Cheongwansan (천관산)

We began our run from a deserted parking lot in a fog thick as soup. It was impossible to determine time or direction. Cheongwangsan Provincial Park (천관산도립공원) seemed like an island of misty silence. We were all alone, and there was not even a whisper of wind to ruffle the trees of the forest. There was no way to know then what a magical morning was in store for us.

An image of the pale, peach-colored columns of rock rising above the forest at Cheongwansan Provincial Park. The sky beyond is a brilliant sapphire blue. — All the most beautiful boulders

Stumbling out into the open from a forest path, we found a tiny temple populated mainly by kimchi pots. A friendly dog appeared, eager to be patted. After a short ascent through more thick, foggy forest, we found ourselves on a rocky ridgeline. Above the fog at last! And just in time for a golden, sunny dawn.

An image of a quiet temple in soft, pre-dawn light. The temple itself is plain, painted white with brown trim. Some colorful lanterns top its highest roof. In front of the doorway, there are dozens of dark brown kimchi pots, fermenting away. — Kimchi in the making

An image blurred with motion. A dog approaches the author from the rear, nose up and ears perked. The author is turning away from the camera to find the dog behind her. — Hi friend!

An image of a sunrise, seen from a ridge. The photographer's viewpoint is from behind two tall pine trees, which frame the golden glow of the sun in the center of the image. The fog is visible as a thick grey layer beneath the sun. Still, some farm buildings are visible on the valley floor. — First light

What followed was a very photogenic day! The beautiful weather of the ridge persisted as we explored onwards. There were caves, platforms and rock formations glowing orange in the first light. Shortly before the peak, I enjoyed wandering across an open, grassy meadow. The peak itself was visible from far away, a square rocky platform.

An image of the author standing on an orange rock, gazing off into the distance at more orange rocks popping up a distant green ridge. — So many sights!

An image of the stunning rock formations in Cheongwansan Provincial Park. The rocks are painted orange and yellow on the sunny side, and a peachy pink on the shady side. They come in various sizes and shapes, and a high green ridge over a shady valley forms the background on the right side of the image. — These rocks!

A panoramic image of the trail stretching away into the distance on a rolling, grassy ridge. The peak is just barely visible as the high point in the center left of the image. The ridge slopes away towards the right, becoming a deeper green set with rocks. On the far right of the image, the valley below is obscured by fog. — The grassy summit ridge over a sea of clouds

It didn’t take us long to reach the peak and the platform. There, we were surrounded by incredible views of a sea of clouds making islands of peaks. What a place to picnic! There was even a couple of folks camping on the flat, grassy expanse – so we weren’t alone after all!

An image of the author standing alongside the summit stele. She is smiling brightly, and has one arm raised in joy and triumph. Behind her, the rocky observation platform is visible on the left, and the blue sky dominates the upper right of the image. — Summit smiles!

I was incredibly happy. Making our way across the ridge, we paused for several rock scrambles. One boulder was one of the most massive I’ve ever seen. The light was soft and yellow, bringing out the pretty peachy hues of the rocks. And the ambiance was warm, too! People had built little wish towers of small rocks, and tucked others in the cracks and crevices of large boulders. The mountain seemed to be well-loved, and invited contented contemplation.

An image of the author standing on a large boulder, hands on her hips and grinning. Behind her, the trail cuts a thin path through lush green grass. There is a rise in the center of the frame, and behind that the observation platform on the peak is just visible. It really is a beautiful day. — Isn’t it lovely?

An image of some rectangular grey columns of rock peeping out of the thick green forest along a ridge. Beyond, the fog is colored purple and yellow and white by the dramatic rays of the sun entering the frame from the right. There are even some distant mountain peaks looming over the fog, far away. — Look at this!

An image of the author standing beneath a boulder that is several times her size. It is an irregular shape, some faces illuminated a pale peach by the sun, others cast into grey shadow. — And this one!

I was feeling like I’d found a favorite, so I didn’t really want to go! But with another, neighboring park on our day’s adventure docket, we had to. Our descent was along another spiny ridge, and we ran down, down, down…back into the rolling fog!

An image of a dense grey cloud caught up in the valleys between Cheongwansan's three sharp ridges. Taken from a rocky outcrop, the photographer is just above the fog. — Mist and mountain

At the parking lot below, a surprised attendant guarding a quiet lot told us that there would be no buses coming to our bus stop, and helpfully called us a taxi. As we drove away from a particularly special hike, I craned my neck out the back window; trying to catch a glimpse of the golden summit rocks of this mist-shrouded mountain. I couldn’t see it, but I held it in my heart.

Know and Go! Cheongwansan

Transportation

Cheongwansan Provincial Park is about as remote as it gets. But don’t let transportation challenges deter you from visiting this gem of a park! It is tucked away on a rugged little peninsula in the far south-west corner of Jeollanam-do. Coming from Seoul, the best and fastest bet would probably be to take the KTX train to Mokpo, the end of the line. From there, connect to an intercity bus bound for Jangheung, and from there, into a taxi. I won’t kid you, coming from Busan or points north and east in Korea will likely require several hops or your own transit. But this is a beautiful little park that shouldn’t be missed. And why not make a weekend of it, and visit another mountain, like we did? Tricky transit is just a good excuse for an extended adventure.

Hike & Run

We chose to complete a lovely loop of just less than 9 kilometers. From the main entrance where we started, there seemed to be three parallel routes up the mountain – perfect for loops! On the map, it also appears that there are other ways of accessing the mountain from the roads surrounding it. While I think these would make for great, extended adventures, we found the main entrance of this park challenging enough to get to and from without our own car!

An image depicting the three main trails in Geongwansan Provincial Park. The trails appear yellow, set against a green background. There is a legend in the bottom right corner explaining the three different ridge routes. — Cheongwansan trail map

Another view of the trails in Cheongwansan Provincial Park. This map has a yellow background, and is a series of red and blue dots connected by straight lines. This map might be simpler to understand at a glance, as it contains the names of many rocks and way-points. — Cheongwansan trail map, take 2

Stay & Eat

We spent the night in nearby Jangheung, in a clean and inexpensive motel. Being based here was helpful for being close to marts (we wanted to stock up on water) and taxis (for getting to the park the next morning). There were a couple of motels close to the bus terminal. Since most visitors will also likely be having to make a cross-country haul to get to Cheongwansan, I think basing yourself here makes a lot of sense.

That said, there did seem to be a few accommodation options in the area around the park. I wouldn’t bet on which ones are open at any given time though – it was awfully quiet when we were there. There were also several shops and restaurants, which were similarly quiet. We didn’t do our usual bibimbap stop here, so I personally can’t comment on the food. But there are some businesses that may or may not be open during peak times.

Other Notes

Cheongwansan’s highest peak is 723 meter Yeondaebong, which commands awesome views over the surrounding hills and valleys. The peak is the highest point of an open, grassy area, and it’s topped by a historical observation platform. It’s famous, too: on both the Black Yak and Korea Forest Service lists of 100 mountains!

My husband and I visited this park on a very exciting two-park day-trip in June 2016! We took several hundred photos of this beautiful park in during our 8.9 kilometer loop run. This was the 4th provincial park that we visited during our mountain mission year.

Again, I struggled to find English information about this park beforehand. There’s this write-up on Visit Korea, and that’s it! But we’d heard about this mountain from Korean friends, who said it is known as one of the best in the region! So we went with high hopes that were only exceeded.

Join us on our same-day Duryunsan Provincial Park adventure! Or, feel free to explore more provincial parks or head on over to your home base for 120 summit missions.