Cruising South Korea: the oppressive restrictions that scuppered our plans

The ocean round us was stuffed with orange and yellow buoys, inflicting my creativeness to go wild with visions of fouled propellers and indignant aqua farmers. The markers rose and fell with the swell like a colored carpet that glowed within the gray, rain-filtered mild. Forward of us, Jehoon Yee beckoned us to observe the route he was taking aboard his small yacht, Frog.

“I hope he’s certain about this route. Look, that ferry is taking a unique route by way of the farms,” I referred to as to Fiona, who was standing on the bow for higher visibility.

I adopted Frog’s stern as intently as I assumed was secure, matching Jehoon’s each twist and switch as he led us by way of the gauntlet of ropes, nets and buoys. We have been about to enter Yokjido, a small island fishing port within the Hallyeohaesang Nationwide Marine Park off the coast of South Korea. We’d sailed about 20 miles from Tongyeong – a journey that started in mild winds and flat seas, then turned to sturdy gusts which had me scrambling to ease out the mainsheet, and ended with a dousing of rain as we neared our vacation spot.

By means of all of it I saved Jehoon in my sights, following his path by way of the rocky islands and previous bays stuffed with fish farms. I’d met Jehoon on the docks of the Tongyeong Yacht Faculty, the place his Yamaha 30 was moored close to Teng Hoi, our Hallberg-Rassy 42F. He was deeply tanned and a mischievous glint in his eye contradicted his in any other case severe manner.

Overseas visiting yachts have been uncommon right here, and after asking the same old questions on the place we have been from, Jehoon invited us to hitch him on a weekend sail. “I’ll present you the place to moor on a few of the little islands round right here,” he mentioned.

Jehoon additionally helped us file the paperwork the native authorities required even for this quick cruise – a cumbersome course of we have been nonetheless struggling to grasp.

Now we adopted him across the towering concrete seawall into Yokjido, and to a small floating dock. This was certainly one of six fundamental marinas that had been just lately created by the town Tongyeong to advertise pleasure boating on the sprinkling of islands inside day-tripping distance of the town.

As I helped Jehoon together with his strains I invited him and his associates to come back aboard Teng Hoi for arrival drinks. “However we now have nothing to deliver,” certainly one of his associates mentioned. “We now have loads of soju to drink, simply come!” I assured them.

Article continues beneath…

Minutes later Jehoon and his associates arrived, bearing on the spot noodles and a giant packet of moist wipes. The South Korean sense of hospitality that had prompted Jehoon to ask us alongside, additionally meant these sailors couldn’t merely drop in on a visiting yacht empty-handed.

They needed to deliver a present – any present. We humbly accepted their choices and poured them further pictures of soju, a spirit widespread in Korea and Japan, to point out our gratitude as we swapped tales.

Jehoon and his associates needed to flip again to Tongyeong the subsequent day, however earlier than he left he gave us instructions to the general public marina in Maemuldo, the subsequent island to the east that we deliberate to sail to. We spent a day climbing alongside Yokjido’s hovering cliffs earlier than setting sail. The skies have been gray and overcast, however we had a lightweight southerly wind, permitting us to cowl a lot of the 15 miles on a beam attain.

Stone statue on the shores of Jeju. Picture: Cameron Dueck

In Maemuldo we once more discovered easy however enough floating docks, effectively protected by a large sea wall, with water so clear we might see the underside of the harbour. We hiked to the height, from the place we might see different rocky islands rising from the ocean.

This was how we’d imagined it, exploring the myriad of islands of South Korea’s coast, interacting with native sailors, visiting small fishing ports, consuming at port-side uncooked fish eating places the place the seafood was saved alive in huge glass tanks till ordered.

However we already knew that past Tongyeong’s small community of marinas we have been unlikely to go to the various islands we might see within the distance. We’d been in Korea for about one month, lengthy sufficient to have tried, and failed, at discovering a path by way of the nation’s oppressive maritime restrictions.

The Duecks’ cruising route

South Korea appeared like the plain subsequent vacation spot for us after we’d spent virtually a 12 months exploring Japan. Our on-line analysis turned up little or no info on the nation’s clearance procedures, however we had associates who’d cruised in South Korea a long time earlier and liked it.

We’d been warned in regards to the paperwork of cruising in Japan, and people fears had turned out to be drastically exaggerated, so we set off assured that South Korea would additionally welcome us with open arms. “There’s not a lot details about cruising in South Korea… that’s good, because it means there received’t be many different cruisers,” I foolishly boasted to associates.

Teng Hoi off the South Korean coast. Picture: Cameron Dueck

Japan to busan

We’d left Teng Hoi in Japan’s Seto Naikai, or inland sea, over winter. It was late March once we hanked on our sails and steered for Korea with a chilly, stiff wind on our nostril.

The voyage from the Kanmon Straits, which connects the Sea of Japan with the Seto Naikai, to Busan, South Korea is about 120 miles. Within the center is the Japanese island of Tsushima – the Koreans name it Daemado – which has bridged the 2 nations geographically and culturally for hundreds of years. It is usually a clearance port, making it the right place to exit Japan.

We left the principle islands of Japan behind us and shortly we have been beating into 20-25 knots with three reefs in the principle and the staysail. Seas of 2-3m slowed our progress and showered the boat in spray, however we pushed on, arriving at midday the subsequent day.

We tied as much as a concrete wall in Hitakatsu, on the north-east finish of Tsushima, and walked into the village. Buses have been disgorging Korean vacationers by the dozen, the voices in cafes have been talking Korean, and plenty of retailers accepted Korean received as fee.

Tsushima performed a key function in defending Japan towards invasions from Korea and China over the centuries. It was additionally a base for the wokou, or Japanese pirates, that after pillaged the Korean coast, and served as a buying and selling port for the rice that Japan imported from Korea. Even at this time Tsushima makes use of distinctive finance and taxation programs that resemble these of Korea, regardless of Japanese possession.

Gentle winds and sunny skies on passage. Picture: Cameron Dueck

Early warnings

After clearing out of Japan we continued westward, once more beating. Intermittent chilly rain slashed at us from the west, preserving us huddled underneath Teng Hoi’s exhausting dodger.

Squalls skidded throughout the horizon as we motored the ultimate miles by way of a transport channel with Busan to starboard and Geoje island off to port. We have been navigating throughout the channel when our VHF radio got here to life.

“The place are you going?” a port authority official requested. We defined we have been headed for Myeongdong Marina in Changwon, and that we’d already submitted all of the requested paperwork.

After a protracted silence, the official got here again to warning us a couple of ship that was a number of miles away, and much off our observe. We assured him that we have been preserving watch and have been conscious of the site visitors.

Avenue market on Jeju Island. Picture: Cameron Dueck

The warning struck us as over-vigilant, nevertheless it was solely later that we recognised it as a harbinger of our Korean cruising expertise. We have been in excessive spirits, buoyed additional by sighting otters that surfaced close to our boat as we neared the marina.

A industrial transport agent, who’s a friend-of-a-friend, volunteered to assist us navigate our first expertise with the Korean paperwork as we cleared in. Myeongdong is a model new marina, and was nonetheless awaiting its new clubhouse and onshore companies.

It was additionally a one-hour bus experience to the closest retailers and eating places, so after just a few days we determined to maneuver on.

Southern attraction

South Korea’s finest cruising grounds, and most of its yachting tradition, are targeting the island-dotted south coast. Many homeowners maintain their yachts on the south coast and journey from Seoul to go crusing, as a result of the extra industrial west coast has muddy waters and excessive tidal ranges. The east coast has pristine waters, however the shoreline is featureless with few welcoming ports, making the south the nation’s pure maritime playground.

We made plans to island-hop our method west, sizing up numerous anchorages to name at on the way in which. That was when actuality set in.

We discovered that any voyage of greater than 10 miles from our port of clearance required us to use to authorities each for permission to go away our port, and permission to enter a brand new port. Each time we wished to alter anchorage or go to a close-by island we wanted to use for permission a number of days upfront, offering precise departure and arrival dates – and if we have been delayed by climate, all the paperwork needed to be redone.

The creator was given a stay octopus by Korean sailors. Picture: Cameron Dueck

Every port clearance prices 10,000 Korean received (round £8), and native sailors are additionally topic to the method and price. We quickly discovered that every province, workplace and particular person officer had their very own interpretation of the foundations.

Some Port Authority places of work insisted we use PORT-MIS, their on-line registration system for industrial transport, which is simply accessible to licensed transport brokers. On the time of our go to, South Korea didn’t have any brokers specialised in pleasure craft, which means we’d want to rent a industrial transport agent at vital price.

Shifting to a brand new province additionally required us to clear customs, immigration and quarantine at each ends. Including a twist to the crimson tape, we communicated with officers utilizing their private e-mail reasonably than a common workplace deal with, and in the event that they went on vacation all the course of wanted to be restarted with a brand new contact.

The officers appeared confused by our requests. Overseas visiting yachts prior to now had both ignored the necessities, pretended to be an area yacht, or had remained in a single port reasonably than cruise.

Han Kim, a director of the Gyeongnam Crusing Federation and the supervisor of a marina in Busan, provided us assist and recommendation each day. He defined that current safety incidents had led to elevated scrutiny of international yachts.

In 2020 a Korean man entered the nation with a yacht he’d purchased in Croatia, carrying an undeclared firearm that he used to shoot his girlfriend. Drug smugglers had used South Korean ports as trans-shipment factors, creating additional alarm. We have been additionally reminded repeatedly by South Koreans that their nation is technically nonetheless at struggle with North Korea.

A statue guards a Korean martial arts temple. Picture: Cameron Dueck

Kim advised us the variety of international yachts visiting South Korea annually is within the single digits. “I feel some those who have tried to come back could have been delay by the paperwork,” he noticed.

So we determined to simplify our plans and sail on to Tongyeong which, like Changwon, is within the province of Gyeongnam and is a brief day journey down the coast. There was no wind, so we motored, which was simply in addition to the within route compelled us to wind our method by way of countless fish farms that crammed the protected waters.

We’d famous a bridge we’d must go underneath on the north facet of Geojedo. Charts confirmed it had 20m clearance, solely 1m increased than our mast. We checked the tides, and spoke to native sailors, all of which reassured us that we’d have a number of metres of clearance and that they commonly handed beneath it with taller masts.

However one mile from the bridge the Coast Guard referred to as us on the radio. “There’s a bridge in entrance of you. It’s a nice hazard to you,” they knowledgeable us.

I defined that the charts, tides, and native sailors all indicated that we have been secure to go by way of, however they have been unconvinced and commanded us to cease. We have been drifting close by of the bridge when a Coast Guard boat pulled up subsequent to us and a phalanx of boiler-suited, hard-hat carrying officers crowded their bow, waving and shouting in Korean and blowing whistles.

Monks give a seonmudo martial arts demonstration. Picture: Cameron Dueck

One in all them pulled out a loudhailer. “Hazard! Hazard! Very huge hazard! You need to flip round!”

I tried to argue, shouting throughout the water, however Fiona turned me again to the helm. “There’s no use, you’ll by no means change their minds,” she mentioned. We detoured 10 miles to keep away from the bridge, with the Coast Guard boat motoring behind us for half an hour earlier than returning to base the place they continued to look at us on AIS.

Within the subsequent hours they referred to as us on the radio a number of instances, asking us to alter our heading by just a few levels or take a unique route. They even telephoned the agent who’d helped us clear into the nation to ask him about our voyage plans. A part of me was incensed at their interference, however we have been additionally amused they have been taking such an curiosity in our security.

On the Tongyeong Crusing Faculty, we discovered our crusing tribe, with new associates like Jehoon keen to supply their assist with discovering gasoline and elements, or navigate paperwork. The town, and the province of Gyeongnam, have ambitions to show the realm right into a marine sports activities hub. Han, who accomplished the Clipper Around the World Race in 2015/16, has performed an instrumental function in bringing the Clipper Race to Tongyeong in 2026.

Market in Myeongdong. Picture: Maremagnum/Getty

Discover ashore

As soon as it grew to become clear we’d not see as a lot of Korea as we’d hoped from our boat, we travelled inland as an alternative. We went to a Busan Giants baseball recreation, stayed at a temple the place we discovered martial artwork fundamentals from the monks, and revelled in Seoul’s glossy artwork museums and plentiful parks.

South Korea was electing a brand new president throughout our go to, which inspired us to study extra about its historical past. Colonised by Japan, divided from North Korea after World Warfare II by domineering American generals, it then suffered a long time of brutal navy rule earlier than the bloody delivery of its democracy within the Nineteen Eighties. The nation is dotted with museums to the democratic wrestle, and its trendy dedication to peace.

The inland journey was enjoyable, and gave us a deeper appreciation of Korean tradition, however we have been on a crusing voyage in any case and had not but given up our aspirations to see extra of the shoreline. Our new native crusing associates helped us establish a string of islands to go to on our option to Jeju, South Korea’s hottest vacationer island, about 110 miles south-west of Tongyeng.

This route would take us to ports in neighbouring South Jeolla Province, which elevated the complexity of our plans. Fiona spent two weeks researching, emailing, telephoning and filling out kinds. Then, simply once we thought we have been making progress, an official advised our agent we weren’t allowed to enter port until for restore or to alter crew.

Upset and annoyed, we determined to as an alternative sail on to Jeju which, as its personal province centered on international tourism, demanded much less paperwork. Han was deeply apologetic and dismayed on the difficulties we have been going through. He even wrote a letter of petition to the federal government, hoping to push South Korea in the direction of realising its potential as a cruising vacation spot.

Teng Hoi at anchor off Bijindo. Picture: Cameron Dueck

One other tangle

We left Tongyeong and motored to close by Bijindo, an island with a bay created by a slender isthmus of sand, the place we anchored for the night time. After seven weeks in port, Teng Hoi’s hull had grown a thick beard, so we scrubbed the underside and basked within the freedom of our solely night time at anchor in Korean waters.

The subsequent day we set off for Jeju amid mild winds, alternating between motoring and sluggish crusing at any time when we had sufficient breeze. However quickly we got here throughout the large floating plenty of seaweed that pollute these waters every spring.

We manoeuvred across the first few clumps, however then the engine bogged as a mass of seaweed wrapped across the propeller. We reversed, however the weed clung quick. Lastly Fiona donned a masks and dove into the water with a knife to chop all of it away.

Lush Yokji Island, off the south coast of South Korea. Picture: Cameron Dueck

That night time we handed by way of massive fleets of squid fishing boats, whose sensible lights lit up the ocean for miles round and created eerie outlines of the rocky, distant islands we handed.

Jeju is thought for 3 issues: rocks, ladies and wind. As an island created by quite a few volcanic eruptions it has loads of jagged black rocks alongside its coast.

The well-known haenyo are feminine divers who dive off its coast with out scuba gear, to reap abalone, sea urchins and different sea meals. And the island was certainly windy, with unpredictable climate.

Quickly after we arrived in Jeju we determined to make yet one more try at cruising, sketching out a plan to sail across the island, a voyage of about 120 miles, with stops in just a few small fishing ports alongside the way in which. We quickly bumped into acquainted challenges, and located the fishing ports that regarded so inviting have been closed to yachts. As an alternative we rented bicycles and made a six-day loop across the island.

We adopted the black, rocky shoreline and noticed haenyo diving and bringing seafood ashore. And we pedalled exhausting towards the wind, on a regular basis considering these can be wonderful crusing situations.

Squid drying in port on Jeju. Picture: Cameron Dueck

After a month in Jeju our South Korean visas have been about to run out, and we’d lastly accepted that cruising its shoreline was out of our attain. We pointed Teng Hoi again in the direction of Japan, catching regular southerly winds on our beam for a quick, clean passage throughout the Japan Sea.

Just a few days after arriving in Japan we obtained a message from Han. He’d met with authorities officers and had been granted agent entry to the PORT-MIS on-line registration system.

“So now I will help visiting yachts take care of all of the paperwork,” he mentioned. Fiona and I checked out one another, recalling the small islands, distant fishing ports and quiet bays we’d researched however have been unable to sail to. Ought to we flip round and check out once more?

In case you loved this….

Yachting World is the world’s main journal for bluewater cruisers and offshore sailors. Each month we now have inspirational adventures and sensible options that will help you realise your crusing desires.

Construct your information with a subscription delivered to your door. See our newest provides and save a minimum of 30% off the quilt value.

Notice: We could earn a fee if you purchase by way of hyperlinks on our web site, at no further price to you. This doesn’t have an effect on our editorial independence.