Even in the bone-chilling subzero cold, there are people who plunge into the waters of the East Sea. They are winter surfers. On the morning of Feb. 3, at 11 a.m., with the lowest temperature hitting minus 2 degrees Celsius at Seorak Beach in Yangyang, Gangwon Province, eight people with thick waterproof hats, gloves, and suits gathered to start their warm-up exercises. All of them had come from Seoul to surf for the weekend. Surfboards were laid out on the snow-covered sand. At that time, the surface water temperature in Yangyang was 3.9 degrees Celsius. Considering that the usual temperature of a cold bath in a public bathhouse is about 18 degrees, it was a shivering temperature. “The sea feels like a refrigerator,” exclaimed Kim Yu-jin, 29, after checking the water temperature. Then, without hesitation, she dived into the waves, two meters high.

Chosunilbo reporter Cho Yoo-mi surfs at Seorak Beach in Yangyang, Gangwon Province on Feb. 3. Despite the lowest temperature in Yangyang being minus 2 degrees Celsius and the surface water temperature being 3.9 degrees Celsius, the surfers met by Cho that day said, "We don't mind the cold because we can ride the winter East Sea waves, which are considered the best in the country." /Provided by a Chosunilbo reader

Kim, who works in Seoul, has been surfing for eight years. She has been surfing in Yangyang every weekend since September last year. “The waves on the East Sea coast in winter are considered the best in Korea, so I don’t mind the cold,” she said. “Once you get into the water, it doesn’t feel that cold.” Lee Jong-hoon, 31, who started surfing last year, also works in Seoul. “It’s also attractive that there are few people in the Yangyang Sea in winter,” he said. It relates to an unspoken rule among surfers: “One wave, one surfer.” This is because boards over three meters long can crash into each other and cause accidents. Due to this rule, surfers have to wait a long time to catch a wave during the crowded summer months.

They agreed that the “surfing mecca” changes with the seasons. In summer, Jeju Island and the southern coast are popular, while in winter, the east coast is favored. The reason is that the direction of the wind differs between summer and winter. In South Korea, cold and heavy air from the north enters the country in winter, and sometimes, the cold air at higher altitudes bends down toward the East Sea, creating high waves along the coast. In contrast, winds from the North Pacific blow offshore during the summer, making high waves on Jeju and the southern coast.

The frequent swells on the East Coast during winter also add to its appeal. On this day, Yangyang had relatively high swells. Swells are waves generated by low pressure in the open sea that push toward the land. It can be dangerous to go near breakwaters when swells are hitting. But surfers said they “actually prefer it.” Ahn Jun, 24, a surf instructor, said, “Swell waves, also known as ‘thick waves,’ have good power so that you can ride them for a long time.”

Surfing is a leisure sport that involves riding the sloping face of a wave, so excessively high waves can be challenging for beginner and intermediate surfers. On days when the waves are two to three meters high, beginner and intermediate surfers often head to Mulchi Beach, among the various beaches in Yangyang. The depth of the water and the breakwaters surrounding the area cause the waves to break gently, making them an appropriate height for beginners to ride.

Yangyang has a total of 21 beaches, making it the county with the second highest number after Goseong, which has 29. “In Yangyang, the beaches are clustered together, so you can go to Mulchi Beach in the morning and then to Seorak Beach in the afternoon to surf,” said Yoo Sung-min, a 10-year veteran surfing instructor and representative of Surf Horang. “Since each beach has different depths, terrains, and variations in wave heights and shapes, Yangyang is popular among surfers.” Yoo has been immersed in surfing for about 15 years and opened his surfing shop with four instructors. He particularly enjoys winter surfing, so he settled in Yangyang instead of Jeju or the southern coast.

The number of people visiting Yangyang for surfing reached 475,150 in 2022, an 890% increase from 48,000 in 2016 before the highway opened.