The Two-Wheel Trekkers

Korea is a country with a history now beginning to have success and growth. With the goal of experiencing Korea and hopefully spreading more awareness of it, Adrian Tegler and Ryan Mariotti decided to spend one month exploring the entire country from motorcycles, (well, one motorcycle and one very-large scooter, actually).

Hailing from Canada, Adrian and Ryan have extensive histories in traveling. Adrian lived in both Busan and Gwangju teaching for a year in each city, while Ryan has spent months traveling through Africa. This is Ryan’s first trip to Korea, and as a freelance filmmaker, he will document their entire trip, producing weekly webisodes for their blog Two Wheel Trekkers, pictures, a series of shorts about ‘A Day in the Life of a Korean,’ and he has hopes of producing a documentary about their experiences.

Adrian first proposed this ambitious project about a year ago. The pair have spent the past five months preparing for this journey by contacting motorcycle clubs and enthusiasts, finding motorcycles to rent and planning a route that encompasses all of Korea. Adrian and Ryan started their journey in Seoul and will travel around the exterior of Korea, spending a week in Jeju, before hopping back to the mainland and circling up through the Jirisan and Seoraksan National Parks then heading back to Seoul.

Both men have several years of experience on motorcycles (Adrian has been riding since before having a driver’s license) and there’s a good reason why they chose motorcycles for this trip. According to the guys, when you are on a motorcycle, it is a communal world. “Experiencing the world on a motorcycle, or even a bicycle, lets you see the world in such a different way. You’re open to the elements. You’re not in a bubble like you are in a car.” Even though the motorcycle is integral to their trip, they say getting off the bikes and experiencing the landscape and locals is the big umbrella under which their love for motorcycles sits. They have ambitious plans to hike Halla San, Jirisan and Seoraksan, as well as participate in temple stays, and even scuba diving in Jeju.

When asked about their inspiration for this trip, Adrian talked about how much he has missed Korea, while Ryan reiterated his commitment to filming Korea and how amazing this opportunity is. Adrian and Ryan have big goals for this trip and have endeavored to keep the attention on Korea, rather than themselves. Ryan said, “It’s about how Koreans live. We just want to put the focus on Korea, not on us motorcycling all the time.”

In planning this trip, Adrian and Ryan realized that there is still much about Korea that is unknown to the rest of the world.  “People in the West just don’t know a lot about Korea, when you say Korea they say, ‘North Korea.’” The duo hopes to spread more information about the peninsula with their films and Adrian’s weekly blog updates.

A trip of this magnitude required a lot of preparation, and so far, the trip has been made easier by Koreans who have been helpful and supportive of Adrian and Ryan reaching their goals. Finding a business that would allow them to rent two motorcycles for an entire month was definitely a challenge. Luckily they found Harley-riding, “Seoul Joe,” who graciously helped them locate one motorcycle and one large scooter to rent.

For those interested in starting their own scooter or motorcycle trekking experience, Adrian and Ryan are encouraging. There is a substantial population of motorcycle and scooter clubs in Korea that are happy to include new riders. Locally, the Gwangju Gunners Motorcycle Club is a foreigner-based club here in Gwangju that will even be joining Adrian and Ryan on the road. If you’re interested in getting your own vehicle, purchasing a bike is cheap and renting is possible (Adrian and Ryan both suggest Eggmoto for scooters). Adrian and Ryan reiterated how excited and generous this country’s citizens have been towards them. Many Koreans have offered suggestions for little-known places to visit, and pass along information about other travelers and motorcyclists in Korea who would be excited to share in their journey. In just a few weeks, the guys will meet two Korean women who went all the way from Russia to Europe on the back of a scooter, a contact they never would have made if not for a friendly local in Seoul.

Both of them hope that this trip is not the end of their motorcycle adventures. In the future, they would like to motorcycle through more countries (for their next trip, they are thinking maybe Canada or Russia) utilizing their unique style, which consists of spending longer amounts of time in a specific region, and exploring and filming rather than racing through a country. For now, you can follow them on their website: www.twowheeltrekker.com and offer suggestions for good places to visit and unique things to do in Korea on Facebook.