This year's smelt festival, which was scheduled to be held in Inje County, Gangwon, has been canceled. For the third straight year since 2023, winter temperatures did not drop as expected, so the ice at the venue did not form properly.
The Inje County Cultural Foundation said on the 12th that it will not hold the "2026 Inje Smelt Festival."
The foundation said it determined that forcing the festival could lead to safety accidents after comprehensively reviewing on-site conditions and safety. Because freezing conditions were not met, it became impossible to set up the venue at all.
For stable ice formation, the water level of Soyang River Dam needs to stay around 183 meters. But the current level remains in the upper 185-meter range. On top of that, temperatures have not dropped enough, so ice has not even formed around the venue. The foundation therefore saw that setting up the venue itself would be difficult.
As a result, the Inje Smelt Festival has not been able to take place for three years since 2023. About 200,000 people visited the festival three years ago. The impact on the local economy was significant.
Inje County is reviewing a strategy to expand the region's tourism axis into all four seasons, using the nonholding of the smelt festival as a turning point. The foundation also held a town hall meeting last month to gather views on the future direction.
The county plans to expand various events held in summer and fall. Earlier, it established the identity of the 2024 summer camping festival as "Fall for summer in Inje" last summer. In addition, the "Inje Fall Flower Festival" is drawing more visitors with each passing year.
A county official said, "We plan to develop the Soyang Lake area into a year-round, stay-type tourist destination and build a sustainable tourism base that does not sway with climate change."