Cycling Ulsan

Spring has sprung, the grass is ris, I wonder where my bike is.

Ulsan has been putting a lot of work into the recreational trail system in the last year, and I feel alone out there. We’ve got something like 75 km of paved cycling trails in the city. Combine this with multi-use trails, the park network and the Namgu lit hiking trails and you will find that there is a seemingly endless network of places to get out and ride. There are a few hard core riders in the city, and a few soft core, but we are horribly out numbered by all the Koreans out there. Going out for a weekend ride, it’d be great to see another foreign face on the trails.

Luckily, somebody has gone to the bother of figuring out this network for you. Ulsan Online (and I mean Marty and Me) have suffered through numberable lovely afternoons of cycling to put this all down for you in a handy HTML and printable format. Check out our Recreational Map and take a look at all the great places that you are missing.

I know, you are thinking ‘if I go to the Grand Park or the Stadium, it’ll be really crowded and ultimately my day will suck’. Well, I’ll give you a few tips. Ulsan Grand Park is not the place to go on the weekend, but weekday mornings and afternoons it is remarkably empty. Stay away after dinner as it fills with ajummas… Well, I think they are ajummas, it’s hard to tell with all the masks and visors! Munsu stadium is quiet most times, though it’ll be busy if there are any events. Dongcheon Stadium gets pretty busy on weekends, and stay off the riverside after 7 pm, or at least get a perm and wear matching LaFuma hiking gear.

I’d also like to take this moment to plug one of our sponsors. If you are looking for a bike, the ONLY place to head to get two wheels without an engine is OMK bikes in Taewhadong. The owner (Jeongyoon) is a great guy who speaks very good English and will sort you out with something in your price range. They have second hand bikes, as well as the types of rides that even the Frenchest engineers would have to check with their wives before buying. They also organize weekly rides for those interested in making friends and getting off their asses. The only problem is that the boys at OMK don’t believe in Saturday night. Their rides start at 8 am SUNDAY morning, or so I keep being told. I personally haven’t managed one yet.