On the third and last day of our Jeju trip, Joy and I hiked 6 miles (9.6 km) up Mt Hallasan, the highest and (probably) the most sacred mountain in South Korea.
Also known as Mount Halla, this shield volcano actually formed Jeju Island and was designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve and a World Heritage Site.
At the summit of Mount Halla, 6,398 ft above sea level, lays a crater lake called Baengnokdam.
Hiking this mountain was one of the most memorable experience I've had so far in Korea. Not only because the hike/view was extraordinarily breathtaking and beautiful, but also because Joy and I were both extremely sick while on this trek.
We also didn't know that there was a time limit to reach the summit. To see the top, you'd have to pass the third/last shelter point - about 4.5 miles up - by 1pm. Joy and I arrived at the start of the trail at 10:45am.
Follow along on our journey up South Korea's highest mountain as we race against time with raging fevers, sore throats and the sniffles!!!! Spoiler, we made it.
Mt. Hallasan has seven main hiking trails, but only two trails take you to the summit, Seongpanak (yellow on the map) and Gwanemsa (green on the map).
The Seongpanak trail is the longest trail (about 4-5 hours one way) but the accent is way more gradual than the intensely steep Gwanemsa trail, which is why we picked it.
The Seongpanak trail map:
Here are photos of us, at the start of the trail, before we found out that there was a time limit. So happy and carefree showing up at 10:45am, this was mistake #1.
The lady at the check-in counter then -almost- broke our spirits by telling us that she didn't think we could make it to the top as the last leg of the hike closes at 1:00pm. She said that it takes about 3 hours to reach the last shelter, while we only had less than 2.5 hours.
To make things even more dramatic, she added in that even if we reached the shelter in time, it would take another 1.5 hours to reach the summit and the viewing point at the summit closes at 2:30pm, which means that as soon as we get to the top, we'd have to go down. The reason being that they want hikers off the mountain by 6-7pm, before the sunlight runs out.
The odds were not in our favor and we were both coughing up mucus. But it was our last day in Jeju and we just HAD to do this. Being sick and sleep deprived could've also made us delusional, so maybe that's why we threw ourselves into this seemingly impossible mission to the top.
The trail started off fairly easy, with most of it paved with wooden boardwalks and a canopy of leaves shielding us from the heat. As we progressed further, the boardwalks turned into large stepping stones, which then turned into just large rocks.
We coughed our way through the trees and forgot to pack any sort of medication or pain/cough relief, which was mistake #2. A group of local Korean grandmas and grandpas passed us and asked if we were okay. They gave us some peanut candy along with worried looks.
We reached the second checkpoint at 12:25pm!! With our health declining and not a lot of time to spare, we tried to absorb some energy from the trees.
Miraculously, with almost all of our water supply depleted, we made it to the last shelter by 12:55pm. We didn't realize that the shelters were empty inside with no water fountain or snacks. We did not pack enough water, mistake #3.
This last part of the hike was the most strenuous. The climb became steeper and our canopy disappeared, exposing us to the sun. However, as soon as we were above the trees we could turn around to see the ocean and the view was so so so so pretty and worth bearing the heat.
We reached the last group of stairs to the top and almost fainted while climbing them.
BUT, as you already know, we did reach the top - at 2:10pm. All of the stress that we carried along the trek morphed into complete and utter relief and awe.
We were above all of South Korea and even above some clouds!!!
20 minutes at the top was not enough time, and I wish we could've basked in the beauty for a bit longer. We were the last to leave the summit, dragging out as much time as we could.
Going down was torturous but the fact that we reached the peak was more than enough to power us through it.
Being at the top of Mt. Hallasan was so magical and I would 100% do it again. Thinking about this experience only reminds me of how lucky I am to be here. I never imagined that entering UH and Shidler would give me opportunities like this.
I'm so grateful, always.
<3,
vic