Wolchulsan hike info

Wolchulsan is only about 810 m high, yet from below it looks as rugged as Seoraksan. The reason is the setting: the Yeongam plain is flat as a table, and bony granite peaks jump straight out of it. At dusk only their upper edges catch the light and glow red. The name means "moon rises," and the moon does seem to come up from behind this ridge.

The top is full of set pieces. On the Cheonhwangsa side an iron suspension bridge hangs between Sajabong and Maebong, and you must squeeze through Tongcheonmun, a rock gap one person wide, before the summit Cheonhwangbong. On Gujeongbong, nine hollows are pocked into the rock, and a round boulder beside them sits so precariously it looks ready to roll.

There are three ways up. The Cheonhwangsa route from Yeongam is the shortest and steepest. The Gyeongpodae route from the Gangjin side is gentler. The traverse from Dogapsa over Gujeongbong and Cheonhwangbong down to Cheonhwangsa is a full day on a rock ridge. Whichever you pick, expect long runs of stone and iron steps where you watch your feet more than the view.

From Seoul (BUS)

From Gwangju, Mokpo and elsewhere (BUS)

To the trailhead (LOC)