Three days in Sokcho: Abai ferry & village, market food, local beer, coffee

I spent three half-days in Sokcho, before and after hiking the Dinosaur Ridge (공룡능선) and Cheonbuldong Valley (천불동계곡). I explored the Sokcho Fisheries Market, took the hand-pulled ferry to Abai Village, and took an evening stroll to the sea and the Sunrise Pavilion The following day I spent near the beach for a burger and coffee, then I got more market food, some local beers by the ferry station and finished with makgeolli and fried food by the pavilion. The last day before going to Gangneung, I hiked up Seongindae, then got some mountain vegetable rice. This was part of a 6-day trip to Sokcho and Gangneung.

Days 1, 3 & 4 of a 6-day trip to Sokcho and Gangneung

Day 1 – 14 June

I got an 11:30 express bus to Sokcho Express Bus Terminal (Note, there are TWO main bus terminals in Sokcho; this is the southern-most one. I’d be leaving via Sokcho Intercity Terminal, the northern-most one). I arrived at 14:20 and got a bus around the lake to Sokcho Station Hostel (속초스테이션호스텔), just north of the Sokcho Tourism and Fisheries Market (속초관광수산시장). I checked in at the Cinnabon they have on the ground floor (yum!). It was a four-person dorm I booked on Agoda and it was new and clean. Someone was sleeping in there already so I tried to be quiet. I was booked for three nights but was only going to sleep there the first and third nights and just leave my stuff there while I did the overnight Seoraksan hike. It was only KRW 18,000 per night: great value! There was a decent kitchen area and even bidets!

Sokcho Tourism and Fisheries Market

I went out looking for food and walked about 8 minutes south to the Tourism Fisheries market. There’s a food stall street selling all kinds of stuff and I got some pancakes made with a whole cabbage leaf on. I avoided drinking makgeolli since I wanted to be feeling my best for the following day.

My next mission was to get food and liquids for the two-days I’d be on the mountain. I figured I could get some sandwiches and bun in the market but couldn’t find many apart from Kimseongsu Bakery (김성수제빵소 속초) which had mainly sold out. I ended up getting a bus all the way back to the southern bus station area to find a decent Paris Baguette which fortunately satisfied my sandwich and bun needs!

Abai Village

Bus back to the hostel to ditch the food then I took the bus two stops south again to find a hand-pulled ferry that takes people from the mainland to an island village called Abai (아바이 마을). It has an interesting history and is mainly a tourist attraction now, and is also no longer an island as a road passes over it. I couldn’t really work out how to pay for a ferry ticket at the waiting area because the translation on the sign said “Buy a ticket from the kiosk across the street“, but couldn’t for the life of me see a kiosk. Fortunately there were a few people waiting so I just followed them onto the tiny ferry when it (literally) pulled up. It’s simply a covered flat barge with a cable mechanism attached to the two sides of the approximately 50 to 80 meter-wide channel. The operator uses a metal hook to grab the cable that runs down the centre of the deck, walks to the other end, unhooks the handle walks back, re-hooks the cable, and so on until the ferry gets to the other side. Neat, cute, and quaint. Some of the passengers took spare hooks and helped drag the cable! About two minutes later you get to the other side. Once there, you’re directed to the kiosk were you use your crest card to pay to KRW 500 fare! So I guess the translation should say “Get your ticket from the kiosk when you get to the other side of the channel.”

I walked around the tiny village which looked nice in the lowering sunshine. There was a small park on the sea side, nice views of the Sokcho bridges, and lots of little knickknack stores, restaurants and cafes. I didn’t buy anything since they were either closed for the day, or winding down. I took some photos of the water, bridges, harbour equipment and even the distant Seoraksan!

I was getting peckish and headed back to the mainland. You use a different kiosk to get the return ticket, this time before you get on the ferry. It was a nice way to spend and hour.

By the ferry station was a restaurant/bar advertising fish and chips. It seemed a bit pricy though so decided to save it for after my hike.

I returned to the market and got some Korean pancake on the same street as before, then went back to the hostel. I spent a while making sure I was all packed for the next morning. I popped out again to get some mints and called home to Romana. I was in bed by 10 feeling excited for the next morning.

Day 2 – 16 June

I got back from my Seoraksan adventure at about 11 am, showered, napped, then set out again around 12:30 to get some food by the seaside. I got a bus north to a Deungdae Beach (등대해수역장) and got a nice cheeseburger, fries, and San Miguel at a window seat at Sunny Place burger restaurant (양지바른 버거 & 쌀국수 본점). It was very good and my first beer of the trip really hit home!

I walked up and down the coast road a little. It was very sunny and hot so didn’t stay on the beach long. It’s quite a nice quiet beach but you will need to bring your own shade!

Wondering back south towards the Sunrise Pavilion, I found Croft Coffee Roasters, a neat little cafe in a hanok that serves a range of espresso variations. I sat at the counter and drank my Piccolo and planned the rest of the day.

I wandered south again along the coast towards the lighthouse observatory and museum but access to the hill was closed. I seem to remember the museum being closed back on a rainy day in 2022, but you could still go up to the top and the base of the lighthouse. Oh well. I wandered along the coast taking pictures of the sea and rock, then up to the pavilion again for a daytime view. On the way back to the hostel, I walked past a tented fish restaurant area by the harbour across from the hostel. It was pretty busy so noted it as a place to take Romana.

I was wanting to have some deep fried food at the market and followed a recommendation to go to the south fish market area (where I’d been with my parents for crab a few years back). I think I was a bit early though and didn’t fancy being the only one eating at the restaurant even though all the fired food looked great! So…I bused back to the other market and had some fried food in the same street as a few days ago. It wasn’t great though to be honest. Then I walked back to the Abai ferry station and to Ogudosunjang (5구도선장) where I got some local brews and sat at the open window watching the Abai ferry come and go, and doing a little Instagramming.

After the beers I went to the hostel, lay in bed and had a dumb eureka moment; there was a place to get fried food near the pavilion but at this time of night it was going to be touch and go if I’d be served! I high-tailed it down to the pojangmachas by harbour and there was one place still open since two drunk guys were there still chatting. I asked the owners if I could get some food and she said it was fine. She even called across to a fellow store owner who was closing to see if she could get me some Makgeolli (this stall only had soju) so was able to get my fried food and makgeolli fix, finally! I chatted briefly with the two other guys, before grabbing the rest of the makgeolli and heading back to the hostel for a long, contented sleep!

Day 3 – 17 June

Seongindae and bibimbap

Packed up early then walked to the SOCAR station. I paid to collect it 30 mins earlier. I parked by harbour opposite the Station Hostel; it weas already getting hot. I got my suitcase, checked out, then drove to Hwaamsa Temple parking lot. I was going to hike Seongindae, the spot opposite Ulsanbawi with the best views; I went in October 2024 and really wanted to see it again. There’s a second car park quite a way up, just before the temple, that I noticed last time, so I went there to save some walking time. The cars there weren’t parked neatly so spent a while trying to fit in a space! It was quite humid so paced myself going up so as to not sweat through my t-shirt. It took about an hour. Unlike last time, it was cloudy over Ulsanbawi so couldn’t really see anything except the valley in front. Ironically it was also really hot and sunny where I was standing; worst of both worlds! There were quite a few people there, too. I found a tiny bit of shade and had some buns and water, and worked out where to try for lunch. When I drove out, I was the access to the upper car park had been blocked; perhaps they only open it for the early part of the day.

I went to Okmijang (옥미장)for bibimbap. It was run by a sweet old lady who seemed to be doing everything alone. It took a while to get served as there was already a group there. What I ordered was my go-to sanchae bibimbap (산채비빔밥) basically seasoned local greens from the mountain on rice. I feel I eat too much junk while on trips, especially on hikes and in the evening, so these meals make me believe I’m not completely destroying my body!