Jindo Island

A few times a year, at low tide, the sea parts and a 2.8 km path appears between two islands. Jindo, Korea's third-largest island, is known for this "Miracle Sea Road", for Admiral Yi Sun-sin's Battle of Myeongnyang and for the Jindo dog. It lies at the southwestern tip of the Korean Peninsula, where the Yellow Sea meets the South Sea.

History: an island that guarded the sea

In the Goryeo period the Sambyeolcho, the troops who refused to submit to the Mongols, left Ganghwa Island in 1270, sailed south to Jindo and built a palace and fortress here. Parts of the walls and the palace site of this fortress, Yongjangseong, can still be seen.

The narrow strait between Jindo and the mainland, Myeongnyang (Uldolmok), is known for its fast, roaring currents; its Korean name means "the crying, swirling sea passage". In 1597, during the second Japanese invasion, Admiral Yi Sun-sin defeated a far larger Japanese fleet here with just 13 panokseon warships. Today the cable-stayed Jindo Bridge, opened in 1984, and a second bridge added in 2005 link the island with Haenam.

What to see

• The Miracle Sea Road: when the pull of the moon and sun is strong, the shallow seabed emerges and a road 2.8 km long and 10–40 m wide opens for about an hour between the main island and the small islet of Modo to the south. It is a national Scenic Site and the largest of about twenty places in Korea where the sea parts.
• Unrimsanbang: the studio built in 1857 by Heo Ryeon (Socheo), a master of late Joseon literati painting, after he returned home. A pupil of Kim Jeong-hui, he spent his last years here; the pond and garden sit beneath the evergreen forest of Cheomchalsan.
• Yongjangseong: the fortress where the Sambyeolcho set up their own king and held out against the Mongols.
• Jindo dogs: the island's native breed is a Natural Monument, and you will come across Jindo dog facilities around the island.

Good to know

• The sea road became famous in 1975, when the French ambassador Pierre Randi, who had come to see Jindo dogs, described it in a French newspaper as "Korea's miracle of Moses".
• When the road opens widest, villagers hold the Yeongdeung rite for Grandmother Ppong, the village guardian spirit, and the Dragon King, praying for good fishing and harvests.
• Jindo is also a home of folk arts such as Jindo Arirang, the Ssitgimgut shaman ritual for the dead, Namdo field songs and the Dasiraegi funeral play.

The island's landscape and sea

Mountains such as Cheomchalsan (485 m) and Yeogwisan rise in the east of Jindo, while the northwest is low hills and plains; about 32% of the island is flat. It is also a centre of inshore fishing, known for yellow croaker, sea bream, hairtail and laver.

At its narrowest the Uldolmok strait is about 300 m wide (some sources say 350 m), and its currents reach 6 m per second, said to be the fastest in Asia. Admiral Yi used these fierce currents to defeat a Japanese fleet of 133 warships. Byeokpa harbour on the east coast was once a stopover where ships sailing between China and Japan waited for favourable winds.

Tripto tips

• Sea road dates: the day and time vary every year with the tides. Sources differ on when the widest openings occur (spring and autumn, or April–June), so check the festival dates announced by Jindo County.
• What to bring: rubber boots or a spare pair of shoes are useful on the sea road. Leave in good time before the tide returns.
• Time: you need a full day for the sea road, Unrimsanbang and Jindo Bridge.
• Getting there: drive over Jindo Bridge from Haenam. Sights are spread across the island, so a car is the easiest way to get around.