Korea’s Four Rivers cycle paths, aka the Cross-country Route, is an extensive network of bicycle paths around the country. Most famously, these paths link Seoul to Busan, the route that gets all the glory! However, there are plenty of other paths around Korea, some offshoots from the Seoul/Busan route, others completely separate, like the east coast route. There is also a passport and stamp system where you can collect stamps at red phonebooth-type stations.
Nerd fact: the ‘four rivers’ in the title are actually the Hangang, Nakdonggang, Geumgang, and Yeongsangang (~gang meaning river).
Check out the Bike.go.kr links for official information; you can get information about ordering the cycle path passport, too. Cross reference the two sites for best results!
- This is in English but it has less up-to-date information; it doesn’t have individual route maps and the main map is a bit outdated for example.
- This is the Korean version with more details. Switch the site to English with your browser translation function, or brush up on your Korean!
My rides
Not having done a week-long cycling adventure, I’ve been doing routes one-to-two-to-three days at a time. I haven’t blogged all my trips but I’ve listed the sections I’ve done so far. Follow the links to see a post about them:
- Ara Waterway (south path | north path done, to post soon…)
- Hangang (multiple times; part of Seoul living!)
- East Coast (Unification tower to Donghae | Donghae to Busan to do…)
- Bukhangang (2016 July, 2017 May to Gangcheon. Chuncheon still to do…)
- Namhangang (Paldang to Yeoju (April 2019) | Yeoju to Chungju)
- Saejae (Chungju to Jeomchon)
- Nakdonggang (Andong to Sangju | Sangju to Busan to do…)
Journal posts of my cross-country/4-River rides:
- Cycling Andong to Sangju
I spent two days in the Andong area and completed the start of the Nakdonggang River Cycle Path up to Sangju. Naver Map link of the Nakdonggang River Bicycle Path (낙동강자전거길): naver.me/xcAOylhL… Read more: Cycling Andong to Sangju - Cycling Chungju to JeomchonThis was a fairly long ride from Chungju to Jeomchon which featured two significant hill climbs! It was a beautiful ride with gorges, streams, a waterfall, mountain-top views and acres of lush… Read more: Cycling Chungju to Jeomchon
- Cycling Yeoju to ChungjuI got a bus to Yeoju to cycle more of the Namhangang Bicycle Path. I made it to the town of Chungju and stayed the night. The following day, I cycled east… Read more: Cycling Yeoju to Chungju
- Cycling east coast of Korea: Daejin to DonghaeGareth and I cycled 160 km from Daejin near the North Korean border, south to Donghae. We did a leisurely ~50 km a day. The route is along the 동해안 자전거길 (Donghae-an… Read more: Cycling east coast of Korea: Daejin to Donghae
- Ara Waterway cycle path (south) 아라자전거길I cycled to the west side of mainland Korea (above Incheon) to the start of the 4 rivers / cross-country cycle path. This is a canal/waterway that runs west from The Han… Read more: Ara Waterway cycle path (south) 아라자전거길
This page will be updated when I complete more rides. The main content will be blog posts of the times I’ve cycled the routes.
All other cycling related journal posts:
- Cycling Andong to Sangju
- Shimanami Kaido cycling: Ikuchi to Imabari, Japan
- Exploring Setoda, Ikuchi island, Japan
- Shimanami Kaido cycling: Onomichi to Ikuchi, Japan
- Shimanami Kaido cycle trip: photo page, Japan
- Cycling Chungju to Jeomchon
- Cycling Yeoju to Chungju
- Cycling west of Seogwipo, Jeju
- Cycling east coast of Korea: Daejin to Donghae
- Ocean Rail Bike, Meriel Cafe, Yeosu 여수레일바이크 메리엘카페 여수
- E-scooter ride along coastal path, Tongyeong 삼칭이해안길
- Ara Waterway cycle path (south) 아라자전거길
- Cycling Jumun to Anmok coffee street – Gangneung, Korea
- Hiking & camping at Woraksan 월악산 Korea
- Arashiyama cycling, bamboo forest & food
- Bicycles & yakitori, Kyoto Japan
- Fun in Dotonbori, Osaka, Japan.
