Korean Job Discussion Forums

[greatunknown]

Early May is still too early?

[cj1976]

Depends how hardy you are. Try it and find out.

[schwa]

If the air temp feels appropriate, go for it. The water temp doesnt vary a whole lot year round.

I was sitting at Sokcho Beach one time, early spring, there was still snow on the ground but the sun was warm. Encountered a student of mine. "Lets go swimming," she says. "Good idea," I answer, "you first." She plunges right in fully clothed & looks at me like, well? Not what I expected! Embarrassed to say I chickened out, but she forgave me.

An American guy I knew swam off Sokcho beaches every month of the year.

[ttompatz]

If the water temperature is below 32F (0C) then it is too cold to swim.
The water is just too thick.

If the water temperature is above 32F then swimming is possible albeit uncomfortable if the water temp is below 72F.

The quality of your wetsuit (drysuit) / swimsuit will determine how long you can swim for.

.

[greatunknown]

Ummmm. Not sure if these responces are serious or not.

My wife asked me if I want to go to Sokcho tomorrow. I havent been there and I wonder if its still too early in the year to enjoy a day at the beach. No polar bear dips or wet suits.

So, to anyone who lives out there, in your opinion, whats the beach gonna be like this weekend?

[Stan Rogers]

It really depends on how hardy you are. In Jeju I have seen Canadian teachers and Russian tourists swimming well into late October and swimming in mid April. Those two nationalities tend to be the hardiest when it comes to braving the cold water. I've noticed U.S. soldiers are reluctant to swim at those times, however they will dive in if an English teacher calls them chicken.

That said, Sokcho is probably quite cold right now. But like someone said earlier, give it a try.

[greatunknown]

Im a Newfie so presumably should be used to frigid water. The beach was definitly too cold. Give it a few more weeks and itll be fine. Sokcho was still a great choice. The weather was perfect for hiking Mt. Seorak.

thanks for the opinions (especially Stan Rogers)

[Who's Your Daddy?]

It depends where you are going. I swam in Namhae in mid June and it was warm, and the end of September in Seogwipo was warm. I went to a beach in Ulsan mid August and it was ice cold.

[Weigookin74]

The southern coast holds the heat the longest in the fall later into the year. Not sure if it warmsup the fastest in the Spring. Koreans claim Haeundae is too cold after the 3rd week of August which is odd since I have gone in the water in mid September before. But it was only white people in the water. I think the east sea is prob the coldest the west sea or yellow sea is prob a bit warmer than that.

I checked online water temps before. Anything above 20 degrees is good for me. Anything under that is cold. I think I read Haeundae temps get up to 28 in summer or more and so Koreans prob like that. I don't like it too hot. To each their own. Low to mid 20's is my personal preference.

http://www.surf-forecast.com/breaks/Busan-Haeundae/seatemp

I remember the Northumberland Straight back home takes forever to heat up in spring but stays warm into the fall longer. The Bay of Fundy never warms up due to extreme tides. SO, here too, it looks as though the water won't be warm for white folk until early or mid June and won't start toget too cold for swimming again until after early November. I'm guessing for Koreans only August is warm enough for them?

[hellofaniceguy]

[Weigookin74]

I think this is a better website. According to this Haeundae stays warm until the first or second week of November.

http://www.seatemperature.org/asia/south-korea/busan-november.htm

I think the temperatures get warm by the first week of June.

http://www.seatemperature.org/asia/south-korea/busan-june.htm

Koreans believe August is best for swimming.

http://www.seatemperature.org/asia/south-korea/busan-august.htm


Of course all these are probably sea temperatures. I think temps will be warmer by one or two degrees closer to shore. Looks like August water temps wouldn't cool you off at all.


So, if the above point is true, you could possibly swim at Haeundae from the end of May to mid to late November. I have yet to test this theory. I did go in the water in mid September, but saw only white people and no Koreans.

[Weigookin74]

Then again this is a sample of Maritime water temperatures in August. Funny, it always felt warmer to me than what this graph is indicating. So, I think it is prob warmer closer to shore. The tides in this area are not that rough though.

http://www.seatemperature.org/north-america/canada/summerside-august.htm

I'm not from Summerside, BTW. Just using it as an example. So, I might be able to tolerate the water now. Who knows? Though Korean tides seem rougher than back home. So, the water may feel more cold after all.

[greatunknown]

I swam on Deokjeok Island last weekend. The water is still too cold for most people to enjoy but it is swimmable. I spent 30 minutes or so in the water and swam out to where the water was well over my head.

Another couple of weeks and it will be fine

[Chaparrastique]

[Weigookin74]