Korean Job Discussion Forums

[rock42]

Is fishing for recreation a very popular thing to do?



Also wanted to know if I should buy a computer in the states or wait until I get to SK and purchase one. Does it make any difference?

thanks

[saw6436]

fishing is VERY popular here. Tons of fishing shops. Also, some TV stations dedicated to only fishing.

If you like fishing you can buy decent quality gear here very cheaply. I do all micro-lite fishing so brought gear from home. But, recently bought ice-fishing rod and reel for about $10. Good stuff.

Waters here are abit over fished. But hunt around and you can find some good places.

[Arthur Dent]

This short thread has links to some of the threads about fishing here on Dave's.

http://forums.eslcafe.com/korea/viewtopic.php?t=160611&highlight=

[BobbyOrr]

You will get a computer cheaper at home and it will have an American keyboard.

[rock42]

thanks for the tips folks! Getting back to fishing. What kind of freshwater fish do you fish for? This probably sounds sily but are there bass in SK?

[saw6436]

Bass, trout, salmon, blue gills, and carp are ones your probably most familiar with. Also some native species of catfish, etc... Sea fishing is also quite good. Mackeral, sea bass, flounder, etc...

[bassexpander]

Does one have to purchase a fishing license to fish legally in Korea?

[Arthur Dent]

There is no licensing system for sport fishing in Korea. One of the shop owners I know is trying to have one particular river - a section of it - designated as fly-fishing only, and then only when in possession of a license for this area.

There are a growing number of fly fishers here and they generally seem to follow the code of fly fishers elsewhere who work to preserve the resource.

Many challenges to face in this, not the least of which would be the number of different styles of fishing here, including using nets, traps and batteries. I've seen people out after midnight in a rainstorm casting nets into the river. All this to catch fingerlings.

There are no limits on size either, so it is difficult to build stocks naturally as people will keep even the smallest fish, and even seek them for their sweetness. There are many trout hatcheries (I don't know anything about other species) along rivers here, but they don't add quality sports fishing to the rivers as the fish are sometimes deformed and listless.
They may also affect water quality by discharging water with remnants of fish food pellets.

The many vegetable farms also add to pollution from the overuse of nitrates in fertilizer. Algae growth in some areas removes oxygen from the river, and replaces other aquatic plants.

Road construction also destroys habitat as they do not practice eco-friendly methods and heavy machinery often work directly inside the riverbeds. Flooding also causes problems, and the solution here is to build concrete walls to channel the rivers.

The farming and road construction may also contribute to removing tree and bush cover for fish along the banks.

Since Korea is primarily mountainous, the farmers try to use as much of the land as possible. Some of the valleys are quite narrow of course, and there is often no buffer zone between farm and river. The other side is often steep mountainside or even cliff which leaves little possibility for cover either, except where there are at least deeper pools.

All of this being said, I have not been everywhere, but these are some of the problems I have seen.

I recommend reading some of James Card's articles. He would likely be greatly more knowledgeable on this subject.

[Kikomom]

Toshiba Satellite L500 is on sale and under $400. Only 1GB RAM though, add $56.25 for 3GB, or $82.50 for 4. Offer ends Monday.

I bought my Toshiba from Staples and really like it. But it only came with 1 gig so I had 2 more added by my local geek guys. First I bought the 2 gig stick from Newegg, but they sent the wrong one and I ended up paying their 'restocking' fee to send it back for a refund. Then the local geek guys had to try a couple different ones to get a memory stick that is compatible but only charged me $59. So, for under $500, I'd say upgrade now and it's still a good deal. Plus you can get the full 3GB RAM. Mine came with two 512mb sticks and had to remove one for the second stick to fit in. So in the end, I have 2.5 RAM.

And for $7.50 you can get a silver keyboard. I don't like the black keyboard--at night I can't see it and have to rely on my touch typing skills.