After a few weeks of staying within Gwangju’s city limits, Eric and I were itching to get out and explore some new sights of Korea. This past weekend our adventures took us to Wolchulsan National Park. Located about an hour and a half south of Gwangju, Wolchulsan National Park is home to rocky peaks, Buddhist temples, and steep trails.
After getting an early start on Saturday morning, Eric, Jimmy, Rachel, and I started our ascent around 10:30. From the beginning of the trek, it was obvious that the hike would be anything but easy. The ‘trail’ ended up being a steep inclined filled with jagged rocks, overgrown trees, and a mossy floor. However, the four of us were convinced to get our fix of exercise and the outdoors so we pushed on with few complaints. After about 1.5 kilometers into our hike, we escaped the tree cover to find ourselves at a suspension bridge. From the bridge’s platform we took in views of the neighboring town and crop fields as well the high peaks which still awaited us.
After crossing the bridge our trail changed from jagged rocks to steep, steel staircases. The stairs were so steep, using a railing was necessary just to help pull ourselves up the large spaces between each step. The four of us kept climbing, but as we approached each checkpoint we became disappointed at how little ground we had covered, considering the energy exerted. Nearly 3 kilometers after crossing the bridge we reached our summit point. At the summit we were engulfed in a low cloud and a swarm of dragonflies. At first it was difficult to get views of the land below, but once the cloud had pasted the views proved to be impressive. From the top we were able to see anywhere from the farmlands below all the way out to the coastal ranges and the sea, amongst the swarms of dragonflies of course. These insects were everywhere. When we looked out against the surrounding cloud, we could see thousands of black dots moving about. I have never seen anything like it.
After a twenty minute break we began our climb down. To make the journey less monotonous the four of us decided to take a different way down. 1 kilometer into our 4 kilometer hike down it began to rain and within minutes the rain turned into a downpour. Now, in addition to maneuvering down the jagged rocks we also had to battle against the swift streams which were overtaking our trial down. Puddles soon swallowed my shoes with nearly every step I took. The rocks had also become slick and we were working every muscle group, arms, legs, shoulders, back, etc, just to keep ourselves from falling. Needless to say, neither of us was fully successful; each of us returning home with various bruises, scrapes, and cuts. Despite it all, we had a great time and I would love to return to try to conquer the other peaks the park has to offer.
After the Hike:
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