By Darrell Slater

The view of Hongdo harbour.

Not many people have heard of Hongdo in South Korea, but with great fishing, crystal clear waters and old lady raves this island retreat is a must for foreigners who want to experience that something different.

Lead by a Korean who had taken us under his wing looking to gain some valuable English conversational time, myself and two friends recently set out to spend a weekend on Hongdo – an island off the west coast of Korea in the Yellow Sea. Initially we were told that we would be spending the weekend fishing but the trip turned out to be so much more.

Mid-morning on Saturday we set off towards the fishing port of Mokpo in order to catch the 1pm passenger ferry to take us to our destination.

On arrival in Mokpo, and with minutes to spare before the ferry departed, our Korean friend told us that we didn’t have any tickets for the boat trip to Hongdo. Not to worry though, ‘I know someone on board who can get us on,’ he said.

Know someone he did as the boat’s First Mate arrived to greet us and escort us past the lines of neon clad, old lady hikers who were fighting to be first onto a ship that had assigned seats.

Once onboard we were told to wait and see what seats were free when we left port and claim them as our own – my first stowaway experience. Alas there were no seats left so we were duly told that we would have to go and sit on the top deck – on the bridge – with the Captain, Chief Engineer, and passenger smuggling First Mate.

Once up top we were then free to roam the adjoining outside balconies as we pleased. A luxury not afforded to the paying customers. Sitting in the sun and drinking beer our mere 3 hour journey to Hongdo had begun. Around 180 minutes later we had arrived.

Our catch of the day.

A small island in the middle of the ocean, Hongdo is all about the fish. As soon as you step foot off the boat you are hounded by stall owners looking to offload some of their catch on you. As we were on a tight schedule and looking to catch our own dinner we fought our way off the pier realizing it would be a good idea to find some accommodation.

Being pleasantly surprised with the amount of hotels, motels and pensions on offer on such a small island I asked our guide where we were going. ‘Don’t worry,’ he said. ‘I know someone.’

Sure enough another friend arrived and showed us the way to his new motel.

After having a quick late lunch provided by the motel owners restaurant downstairs we were ushered towards the other side of the island (about 100 metres away) to catch a small boat to grasp the last couple of hours fishing the day had to offer. With our personal fishing guide the four of us managed a monster haul of around 40 fish! Using hand lines thrown over the side of the boat we caught a mixed bag of what we were told was Cod, and a bog-eyed pink fish that’s name is loosely translated as Hot Fish.

The fish were taken back to the restaurant of the motel we were staying at, quickly barbequed and made into sushi before our eyes – delicious fresh fish for dinner.

After dinner we embarked on a journey to tour the small island town and see what nightlife it had to offer. We weren’t disappointed as we stumbled across a nightclub close to the harbor.

Definitely a rave rather than disco this event in my life really blew me away.

Around 50 old ladies still clothed in their neon hiking outfits that we had seen them in on the ferry earlier were bouncing around the nightclub to fast paced Korean dance music. With the club’s décor looking like outer space it felt surreal to say the least. The dancer amongst us just has to get in on the act and headed straight for the middle of the floor only to be mobbed by old ladies who had obviously never seen a white person before. For those that can envision this it was like a Korean Benidorm on speed!

Luckily we escaped shortly after and spent the rest of the night relaxing on the plastic patio furniture outside the only mini-mart on the island. This particular mini-mart also doubled as the only takeaway chicken place (more accurately described as a small greenhouse with a deep-fryer) on the island.

With attention growing towards us foreigners by the minute we decided to call it a night and head back to our motel and get some much needed sleep.

Craggy rocks made fishing in the open sea very scenic.

The next day our Korean friend had a whole itinerary planned for us.

Firstly we hiked up one of the mountains. Hongdo itself is made up of two main islands that are joined in the middle by what is now the port and town area. Both islands have high peaks available for hiking. On this day the mountain trail we chose had been barricaded off to protect an endangered species of plant so we couldn’t get all the way to the top.

Hongdo is a hiking enthusiast’s dream – lots of prepared trails, lookouts and scenic views. It’s also an easy hike for beginners as most of the trails are well maintained, free of debris and not too steep on the gradient level.

Once back in town and after another swift lunch we boarded a sightseeing boat. The boat takes you on a 2 ½ hour long ride around the island showcasing its many caves and craggy rock formations. This is a must for anyone visiting Hongdo to see how beautiful the island really is. Turn after turn of caves and rock formations splatter the coastline of this island paradise. The sightseeing journey left us believing that Korea has its own, although a lot smaller and sleepier, version of Vietnam’s Halong Bay.

As a very last delight from our Korean guide we were treated to some fresh filleted sushi fish from a passing fisherman who had pulled along side our tour boat in order to sell some of his catch. The fish we ate were swimming around in buckets before our very eyes ahead of being hand caught, killed, filleted and plated up ready for us to enjoy. 3 minutes from live to eaten. That really is fresh fish!

There are a number of caves and other rock formations ready to explore.

After our return to the port from the tour boat it was time to board our passenger ferry back to Mokpo. Unfortunately our friend’s First Mate chum had taken an earlier boat back and we were left to purchase tickets and sit with the rest of the pensioner, hiking enthusiasts for the ride home. It was definitely not as enjoyable as sitting on the top deck balcony but nothing was going to ruin the breathtaking weekend we’d had.

Hongdo really is a different experience in Korea. Fishing is readily available, hotels motels and pensions galore, a host of hiking trials around, surrounding caves, breathtaking rock formations and night clubs with raving old age pensioners. What more do you need for a weekend away in June?

It may cost a little more than your average weekend getaway but pay Hongdo a visit and experience all it has to offer while here in Korea – a truly recommended experience.

The ferry ride to Hongdo from Mokpo costs around 60,000 won one-way. The boats leave at 7am and 1pm daily and return at 8.20am and 3.20pm daily.

We were told that in July and August – like all island and beach resorts in Korea – that it is extremely busy and very expensive for accommodation. Anyone looking to go to Hongdo in these times is well advised to book ferry crossings and accommodation in advance so you don’t get stuck out there! Some of the hotels and motels can be found online but best to use naver.com and have a Korean help you.