Day 16, Course 19

Second-to-last day done!

Stats: 19.58 km, 25,265 steps, 273 minutes, 4.3 kph. My heel felt a lot better today, almost as if yesterday's painful exertion ended up having a chiropractic effect on my foot. There was some achiness later in the day, but not much. And no pain pills taken at all. Go figure.

I was farther along Course 19 than I'd thought: I reached the end of the course by about 9:15 this morning. My pedometer, at the time, was registering 14K-ish steps and 160-some minutes. That's not even three hours' walking (I started late, too: a bit after six, knowing that today's route would be short). So I basically wandered around the area I'm now in (Gimnyeong-ni, 김녕리) for several hours. Somewhere around lunchtime, Fly Jin Pension texted to say that their 입실시간 (ipshil shigan, or check-in time) was 3 p.m., so I resigned myself to wait another few hours. There was a wind farm in the distance, so I walked toward that and found myself on Gimnyeong Beach, special because of its white sand, which isn't typical for Jeju, where black-sand beaches are the norm. 3 p.m. rolled around, and I dragged myself over to the pension. Another text told me my room was on the second floor at the end of the hall; when I got to the hall, it was as dark and silent as a tomb. Had to switch on the hall light. The room itself, though, seems nice, now that I'm in it. This is one of the nicer pensions I've been in—spacious and well appointed.

Another gorgeous day. It's too bad the weather seems to be straightening itself out right at the end of my time in Jeju; I'll have to remember, next time I visit, to come no earlier than the latter half of October. 

I started the walk late, as I mentioned above, but I still ended up arriving in the Gimnyeong area by 9:15 or so. I even sat down for a little morning snack along the way, and despite the delay, I was still early. 

This meant, though, that I had to contend with the distance walker's nightmare: the sudden urge, this morning, to shit without knowing where the nearest bathroom might be. Luckily, I was able to find one... and then the urge struck again in the early afternoon. Had I really eaten that much the previous day? Not to worry, though: I was able to find facilities with no problem, so no explosions happened while I wandered around the seaside edge of Gimnyeong.

I'm not looking forward to tomorrow's trek, but once I've done the whole circle and am back where I started, I'll be booking a room at a local hotel that I remember seeing on Day 1. So no, I won't be staying at the ratty Mido Motel again. 

My right toe is looking and smelling pretty rough; I'm definitely going to be seeing an expert after I finish the Andong Dam hike. I'm doing what I can to wash the toe with soap, then swab it with alcohol wipes before covering it in disinfectant first-aid cream and bandaging the whole thing up. I'm no longer using Leukotape on that part of my foot; instead, I'm relying on gauze and a special, skinny tape that came with my medical kit. The blister skin finally ripped wide open, so I cut the rest of the dead skin off, fully exposing the sensitive new skin beneath. I'm regretting having popped the blister. It's not usually my policy to do so, as I've explained numerous times in previous walk blogs. Anyway, the toe needs treatment, so that's the first priority once the walks are both done. 

I'm not very good about giving people gifts, but I've been thinking about getting something for my #3 Ajumma in Seoul. Gift-hunting will be something I do during one of my free days, along with visiting the Jeju National Museum and that bakery.

Despite all the walking I've done, I don't think I've lost very much weight. While I've tried to eat less during this trip, I know I've fallen off the wagon numerous times. I may just have to return to a Newcastle schedule for a couple months. The only problem is that Newcastle isn't sustainable as a lifestyle, which is what I really need. Well, that's a matter for my main blog, so I won't bore you with my further thoughts on that here. 

It's tempting to try to write out my insights about Jeju during the one day I'll have between the Jeju and Andong hikes, but I'll hold off until both hikes are done. I can say for sure that Jeju is beautiful, walkable, and cyclable, but it's still not my favorite path: that honor, as always, goes to the Four Rivers. That said, I don't plan to wait another 36 years before coming back to Jeju again.

I see that both Courses 20 and 21 have parts that, for whatever reason, veer way inland, so I'll once again be sticking to the bike path, which hews closer to the shore. The Olle trail likes to take you along farm roads and over mountains to give you a taste of the island's interior; the bike trail will also sometimes skew inland, but more often than not, it stays close to the coast. For a walker in my condition, the bike trails are also less punishing, overall, than the Olle-gil. Weather-wise, it looks like smooth sailing tomorrow, but the forecast is showing rain for my two free days. The weather for the 18th, my departure day, looks to be sunny and pleasant. Of course, we all know the weather service lies. 

Today's walk was so short that I have only 323 images for you today. Enjoy.

Hamdeok Beach, early morning

Course 19 is the last trail to go east. After this, the path curves south as we follow the coast back to the point where we started this whole adventure.

"Yaho!" is the cry of the Korean hiker while he's in the mountains and not caring about nature.

I hate this sort of camping.

I'm gonna miss the farms and the soil.

glad I'm not taking this road

defiant even in death

looked like a person from a distance

the region called Haedong

oh, to be rich

a really nice-looking elementary school

school values: allegiance and filial piety

Bukchon Village

Bukchon Village in Chinese

I think the Chinese says, "Bukchon Village Welfare Center" (북촌리 복지회관)

blowin' in the breeze

Jeongdong Mountain Park

tunnel of plants (not ready yet)

a community of spiders

almost as fat as me

looks almost like a guillotine

going left

"caravan" is the British term for a camper

Dōngbōng-ni

Dongbok: coastal rest stop

another haenyeo resto

I like the visual pun of the left-hand symbol looking like 옷/ot, clothing.  

dog barks in the distance

The term Haenyeo Village (해녀촌) appears five times in this picture—four times in Korean and once in Chinese. Redundancy!

I've read enough Stephen King to know that any place calling itself "Happy House" has a torture dungeon in the sub-basement.

Does someone really live here?

rare opportunity to get close to a solar panel

Silly man tempts pooch.

The sign says this is a well.

Note the wind farms.

What species of tree is this?

This is the sort of tree that looks as if it's been caught mid-thrash.

Granny's getting away!

going right

Bus or ATV? You choose!

funky wall

another biggie

So yacht is pronounced "yō-teu" in Korean.

the drama of nature

a third biggie

can't make sense of this sign

a bunch of fucking faggots

wind farm in the distance, only 2 of 8 turbines rotating

Bird turd! I see either a shark coming toward me or a swordfish swimming away from me.

plenty of algae

You as hungry as I am?

Even if no one else sees this, I saw it.

another richie property

Gimnyeong-ni in Chinese

already the end of the trail at 9:15 or so

From this point on, I'm just wandering and exploring.

animal assholes are everywhere

The boat's name is Pedro, which is also what Korean Christians call Peter in the Bible.

the bag and tongs of a groundskeeper lady

go ahead, walk on the sea wall if you want

burd kunvenshun

Don't throw your wet wipes in the terlit.

Don't remove toilet tissue—THIEF.

end of Course 19, beginning of Course 20

Those are rocks, not algae. 

The side streets and backstreets in this area are all very interesting.

vaguely reminiscent of a Thai "spirit house"

pollution under the shwimteo

"You forgot your goggles again, idiot!"

I think "tracking" should be "trekking."

defender of hearth and home

This one's off his chain but docile.

lunch!

ojingeo bokgeum—squid and veggies stir-fried in pepper sauce

Like the Dude, Jesus abides.

clothes a-flappin'

The Korean says "Jeju Four Seasons," not "Chocolate in Jeju."

ad for English/math teacher for kids

big, loud fella

Moses moment

that familiar blue arrow

land's end

Gimnyeong Beach is covered up to minimize blowing sand for couples having their photos taken by the sea. I saw a lot of couples getting professional photos today.

as is happening here

I watched this woman take selfie after selfie for at least ten minutes. She never noticed me. Most people have an instinct that tells them they're being watched. This lady was too self-absorbed for that.

poignant non-smoking ad

I love sea

Wonder Woman with lobster pot

At least 29K tomorrow, then the Jeju walk is done. This walk has produced mixed feelings in me, which I'll talk about after I'm done with Andong. But now, the time has come to sleep.