BAEKDUDAEJANG / 백두대장

Captains of the Trail

[baekdudaejang]

SATURDAY, JUNE 7 - 8 --> resupply with Jun and Mimi in Mungyeongsi

Saturday

We started our resupply time by updating the blog with new posts and photos. Then, we met Jun and Mimi in front of our yeogwan because THEY VISITED US FROM SEOUL! They're so awesome to take the time for a short visit, as well as bring us oatmeal and take away our warm clothes and sleeping bag. We were tired, but seeing them rejuvenated me.

We ate and drank a lot together this weekend, like: fried chicken, kimbap, shrimp burgers, fries, jeon, kimchi, side dishes, makgeolli, rice, watermelon, bread, pastries, coffee, sandwiches, juice, tequila, donuts, brownies, etc. I probably gained 2kg in two days. Glorious because I can't be losing weight so fast.

We also happened upon a street concert and market put together by local university students. Children and adults alike were enjoying the public space, art and performances.

We made paper airplanes in a coffee shop.

We also walked through the traditional market where we ate the jeon and makgeolli at a hole-in-the-wall place, and we gorged ourselves on watermelon while sipping tequila in a neighborhood jeongja next to a community spring. 

And what's a weekend in Korea without a visit to the local sauna/jjimjilbang! Ben and I eventually went back to our yeogwan to sleep, but until then it was so nice soaking, relaxing and hanging out with Jun and Mimi. 

Sunday

We all met together again in the morning for breakfast where we ate a lot in a park (go figure). 

We're glad Jun did his signature graffiti in a dilapidated house we were drawn to, while Mimi found some liquor glasses there circa 1970s.

We were sad to say goodbye, but we'll see them again within the month.

Thanks, friends! We love you so much.

Now we've been in the same PC Bang, typing away. But sleep beckons us. 

That's all for now.

-Kellyn

[baekdudaejang]

Trail Tidbits #1

I wanted to include some facts and thoughts that I haven't fit in elsewhere:

-The Diva Cup still hasn't disappointed me, even on the trail

-Ida Teasdale's AMAZING cloth menstrual pads also still haven't disappointed me. Thanks, lovely!

-The smells on the trail are ever-changing but always a treat. At times it's the flowers, other times it's just the trees breathing. When I'm straining to climb a steep peak, even the slightest forest perfume eases my discomfort and makes me smile.

-During the week, we rarely see anyone on the trail. Most days, we see no one. Other days, we'll see one to three people. In the national parks on the weekend, we'll see close to 100 hikers. We usually greet people, but if they look kinda grumpy, we refrain from pleasantries. Generally, Korean men ignore me and only say hello to Ben; Korean women by themselves or in groups of men say nothing to us; and groups of men or women say a lot--especially if they've been drinking.

-The clouds of aphids and pine tree pollen earlier in our hike were stupidly obnoxious. I'm so glad that time is over.

-I bought a knee brace in Gimcheon, and I wear it when necessary. That brace and our frequent breaks has helped my knee heal tremendously.

-Ben eats an absurd amount of chocolate each day. He generally eats anything and everything so as not to waste food. Goddess love 'em.

-Water is the most precious element of our lives. I love and treasure it, and I'm sad that we abuse this essential thing so much.

-Finally, we knew hiking the Baekdudaegan would be difficult, but now we know just HOW difficult it is. And like the ups and downs of its terrain, we have our emotional highs and lows. Yet overall, we're digging this experience so much. We're also so happy to share it.

-Kellyn

[baekdudaejang]

FRIDAY, JUNE 6 --> to Beolbawi, distance 8km

We woke up to blue skies. What a nice change that there would be no rain today.

We got all packed up and excitedly hit the trail. Visions of fried chicken, soaking in hot tubs at the sauna and booze filled our head.

The treachery of the steep BDDGT didn’t disappoint. You almost always start your day on this trail with a steep climb. But again, the rewards were great. We reached a rocky promontory were we relaxed in the sunshine, taking pictures towards the south of all the land we had crossed.

Further down the trail, we met a dude who got lost trying to find Daeyasan, a peak along the upcoming closed section of trail. He wanted to hike back to the junction with us, but then he realized that we hike slow as hell. He sped off. We later wondered how he didn’t see the obvious trail closure sign at the junction, and how he thought going south away from Daeyasan was a good idea. I ruminated that perhaps he has a terrible sense of direction.

Another kilometer down the trail we reached some notable areas with striking boulders. One particularly massive boulder called house rock captivated us for awhile. We took a break within this surreal landscape of pine and stone.

After lazing around these boulders, we followed the trail down steep, muddy slopes which were damn-near impassable. Why. Why not switchbacks, people?

We heard distant voices through the forest as we approached the trail junction at Miljae. We discovered the source upon our arrival: a school trip was out for a hike to Daeyasan. They were contemplating the posting for the trail closure. The internet, and even KNPS office staff on the phones, don’t know about these closures. I had to ask a ranger at the last park entrance to get any information.

We wizzed past the school group and down our cut-off trail towards Beolbawi, the small village at the end of Yongchu Gorge. This scenic gorge was loaded with hikers, as it was a Saturday after all. That, and the valley was beautiful. The creek had more water than we had seen in a couple days. The pools were inviting for our sore feet, but we had precious time to catch a midday bus. We pressed on, not knowing exactly what lay ahead.

We passed more and more people as the valley opened up. The small streams became larger, and soon we had arrived at a touristy swimming areas. Little kids splashed around in rock pools naturally carved by the creek. Relaxing, no doubt, but the water was cloudy and stinky in the lower sections of the creek.

We reached the main encampments and were presented with a row of restaurants and minbak accommodations. We kept going, optimistic that following the creek trail would be a better, cooler choice than the road on this hot day. We knew we wouldn’t make it to the 1:30 bus, but the 5:20 bus was still possible.

Hiking along the creek was nice and peaceful for about 20 minutes until drunken singing filled the air. We had reached yet another tourist zone. A historic temple sat on the south bank of the creek, but the north side was madness.

A karaoke restaurant was loaded with people singing old Korean pop songs, and multiple tour buses and cars had brought loads of people out to party for the three-day holiday weekend (June 6 is the memorial day for the Korean War).

I like parties, too, but I was overwhelmed after being mostly alone with Kellyn in the woods for days. Blindly, I led us onward down the creekside trail. Big mistake.

Eventually, we reached an area where there were no people. We could find the trail here and there in the rocky bank, but much of it was unused or closed. We crossed the creek a couple more times and ended up in an area with even more minbaks along a new road. I got antsy having taken us this far.

I asked some men milling around their car if the road we were on led to the bus stops we wanted. They explained that we had hiked past Beolbawi about 2km. I had gotten us lost again. Fortunately, we still had time before 5pm and knew where we were.

We hiked back to Beolbawi. The elusive bus stop was there, but the bus times were all different. No bus at 5:20, so we would have to wait until 6:10 for a bus. Kellyn was nauseous, maybe from heat-stroke or our lunch of random snacks. Once she puked at the side of the bus stop, she felt much better. And so we waited for about an hour, ruminating about the trail and staring at people driving past in their cars.

Just when our asses were starting to fall asleep, a man pulled up in a blue Bongo truck. He asked us if we were waiting for the bus, and where we were going. We wanted to go to Mungyeongsi (Jeomchon), but we told him Gaeuneup was fine. He said he was going there and that we should put our bags in the back and go with him. Excitedly, we said yes and jumped in his truck.

Along the way he explained he would spend the weekend fishing near Beolbawi with his family. He had to go to Gaeuneup to pick up his wife. He was annoyed by all of the people singing and drinking by the river. He explained that memorial day should be a solemn day to remember those who have died during war, not one for drunken revelry. The scene along the creek was evidence that his opinion is definitely in the minority. He cautioned us that bars and night clubs in the city would be closed tonight. No matter for us.

We stared at the valley as we rode and chatted. Rice paddies lined the road and were met by rolling green mountains dotted by clusters of villages and minbaks. We arrived in Gaeuneup within 10 minutes, a small town with a rail-bike attraction. Our driver-friend pointed out his wife as we drove by. He leaned out the window and quickly explained why the hell he had two foreign people in his truck. She smiled, bowed and said hello as we drove off another 100m to the bus terminal. 

Our new acquaintance and the ticket dealer helped get us the right ticket and the right bus. Even though it was unsolicited help, it was nice nonetheless.

Then we were off to Jeomchon in 15 minutes, the center of Mungyeong City. Goodbye for now, treacherous mountain spine!

-Ben

[baekdudaejang]

THURSDAY, JUNE 5 --> to Gomochi, distance 9km

We woke up next to the dinosaurs and blueberry bushes well-rested after a windy night in the lacquered jeongja. The wind had served us well. The thick clouds that filled the sky the night before were being blown away. For the first time in perhaps four days, we could see blue sky. But it wouldn’t last.

I was groggy, so it took me forever to make tea and oatmeal. But once it was done, we had an enjoyable breakfast.

An old lady who had walked by earlier yelled at us about something as she road by in a white Bongo truck. Were we too close to her blueberry grow-op in this abandoned rest area? Was the jeongja closed? What? We couldn’t sleep here? Well, it was too late for that. We think there are no laws against sitting in jeongjas. Yet she still stared at us in consternation while we did the same. She drove off, safe inside her truck.

We packed up and headed again towards Neuljae. We got a good look at the austere wooden sansindang in the daylight. We hiked the trail for 10 minutes and stopped for a break on a little knoll to stretch.

Then I almost stepped on my first snake of the day. I would almost step on another a few hours later while we had a lunch-snack on the first mountain peak, Cheonhwasan. The first snake would’ve been fine to step on. But I've since learned using the power of the internet that the second snake I almost stepped on was a mamushi. A mamushi is a type of poisonous pit viper found in Japan, Korea and China. Close call with that one! Now we have our eyes peeled for snakes. We also probe ahead of us with our trekking poles as we hike.

While snacking on Cheonhwasan, we watched clouds roll in from the north. A distinct rainband was moving across the ridges and valleys that lay ahead. Another wet day after all. Clouds formed and a mist enveloped the ridge. It started to rain during our descent from the mountain peak. The trees along the ridge shielded us for a little while, but eventually everything was soaked. Fortunately, the showers were light and only lasted for an hour at most. Later the sun would peak through enough to dry our damp clothes as we walked.

This section of trail is just incredibly beautiful. Rocks on the top of the ridge reveal vistas of thick forests propped up on steep peach-colored cliffs.

But like the other trails in and around Songnisan, the terrain is unforgiving to hike. The trail goes around, across, over and through boulders and cliffs. Many of these cliffs and escarpments have ropes to navigate, too. We hiked all afternoon to reach Gomochi despite the map showing us that it should only take a few hours. Often these maps and the guidebook leave us disappointed and with shattered expectations. 

But we persevered. Kellyn bravely pushed through these sections despite her fear of heights. The weathered ropes were strung off scraggly trees, and yet they held well enough this time. Some parts of the trail were nearly completely flat despite the hazardous sections that required free-solo traverses or bouldering.

The rewards were great in the end, as Gomochi was more amazing than we had hoped. The forest was peaceful, and we had a flat spot to set up our tent. (The bank next to our site was littered with pissy and poopy toilet paper. This post by some fellow BDDGT through-hikers describes the littering culture here.)

Most importantly, the Gomochi spring had a nice flow of cold, clean mountain water just a few meters away from our campsite. We were in heaven: we didn't have to look for water, and we didn't have to haul it around. Plus, the next day we would be relatively close to our destination and the eventual bus ride to our resupply point. All was well.

We ate a quick dinner of ramen with fixings, then we relaxed in our tent eating chocolate and talking resupply plans. The quiet that fell in the forest was punctuated only by the trickle of the mountain spring. The sounds of trickling brought us much solace.

-Ben

[baekdudaejang]

i live inside the elements

the earth and sky are my best friends

water is the evidence

that washes me from end to end

[baekdudaejang]

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 4 --> camping at Neuljae

Neul Pass is connected by a road, and it's at the trailhead to the BDDGT section that skirts along the Songnisan National Park. After Gyu and his uncle drove off, we trudged up the bank of the road to see a tall Baekdudaegan stele, a small orchard and the sansindang/mountain spirit shrine discussed in our guidebook. A sansin, or male mountain deity, embodies the energy and spirit of the Baekdudaegan. But also check this out for some herstory of Korea's mountain-spirit worship.

I felt drops of rain, and it was getting late. Well, what harm was it to sleep in a mountain shrine? The dirty and scuffed floor inside suggested that people come and go frequently.

We stuck our bags inside and walked past the rows of saplings when three carloads of people arrived at the pass. The men's and women's arms were laden with blankets and boxes as though they were going on a midnight picnic. We assumed they were either going to the shrine or another spot further up the trail. Whatever. We had water to find at the rest area down the road to the west. If they kicked us out of the shrine, so be it. We said hello and walked down the road.

The hyugeso was where the guidebook said it would be with a few minor changes. Although it still had a jeongja and a toilet, the city had abandoned its upkeep. The toilet blocks were empty of water while the bowls were full of shit; a blueberry farmer was storing his or her equipment and about 50 potted plants; and the small lawn between the jeongja and exercise machines had become home to large dinosaurs. Well, dinosaur statues.

So we thought, why not sleep next to dinosaurs by a toilet that has running water to its sinks?

At twilight, I walked back up the road to check the situation at the shrine and report to Ben. I was surprised to find two women kneeling before candles at the base of the Baekdudaegan stele. A glow emanated from the cracks in the wood of the mountain shrine. 

Shit, those people are here to pray to the mountain spirits, I thought. I slowly and quietly approached the shrine. What do I do? How do I get our bags? I did what I had to do. I went to the door and opened it slowly. The door creaked loudly. Ssshhhiiittt, how embarrassing. Inside were maybe 10 people sitting cross-legged in the room, the radiance of numerous candles drawing the center bodies in silhouettes. They were chanting quietly. I smelled incense. A man to the left looked at me in annoyance. 

Our bags had been dragged to either side of the doorway. Mianhaeyo, mianhaeyo, mianhaeyo, I repeated. A woman to the right stood up and lugged my bag closer to me. I grabbed it and then Ben's bag to hoist to the ground. Mianhaeyo, I said again. She just smiled and closed the doors behind me.

I set Ben's bag against a small stone statue and retrieved a headlamp from my pack for the walk back.

Ben called me at the road, and I told him to come get his bag. We definitely wouldn't be sleeping at the shrine. I interrupted a sacred shamanic ceremony, Ben, I said. I feel really bad about it, but I also feel lucky to have witnessed such a thing. Yep. What a coincidence.

Thus the dinosaur jeongja was our home for the night.

[baekdudaejang]

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 4 --> to the Osong Ranger Station, distance 14km

We had a particularly restful night, the sound of wind and rain lulling us to sleep. Though the rain had left by morning, the overcast skies stayed. At times the sun broke through enough that I could see my shadow on the forest floor. I relished some sunlight after two damp days in the woods.

We were feeling apprehensive about where we were last Wednesday, but we were also feeling physically strong. We had reached Songnisan National Park, what the last sanjang owner had said was even more difficult than Jirisan. We were starting to see why.

I'll let our photos speak for themselves over the next couple posts, but this area of the BDDGT is incredibly rocky and precarious. Stunning views, yes, but it was a trying slog up steep, muddy slopes that encircled pinnacles of rocks. 

Although it was only noon, we weren't alone on Songnisan's Cheonhwang Peak. We assumed we would be alone because it was election day, but guess not. The small, rocky summit was crowded enough that we peered around quickly and headed to even further rocky peaks. We would pass countless other hikers on our way to the ranger station.

The trail leveled out and was wide from heavy traffic, and our pace quickened up and down meters of stone steps that took us to and from boulders as big as houses. 

As you can see, the rocks were just spectacular. We had a lot of fun navigating through them--curious what other gigantic rocks were around the corner.

After about an hour of playing in the rocks, we reached a small restaurant that mostly sold coffee and jeon/Korean savory pancakes--all at 3km up a mountain ridge!

The proprietor was shy but sweet, and he gave us some free acorn-jelly jeon with a kind smile (I didn't like the taste or texture, but Ben ate it right up). His job rocks, in my opinion, and seeing him interact with hikers reminded me of our former care-taking gig at Goldmyer Hotsprings. The view he gets to see everyday isn't anything to sneeze at either.

We bid the man at the rest area goodbye, and for the next 3km we joyfully made our way off the ridge.

The trail leading to the Osong Ranger Station followed along a small creek, and it was only the second time that we had the fortunate of being so close to water. Glorious! All the while, we rocked out to "Electric Feel" by MGMT. We gotta say, that song is our jam as it completely matches our hiking cadence. I know, circa 2008. So old school...

Ben inquired about closed park sections with a ranger at the station. We were correct in coming off the trail when we did, and we would be doing another reroute further on. We respect the closures because they afford habitat for Korea's endangered animals. Plus, we like excuses to get off the ridge.

With that, we carried on down the valley toward some restaurants. We decided upon the third place on our right because it looked open and was busy. Roasted bellflower root was the main cuisine! So tasty.

The proprietor was quite content that we gorged ourselves on her side dishes, and she was vocal about how delicious her food was to us and her nephew.

Meeting her nephew was fortuitous, and his life story is compelling. I won't go in-depth here, but I'd like to share a bit about him. Gyu is 37 years old, and he returned to Korea from New Brunswick, Canada last year after 12 years abroad. He had political-refugee status in Canada due in part to his Canadian ex-fiance whom he had met in Korea.

The reason being that starting at the age of 19, he was held in custody and tortured by Korean authorities at various points in his life for his ideas and work surrounding diversification in the workplace. He was labeled a communist even though he says he isn't. He told us that he believes the Korean workplace is toxic, and that people should be able to enjoy their work while being fairly compensated. 

He was able to reenter Korea with the help of a well-connected judo organization that he is affiliated with. He is working toward running for president, and his first promise would be to raise the minimum wage. Korea's minimum wage is currently 5,210 won/$4.66. 

He had many other wild stories, but we were being rushed by his aunt. Gyu's aunt and uncle were concerned about the time and where we would sleep, so his uncle drove us to a nearby mart to resupply before he drove us to Neuljae to camp.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, Gyu and family!

The rest of the story is for the next post...

-Kellyn

[baekdudaejang]

TUESDAY, JUNE 3 —> to Piatjae, distance 6km

Reluctantly, we packed and ate breakfast while workers arrived to grind more at the mountain pass--the drone of machines filling our ears as we broke down the tent. The rain wasn’t hard, but the forest made its own showers with the help of wind. We only had to travel 6km to the next pass with water, but the task seemed difficult. Bye-bye, Bijae.

The first notable thing we passed was Motjae, one of the only marshes along the Baekdudaegan ridgeline. I looked for water in the depression of this rare marsh. Dry. Perhaps the pond fills up in the fall after summer rains. We took a few photos here and moved on.

The trail led us to the narrowest, windiest ridge we had seen in awhile. We encountered huge boulders and rock outcroppings. We easily skirted around some of these obstacles, while others required us to perform a steep balancing act across narrow cracks in the rock face. The constant drizzle, wind and fog didn’t encourage us much. We were ready to make camp again, and we had our fingers crossed for water. If we couldn’t find water at Piatjae, we would hike about 2km to a sanjang down a western valley.

We knew we were almost to Hyeongje Peak as the fog thickened and the trail got steeper. We were confounded once we arrived at the top. Two trails--both with hiking ribbons--branched off in front of us. The fog was too thick to see other mountains north of the ridge and get our bearings. One trail was uninviting. A huge boulder had fallen, knocking out trees and carving out a swath of dirt steeper than a skateboard ramp. We hoped the trail didn't continue that way.

We tried the other track, as it was flatter and led us west along the ridge. But about 750m later, we reached a sign reading that we were heading to an unknown place not on the map. Shit. Defeated, we headed back to the steep, washed-out alternative.

We made it down safely using improvised kick steps and clinging to the trunks and roots of remaining trees. A couple kilometers later, we descended into Piatjae happy to find a semi-flat camp spot. Now for water. Kellyn stood guard with our packs, nursing her sore legs and bundling in extra layers to keep warm. I headed down a trail to the west to find the “head of a stream” our guidebook said had a trickle of water. Indeed, it did. Awesome. I was happy we could camp tonight.

Back at the pass, we set up our tent on the flattest place available as we listened to the distant sounds of deer barking in the forest. The weather stayed the same: cold, windy and with intermittent drizzle and rain showers. I hope it clears up tomorrow morning.

-Ben

[baekdudaejang]

MONDAY, JUNE 2 —> to Bijae, distance 6km

We left the yeogwan and headed through the outskirts of Hwaseo after having one more meal at our new favorite restaurant, Jjimirang Tangirang.

We were searching for a cutoff trail we had seen on our map. The spur trail would take us directly through the hills north of town and to the Baekdudaegan ridgeline. We'd be saved about 1.5 kilometers of hiking. We've become more focused on hiking smarter and not harder because we'd rather enjoy the trail than become slaves to it.

We left town through orchards, passing the ruins of a beautiful traditional house. We eventually found the right trail head after I got us lost.

We finally headed in the right direction as the weather took a turn for the worst. As we hiked, it got colder and windier. We were hot and sweaty after intensely climbing to the high ridge of the BDDGT. Once we reached the summit of the first mountain peak, we were chilled by our sweat and the steady wind blowing across the ridge. We hoped to make it to Bijae before rain came, but I guess Bijae isn't named as such for nothing.

The descent to Bijae was difficult and steep. A notable thing is that we saw a rabbit sitting next to the descending trail. She was still for awhile as we watched her, but when I tried to get a better photo, she ran off.

We were tired and ready to make camp the rest of the hike down even though we had only hiked 6km.

Arriving at Bijae, we found the pass completely cleared of trees. Construction was under way for a tunnel and wildlife bridge. While this seemed like a good effort to protect wildlife from speeding cars, it was also a lot of destruction to this patch of forest between the mountains.

On the northern edge of the pass at the edge of the road work, we found a newly built wooden platform to set our tent on. The platform was along a new section of trail made with pristine wooden steps.

The next challenge, as always, was to find water. We split up after searching the immediate area and finding no water. Kellyn cooked food with the water we had while I headed east down the road. I had hoped to find stream water as indicated on our map.

It was nerve-racking walking down this quiet road because I kept hearing the grunts and squeals of wild boars in the forest. They heard me walking along with my clacking trekking poles, and they dashed through the brush away from the road. Eventually I found and filtered water draining from a wetland on the edge of the forest. It still hadn’t rained, but the sky was dark and ominous.

Back at the platform, Kellyn had nearly finished cooking rice. Once we had our lentils boiling, she heard rustling in the dry leaves under the trees below us. A writhing cluster of three snakes slithered up the hill toward the dusty ground beneath the platform. We watched them come toward us, wondering if we had a good buffer between us and them. Eventually, the mass of snakes settled in the dirt out of sight. They had been beautiful, and we felt safe.

We ate in our tent just as rain showers washed over the forest. We hoped that it would only rain overnight. Only time would tell. 

-Ben

[baekdudaejang]

SUNDAY, JUNE 1 —> to Hwaseo, distance 18.5km

First, I would just like to note that it's now my birthday month. Feel free to send me well wishes and words of encouragement all month. I'm gonna need it, especially as the monsoon rains come.

As it's my birthday month, Ben said that he would bestow upon me a gift from the trail everyday. For the first day of June, he carved me chopsticks from mountain cherry tree branches. I promptly lost one of them the next day. Sorry, Ben.

We awoke early, and after cups of brewed coffee courtesy of the woman of the sanjang, the owner drove us back to Jigi Pass 3km away. He declined a photo; we said goodbye; and we started our hike past grape orchards and farmers burning garbage alongside the road.

And now I'm asking Ben what to write about because so much of the day runs together in my mind. 

Let's see... We discovered earlier in our hike that Shinuiteojae not only has a jeongja, but it has water now! Yet another update that should be added to the guidebook. We lounged here for awhile, avoiding the obvious. We had almost 20km to hike. Frick. So we checked our topo map A LOT over the course of the day, as though doing so would make us arrive to our destination that much sooner.

Despite the mileage, the trail was relatively manageable. The BDDGT merely undulated up and down through thick forests and over mountain roads. We weren't as out of breath as usual and thus able to talk more. We shared stories and concerns about our families. And as we're wont to do, we talked about how capitalism is destroying itself along with the earth. Development that is carving away at the trail and Korea's mountains is a microcosm of this, and one that we pain to see day in and day out. But we arrived in Korea on planes, enjoy an abundance of resources and eat pre-packaged foods from prefabbed marts. So the story of complicity goes...

Our day ended not in the mountains but in a small town called Hwaseo. We took a shortcut down interconnected roads over a highway tunnel to Hwaryeong Pass in order to walk into town.

Within an hour, we found a yeogwan WITH a sauna; a restaurant serving dishes full of mushrooms; and numerous small marts for a resupply.

A note about the restaurant: 

This eating establishment was like nothing we have ever been to in Korea because they used almost NO chili peppers in their food. We found this refreshing and easy on our stomachs. So instead, we enjoyed different flavors for once and unique side dishes. 

The owner had foraged for the mushrooms himself, and his wife was peeling apart paper cups that had a frozen green liquid with tadpoles in them. He had found the tadpoles the night before by headlamp. The owners were kind and fascinating.

TOTAL KM: 61.5 in four days (this completes section 5)

-Kellyn

[baekdudaejang]

SATURDAY, MAY 31 —> to Jigijae, distance 20km

We awoke to a peaceful morning sheltered by our jeongja. The education center was quiet without students or staff on a Saturday. We quickly ate our breakfast, packed up and hit the trail. The route for the day was long, but it looked fairly easy. Most of the day would be flat sections following the ridge. However, there would be a few steep climbs and descents.

We rested a lot during the course of the day. We figured a total of about five hours! During one of these breaks, I saw a yellow-throated marten dash along the trail. It was a quick flash, and as soon as I saw it and told Kellyn, it disappeared into the forest.

A nice treat during our hike was a mulberry tree at the edge of a farm that borders the BDDGT. We stopped and pulled down branches where the ripest berries hung. They were so delicious, and my fingers and teeth were dyed purple by the time I was done eating.

The biggest challenge of the day was that there was only one water stop 2/3 of the way to Jigijae, our destination. This was tough because the distance was our longest yet, and it was oppressively hot and humid. We were dripping in sweat and needed to keep hydrated. Yet we didn't have the option of refilling until the middle of the afternoon. So much of the BDDGT is like this, and it's one of our biggest complaints on the trail.

By the time we reached Jigijae, we felt accomplished for doing a 20km day and were thirsty. The only water available was at a sanjang we couldn't find. This complication was intensified by our exhaustion. We walked up and down the main road and began to argue in frustration. Kellyn found the sanjang's phone number in our guidebook and called the owner. He hung up without much word of what he would do after Kellyn said where we were. But a few minutes later he arrived in his van.

He and his wife were awesome. They gave us pulpy grape juice, eggs from their chickens, tomatoes from their garden and route-planning advice for the trail. He shared his concern about our going to Songnisan National Park in a couple days because rain was in the forecast. The owner warned us that the trails in this park are even more difficult than Jirisan. This was an ominous warning indeed.

-Ben

[baekdudaejang]

FRIDAY, MAY 30 --> to Keunjae, distance 12km

We left the Eden Motel well-rested; showered; and full of a convenience-store breakfast. Although we felt okay for a long hike, instead we had made a plan to visit a bathhouse that wasn't too far off the trail. We would reenter the BDDGT nearby the village of Yongmunsan.

Our early-morning ascent was up and over frequent hills, fairly meandering and easy on the legs. The only views we had were of two mining sites where gleaming white rock was unearthed like gaping wounds in the green hillsides.

Three kilometers down the trail, we cut northeast through a brushy valley. We wanted to get to Jakjeom Pass as soon as possible to make time for a good soak, so this spur trail via a small village to a country road was our best option.

Boot wear was present at first, but then we lost the trail in a marshy creek bed. Fortunately the creek was dry enough that we could make our way through the tall grass and around spindly trees to a sparsely planted orchard. 

Fruit tree and grape orchards, outbuildings, makeshift fences and roads created a maze that aggravated us in the heat, but we eventually made it to the main road. Our trekking poles clicked and clacked on the pavement, and after 20 minutes we were at the attractive jeongja at Jakjeom.

As I settled in for a snack at a picnic table, Ben approached a man in a white Bongo truck about the jjimjilbang in the countryside. He didn't know about it, but he offered to drive us to the address we had pulled up on Ben's phone.

We heaved our packs in his flatbed and cruised down the valley past grape orchards and small, ornate homes. He was a quiet but nice man from Daejeon, making his money processing grapes in Neungchi village. He never doubted our claims that a bathhouse existed by his second home.

Yet once we turned left on a small road and climbed steeply, I began to doubt this bathhouse was open anymore. Pulling into the empty parking lot, my doubts were confirmed. Outside of four remodeled cottages to our left, the jjimjilbang was visibly abandoned. The sign's lettering had peeled off in the sun, and the entryway smelled musty and garbage was strewn across the floor. Our kind acquaintance yelled into the building, his voice echoing down its long hall.

No mind, he would drive us to his processing facility for us to refill our water bottles and then onto anywhere else. We asked to be driven to Yongmunsanri. Though he was confused why we weren't going back to the pass at Jakjeom, he complied.

We parted with the man from Daejeon at a bus stop in front of a tall stone gate--reminiscent of the Korean dynasties of old. He read the wooden sign above the entrance. In Hanja/Korean-adopted Chinese, it read Love Country Gate. Very patriotic...

Two men doing construction work at the gate ignored us, so we silently hiked up a steep road to an immaculate jeongja in the center of the village. We cooked ramen at picnic tables under shade trees, observing the jeongja and community we had found ourselves in. Two more people walked past and ignored us, yet the village was charming nestled in this forested valley. According to our guidebook, Yongmunsanri is home to the Cheonseong Christian prayer camp. But judging from the numerous small churches and crosses on display, the whole community is dedicated to Christ.

A man approached us as we were packing up, surprised to see two foreigners in his remote town. In English, he asked us what we were doing. He remarked that our BDDGT hike must be very romantic. He mentioned that he was a professor at the local university, and he invited us to his home for coffee or tea. We declined. We had more hiking to do before sundown.

He then asked if we were Christian. I responded that I wasn't, and his facial expression changed from a smile to a grimace. He thought all Americans were Christian, and I remarked that wasn't the case. He then said that Jesus visited him for the first time in 1968. He couldn't renounce Jesus' visit, so he converted to Christianity. The caveat being that he is still culturally Confuscist. He invited us to his home again, and we declined yet again. He wished us safe travels and walked on, looking disappointed.

We left the jeongja quickly, hiking again up the steep road only to stop for a drink at a community spring. Gradually up the valley, we began to notice that half the homes we saw were either disheveled or abandoned. Many folks' dedication to Christ had obviously waned.

We found the trail north of the village easily, and its condition was fantastic. We spiritedly hiked along the narrow valley back to the BDDGT where a wooden bench greeted us. After chit-chatting, we continued onward until Keunjae while listening to electro music on my Smartphone to motivate us the last few kilometers.

We expected to camp at an abandoned school at the pass, but it has since been demolished and replaced by a sprawling "green" complex of buildings, jeongjas, paths, trees and lawns--an educational center to teach children about nature and Korean culture. 

One of the managers said that we couldn't camp there, so we bid our time buying cold drinks from a vending machine and getting water from an elongated metal station with many spigots and sinks on each side. 

We cooked dinner at a picnic table, and the night manager repeatedly asked Ben to be his drinking buddy. He said he was on a soju diet, so he couldn't join us for food (we're unsure if he was joking or not). After he drank and argued on the phone with his wife for about an hour at his sleeping quarters, he emerged tipsy and talkative.

Although his job is in this rural area, he and his family live in Gwangju, Gyeonggido. He commutes home every weekend. He loves and misses his 12-year-old son very much, and he gestured hugging his son. He also loves playing soccer, but his competitive nature makes him an angry husband. Then he gestured bowing and apologizing to his wife.

Before he retired for the night, he said that we could sleep anywhere onsite. Why can we? Because he's the manager, he boasted. 

We opted for the squat jeongja sans our tent at the trailhead. The night was warm and we hadn't seen one mosquito.

The next day would be a long one: 20km. 

-Kellyn

[baekdudaejang]

THURSDAY, MAY 29 —> to Chupungryeong, distance 11km

We took a a couple pictures and said our good-byes with Mr. Baek and his family. We knew we wouldn't make it too far today. The trail would be easy, but starting at 10am limits us a lot. Immediately after crossing the highway, the BDDGT continued up a steep, crumbling dirt hillside. We were back to slipping and scrambling along the most difficult trail of our lives. Except for when it isn't difficult at all.

After this brutal initial warm-up, we hiked along a flat ridge for a bit. Much of the next few days would be like this. Along the way we heard construction noise from the nearby village filtering through the forest. So often we are well outside of villages and towns, yet we can still sense them kilometers away through the thick forest.

We had a couple peaks to climb and anticipated rough downhill sections after taking it easy on these peaks. We stopped for a long lunch break on the first major mountain, Gaseongsan. The view wasn't much, but the top was flat thanks to a really small concrete helipad on top. Per usual, we ate ramen for lunch. Ramen always fills us up for a quick meal, but it's beginning to get old.

We took one more snack break on Nuluisan before arriving in the village of Chupungryeong. We scouted for a yeogwan upon our arrival. A yeogwan is usually 25,000 won per night, and generally the rooms are without beds so you sleep on the floor. We found one by the bus terminal, but the old man in front of it waved us away. We don't understand why, as he wouldn't answer most of Kellyn's questions in Korean.

Having been turned away at the yeogwan, I purchased food for breakie and the trail as the Hanaro Mart was closing. I made it just in time. You know a village is small when its supermarket closes at 7pm...

We had a couple more choices for sleeping, and decided on the Eden Motel behind the village next to a creek. The room had a hard bed and a bathtub. Eden, indeed, if I can sleep well and have a hot shower.

We had spotted a shabu-shabu restaurant on our way to the hotel, so we headed back there to eat after cleaning up. Their delicious and plentiful side dishes distracted us from the tables of drunken ajosshis. We think we heard fuck/shibal over one hundred times in the course of an hour. We got free entertainment and fresh vegetables, a rare and precious treat for us.

We went to bed early because the next day would be a long day before arriving in Keunjae.

-Ben

[baekdudaejang]

THURSDAY, MAY 29TH --> Our time at Gwaebang Sanjang

-Kellyn

[baekdudaejang]

WEDNESDAY, MAY 28TH --> More of our visit through Jikji Temple

-Kellyn

[baekdudaejang]

WEDNESDAY, MAY 28 --> to Gwaebang Pass, distance 6km

Kellyn and I said goodbye to Gimcheon city and the Rich Motel. We headed back to the BDDGT after a visit to Jikji Temple.

Jikjisa is one of the oldest temples in Korea, dating from 418 AD before Buddhism was even declared the official religion of Korea. A legendary missionary named Master Ado built the temple becase he was inspired by the mountain ridge behind the valley. You can do a temple stay at Jikjisa, but we thought better of it. We were unsure if our trail-worn knees could handle the hours of sitting cross-legged.

We bused to a village adjacent to the temple and spent a good portion of the afternoon leisurely walking the temple grounds taking pictures. Then we found the trail towards Unsuam and the ridge behind it. We were feeling good back on the ridge doing a short hike to Gwaebangryeong.

A notable landmark we saw on the way is Yeosi cave, a narrow passage that descends into the mountain. The entrance is roped off but you can get a little look inside from above.

We dropped into the Gwaebang Sanjang after easily reaching Gwaebangryeong. The authors of our guidebook recommended the spot because it moonlights as a live music cafe. No music on a Wednesday night, but the visit was pleasant nonetheless. We talked with the awesome owners, and we ate their delicious kimchi stew and wild-veggie side dishes while enjoying a little rice wine.

The owners offered us a spot to plop down on the floor of their restaurant, so we didn’t need to set up our tent. This saved us a little time in the evening so Kellyn could repair the top-pouch zipper of her pack--hopefully for the last time. I did a little route planning and writing.

We are excited to have gone about 198km in 18 days of hiking. We are doubtful about reaching the DMZ at the end of this trip. But I hope we’ll reach Gangwon Province.

Like all things with this trail: we’ll know how long it takes when we get there, as it has been a trail of surprises.

[baekdudaejang]

A long rest in Gimcheon

Before arriving at Uduryeong, I searched Naver maps (it's like Google maps in Korean) for motels in Gimcheon. It was difficult considering a potential location with supermarkets in mind. Most motels in Gimcheon are far from supermarkets. We settled on the Rich (spelled like Richy) Motel because it had bathtubs and was close to the center of Gimcheon. We arrived after a 45-minute bus ride from Masanri.

The owners have been super nice. When we failed to find a cheap way to wash our clothes because cheap, self-service laundromats are rare in Korea, they let us use their washing machine. They also let us use their utility/laundry room to hang all our clothes to dry! So awesome. 

Our room at the Rich Motel is basic, more like a minbak than a motel. It's just mats on the floor, a small TV and a mini-fridge. There is a small tub, but I can't stretch out my legs in it. The room has enough space to spread out our gear for inventory and sort purchased food.

This city has a very strange layout. Sprawling neighborhoods are built off of avenues busy with cars. These long avenues branch off at strange angles and connect disparate areas of development that make up Gimcheon. This city is not built on a grid, or from a central axis. The layout makes walking through the city difficult, so we have mostly taken taxis. 

Kellyn remarked that the city has an older feel to it, like we were transported back in time to the late eighties or early nineties. It has a gritty, dirty, more Eastern feeling to it. It's not trying to be anything like the polished, imported Western-style facades Seoul and cities in the north have.

Gimcheon residents are really nice and generally very laid back. We found a foreign food store run by a cool, young Chinese woman from Harbin. She chatted with us while we browsed the shelves of her store. They had split red lentils and some other treats for us! So resupplying was easy enough. However, to hell with eMart for not selling us small quantities of dehydrated veggies after THREE ATTEMPTS at communication with staff. We shouldn't be shopping at such a corporate store anyway.

The PC bang we're using to create our blog has really nice staff. The computers are new and the internet connection fast. The place is a little far from our motel, but there are good restaurants nearby and the taxi ride back short. At the time of this writing, we have yet to visit a sauna. But hopefully we can get caught up on writing and photos in blog posts. Soaking will be our reward. 

See our most recent posts (including photos):

Section 4

Section 3

Section 2 (part 2)

Section 2 (part 1)

Our goal is to be back on the trail tomorrow because I'm becoming too comfortable in this city.

-Ben