Korean Job Discussion Forums

[skinhead]

Where have you been, how was it, what can you tell us about it? My Korean friend promised to take me, but it never happened in two whole years. River or ocean, lake or billabong, doesn't matter. Where's the best place to land some finny malchiks?

I don't remember a thread about it before, but I'm sure there must have been one? If so I'll drag this off and bump that up.

[schwa]

This country is way overfished. I've done charter trips off the east coast (Naksan) & handjigged 6-inch flounder & the best I've seen come from breakwater or river fishing were even smaller. Some mighty bullfrogs might go for your bait! Nice excuse to go hang out in nature but by all means let the little ones go. Korean buddy caught a 12-inch something the other day & for manwon a cafe fileted it into a nice raw platter with sidedishes. But catches like that are getting rarer.

[Hollywoodaction]

Kangwon-do is a great place to go fishing.

I go fishing every summer with my brother-in-law. There are plenty of big fish waiting to get caught, but that's not what Koreans are seeking. Koreans don't even like to use fishing reels because they involve too much effort. Like my brother-in-law tells me, Koreans go fishing to zone out.

[rapier]

I understand they do fishing trips in boats off the east coast- where exactly I'm not sure, but probably around Pohang is a good bet.

Unfortunately due to south Koreas new drive to reclaim virtually every inch of its great tidal mudflats/estuaries for building projects, a huge livelihood around fishing and harvesting seafood will dissapear. many fish rely on tidal mudflat as spawning grounds. But of course the environmental impacts of their over industrialisation, are never a consideration,- when a few rich businessman can make a quick buck.

[Dr. Buck]

It all depends on what kind of fishing you're into.

Saltwater: if you're simply casting live bait/chum from the shoreline, you'll only be catching the small ones, very small. You need to get out onto the offshore islands where the water is deep and clear and then you might lay into some big "dom" or sea bream. You can get out to the islands by a fishing boat that drops you off (and hopefully doesn't forget to pick you up!).
Like what Rapier mentioned, the Korean seas are going to hell in a kimchi basket. But hey, they deserve it since they settle for it. After hundreds of years of overfishing, environmental degradation, and poaching every conceivable edible species of marine life, you might suppose the marine ecosystem can't support much for sport fishing.

Freshwater: this is my specialty. The freshwater ecosystem in Korea is an ecological nightmare of devasting proportion. Once you get over that (I never will), then you can learn to read which waters hold what kinds of fish--since all water systems have been rearranged by man--its sometimes hard to tell. If you want, you can fish as most Koreans do: go after the prized species of carp by sitting next to a muck pond in a lounge chair with ten rods out. Each rod is rigged with a sinker and drowned worms or some kind of stink balls. Also, don't forget to leave your soju bottle, snack refuse and empty tackle wrappers--it's a Korean angling tradition that needs to be upheld! Koreans have developed retard-bobber fishing to a fine art. No bag limits, no size limits, no license, no game wardens . . . have fun if that doesn't depress you.

Nevertheless, there are some freshwater species of sporting attention. Yesterday I was casting slow-retrieve spinners for largemouth bass and caught a few before it got too hot. Tomorrow I'll be flyfishing for trout on a certain mountain stream. The day after, I'll either fly cast for native notchmouths with streamers or nymph for mandarin fish on a certain freestone river. The next day, I'll probably head to this lake that holds good ol' bluegills and lay into them since I'm planning on a big fish fry for friends. I practice catch and release fishing but with bluegills being so numerous and non-native, I keep some for the pan. Then, I'll might road trip to this other river and cast for brook perch--an nice litle aggressive fish. Then the next day, back into the largemouth bass or back to the trout--I'll have to check my solunar calendars.
Today, however, I'll be heading to the beach and leaving my rods at home. I found saltwater fishing to be so lame and ridiculous--catching such small fish, that now I simply snorkel and explore the underwater world, and let me tell you--there's not much down there (caveat: sometimes there is, depending on season and location but mostly--nah). When diving, I bring my polespear and if there's something sizeable, I'll take a shot--hunting underwater is a massive rush. Mullet is great sport--they're like ghosts fading in and out of your visibility. I nailed a four foot octopus once and also got hung up in a fishing net and nearly drowned until I knife slashed my way out of it--but not before I helped myself to some flounder caught in the net!!!
PM me for any other details.
Buck

[sparkx]

[skinhead]

[rapier]

Good ideas from Dr. buck, its great to hear from someone who enjoys the outdoors and knows what he's talking about.
Birdwatching is my addiction of course.
As he says , all freshwater systems have been modified by the Korean drive to build, manicure, and tame. have you noticed even the mountain streams have been largely banked, cemented, and converted into useless concrete troughs. These areas can no longer support fish or even insects, their eecosystems have been devastated. This is environmental death!!!! You cannot cement over all riverside vegetation and underwater life without resulting in a sterile drain!! but they're still pushing ahead with their useless multi million building programs for the sake of providing the powerful construction industry with needless jobs. Don't even get me started on the tidal reclamations or reclamation dams...its annihilation going on out there at the hands of the bulldozer.

[Hollywoodaction]

Dr.Buck, you miss the point the guys sitting at the side of a pond couldn't care less if they catch a fish or not. The just want to relax. The fishing rods are just props.

[RedRob]

Hey Dr Buck - Do we live in the same country??!

[kimchikowboy]

Here are some sites. The first is all in Korean, so you may want some help. It's for the Daegu Bass Club. They have a tournament every month, and if you join, they'll lend you gear. There are prizes for the newbies and regular members as well. The president of the club is sort of the granddaddy of Korean bassing.

http://dgbass.pe.kr/

http://domino.htcomp.net/bassclubs/bassclubslist.nsf/0/8d5f4dde1247b7188625673c005396eb?OpenDocument
http://www.koreanflyfishing.com/

Dr. Buck, could you PM me some good places (if you know any) for bluegill near Daegu? Thanks.

[rapier]

Most fun fishing I ever had was treading. I imagine you could have a good day out at this on the estuaries here, once you know the tides properly.

[Dr. Buck]

Sparkx--thanks for such a cool compliment.

I just got back from the beach today. I was snorkeling around a rocky outcropping and speared a striped mullet right in the head. That was it--one shot for about an hour of underwater action. There were many little ones--types of surf perch and rock fish. The mullet ghosted in out of nowhere--I spotted his big brother--holy shit! and he disappeared and then I reflex shot the other one. About 20 inches long, and torpedo-like. He's filleted and in the freezer now.

What Rapier mentioned above I can only emphasize with about 10,000 exclamation points, or if that didn't get anyone's attention, then perhaps some extreme eco-terrorism in the E. Abbey fashion: blow some of the those dams and derail construction via sugar syrup in the earthmovers.

Rapier is right about the freshwater ecosystem and its a topic that I hold close to my heart and head because I'm angler, naturalist and conservationist. There hasn't been a time where I haven't had to scrambled down a cement structure in order to reach the water--and that includes the near-pristine trout stream I'll be fishing tomorrow (note--must get bed, wake-up at three to be on the water at sunrise . . ). Currently I'm downloading info about stream corridors and watersheds. Over here you have to be a kind of ecological detective in order to catch fish. If it isn't the dams, the cemented over riverside habitat, the weird looking pollution foam scum collecting on the water (what the hell is that shit? you say to yourself), . . .then its the Korean fishermen: here I am catching brook perch and mandarin fish on a stretch of river and here comes along three guys with throw nets. They work over that stretch keeping and killing every fish they net--quite a few since their bucket was near full. Netting is deadly. That's why its outlawed back in the States. No size limit, nor consideration for certain species, just take and take and take. The conservation concepts that anglers have progressed to in other countries is totally off the radar here.

You have guys like mentioned above--Daegu Bass Club--some of these guys are starting to develop a sense of stewardship for the fisheries and the freshwater ecosystem. There's some hope.

Nevertheless, I still head out. I still manage to catch fish yet I wonder how the fish manage to survive. Korea's Mother Nature must be one tough bitch, considering all the abuse she has taken.

Right now there are some intriguing species dynamics happening--you've got non-native largemouth bass and bluegills thriving because they are adapted to what the Koreans built: man-made stillwater lakes and slow moving rivers . . . that once used to be: fast moving rapids of clear water freestone rivers. The native species aren't in decline because of the bass and bluegill like Korean environmentalists claim its because the orginal river systems have been changed so radically.

Rapier--I've always appreciated your posts about environmental topics. You have an open invitation to head out fishing with me anytime. I come across lots of birds and I always carry my "Birds of Korea" field book with me along with binoculars. I watch herons and egrets and become mesmerized--beautiful. The ultimate fishermen. Lay into some fish, id some avians and kick back in the lawn chairs next to a blazing fire and a case of beer.

Time to load the car with gear for tomorrow's outing.

[rapier]

It sounds great dr buck, thanks! I'll certainly bear your invitation in mind- great lifestyle you're enjoying here, rather different to your average seoul esler, but it can be done with a bit of effort and knowledge:)

Tell me, do you ever do treading on the estuaries? or maybe "tickling" on the mountain streams? Some (not many) of the mountain streams/rivers in Gangwon-do are still in good shape, but on a good weather day they are crowded out with tourists. Its amazing, you think you've found a spot where nobody else is in the middle of nowhere, and- bang, there will be some koreans there sunbathing or whatever.

*further to my points earlier, its interesting to see that research shows the water quality dramatically decreases with wide scale building of embankments. The natural filtration and purifying action of vegetation is taken out, and ambankments cause a total break in the water's relation to the land
In China they've at last realised this and have begun to take down their cement, at great cost once again. A little bit late in many ways, as they also face a huge desertification and siltation problems on their waterways due to extreme overgrazing along the edges.