It was our last day in South Korea when we went to Hwacheon, a sleepy remote town in Gangwon-do. To complete our winter experience, my friend suggested us to attend an ice festival called Hwacheon Sancheoneo (Mountain Trout) which is being held annually for three weeks. Here’s the photographic aftermath of that little adventure.

We arrived in the town at lunch time. The Hwacheon river is known as the first in Korea to freeze over in winter which makes it a suitable area for an ice festival. The earth was hard and frozen. As we walk on the river covered with thick layer of ice, my lungs were full of frozen air. I saw the white breath coming from people’s mouths.

There were two events that seem to be the highlight of the festival: Ice fishing (onsite registration/pre-booking) and bare-hand fishing.

Hwacheon Sancheoneo Activities
Ice Fishing
For the ice fishing, visitors just need to purchase a small plastic pole, pay the fee, find a hole and start bobbing the pole up and down. It was amazing to see hundreds of people patiently waiting to catch something.
Catch Mountain Trout
Those who are feeling brave try to catch mountain trout with their bare hands. Yes, it’s slightly ridiculous. And cold.

Other Ice Activities
There were other ice activities as well such as Ice bikes, ice soccer, ice skating and sledding. Looks extremely fun! Too bad we didn’t get to try any of the ice activities.
We did not last for three hours. It’s certainly not fun walking around if you can’t feel your toes. Thank God there were a lot of food stalls around the frozen river.

Have you ever been to Gangwon-do in South Korea? It was my first time. Feel free to share your experience below in the comments section. That’s all for today! Have a beautiful Wednesday, everyone!
6 replies on “Hwacheon Sancheoneo Ice Festival in South Korea”
Yes. Medyo na paranoid din ako dito eh haha
Mukhang ang saya!! Is the ice really thick?? Haha. Paranoid lang. XD
Glad you like my post! Thanks Jacq and Happy New Year! ^_^
My first time to hear/read about ice fishing! I’d probably last for 1 minute with my feet submerged in ice cold water. Fun post, Millet! Looking forward to reading your travel posts this 2015! Happy New Year to you 🙂
Gomapseumnida SeungIm Hong-Shi. Sorry for the romanization of hangul 🙂 We enjoyed our experience in Hwacheon. If I have the chance to go back next winter, I'll definitely come more prepared 🙂
Thank you for your detail blogging for our Hwacheon Ice Festival. I am a staff of it and have a pride for its brand.If u come here again this year, you can meet so many programs newly made. It is not cold today buy just has rainy snow. Thank u again n bye~~