Cycling West - Daebudo Island on the Yellow Sea, South Korea - Virgin Tour on the Blackcat, Gunshot flats, & 5 hours of riding...

Sometimes we should expect the unexpected, and it will happen on a Virgin Ride! I've changed rides again this year, now riding a Blackcat MTB which is Korean-branded but Made in China. The Shimano is Made in Malaysia, it does it's part without complaint (a few burps and missed indexed shifts, to be tweaked out). Funny part of this this ride was taking the 5km ride through Siheung Gongdan (factory zone, or Hell, same place if your a human) and took the Shiwa Tide Embankment, a causeway connecting Ansan/Siheung with neighboring Daebudo Island. It's a highly recommended ride in Korea. From factory Hell, to wetlands and marsh estuaries, it's a stark contrast on both sides of the ride, the latter taking in nature and open roads around the island itself. Two options here, you can choose straight through the Fish Restaurant Zone once you reach the actual island (12km bridge, or you can cross the bridge, take a sharp left, 20 meters right, and 20 meters turn left at the main intersection, that is the bypass route, which traverses amazing wetlands and offers plenty of miles uninterrupted. No traffic lights, just travel to the end of the road (distance uncalculated), turn right when it forks, the right leading to a newly paved roadway, turn left at the river, continue to the Harbour. From that intersection (the first and only to have a traffic light) you turn left to ride towards Suwon City, you turn right to cross rolling terrain back into Daebudo Island and around the countryside towards the Shiwa Tide Embankment bridge. Either way is a winner, I've done both directions. Plan B, is to ride directly through Daebudo Island passing many fish restaurants and circle around the island, crossing a few mountains and tunnels towards Suwon or Hwaseong City, those options are good for more hills, fossilized dinosaur egg exhibit if you track back towards Hwaseong City and finally pitch the bike towards Ansan Gongdan area. There is a bridge under construction, traffic is restricted, but you can go for it, as I have done several times and make it back to the mainland. It's a great ride and relief from the smog in this area, you've never seen a factory until you've lived and survived here!!! We're moving in 4 months, I'll hold my breath and keep pedaling into Daebudo Island.