Travel

The blue line

Encounters and lessons after four days on the saddle

Fred

22 Apr 2023 — 7 min read

Day 1

There seems to be two schools of thought around bikepacking. The first one likes to do it “as rough as possible”, meaning that you should carry everything you need on your bike (including camping equipment, and supplies for the entire trip). And the other doesn’t really care, and is just there to enjoy the ride.

At the first checkpoint, a group of four people on mountain bikes arrive shortly after me. They chose to sit far enough so that we didn’t engage in any conversation, so I was really surprised when one of the riders gave me an Hallabong orange (the locally grown one, which is the pride of the island) without saying anything, just before leaving.

The rest of the day was pretty painful, because of very strong headwinds that really made the ride very challenging. I reached my hotel just before sunset, and my only option for dinner was to get instant noodles from the lobby. Two women parked their bikes and checked in, as I was boiling water. They didn’t speak english but we clearly were on the same mission: (finding something to eat on that night and) riding the entire Jeju Fantasy Bicycle Path.

Day 2

I don’t like riding when there’s no natural light. It is doable, but I don’t like it. So in order to make sure that I reach my end destination before the night falls down, I prefer starting earlier than I should. This is also the guarantee of having less cars on the road. It’s just that there’s generally less people out there doing stuff and going places earlier in the day.

The weather was still cloudy, but slightly better than the day before. Shortly after reaching the first checkpoint of the day, I caught up with two women, coming from an inland road (and not the coastal road), and wondered where they actually came from. While riding behind them, I noticed that one of the women’s back tire was visibly going flat.

I accelerated a little to catch up with them and told them that this looked concerning. We checked together, and it didn’t look like it was calling for an inner tube replacement, so we just kept going. I got from their accent that they’re both from the USA, and just going out on a bike for the day. They chose to stop at a cute coffee place on the roadside, so we split ways just before the fourth checkpoint.

A solo rider reached the fifth checkpoint a few seconds behind me. We both stamped our passports, and started discussing about how bad the weather was yesterday, and how much better the conditions were today. I got that he was doing the full tour in five days, and camping instead of staying in guesthouses. He also said that the most difficult parts of the path (the headwinds in northwest section, and that climb we just passed) were now behind us, and that the rest of the tour should be much easier.

The weather cleared up after my lunch break and made the remainder of the day very enjoyable. It was all flat roads, blue sky and sandy landscapes all the way to my second guesthouse. Despite the longer distance, my legs felt better than at the end of the first day.

Day 3

It’s always weird to ride a bike you’re not familiar with. But if that’s a “good” bike, you really start trusting it after a short time. You have a feel about how it rides, handles, and responds, and it almost disappears, to let you enjoy the ride.

The first checkpoint of the day was less than 10km away from my guesthouse. As I reached it, I met the guy from the day before, on his way to the checkpoint. His plan for the day was to reach and camp on the tiny Udo island, off the east coast of the main island we were on. He asked for my social media and we parted ways after a few kilometers.

The next checkpoint wasn’t far either and here, I met a couple of elderly people walking along the cycling path. They asked me to take a picture of them, before asking the usual “where are you from”, “for how long are you travelling”, for which I now have an automatic reply.

As we discussed travels and other stuff in life, they suggested that I should add Hong Kong to my list of destinations, because there are plenty of cycling paths worth the journey over there. The man added that he used to go on cycling trips a lot when he was younger, but can’t do it anymore because of his weak knees. He misses it and encouraged me to keep riding as long as I was physically able do it. That hit me right in the feels.

The ideal weather and road conditions let me reach the eighth checkpoint much earlier than I anticipated. At this pace, I would have been able to reach my next hotel before lunch time, instead of mid-afternoon. So I slowed down and chilled a little along the road.

I stopped for a drink and noticed the two women I met on the first day, dilligently following the blue line on the road. I didn’t know what their plans were, or if we were on the exact same schedule or timing, but this gave me a good amount of confidence about the rest of the journey.

I kept sipping on my hallabong iced tea, while thinking about what that guy said about the second half being the easiest part of the journey. His social media showed a story with his tent planted somewhere on Udo island, right next to the water.

Day 4

This type of cycling journey clears your mind. It is very different from commuting to work, or going around your favorite local route close to your home. And the last day of this type of cycling journey is when everything kind of starts to make sense.

The journey I started approximately six months ago was about clearing my mind. I wasn’t sure about how to do it, and was even less sure about if this whole thing would actually work. But on that exact morning, on this bike, on this road, and with these views, everything started to make a little more sense.

The weather was again pretty much perfect for riding, and given that I planned for the last day to be the shortest, I was able to really relax and just enjoy the ride. The view of clear waters and the gentle breeze pushing me to the finish line were just the cherry on top.

Before even noticing it, I reached the final checkpoint and got the tenth and last stamp on my passport, proving that I completed the Jeju Fantasy Bicycle Path.

The main takeway from this entire journey? Paying attention to the people you meet along the way is a must. Also, I think I love cycling even more than before.

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And here are a few tips and resources, for anyone interested in riding the Jeju Fantasy Bicycle Path, one day:

The path is about 230km, and mostly flat (except for a steep climb around Sanbangsan Mt. in the south). It could reasonably be done in three days, and very comfortably done in four days or more.
The route is very well marked, and could almost be completed only by following the signs and the blue line painted on the road. I only found the two largest towns of the island (Jeju-si in the north and Seogwipo-si in the south) a little confusing, so just pay a little more attention over there.
The bicycle path fully goes around the island, but only counter clockwise. You can choose to go in the opposite direction, but you will have way less protected paths.
Expect strong headwinds on the north half (if you’re going counter clockwise).
There’s plenty of hotel and guesthouses all along the route. I booked everything a few days before starting, but I was told that the island is a popular weekend destination for locals, and accomodations can fill up quickly. My trip took place from tuesday to friday, so I avoided this issue completely.
You’ll find a convenience store literally every kilometer, as well as in every harbor and small village on the way. There’s absolutely no need to carry a lot of water and food with you on the bike.
You’ll easily find a bike rental shop near the main town. I booked mine online with Biketrip, located just outside the airport, and was very happy with the bike I got.
There are 10 checkpoints, roughly 20km apart from each other. All the booths are fairly easy to spot as long as you follow the signs on the main path. You can find their exact location on this this website.