Phlyfisher
06-25-2008, 02:01 AM
As my study abroad winds down in Korea, I finally got a chance to do some fishing. After getting an offer to fish from a dude and his colleague on a Korean fishing website (http://www.rainbowfly.co.kr/). We set out at 1:30 a.m. on a Friday morning. After the 3 hours of driving through various terrain we reached the jindong valley (진동 계곡) in gangwon province (강원도) at around 4:30 a.m., right as the sun was beginning to peek. The air was cold in the morning, especially as I was the only one without waders - which weren't a real priority to pack for a study abroad. The river was unlike any I've ever seen in Korea, mostly free of garbage and pollution.
I've heard many times (and even said myself) that fishing isn't about catching fish. It's about getting out and GOING fishing. "It doesn't matter if I catch a single fish," some people say. While I have often thought of this as loser talk said by people who don't catch fish, for the first time in my fishing life, I actually believed it.
I didn't catch anything- other than one 4-inch fish that I hooked into for about ten seconds and also a frog.
The guy I went with, Mr. Taeyup Lee hooked into several fish throughout the day. The 2 fish most prevalent in the river are Lenok trout and a few rainbows (though I didn't see a single bow). And after walking a few miles of river, I couldn't help but think that it would make a great habitat for brown trout, as it reminded me of a couple of my favorite trout streams in Utah.
The common problem with rivers in Korea is that they all seem to get over-fished. When fish are stocked into the river, many fisherman swarm in to catch them - sometimes using the illegal method of fish shocking using a car battery.
Anyway, here are the pics. Enjoy.
http://s151.photobucket.com/albums/s146/phlyfisher/Fly%20fishing%20Korea/?albumview=slideshow
I've heard many times (and even said myself) that fishing isn't about catching fish. It's about getting out and GOING fishing. "It doesn't matter if I catch a single fish," some people say. While I have often thought of this as loser talk said by people who don't catch fish, for the first time in my fishing life, I actually believed it.
I didn't catch anything- other than one 4-inch fish that I hooked into for about ten seconds and also a frog.
The guy I went with, Mr. Taeyup Lee hooked into several fish throughout the day. The 2 fish most prevalent in the river are Lenok trout and a few rainbows (though I didn't see a single bow). And after walking a few miles of river, I couldn't help but think that it would make a great habitat for brown trout, as it reminded me of a couple of my favorite trout streams in Utah.
The common problem with rivers in Korea is that they all seem to get over-fished. When fish are stocked into the river, many fisherman swarm in to catch them - sometimes using the illegal method of fish shocking using a car battery.
Anyway, here are the pics. Enjoy.
http://s151.photobucket.com/albums/s146/phlyfisher/Fly%20fishing%20Korea/?albumview=slideshow