This is definitely one of my favourite hikes to date due to spectacular water and rock scenery.

DAY 3 OF 3-DAY ROAD TRIP

I started the day with fried bacon and eggs. It had been a pretty crappy night due to my neck pain exasperated with minimal bedding, but I felt okay now and ready to head out. There’s an entrance fee to the park. There is a route to different peaks near Daejeonsa temple (대전사). I spent a moment deciding which route to take and decided to follow the Juwangsan loop I found on AllTrails. A bit further on I had to decide which way around I’d do this loop. I decided anti-clockwise; good choice it turns out.

The hike up was through forest and there were only a few points where you could see any mountain views. However, the view of the big range opposite was spectacular. I was walking on a ridge across the way from the main peaks of Juwangsan.

Then there was a big hike down to the valley and a trek through more woods, this time very damp and leafy. The water was full of leaves and the it was cool and green. After this was a small trek to one of the big spectacular waterfalls here, Yongyeonpokpo (용연폭포).

Then a walk south then west which went past some truly amazing stretches of water, some hidden falls, a cool canyon, and a massive pillar of rock.

The final part of my hike took me to the small hermitage, Juwangam (주왕암) with lots of steps and walkways to a shrine in a cave. The walk to this place looked up to the cliffs and ridges I’d passed on my hike up. Very impressive. This was a detour route, so next time, I might walk along the river as there was a promise of huge imposing boulders in impossible positions along the way!

I exited the park and went straight to Droptop coffee for a grapefruit ade and my first coffee of the day. I timed it right to get a shower at the campsite then drove to a lake out east for a bit. It was quite nice with the trees growing out of the lake. I did this to kill time before dinner.

After a walk along the restaurant street, I went for a place that had samgyetang and some of the apple makgeolli I’d seen yesterday. This meal really filled me up and was so enjoyable, and the makgeolli was perfect. There were a couple of cats lingering around, and one very inquisitive one almost took away my chicken bones until the owner chased it off. Another cat was being harassed by swallows which were chirping and sweeping down pretending to dive bomb it; a vendetta being played out here?

Places visited this trip (click the ‘door’ icon to see a list):