South Korea-Redux

Total days in Korea: 21

Total distance cycled: 860 km

Sitting in a laundromat waiting area, wearing the last of our clean clothes after sweating through every other stitch of garment in only 3 days of heat and humidity in the Japanese summer, we reconsider our South Korea experience. Being the origin of our jourrney may be both a blessing and a curse for this small peninsula of land, which may as well be an island for all practical purposes.  With Nortth Korea preventing any overland movement of its people South Korea gives one the feeling of a place that must grow both economically and structurally.  The ever present development and rapid pace of life gives the impression that there is no other way to keep its relivence in a rapidly expanding Asian continent and in order to differentiate itself from the military dictatorship that shares a language and land mass but it has been divided from since the creation of the DMZ 60 years ago. Following is a shirt list of pros and cons that we experienced while on our tour of this land that we both agree is worth a second glance.

Some of the the things that we most enjoyed about our time in South Korea are as follows:

-ubiquitous Wifi capabilities on almost every street corner in even the smallest of towns

-clean public parks with fresh water, power and toilets (a must when bike touring)

-Kimchi and the lovely rice, noodle, and of course Korean BBQ

-high population density creates a vibrant atmosphere while leaving plenty of green space to enjoy

-old style street markets/food stalls for quick, cheap eats with an atmosphere that makes one feel like they stepped back half a century

-the friendly locals

-devoted cycling paths criss-crossing the land with more being built as we speak

-loads of friendly cyclists and 'guest houses' scattered liberally around to accomadate when you need a break from camping

 Hello!  Chiara here.  Here are a few things to know when you are cycling in South Korea in a list, as I really like lists.

 1- There is a really good system to find bike routes in South Korea called Naver.  This link helps one find Naver and also explains quite a bit more about cycle touring in South Korea.  https://travellinghajo.wordpress.com/2013/08/23/across-korea-on-a-bicycle-a-howto-for-the-foreigner-riding-seoul-busan-and-coming-back-in-one-piece/

2- Apple maps works very well in South Korea and google maps does not. Really. Even if it looks like is working. Don't trust it. We learned this the hard way.

3- The routes that are specific to cycling such as the Four Rivers trails are very well mapped and maintained.  Any trail by a waterway is very nice generally and will have a place where you can set up your tent, go to the bathroom, and find some water.  If you get off the trail many of the main roads are not super-fit for cycling and can be pretty painful and potentially dangerous to ride in terms of traffic, conditions, etc.  There also seems to be a lit of construction happening on South Korea and those areas are specifically troubling for cyclists.

4- Keep an eye out for drivers in South Korea.  They are generally very courteous on the roads that you share with them but they love to blow through red lights.  Every time.  Seriously.