Well, the Jeju expedition did not go quite as expected. Forecasts before departure threatened rain and thunderstorms every day... Driving out of Seoul, on the evening of the 30th June, we could barely see through the windscreen of the van as the rain was coming down so hard.
Typhoon warnings made it look very likely that we'd ditch tents mid-expedition and retreat to our contingency accommodation.
What we got however, was 9 days of blistering heat. I don't think midday temperatures dropped below 32°C the whole time we were there... All told, we might have had 4 hours of rain.
It was so hot that we had to use fallback plans most days. We had intended to hike the western lengths of the Jeju Olle Trail with our group of 26 kids, but to keep them safe we switched things up a bit. Our final activity day, Thursday 7th July, when we visited Hallasan, did gift us with some very entertaining blustery weather - which delighted the kids for around half an hour on top of one of the mountain's minor summits.
Proximity to some nice little gorges, but the inability to go check them out, was a little frustrating but we won't complain - especially as our campsite put us right beside Cheonjaeyeon Falls for 4 nights.
Anyway, we are back now - so there is a little bit of housekeeping to take care of (thankfully, less tent and gear aftercare was required because of the lack of rain).
Firstly, apologies to those who faced disappointment with Trip Advisor Bookings over the period we were away. Unfortunately, something had reset in the settings and our Serpent's Tail bookings were autoconfirming booking requests. This has been resolved now.
Unfortunately, weather forecasts (as unreliable as they are) make it hard to confirm tours over the next week.
Water levels are as low as we have ever seen in our Lost Valley*, right now, but we expect a lot of water coming up to the weekend.
Hopefully, the trip we have planned for eight 10 year olds, this Saturday, can go ahead as planned.
Looking ahead, we have travelers and holiday makers already making inquiries for August; a collaboration with Travelmaster in that month too; guests coming back for their third tour with us in September; and we are talking to a TV production crew about filming something this month (although there is still a lot to be decided there).
We have two more offers for leading expeditions in September, although they do clash!... The Jirisan offer came in before the Seoraksan one, but it is still early days...
It's been a funny little period. The instagram hack still stings a little, but the readjustments we've made with how we spend some of our admin time have probably been positive. Things generally seem to be approaching a return to normalcy (after 2 years of covid chaos).
We also might even fit in a Wangpicheon recce this week! The venue has been closed for much of the period we have operated (due to safety concerns (concerns that don't deserve the credibility they have been given)) - so we'll let you know if that comes off.
[Pictured: Kyu & Jak with 26 kids on Hallasan, 7th July, 2022]
*You can see the stones at the bottom of the pool below our final slide!..