One of Korea’s most loved places is Jeju island, the biggest and southern most island belonging to Korea. After our visit, we completely understand why. It’s the most beautiful place we have seen in Korea so far, the air was clean and we had a great hike up Hallasan (Mount Halla). Getting there was half the fun (we guess you could call it that).

Getting There

We left Jukjeon Friday night at 8:30, shortly after work, and took a bus to Jamsil. From there we met the group of people we were traveling with and took a 4 hour bus ride to Wolchul-san National Park. Everyone but us and a couple other folks got out and took a 6 hour hike that started at 4 a.m. We, on the other hand, opted for some more rest, but after the bus driver started smoking in the bus, we hopped out and went for a walk.

The mountains were pretty at sunrise, and then we found this sign that seemed to be telling us to watch out for giant frogs and dragon flies along the river.

Once everyone finished their hike, we rode the bus to Mokpo, a little town on the southern coast, where we had lunch and then caught a ferry to Jeju.

Lunch was…interesting. In the center Angie’s holding up a crab they served in hot water. There are whole fish with bean paste and smaller fish at the bottom of the picture. I couldn’t bring myself to pop an entire fish in my mouth, but AJ tried one.

The ferry ride is something we’ll never forget. It was really crowded, and you had to sit in a common room on the floor with everyone else.

Koreans bring picnics, play gambling games and drink soju.

It was a nice ride until the end when we got out into open, and very choppy, seas. Everyone was getting sea sick, and it was not a good sight (or smell). We couldn’t wait to get off the boat! At least there was a nice sunset.

After very little sleep and such a rough ride, we just couldn’t wait to have a good night’s rest. We arrived at our hotel around 6, had dinner, and got ready to get up at 5 the next morning to hike the mountain.

Climbing Hallasan

Our first glimpse of Jeju’s infamous Halla Mountain was through the bus windows.

It was freezing on the mountain, but we warmed up quickly as we climbed and climbed and climbed. Wow, was the view worth it.

We hiked the B course, which takes about 3 1/2 to 4 hours, so we didn’t go all the way up to the crater lake at the top.

Up in the sub-alpine zone, above some clouds.

At the top, a rest stop sells rameon (noodles) and makgeolli, a traditional alcohol (which seems counterproductive for hiking, but to each his own).

A few flowers dot the landscape. One of the Koreans tried to tell us the tale about the blood of some sons that the flowers represent, but we’re still a little unclear on the details.

Looking out into the East China Sea, you can see where most of the inhabitants of Jeju live beyond Hallasan National Park.

Compared to the city, the air on Hallasan was so fresh. We didn’t want to come down.

This rock looked like a seal to us.

If you look closely, the tiny dots to the left of the giant rock are people, and that’s the trail we took to get down.

It was a gorgeous hike followed by another lunch of seafood and rice.

Touring Jeju

After the hike, we had a somewhat rushed tour of the island. We only stopped at a couple places, which included the Yakcheon Temple.

It was built in 1930, and additions have been added on in the 1980s and 90s. Because it was Buddha’s birthday this weekend (5,000 years old?), I think the temple was more decorated than usual.

You can see the famous Jeju oranges growing next to the temple. The grounds of the temple smelled so sweet, like orange blossoms and incense.

The temple has one of the biggest main halls of all the temples in Korea.

It also has one of the largest Buddhas (and apparently the most Buddha statues) of the temples in Korea. The dragons along the pillars are an interesting touch.

Sitting on lava rocks

Our next stop was along the northern coast of the island. A lot of the beaches on Jeju are composed of black sand and volcanic rock. This man found these lava rocks to be an ideal place to fish.

A bunch of us in the group sat on them for pictures and found that they are not really an ideal place to sit. (Ouch!)

Riding home

The ferry ride back to the mainland was so much better than the trip to the island. It was a larger ship called the Queen Mary.

Inside there was a really nice dining room. We sat drinking beers with some other hikers and talking with two older Korean gentlemen who made the trip go super fast. (And no one got sick this time).