Category: Korea

catch up, welcome home, South Africa
Korea

Chasing KM 2017 Catch Up

Kayley Chislett

Catch up

Time for a little catch up! I know I said I wouldn’t be doing these monthly updates this time around but I guess I find myself talking to everyone in my head telling them about what we have been doing and all our experiences so what the heck. Also, it’s nice to have a little hobby/ thing to do, and it’s helping me get back into blogging. Everything became a bit overwhelming (getting engaged, leaving Korea, travelling for ten months, planning a wedding and moving back to Korea) and we kind of just dug in our heels.

In one sense it was nice to be fully present, living in the moment and take photos of things we actually found to be visually appealing, and not just necessary for the blog. And, I’m really enjoying going through and editing all of our photos from that incredible year of travel now. Its such fun to remember all the feelings and places we saw and people we met etc. If you follow along on my Instagram you’ll notice we are definitely a few months behind. I am trying to catch up and hope to eventually be able to actually INSTA gram (or at least within a week or two).

So for those of you who need to catch up, this is how 2017 went for us…

Korea

We packed up our life in South Korea, after teaching English there for two years. I couldn’t believe how much STUFF we had, and how difficult it was to downsize (from an already tiny apartment) to a backpack! While packing things up, we got engaged! More on that in a separate post, but seriously couldn’t have been more perfect, more surprising, more fun, more special or more US! This definitely made leaving Korea a little harder to do! Then we left Korea, with just a backpack each and one laptop bag.

chasing km catch up
engaged on this bench…. and leaving Korea

Europe

 We backpacked through Europe for two months, using Couchsurfing, Workaway and good old friends along the way. Then we headed to Ireland with no plan, met up with friends from the UK, (twice), sailed to Rathlin Island (thanks Chris for the video), crisscrossed the country in multiple hire cars and took each day on a whim. We completely fell in love with the country despite how unprepared we were for HOW EXPENSIVE IT WAS!!!

USA

Then we headed to the USA, which was one of our most impulsive/ last minute (but not really because Mark doesn’t let anything really be planned at the last minute) things we have done… basically because my parents were planning on visiting the US in July last year and I couldn’t bear that they were there without me, so we decided to go for 6 months. So, we spent the next 6 month travelling around the USA. We rented a car through Avis mini-lease for a few months (single-handedly our LARGEST expense) which was the best thing we could have done for our trip. Then, we traded in our backpacks for a hand luggage trolley bag each and drove a square-ish shape around the USA for the next 5 months and 28 days. We visited 15 national parks, 10 family members, countless old friends and made so many more!

catch up, usa, travel
Bad quality pics snapped as we drove over state lines

South Africa

After 9 months of moving around, it was time to head home. Our adventure through ten countries, many states, countless cities and probably a million different sleeping places. While we were in Europe we actually kept tabs on how many floors/couches/bunk beds/air beds etc we had slept on! We needed to have a home base for a while, fill up our family/friend love tanks and GET MARRIED! We had already set a date by September. Thanks to my mom, aunt and cousin, we had a venue booked and confirmed. So by the time we got home, we had 8 weeks to plan this thing! It was such a wonderful time to be home with family and friends. We got to celebrate Christmas, birthdays, two family members weddings and the news of two new babies arriving mid-year! Summer holidays in Durban are a special thing!

catch up, welcome home, South Africa
The cutest Welcome Home

We had the most wonderful, chilled out wedding, which I’ll get around to blogging about at a later stage and sharing some photos. For now here’s a little slideshow our awesome photographer, CC Rossler put together for us like the very next day! How awesome is the song? It couldn’t be more relevant to us! Such an awesome send-off on the day we went on honeymoon. We stayed local (in KZN) by visiting a Game Reserve and spending time in the berg at one of our favourite places. We weren’t quite ready to jet off again at that stage.

Korea 2.0

And then we found ourselves heading back down the slippery slope that is South Korea. Those of you who know us well, know that we LOVED our time in Korea. While we weren’t planning on coming back quite so soon, an opportunity arose. And for us, that is what life is about – opportunity. So we seized it (and dealt with the super long flight that reminded us why we didn’t want to settle here permanently.) We have some other plans on the back burner, and we will give you all another catch up when we figure those things out. For now, we know that our life is out in the Big Wide World, and we can’t really give you more information than that!

Well, this started out as a Korea update, but felt you needed to catch up on everything that lead us here. We hope to be a little more present here on the blog in the coming months. Thanks for reading, and literally chasing us through the world in this post!

xx

festival, Fishing, Korea, life in korea, nature, outdoors, thelazyfisherman

Ice fishing

Kayley Chislett

It took us almost two years to finally go ice fishing. Considering what a fishing fanatic I am this is actually ridiculous. Each time we planned to go our plans were thwarted by work (the Korean last minute “didn’t we tell you about it two months ago-you have training on Saturday”) or weather (the -17°C plus wind chill factor that us Durbanites just can’t handle).

Continue reading “Ice fishing” →

Korea, life in korea, South Korea, thelazyfisherman

Christmas in Korea

Kayley Chislett
Being away from family on Christmas is not always easy. I get this intense fear of missing out on all the family events (and all the food) going on at home. Korea doesn’t really celebrate Christmas (even Christian families) in the whole festiveness of it all. You’ll find the odd Christmas tree and lights in certain areas and in some shopping malls, but generally, people work right up to and straight after Christmas. It’s so strange, but it makes me not really miss home and family, because it doesn’t even feel like Christmas!!

Christmas in Korea

But of course, we didn’t let this stop us from celebrating and celebrating well!! This is how we did Christmas in Korea!

Nampo-dong, Busan

Nampo-dong is home to a street market that takes place throughout the year. It houses our favourite (roads of) thrift shops (where we managed to find great ugly Christmas sweaters), as well as our favourite carts of street food (cart 63 is our go-to for mandu and pajeon for just W5000). It always has a festive atmosphere with crowds of people wandering around enjoying what it has to offer. In December it gets dolled up with lights and a giant LED christmas tree along the main stretch. This was enought to put me in a holly jolly mood for a little while. Streets too cold at night? Nothing some Scotch Blue Pocket can’t fix for you!

christmas in korea, christmas, south korea, expat, busan
christmas in korea, christmas, south korea, expat, busan
christmas in korea, christmas, south korea, expat, busan

Friendsmas Eve Dinner

Grab a bunch of friends, organise a pot luck dinner, everybody bring some food. Eat, eat some more, exchange Dirty Santa gifts, eat again, this time in excess, all while drinking mugs of mulled wine. Right after dinner, take some group pics and enjoy home made Baileys with coffee, cookies and pumpkin loaf. Follow this with fun group games and end by falling asleep on the couch and (warm ondol) floor while listening to random Christmas carol renditions via YouTube.
christmas in korea, christmas, south korea, expat
Thanks to Hedgers Abroad for the group snap!

Christmas Day Lunch

As if we didn’t eat enough the entire day before Christmas, this was our chance to do it all again. We had a delicious roast meal, with mulled wine, Korean wine, Christmas carols, Christmas movies. We even had real Christmas pudding (complete with the brandy and the flame) thanks to Ed’s family in the UK.  Bianca (baker extraordinaire) had some home made gingerbread men waiting for us and made some fresh mince pies with our tea after desert! Our Korean friend HyoJeong joined us too and experienced her first Christmas meal! What a mix of Christmas traditions, but so super special.

christmas in korea, christmas, south korea, expat
christmas in korea, christmas, south korea, expat

Christmas Themed English Camp

Since Christmas in Korea isn’t celebrated the way we are used to, I decided to theme one day of our winter camp around Christmas and let the students hear about how I (and some other western countries) get into the festive spirit. I taught them some Christmas vocabulary, showed some pictures of some decorated houses and made a Christmas wreath out of some super cool ball clay. After that we watched “Shrek the Halls” and then played Go Fish using Christmas vocab cards while listening to all my favourite Christmas Carols!

christmas in korea, christmas, south korea, expat, english teacher, winter camp

christmas in korea, christmas, south korea, expat, winter camp, english teacher

How do you celebrate Christmas? What’s your favourite holiday tradition? Do you find it difficult being away from home and family during the holiday season? Let us know in the comments below! 
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone! With love, the Scroobletts xxx
Korea, life in korea, nature, outdoors, South Korea

Jirisan National Park – A Surprise Winter Wonderland

Kayley Chislett

Jirisan National Park

Right at the end of November we planned a trip to Jirisan National Park. We had been before, doing a small hike to Ssangyesa Temple, but this time we went to a different part of the Park, to Nogodan Peak. My co-teacher had recommended it as an easy, yet pretty walk. One that was easy enough for her daughter to tag along too, without (too much) complaining.
We had hoped that there would still be some pretty, colourful leaves around (the “hike” is popular for this), but understood that it might be a little too late in the season and therefore may be greeted with bare trees and a dull landscape. Well boy were we surprised, and in for a treat!

Dangerous Roads

We arrived at the park entrance, only to be turned around, due to icy roads and bad conditions up ahead. We waited on the side of the road for Hyun Ju. As it turns out, they were only letting four wheel drive cars in – she totally misunderstood that one and reassured the guards that her car did in fact have four wheels and that we were aware of the bad road conditions (we have all had a good chuckle over this since! Can you imagine our little blue Matiz being a four-wheel drive haha).

Snow Much Fun

I was getting giddy with excitement at the odd patches of ice and snow on the side of the winding mountain road. We parked in a lot where a sign board had been placed to warn of snow on the road ahead. It was a 20 minute walk up to the actual car park, and entrance to the trail for Nogodan Peak. We quickly added an extra layer of clothing after feeling the wind race around us.

Walking up the road, we giggled profusely as we slipped around on the melted snow. We wondered how on earth we were going to manage this walk up! It got a little better, with much thicker snow and by now my excitement was all there! Clapping hands and stomping my feet I couldn’t contain it. Hailing from Durban, South Africa, snow is still a super exciting and novel thing, especially when its real snow and a SURPRISE!!!  So commenced the snowball fights (or more like snowballs to the bum from HaYeon) and the kids gloves were soaked before we even got to the trail head!

Jirisan National Park, winter, South Korea
Jirisan National Park, winter, South Korea

Jirisan National Park, winter, South KoreaJirisan National Park, winter, South KoreaWinter Wonderland

The actual walk was so beautiful. It wound along a little road that was completely covered in soft, fluffy, fresh white snow! I couldn’t stop ooohing and aaahing and saying how beautiful and magical and wonderful it all was! Despite the snow, we were blessed with fairly “warm” weather and beautiful blue skies. The walk to the shelter just before the peak took us a little longer than expected (due to many picture stops and the kids building snowmen at every opportunity). We were rewarded with great views and some wonderful soft white snowy areas to make some snow angels. We sat down to have our little picnic of peanuts and chocopies. Some very kind men next to us gave us one of their cup noodles to share! We love experiencing this Korean kindness!

Jirisan National Park, winter, South Korea
Jirisan National Park, winter, South Korea

Jirisan National Park, winter, South Korea

Jirisan National Park, winter, South Korea

We didn’t make it to the actual peak after having our picnic – the children were cold and tired. Mark and I also wanted to get going at a reasonable time. A 3 hour trip back home on a Sunday evening isn’t the best. In saying that, it is still an easy hike with great views and a great trail. We walked a total of 9,5kms (including the extra walk from the bottom car park) and it took us 4 hours (all that photo taking and snow frolicking). The entrance to the park was W3000 per person. We had such an enjoyable day, and we would highly recommend it to anyone! It was really great to see another part of Jirisan and experience it in a completely opposite season too!

Jirisan National Park, winter, South Korea
Fall, Korea, life in korea, National Parks, nature, seasons, South Korea, thelazyfisherman

Seoraksan National Park

Mark Scrooby

Korea has an abundance of many things, mountains and National Parks are near the top of that list. What better place to show of your latest hiking gear in seasonal colors than hiking a mountain inside a national park? Or, if like us, you don’t have matching couples hiking gear and when you’re keen to head up a mountain you just wear whatever is handy and go. This often brings a few stares and questions like: are you going to be warm enough, cool enough and possibly some variations of are you seriously going up the mountain in that? Maybe they were just laughing at my skinny legs?

Seoraksan National Park

Seoraksan is one of the better known parks and boasts an impressive number of trails to suit all abilities as well as a cable car if you really just want some nice views and no effort. We have been to Seoraksan twice, once in Spring and once in Autumn. I feel like each time we went, we were visiting a different park. The park also obviously boasts a temple (can’t turn around in Korea without seeing one of these), the largest, (seated, bronze) Buddha in the world and some impressive grounds and statues before you even get to the actual hiking.

 

Seoraksan in the Fall

Our second visit to the park was during Autumn and the main reason was the see the foliage in all it’s splendor. We were not disappointed. This time around we chose a shorter hike up to a cave that housed a temple (of course) as well as a monk who lived up there! The hike started  off as a pleasant walk through the forest with lots of leaves to oooh and aaah at. Things get a bit more rough underfoot as the trail goes along a river, which was quite impressive, there had been a lot of rain and it was in full flow. The rushing water provided a great soundtrack to our hike. After this things got a bit more serious as we started to climb. The trail goes past Biseondae, a rock which has some Korean folklore attached to it. After this you head straight up to the cave housing the temple. The view from up here is breathtaking and on a quiet day the monk will even brew you a cup of tea.

Cable Car

This is very well managed and you can buy tickets ahead of time for a specific time that day. This means you don’t have to wait in line for ages. Once you reach the top there are a few look out points and another short trail that goes even further up. Take this trail. It’s worth it. The trail goes to the peak itself, which unlike most viewpoints in Korea has no railings or platforms. Most people just scramble up the steep mountain side to see how high they can get too take the most impressive photo. Unfortunately for us it had been a rainy weekend and there were lots of clouds about when we got to the top.

If you’re looking for a park to visit in Korea definitely add this one to your list. It is also very close to Sokcho which has nice beaches and is easily reached by public transport. When we visited in the Spring we took a bus from Busan to Sokcho (it was long and torturous). This time, however, we visited Seoraksan National Park on Day 2 of our trip with Enjoy Korea (on Day 1 we had visited The DMZ and the 4th infiltration tunnel).

We don’t often travel with tour groups, but for something this far and action packed, sometimes it’d just easier. How do you prefer to travel – group tours or on your own? 
Korea, nature, outdoors, South Korea, The DMZ

THe DMZ aka propaganda central

Mark Scrooby

The rest of the world knows very little about South Korea other than the fact that they have super fast internet and are technically still at war with North Korea.

This war leads to sporadic missile tests by their childlike leader and the odd foray into the demilitarized zone, otherwise known as the DMZ, by North Korean soldiers. This is a zone that stretches from the west coast to the east coast. It is 4 km wide and 250 km long. Lined on both sides with electric fences, tank traps, landmines and waiting armies. It serves as a barrier between the communist North and the democratic South. Also lining each border, here’s the strange part, are observatories where the public can visit.
At these observatory points you can try and peer through the fences and across 4 km of mountains and valleys and on a clear day catch a glimpse of the dreaded enemy territory! If this doesn’t work they have cameras with telescopic lenses set up all over. Inside the building at Eulji Observatory Post, we were lucky enough to get a short talk by a Korean soldier in English. He explained all about the DMZ and what it entails, took us through all the camera views, zoomed in on North Korean outposts, farm lands and mountain peaks and told us a few tales about the happenings of the DMZ. I don’t want to ruin the experience and tell you everything, but there are tales involving naked ladies…

Conditions at the observation points are pretty strict, no photos allowed, armed soldiers everywhere, buses get searched before they get to approach. They even ask you to turn off the location services on your phone in case you get tracked by the enemy! Before we did this, we quickly opened our maps and took a screenshot of how far north we were!

After visiting the actual observation point we went down to view an infiltration tunnel dug by North Korea. This was the 4th infiltration tunnel discovered by the south, and was quite a sight to see. You get to the tunnel by walking down a spacious tunnel drilled with some impressive equipment that the South Koreans used to intercept the the North Korean tunnel. Once you get to the interception point you get to go on a fun ride on an electric train for a short trip into and back out of the NK tunnel. It is at this point that you realize the stark difference between North and South resources. Having just walked down a tunnel you could very easily swing a couple of cats in, you get to a small tunnel, barely high enough for most people to walk hunched in. Apparently the average height of the NK male is 1.6m. The walls show the marks of picks and some holes drilled for dynamite. They must have taken ages to get as far as they did. Once South Korea got wind of their tunnel, they drilled through and intercepted it in short order.
The other thing that really stood out when we visited this site was the “information” video we had to watch before being allowed into the tunnel. This turned out to be nothing more than a tirade on how evil and disingenuous the North are, constantly trying to infiltrate and take over the South. Quite a laugh actually. We realised how propaganda plays a part everywhere, not only in the North where we are told it happens so severely.
We also made a short visit to an area just outside the DMZ called Dutayeon that had for many years been off limits to the public. Here they had a few interactive experiences and displays. At these displays, you can hear what gunfire and mines sound like and see some of the gear that was used during the war. The area itself was quite beautiful with a river running through the valley, a waterfall and of course the fall foliage on display. Photo opportunities for days.

A photo posted by Mark Scrooby (@thelazyfisherman) on

We did this whole day as part of a group tour with Enjoy Korea and it was well worth it. We spent the Saturday traveling up north to the DMZ and the Sunday at Seoraksan National Park. The tour included all transportation and accommodation as well as entrance fees  and registration at all attractions. Everything was planned out and arrangements were made prior to our arrival. We just had to arrive on time. Although we usually prefer to travel on our own and make our own arrangements, Korea has very little of their tourism  geared towards English speakers, so the language barrier can be an issue. We have never been disappointed on an Enjoy Korea trip.

How do you prefer to travel? Group tours or your own way?

Korea, life in korea, outdoors, running, South Korea, thelazyfisherman

Running in Korea

Mark Scrooby

Before I left South Africa I’d become quite hooked on running. Particularly trail running. I had done a number of races of varying distances, some stage races and a few road runs. My highlights being a 3h54 road marathon as well as the 73km Golden Gate Challenge (3 day stage race with some massive climbs). Kayley also did her fair share of running back in SA, she actually convinced me to try my first trail run. She has completed numerous trail runs, many 10kms, as well as a half-marathon.

So I duly packed some running kit with road and trail shoes for our time in Korea.
Running here has definitely not been as easy as back home. I first landed in early spring which is colder than the middle of winter back home. After dealing with the jet lag I did finally manage to drag myself out of bed in the morning for a few runs only to realize I was pretty unprepared to run in the cold! Very soon after that I got the worst case of flu I had ever had in my life! This may or may not have been due to the cold morning runs, or exposure to a new environment and lots of children etc.
I did however, eventually find my feet and settled into a rhythm. I was delighted to find a few trails near my apartment that went up and around the hills as well as some single track through some of the parks. Hiking is a big thing in Korea so this has been great for me as a trail runner. There are trail heads almost everywhere, most have a rough map as well. I have had a few startled glances from the hikers on my morning runs but most of them are very friendly.

Road runs have also been pretty good to get some mileage in. Most motorists have, surprisingly, been quite courteous when I’m trundling along where there are no pavements.
I have only done two trail races in my time here. Actually, it was one race that I did twice, last year and this year. It is called the Baekyang Challenge and takes place annually in Busan. 26km up and around a mountain. Lots of fun, tough climbs, great single track. This race is organized by a foreigner who lives and works in Busan so entering it is easy!

Which brings me to road races in Korea, for these you will need help, unless your Korean skills are good. Mine are not. Kayley and I have done a few 10km races and they have been fun. They are really well organized. You have to enter at least one month before online. Your race number, timing chip and shirt get delivered to you about a week before the race date. So on race day you just pitch up and run. If you get there early enough you can enter a lucky draw to win some prizes, this is done before the race and we’ve seen people gong home with TV’s. This is usually followed by some speeches and then a group warm-up coordinated by some dancers/performers on stage to the beat of K-pop. This is quite a sight to see and is hilarious.

Just before the race starts everyone gets a pep talk and shouts of “fighting” and fists in the air are the norm. Sometimes you will also get a shoulder rub from the person behind you and in theory you should be giving the person in front of you a shoulder rub. Then fireworks (for every event) and you’re off!

The routes are always well marked, lots of marshals along the way and decently stocked water tables. Timing is spot on as well. After the race you can collect your medal which will come with a small bag of treats. There is also free food served after the run, fishcakes (odang) and tofu. There are also free bag storage facilities at the start/finish and ample parking. Usually within an hour of the race you get a text message with your official time and about a week later they send you a certificate with a photo of you at the finish, race details and time.
If you are a runner I would definitely recommend trying a race in your area. If you are not a runner I would still recommend doing one just for the experience. There are usually a few events on offer, ranging from 5kms to 42kms. At all the races we’ve attended there has been a very mixed batch of participants. From the super cool, dressed to kill and faster than a speeding bullet pro’s to the loving couple who walk and hold hands and even the first time runner who bolts off, nearly has a heart attack and walks for the rest of the way until he sees the crowds at the finish line type. As foreigners we also get extra cheers and shouts of “Woawaaahhhh”!

Overall running in Korea has been a positive experience. It is a great way to explore new suburbs and trails. It also, for me at least, is a great time to think and reflect or to just zone out completely and forget about everything else. Another benefit is that it keeps off a few kilograms so you can try more of the delicious food!! This is a constant battle as we love trying all the food in new countries, and have really loved Korean food.

Do you have any running stories to share? Have you tried a race in Korea? Let us know in the comments below!

Fishing, Korea, life in korea, South Korea

Yongwon dams: 두동제 1,2 and 3

Mark Scrooby

 

 

***disclaimer: These dams near Yongwon are no longer accessible due to South Korea’s inexhaustible drive to build apartment complexes. I hope that when the construction finishes at least one of these dams will have survived destruction and be teeming with bass that have not been disturbed by a fisherman in years!

Yongwon

Yongwon is the town where I live in South Korea. It is right on the coast and at the very edge of the Changwon municipal area bordering Busan. 
I’d been pouring over google maps trying find dams that looked accessible by bus from Yongwon. I finally found these 3 dams situated very close to each other that could be reached by a few transfers and a 1km walk. However I never had enough motivation to actually do it! When we eventually got a car I was determined to go look at these dams. 

Disappointment

On our first trip there I was turned away by an old Korean man who was sitting in a little hut on the access road, presumably watching for fires as it was late fall. I drove off rather crestfallen and parked down the road out of sight where I had seen a small footpath leading up the steep dam wall. Upon reaching the top I was greeted by a beautiful view and was certain there would be bass in this dam!

Yongwon
My first view of the dam

 

Vindication

It was only months later that I finally fished there after speaking to a Korean fisherman at the Ungcheon dam who told me that fishing was definitely allowed there. 

I made my way back to the dam near Yongwon in due course and it has since become my go to dam for a quick outing after work or before work in the summer. 

Yongwon
Some of the fish caught there

 

The technical stuff

There are three dams very close to each other and all three have produced fish ranging from 10 to about 40cm. Through most of the summer they consistently fished well. I even ran there one morning before work, 3.5km from Yongwon, fished for an hour and then ran home. I took only one rod and a few soft baits and caught a few fish.
They are however also irrigation dams for the farms in the Yongwon area and the levels fluctuate dramatically through the planting season. 
The dams were heavily fished at times by catch and keep fishermen so tended to go quiet every few weeks. I had one great week of fishing there when I fished every morning and evening and managed about 6 fish per session with a few fish over 30cm which is quite a decent size for these dams.
I have seen only bass caught in these dams near Yongwon but have spotted a few blue gill hiding amongst the weeds as well as the odd carp cruising around. 
In the summer the two small dams get very choked up with weeds and become difficult to fish, especially when the water is low!

All three are relatively easy to fish off the bank as you can walk around most of the banks. There are lots of well worn paths from other fishermen. The small dams do have a lot of vegetation on the banks and by the height of summer some areas were inaccessible. In summer I also found there to be quite a few ticks around as well as hordes of mosquitoes so plan/dress appropriately. 

Yongwon
Few more fish, the two in the right were caught at night.



Mark Scrooby

beach, Camping, Fall, Fishing, Korea, life in korea, nature, outdoors, South Korea

Namyeol Beach Camping

Kayley Chislett
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea

Korea has been blessed with a few things – endless mountains immediately spring to mind. But they also have an incredible number of islands and peninsulas scattered along their coast line. Some of these are absolutely stunning! You could almost believe you were on a tropical beach anywhere else in the world. What better way to enjoy them than with some beach camping?

Beach Camping

We had, due to the weather, again, and some prior commitments, missed out on camping on Namyeol beach with a group of friends at the end of summer. After seeing photos from their trip we decided we had to go there. The beach itself is situated near the eastern tip of the Goheung peninsula. Clear blue water, white sandy beach and a backdrop of rice paddies terraced up the hills.
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea
We went there towards the end of September, which is after summer has officially ended in Korea. This means that, even though the weather is still very good (probably better for camping than during the heat of summer) the beaches are almost deserted. Also, what used to be a pay-to-camp stretches of beach are now free. Our best kind of camping! There are still public bathrooms to use as well as a small convenience store to stock up on basics, like ramen and makgeolli. There were showers but they were locked due to the season being over. The outdoor washing up areas had no water. There was, however, a hose outside the bathrooms and some basins in the toilets for basic washing up/brushing teeth etc.

Camping Spots

After a bit of scouting around we settled on a spot under the trees at the edge of the beach. Initially the only other people around were a few groups set up in the parking lot itself, tents pitched on the paving stones. Namyeol Beach is also a popular surf spot in Korea and there were a few surfers around (although the waves were pretty intermittent and small). In the summer there are surfboards and wetsuits available for rent if you’re interested in that!
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea

Afternoon Hikes

As we had gotten there quite early we had the beach almost to ourselves. Later in the afternoon a few other families set up camp just for the day. A large hiking group came to celebrate their hike, but left as soon as it got dark. We spent the day lounging around on our inflatable “sofas”, sipping on local makgeolli and taking dips in the ocean to cool off.  This led to us hiking up the side of the small cliff next to the bay to watch the sun go down. Excellent idea as it was an absolutely stunning sunset. The beach is also referred to as sunrise beach – they are quite impressive there. If you’re not to keen on waking up early the sunset is a great alternative…

beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea

 Campfire Burning

The stunning sunset meant we stayed up there for quite a while drinking in the tranquility (and the makgeolli). We may have spent a bit too long up there, only to realise we hadn’t yet collected firewood for a campfire. Definitely can’t go camping without a campfire! The evening was pleasantly warm and we certainly didn’t need a fire other than for ambiance. A few trips down to beach with torches soon remedied this. Our campfire was soon lit and we were ready for a very lazy dinner of ramen and spam under the stars.

New Friends

The following morning was spent lazing around again and making friends with somebody’s collie dog. He was super friendly and loved fetching pine cones, even ones we hadn’t thrown. I also tried a bit of fishing of the rocks on the far side of the bay but no luck. We packed up just before lunch and started heading back home. The reason we left early was so that I could try a few dams on the way back to see if they held any fish. This led to an entertaining meeting with a local farmer but, unfortunately, no fish.
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea
beach camping, namyeol beach, south korea
As a beach camping spot this one is great. There are good facilities, even in the off season. The beach is very nice and the water temperature was bearable. There is lots of space to set up and the beach camping is free in the off season. Camp sites in Korea can get very crowded and camp sites on popular beaches even more so!
 
Has anyone been to Namyeol during the summer, does it get busy? Or has anyone surfed there? Let us know in the comments.

Here’s a quick video of our weekend in Goheung!