Pickled vegetables, island hops, and whiskey shots in the Land of the Morning Calm ON THE KIMCHI TRAIL Story and photos by Gregg Bleakney oo-Lee looked more like a Little frame. His Ferrari red bicycle was adorned gled over Geoje Island’s consistent undula- its rose gar- League baseball player than a with late-model panniers; there wasn’t a tion. (For the purposes of this story, Greg dens, but the touring cyclist. We met for the loose strap, unsightly lashed item, peeling McCormack will hereby be referred to as most memo- first time at an overlook above frame sticker, or smudge of grease to be G-Mack: (1) to avoid any reader confu- rable moment Sinseondae Bay on South Korea’s seen. Despite being a teenager, Woo-Lee sion with my name, which also happens was the mystery Geoje Island. He was wearing ran an impeccably tight ship. He was the to be Gregg — but with an extra g, and behind the water being WA-list brand hiking capris, a New York perfect candidate to probe for data about (2) because we determined he needed a turned on and off in Yankees baseball cap, and a pair of New the road ahead. nickname after bewildering hundreds of the bathtub for quite a luggage for you.” Our Balance sneakers that were disproportion- For the past six hours, my cycling com- Koreans with our double Greg(g) introduc- while on the first night. bicycle boxes were ately colossal to his wiry five-foot six-inch rade, Greg McCormack, and I had strug- tions.) Because neither of us had bothered Uncle Ick (I couldn’t pro- already stacked on to train for this tour, we decided to take nounce Rs when I was a an oversized push- the bullet train south from Seoul — skip- tot) debated checking cart. G-Mack excit- ping over Korea’s mountainous interior to in to see if things edly jumped on the cut our teeth along its flat austral coastline. were all right but back, kicked a few times, As our fitness improved, we would pedal decided not to and glided through customs northward to burn our lungs over what- intrude. The next like Apollo Ohno over the pol- ever geographical challenges the country day, he found that ished floors. could throw at us. his guests had done their We efficiently boarded a public But by the time we spotted Woo-Lee on laundry in the bathtub. Evidently, they express bus to within one block of our third day in the saddle, the southland Jeju Island. A haenyo (sea woman) matri- were not aware of washing machines, dish- our downtown hotel. I pinched myself in had failed to deliver the forgiving promise arch before her morning abalone dive. washers, and vacuum cleaners and were disbelief. Was it that easy? Later, I learned made by our map’s widely spaced contour quite fascinated in learning to use them. that after Seoul’s airport had become over- lines. On the contrary, the landscape was ultra-tech teenagers, and beautifully-chis- “That was some time ago. Maybe things loaded during the 1988 Olympics, the proving to be a recipe for salt-stained lycra, eled road networks were not what I expect- have changed,” he concluded. government drafted blueprints for a new, four-letter words, and deflated egos. ed to find in Korea. At a family dinner just My first sense that things had indeed world-class hub capable of shuffling 100 “So is the rest of Korea this hilly?” before my flight, Uncle Rick told a story changed since the days of Carter’s Friendship million passengers annually by 2020. Initial G-Mack asked. about a Korean couple he hosted through Force came in the form of an attractive young construction was completed in 2001. With Woo had already racked up 1,400 kilo- President Jimmy Carter’s Friendship Force airport representative who was awaiting our a connected international business center, meters over a zigzagging north-to-south tra- program. They all enjoyed strolling along arrival at baggage claim in Seoul. “Greg — an 18-hole golf course, and a number-one verse of his homeland. He tabbed through Portland, Oregon’s, riverfront and through Gregg?” she puzzled. “I’ve prepared your world airport ranking under its belt, it has the elevation memory function on his GPS altimeter watch. With a youthful enthusi- asm that reminded me of Dora the Explorer, 14444 17 Mile Rd. Rodney, MI 49342 866-796-4453 [email protected] he responded, “Excellent, 1,600 meters of altitude today, and I have left 30 kilometers more. No, the rest is not so hilly. Here is the most difficult cycling region I experience for Korea.” He handed us two sweet honey can- dies, speed-typed a few text messages, and angled his bars downhill. “Okay, I hope we see you guys later. I go •March 21-26 Florida Panhandle Tour •June 26-July 1 Grand-Mac Tour 4 Great Cycle Tours From to make my schedule today,” he said. •Aug 13-20 Underground Railroad Tour •Oct 1-3 Michigan Fall Color Tour And then he darted off to enjoy Geoje One Of America’s Premier Island’s gentle breeze and infinite Pacific Christian Tour Operators For more info visit: www.christianadventures.org seascapes, a daydream reserved only for those fit enough to best its laborious road- ways. G-Mack and I didn’t speak openly about Get Skedaddlin’! it, but our route-planning error was obvi- ous. Clearly, a candy break followed by a Classy mountain biking, leisure cycling nap on the overlook bench was required to coax our bodies into ending their revolt. and road rides throughout the world Moments into our slumber, my accomplice – Japan, Chile, Morocco, France, Italy, raised his head in a burst of positivism. Scotland and much, much more… “Well, bro, at least we got to take a ride on that bullet train. And good God, did you ever expect to find views like this in South Call +44 (0)191 265 11 10 Korea?” www.skeddaddle.co.uk Hug the white line. Enjoying Ulleung-do Island’s coastal loop road. Truth be told — high-speed trains, 20 adventure cyclist march 2010 adventurecycling.org adventure cyclist march 2010 adventurecycling.org 21 become an economic symbol for all who go through its gates — 21st-century Korea means business, big business. More interestingly, for cycling aficiona- dos — the Incheon bridge, a $1.5 billion megaproject built to link the airport to the city center, opened in September 2009 and held a car-free ribbon-cutting ceremony to announce another form of progress — the government’s commitment to building a national bikeway network. In a fish chow- der joint near the Busan ferry terminal, G-Mack and I watched TV coverage of thousands of elated cyclists rolling across its 7.7-mile span. Outside the restaurant, a van full of stunning European tourists pulled up to the curb. Upon further ogling, I noticed that they were clad in high heels and pastel body suits — not your typical traveler’s garb. These were Busan’s working gals. G-Mack and I had unknowingly cycled into the heart of the city’s red-light district for lunch. A banner strung across the alley should have been a dead giveaway. In bold letters, it read, “Welcome U.S. Navy.” By then, we had sprouted a bit of muscle memory and completed our loop around Geoje Island. In fact, island life was so plea- surable, northbound migration was post- poned to hit Jejudo, another one of Korea’s south-floating gems. Up, up, and away. Korea’s roads are a beautiful showcase of the nation’s transportation infrastructure. Jejudo Island drinks like a fine Bordeaux blend. Coastal panoramas display hints of any pressure in his audio canal that could ants, and rattling black-capped kingfishers. level from Hyundai to Honda, but I was Big Sur. Volcanic origins and subtropical possibly have disrupted the frequency to On those final steep kilometers up Jejudo’s lacking proper fuel to tap the extra horse- climes remind you of the substratum fin- which he was tuning. He stopped repeat- crown, my cycling companion put his reli- power. And our server was crowding the ish of Hawaii. Shaped like a spinning top edly to press Texas steak-sized binoculars gion on display — and teleported himself table yet again with small bowls of kimchi, toy, it’s dominated by 6,398-foot Mount into his eye sockets and scribble notes in an into another universe. Still jovial at dinner the country’s culinary pride and joy. For Hallasan, the highest peak in Korea. REI weatherproof journal. I watched in awe that evening, he mimicked the high twit- those who have not had the good fortune of Based in Dallas, G-Mack has made a as his gifted cochlear nucleus began to pro- tering call of a Japanese white-eye. chop-sticking its slippery morsels, kimchi career of traveling to far-flung corners of cess the secret scores of the island’s ethereal As G-Mack disappeared into his 528- is a pickled and spiced vegetable appetizer the planet to lead high-end natural his- symphony. There were rustling chestnut page eastern Asia birding book, I was tend- that was born in China thousands of years tory expeditions. Jejudo blipped on his and laurel branches, vociferous brown- ing to a more immediate issue — food. You ago. Koreans adopted the dish and over- ecocentric radar the instant Woo-Lee sug- eared bulbuls, shuffling ring-necked pheas- see, my gluteus had nudged its performance time rendered endless modifications based gested that it would make a nice addition to our tour.