Cheontaesan hike info

Cheontaesan is only 714 m, so it surprises people. Cliffs stand behind Yeongguksa temple on the Yeongdong side, and the route to the top includes a stretch of rock you climb with a fixed rope. It is a low mountain that still puts your hands to work.

Most people start at the car park below Yeongguksa. A giant ginkgo, said to be over a thousand years old, stands in the temple yard and carpets it yellow in autumn, so it is worth a loop before the climb. From the top, ridges of Chungbuk and Chungnam pile up in layers.

The rock section is slick after rain and in winter. If you want an easier line, loop up via Namgogae pass instead. Days are short in the cold months, so start the descent early.

From Seoul (BUS)

From Busan, Daegu and elsewhere (BUS)

To the trailhead (LOC)