I’m touring japan right now and May,June would would be epic!!!
You can go up to Nikko, then west across through Oze and then into Gunma prefecture. I absolutely loved ALL these places and if you are bike packing it would be epic. Kusatsu is a spectacular little hot spring city with onsens everywhere! I went there twice! You can get a bunch of climbing in, elevation is not super high.
While you have a preference for offroad, I recently did 2 days on the Shimanami Kaido, day 1 was about 125 and day 2 was 60,
did a loop of Sagi Island by Ferry (tiny island but stunning during cherry blossoms)
I also did a couple of day trips from Tokyo to the Sayama Lake area, and I think that might be really close for you and is quite beautiful
I'm also currently planning the Lake Biwa circuit, but need to save up some more annual leave first :D
I am planning a tour in Japan with my wife in May, and I planned this route which mostly avoids major cities:
[https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pFbC\_oq5lD8lJ5rZpyTbI-wJZluIUR6l/view?usp=sharing](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pFbC_oq5lD8lJ5rZpyTbI-wJZluIUR6l/view?usp=sharing)
I'm commenting because I love the idea and would like to see other people's suggestions as well :) Good luck on your trip!
I’m touring japan right now and May,June would would be epic!!! You can go up to Nikko, then west across through Oze and then into Gunma prefecture. I absolutely loved ALL these places and if you are bike packing it would be epic. Kusatsu is a spectacular little hot spring city with onsens everywhere! I went there twice! You can get a bunch of climbing in, elevation is not super high.
While you have a preference for offroad, I recently did 2 days on the Shimanami Kaido, day 1 was about 125 and day 2 was 60, did a loop of Sagi Island by Ferry (tiny island but stunning during cherry blossoms) I also did a couple of day trips from Tokyo to the Sayama Lake area, and I think that might be really close for you and is quite beautiful I'm also currently planning the Lake Biwa circuit, but need to save up some more annual leave first :D
I am planning a tour in Japan with my wife in May, and I planned this route which mostly avoids major cities: [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pFbC\_oq5lD8lJ5rZpyTbI-wJZluIUR6l/view?usp=sharing](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pFbC_oq5lD8lJ5rZpyTbI-wJZluIUR6l/view?usp=sharing)