parking."
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "id": "S1",
      "title": "A request to all visitors",
      "publisher": "Biei Tourism Association",
      "url": "https://www.biei-hokkaido.jp/en/bieikankou-manner110",
      "accessed": "2026-10-26",
      "supports": "Farmland, farm-road, traffic and drone rules."
    },
    {
      "id": "S2",
      "title": "Hokusei-no-Oka View Park",
      "publisher": "Biei Tourism Association",
      "url": "https://www.biei-hokkaido.jp/ja/facility/hokusei-no-oka",
      "accessed": "2026-10-26",
      "supports": "Parking, season, fees, toilets and congestion."
    },
    {
      "id": "S3",
      "title": "Ken and Mary Tree",
      "publisher": "Biei Tourism Association",
      "url": "https://www.biei-hokkaido.jp/en/facility/ken-merry-tree",
      "accessed": "2026-10-26",
      "supports": "Current listing, free parking and traffic cautions."
    },
    {
      "id": "S4",
      "title": "Seven Stars Tree",
      "publisher": "Biei Tourism Association",
      "url": "https://www.biei-hokkaido.jp/en/facility/seven-stars-tree",
      "accessed": "2026-10-26",
      "supports": "Current listing, parking and farming landscape."
    },
    {
      "id": "S5",
      "title": "The Charms of Biei's Wheat Fields",
      "publisher": "Biei Tourism Association",
      "url": "https://www.biei-hokkaido.jp/en/season/biei-wheat-fields",
      "accessed": "2026-10-26",
      "supports": "Crop rotation, changing colors, harvest and straw bales."
    },
    {
      "id": "S6",
      "title": "Potato Flower Meadows",
      "publisher": "Biei Tourism Association",
      "url": "https://www.biei-hokkaido.jp/en/season/potato",
      "accessed": "2026-10-26",
      "supports": "Typical potato flowering season."
    },
    {
      "id": "S7",
      "title": "Birch avenue beside Seven Stars Tree removed",
      "publisher": "Hokkaido Cultural Broadcasting / FNN",
      "url": "https://www.fnn.jp/articles/-/814163",
      "accessed": "2026-10-26",
      "supports": "January 2025 removal; traffic, trespass and crop-shading reasons."
    },
    {
      "id": "S8",
      "title": "About Mild Seven Hill",
      "publisher": "Biei Tourism Association",
      "url": "https://www.biei-hokkaido.jp/ja/9388",
      "accessed": "2026-10-26",
      "supports": "Limited private viewing-area permission, July 2022."
    },
    {
      "id": "S9",
      "title": "Patchwork Road winter non-plowing notice",
      "publisher": "Biei Tourism Association",
      "url": "https://www.biei-hokkaido.jp/ja/23634",
      "accessed": "2026-10-26",
      "supports": "Winter-specific road arrangements, December 2025."
    },
    {
      "id": "S10",
      "title": "Access",
      "publisher": "Biei Tourism Association",
      "url": "https://www.biei-hokkaido.jp/en/access",
      "accessed": "2026-10-26",
      "supports": "Furano-Biei driving baseline."
    },
    {
      "id": "S11",
      "title": "Potato fields in full bloom",
      "publisher": "Biei Tourism Association",
      "url": "https://www.biei-hokkaido.jp/ja/26333",
      "accessed": "2026-10-26",
      "supports": "Parent-and-Child trees photographed July 9, 2026."
    },
    {
      "id": "S12",
      "title": "Mild Seven Hill beneath autumn skies",
      "publisher": "Biei Tourism Association",
      "url": "https://www.biei-hokkaido.jp/ja/27087",
      "accessed": "2026-10-26",
      "supports": "Hill remains featured in October 2026; not parking authorization."
    }
  ]
}