Hwawangsan (화왕산)

Our second mountain of the day! I’d long been a fan of this mountain’s unique name, which I found challenging to say correctly. I was even more excited to visit when I found out Hwawangsan (화왕산) features a fortress up top – we always have fun with a fortress!

A photograph of the author's husband at the top of Hwawangsan. He stands slightly behind the summit stele, with one hand resting on top. The other hand is gesturing towards Hwawangsanseong - the mountain fortress! — Kent has found the way!

Like earlier on Bisulsan, we were able to drive partway up Hwawangsan’s gentle western slopes. We parked at a restaurant we intended to patronize (but didn’t), left the key in the ignition at the owner’s request (only in Korea) and stirred up a ruckus of barking dogs as we set off. A tour group was proceeding up the road from the bus stop, and I felt eager to get ahead of them.

A signpost indicates the way to Hwawangsan's summit. Beyond is a view of the valley below, including the town of Changnyeong!

So we blazed upwards, opting to take ‘course 3’ – a slightly longer ascent to a ridge left of the summit. We left the road behind on a set of stone steps, beside which were wires decorated by hundreds of colorful hiking ribbons.

A set of stone stairs leads steeply up a mountain slope. To the right, there are colorful hiking ribbons tied onto strings strung between tree trunks.

This trail was wonderfully quiet – I think we only saw two people! – and yet obviously well-loved. There were multiple ways to climb, benches to rest on and stacks of wood under tarps. It felt like our hikes in Gyeonggido, which I now realize were just typically suburban. I don’t know if Hwawangsan was particularly steep or if we were just blazing up the trail, but I was quickly soaked through with sweat for the second time that morning.

A photograph of the author on Hwawangsan. She's smiling at the camera while struggling to open a water bottle. She's in a sunny spot, but the rocky slopes behind her are still in deep shadow on this winter morning. — Mountain multi-tasking: taking in the views while drying one’s clothes…

Hwawangsan was thickly forested, and the trail was mostly soil, sometimes covered in pine needles. We wound around up the mountain slopes into the sunshine, and I could see the fortress walls of Hwawangsanseong in a field of golden grass! We shared our summit with a friendly young Korean couple who took our picture together.

A portrait of the author and her husband standing alongside the stone Hwawangsan summit stele. They both have big smiles, windbreakers and raised fists. — Happy on Hwawangsan!

And we looked around: the views in every direction were excellent! We had such a cool bird’s eye view of the Nakdonggang! A plunging drop-off behind the peak looked out over another rocky ridge with an enticing observation tower. Once again, I wished we had more time!

A field of eulalia grass is golden in the morning sun. The thick line at the boundary of this meadow is actually a fortress wall! — Don’t you just want to play here?

Ropes on either side of a nicely groomed trail indicated where hikers should not stray in this field of beautiful long grass! — And I love how Korea protects its precious natural landscapes with unobtrusive, natural trail and barrier materials.

But the fortress beckoned, so after a little basking in the warm sun, we ran down towards the rolling grasses in the fortress! We couldn’t explore too much, but we did climb the wall!

A sun-splashed image of the Hwawangsanseong fortress wall. The beige stones are a similar shade to the ripe eulalia grass nearby.

Then: descent. It was steep, rocky and fast. We zoomed down ‘course 2’ and were hopping back in the car in no time! It had been a very efficient morning: two peaks in two different towns before noon! Kent had the brilliant idea of changing shirts, and this made us much more comfortable. We considered dining in on local mountain fare, but knew the more efficient option was to eat snacks in the car. So we pressed on, putting Hwawangsan in the rearview mirror.

A view from near the peak of Hwawangsan: the Nakdong valley spreads across the horizon in a patchwork of farms and ant-sized homes.

KNOW AND GO! HWAWANGSAN

TRANSPORTATION

Hwawangsan is just west of Changnyeong: you can climb the peak from the edge of town! Suburb access = easy access.

Now, getting to Changnyeong: that’s another story altogether! It’s in a bit of a hinterland south of Daegu and northwest of Busan. Although there are fewer express bus options, Hwawangsan is still public-transit accessible! It’s on a major highway, after all! We only opted for a rental because our visit was in mid-December, when we were hurrying to finish our final few summits of a 76 mountain year.

Handy hint: Hwawangsan is also just south of Bisulsan, if you happen to be combining peaks…

HIKE & RUN

My map photo sucks, and I’m sorry about it. We basically did the left/north half of the main fork to take in Hwawangsan’s summit and part of the fortress.

A photo of a trail map posted near the entrance to Hwawangsan. This trail map is unique in that it has little circular photos alongside points of interest along the trail! — Hwawangsan trail map: we did the small loop to the left

But once again, I was amazed at just how many trails these mountains down south had to offer – and how tempting they looked! At Hwawangsan, I would have happily done the far longer loop on the east side of the mountain, and explored more of the fortress. But time was a-tickin’! Hopefully it isn’t for you, and you get a chance to explore even more of this nice mountain.

That said, our quick little glimpse at Hwawangsan’s highlights was just perfect if you’re looking for a bite-sized hike!!

STAY & EAT

Cheongnyang has options for you. If you stay on the eastern edge of town, you could even run to the mountaintop straight from your bed!

But, we didn’t avail ourselves of any amenities in the area, as Hwawangsan was the peanut butter in our three mountain sandwich.

There were numerous restaurants at the base of the mountain, though, if you’re there to get your mountain cuisine on!

OTHER NOTES

At 757 meters, Hwawangsan is not tremendously high, but it is prominent. It’s found on exclusively on the Korea Forest Service 100 summits list: see it here.

Kent and I did a short 4 kilometer loop around the summit in December 2018.

More mountain action awaits on the 120 summits main page! If you missed it, come with to Bisulsan or continue on to Unmunsan – both of which we climbed on the same day!

Thanks for being here! Happy Hwawangsan-ing!