Gonae Port, a Small Aewol Port Where Fishing Boats Come and Go

A small port in Gonae-ri, Aewol

Gonae Port is in Gonae-ri in Aewol, Jeju. Following the Aewol coast, you come across several ports that carry the name of their village, and this is the one belonging to Gonae-ri. Depending on how it is written, it is also called Gonae-ri Port, but the names point to the same place.

From the name alone it may be hard to picture what kind of place it is. The sea opens up in front of the village, and boats stay on that water. In the end, that is about all the word "port" describes. But within that simple arrangement, the sea, the boats and the breakwater are all there at once, so it is enough to stop the car for a moment and look.

Fishing boats moored in the waters out front

Fishing boats are moored in the waters in front of Gonae Port. It has a different feel from the scenery of a large harbor with passenger ships coming and going — plain fishing boats floating side by side on the water. These boats are also the first thing that catches your eye when you stand at the port.

A view with only the sea and a view with boats on it leave different impressions. Where only the horizon is visible, the eye travels far out, but at a port it first settles on the water close by. That is also why small things — ropes, buoys, the names on the boats — begin to come into view.

Just as the word "moored" says, the boats stay on the water while tied up. On calm days they look like a still photograph, but when the waves come in they sway a little in the same place. Stand and watch for a while and that small movement becomes visible.

You can fish from the breakwater

You can fish from this port's breakwater. People come to a port for different reasons, and settling in on the breakwater to pass the time is one of them.

If you plan to bring your gear, it is better to check the sea weather and wave conditions in advance. On a day with strong wind, a breakwater makes you careful just standing on it. Even for someone who does not fish, the breakwater becomes a path for walking a little further out toward the sea. The angle from land and the angle from the breakwater show the same sea differently.

Standing on the breakwater, you see both the water inside the port and the sea outside. Inside are the moored fishing boats; outside, water with no boats on it stretches on. Just turning your body in the same spot changes what you see.

A spot on a walking path

This port sits on a Jeju coastal path walked for the plain charm of fishing boats. Rather than a place you set out for as a single destination, it is closer to a spot you naturally pass while walking along the coast.

While you walk, your eyes stay on the sea, and when you reach the port, boats are set on that sea. Depending on which way the path continues, the port can become a point to rest for a moment, or feel like the end of one stretch. Either way, it is scenery seen at walking pace.

A coastal path is not visible all at once. Where the way ahead curves, what lies beyond is hidden, and you have to walk a little further for the next view. The port, too, is one of the places that appears that way. The difference in impression between passing by car and arriving on foot comes from that difference in speed.

A place that does not require picking a date

Gonae Port is open year-round. It is not a facility with set opening and closing hours, so there is little need to work your schedule around days of the week or closing days.

That said, a place in front of the sea takes the weather as it comes. If rain or strong wind is forecast, it is better to check once before setting out. The strength of the sea wind is not the same in summer and winter, so bringing one outer layer suited to the season makes the time standing at the port much more comfortable.

Open year-round means there are no closed days, but it also means the sea is in the same place whichever season you go. The color of the water and the texture of the wind change with the season, so even at the same port, the impression you take away differs with when you visited.

Other spots along the Aewol coast

This is not the only spot of its kind along the Aewol coastline. On walking paths that follow the sea, there is a separate piece, From the Handam Coastal Walk to Gwakji Gwamul Beach, Walking Along the Aewol Sea.

If you are curious about old traces left on the rocks, there is the story of Gueom-ri Stone Salt Field, an Aewol Shore Where Salt Was Made on Basalt, and if you are looking for a forest next to a village, you can also see Nabeup Geumsan Park, an Evergreen Forest of Jeju Left Beside a Village. If you are unsure how to order the day, An Aewol Travel Course: Why Settling Lunch First Makes the Route Easier is also useful.

By the sea at Gamundong

Mipojip Jeju Aewol is at 80 Gamundong-gil, Aewol-eup, Jeju-si, Jeju-do. It is a restaurant serving Korean food, and like Gonae-ri, where Gonae Port is, it sits in a seaside neighborhood of Aewol.

What is served is set out on the menu, and the way here on Visit. Where the restaurant began is on The Mipojip Story, and other stories from around Aewol continue in the magazine.