It doesn't take a great mind to read a map, and neither does it take one to get lost. I found myself doubting my direction three times as the Kibiji bike path — one of Japan's top 100 cycling roads — wound its way through pear- and grape-growing country, past a continuous patchwork of rice fields to Okayama. My excuse: I was rushing against the threat of rain and I refused to take out my phone and check my current location. The second time (or was it the third?), I knew I was definitely lost when I came upon a French couple standing astride their bikes with maps out, engaging a Japanese farmer. All three were pointing in different directions.