My Favorite Trail
Tuesday, thanks to some canceled classes, I had time for a good long hike. I went to my favorite mountains: Ye Bong San and Ungil San.
I had intended to start out at a peak next to Ye Bong, called Ye Bin San, but because I got started 50 minutes late, at 7:35 am, I didn’t want to risk being late for my evening class. It’s a 50 minute trip one-way to the mountain from my house, plus I expected the Ye Bin trail to take around 7 hours. Starting at Ye Bong instead I knew would take closer to 6 hours. So that’s the way I went. From Pal Dang Station to Ye Bong San peak, along the route I took, is just over 3 km, with the first kilometer being along a couple of roads leading to the mountain trail.
I took one of the steepest routes up the mountain. There are only a couple of level points along the whole ~2km to the peak. It’s a strenuous trail, but I love it. On the way, I saw that a new staircase is under construction at one of the steeper sections to replace a rope rail. Not too pleased with that, as it blocks access to one of my favorite viewpoints. Two other rope rails along the course had been pulled out, with the materials for newer ones laid out nearby. Without the ropes to rely on at those points like normal, it was a bit more tiresome than usual. Still managed to make the peak in exactly one hour and thirty minutes, which is par for the course.
After a brief respite at Ye Bong San peak, it was a quick 600+ meter jaunt to Cheol Mun Bong, the next peak along the ridge. It’s a rather boring spot, with no benches or vendors. It does have a big map board. From there, it was another 1.2 km to Cheok Gap San, which looks more like a pile of stones next to the trail than a peak. Along the way is a great little tent restaurant that serves several different goodies. They were closed this time, though.
From Cheok Gap San, it was somewhere in the neighborhood of 4 ~ 5 km to Un Gil San Peak, with a brief stop to eat my regular hiking fare of tuna kim bap along the way. There were a handful of people there who had come up from Un Gil San station, the direction I would be headed down. The regular vendor guy was there, from whom I bought one can of overpriced Gatorade and one can of overpriced Pocari Sweat, since he only had one Gatorade and I wanted two. I say overpriced, but he does haul all of that up the mountain on his back. He knows my face now, so we chatted a bit. I suppose I’m a regular now.
From Un Gil San peak, after hanging out for 15 minutes or so, I decided to avoid the trail to So Jeong Temple. It’s longer and, once you get past the temple, turns into a road for much of the way down. Give me dirty, rocky trails, please. From the peak down to Un Gil San station, along the path I took, is roughly another 3 km, which I knocked out in an hour. I arrived at the station around 1:20 pm. So overall, it was a 5 hour and 45 minute hike. About 15 minutes longer than the last time I took this route alone, but then I didn’t hang around atop Un Gil that time.
One of the reasons I like this route, from Ye Bong to Un Gil, is that it’s not as popular with casual hikers as the other mountains near Seoul. I encountered fewer than 10 hikers in the first four hours, and then only a dozen or so more during the remainder. On weekends, it’s a different story. Since Un Gil San station opened a couple of months ago, people have been all over Un Gil San like ants. But, if you start early (I like to get going before 7:00) and start from the Ye Bong San side, even on the weekends the first leg of the hike won’t be very crowded. Of course, by the time you get to Un Gil San it will be midday and the crowds will be there.
It’s not a hike for the uninitiated, though. There are a couple of relatively moderate trails up Ye Bong. And the course along the ridge line isn’t too bad. But the last kilometer or so up to Un Gil is somewhat rough, particularly considering the distance you’ll have covered by that point. I recommend that new hikers start out at Puk Han San and Do Bong San, on the northern outskirts of Seoul. Tackle those slopes for three or four months to build up your chops. When I first started out, Do Bong San nearly killed me because I was so out of shape. Now, I find it rather boring.
Hiking beats jogging any time. I wish I could go every day.