If my slightly unreliable memory serves me right, it was between 1995 and 1997 when I first laid eyes and set foot on the sands of Boracay. Back then, I remember it being pristine and clean. It was like one of those deserted island settings we see in movies, with beaches that had that untouched look to them. Fast forward to more than 15 years later, I went back, and it felt like a completely different place, with structures set up on the sand, and a distinct bustling in the air that spelled B-U-S-I-N-E-S-S. So I kinda get why the authorities are now making moves on making sure places like Boracay do not, well, deteriorate. I do hope those moves work.
Don’t worry, I’m not about to launch into a commentary on one of the more controversial issues besetting my country’s tourism industry (and environment, because those go hand in hand). I was just reminded of this while I was going through the few photos and clips that I took while visiting a few beaches in Udo.
I talked about Hagosudong Beach in my previous post; this time, I will talk about the last stop on our hop-on-hop-off bus tour of Udo: the Udo Sanho Beach.
The Udo Sanho Beach
Just like other places of significance in South Korea, Udo Sanho Beach is not the only name for this location. It appears they don’t mind having more than one or two names, which can be quite confusing for non-native speakers, haha!
Seobinbaeksa is the name locals use. But if you read the Information plate by the side, there is another supposedly more official name for it, especially as it is also recognized by the UNESCO.
So, the Information had this:
Name: Red algal nodule (rhodolith) beach sediments in U-do
…….
Quite a mouthful, isn’t it?
But, for purposes of this blog post, let’s just settle on “Udo Sanho Beach”, ‘kay?
Designated in April 9, 2004 by the government of South Korea as “National Monument No. 438”, the Udo Sanho Beach is a coral sandy beach that stretches about several hundred meters long and only about 15 meters wide. By most people’s standards, that’s quite narrow.
A flight of stone steps were carved from the side of the road, leading to the beach, and as if standing guard, a stone statue of a Jeju woman diver also stands proud by the side of the road, overlooking the beach.
From here, you can spot mainland Jeju in the distance. If the clouds weren’t there, you could catch a glimpse of Mt. Halla or Hallasan, the highest peak in Jeju.
There were already a number of people that claimed their spots on the beach, close to the water. This is because the sand is finer as you get closer to the water.
You see, Udo Sanho did not get called “red algal nodule” for no reason.
Unlike Hagosudong, the sand underfoot is much looser when you step on it – the normal reaction you’d get from a sandy ground.
But it’s not your normal fine sand, because they are actually rhodoliths, or red algal nodules. Which basically means they are like corals, but really small ones, although not as small as sand particles.
And we had the bright idea to take off our footwear to walk on the sand.
It turned out to be not such a bright idea, after all, when the sediments seemed to just bite into the soles of our feet. Obviously, running on the sand would be foolish. Nay, just plain idiotic, no matter how YOLO you plan to get, haha!
At one point I wondered why it’s called a “red algal nodules beach” when I see no red anywhere! Here is where doing some reading helps, even if a bit late. 🙂
It is because the nodules or the sediments were formed by red algae, which thrived in the shallow waters between Udo and Seongsan in mainland Jeju. So it’s not that the sediments are red, but it’s the one that created them.
Ok, Got it. Clear.
So why is Udo Sanho Beach getting much love? That is because it is very rare in Korea (and the world, or so they say) to have a beach with sediments that are composed almost entirely of these rhodoliths or nodules. Hence the government recognition, and the resulting protection it is getting from the government and the locals alike.
It is said that many people – mostly the locals – frequent Udo Sanho to witness how the sun seems to change the color of the water, depending on its depth. Needless to say, the sun wasn’t too cooperative that day, so the play of colors was not too evident.
Looking at other photos taken by other visitors definitely made me wish we went there on a different day.
So Long, Udo~!
When the skies opened up and burst into the downpour earlier that morning, we almost took the ferry back to Seongsan, giving up all hope of checking out even one of the best sights and sites of Udo.
Almost.
Why didn’t we?
Well, that’s because all ferry trips have been cancelled. (LOL. So it wasn’t entirely in our hands, haha!)
I’m glad that we were unable to board the ferry back. Then we’d have regretted not getting as much of Udo as we could, especially when the weather became all fair and dandy (you’ll see what I mean in a future post).
It was 2:20PM when we decided to go back, hoping to see what else we could check out in Seongsan once we get there. After all, it’d be almost another hour from Seongsan to Seogwipo, where we were staying.
But wait a sec. Look at that sky, all that blue and brightness. Look at it.
I could not help but feel like it was mocking us as we were leaving Udo. But! I was still so grateful for the break that the sun gave us, so we can still explore what little of Udo we were able to.
Thoughts on Visiting Udo
Various accounts would say that Udo can be explored in a day. That’s how small of an island it is. If you focus only on the major points, half a day would probably even suffice. There were only a handful that would suggest staying in Udo for a night. In fact, I’m not quite sure there were a lot of guesthouses or small hotels there. It’s mainly a residential and agricultural area, after all.
In a recent episode of JTBC’s Hyori’s Bed and Breakfast Season 2 (yes, I binge on that show because it is 100% Jeju-based!) a group of male backpacking/hiking friends went to Udo and it seemed they spent the night there. They had these huge backpacking gear on, so I won’t be surprised if they camped (or maybe even glamped) somewhere.
And they even walked from the port all the way to the trail that led to Udobong Peak (because the weather was good *ouchie*). Which means that hardcore walkers/hikers can try exploring Udo on foot if they don’t feel like taking a bus or hiring a motorized vehicle.
With the care and maintenance, as well as the open affection that the South Korean people and its government accord its natural and cultural assets, it wouldn’t surprise me if these places would retain their beauty even hundreds of years down the road. I’m sure there must be a few problems, but from what I’ve seen so far, they know how to respect boundaries.
Which is something I hope for beaches everywhere, not just in my country, so that more people will get to bask in the beauty of nature, with minimal (or, if not, non-invasive) human interference.
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