Off to Hike in Seoraksan National Park in Korea
If you’ve read my previous post about my favorite things to do in Sokcho, you’ll know the top spot went to this beautiful hike I did in Seoraksan National Park (설악산 국립공원). This easily became one of the highlights of my entire solo Korea trip last summer because not only did I successfully complete an entire hike in this park that I’ve been dreaming of for a while, but also I did it all by myself — marking this to be the first hike I’ve ever done alone and in another country! It was also definitely a journey in every sense of the word as well, full of doubts, challenges and ultimately, triumphs :-)
I’ll be detailing out all these stories, lessons and tips I accumulated along the way, so this is gonna be a lengthy post! Do refer to the Table of Contents below if you wish to skip to certain parts. Watch out for the hiking vlog too :)
About Seoraksan
Seoraksan National Park (설악산 국립공원) is one of South Korea’s most popular national parks with a total area of 398 km², spanning across multiple cities and towns in the Gangwon Province. It’s home to Mt. Seorak, which is the third highest mountain in South Korea at 1,708 m high. The park has been divided into three areas: the southern section called Namseorak, the outer eastern section called Oeseorak, and the inner western section called Naeseorak. Sokcho City sits on the Oeseorak side of the park, which is also one of the most accessed areas of the park due to its easier hiking trails.
Outer Seorak Attractions
The Oeseorak side earned its title of being the most popular area in the park due to the numerous attractions that could be kicked off from here. The local goverment did a great job to create many of these attractions very accessible to the general public. There are even sites which do not require much hiking at all! Here are some of the most notable ones:
Ulsanbawi Rock — a unique rock formation composed of six granite peaks, at an 876m high peak (the main attraction on my hike!)
Heundeulbawi Rock — a massive boulder that can be pushed but never tumbles
Gwongeumseong Fortress — popular rock formation creating the image of a fortress & can easily be accessed (without hiking!) via the Seorak Cable Car
Sinheungsa Temple and Bronze Buddha Statue — just a 10-min walk from the Seoraksan Visitor Center (Sogongwon Park Entrance)
Biseondae Rock — a flat-topped rock with letters written by ancient poets
Geumganggul Cave — a place of worship with a sitting Buddha kept inside the cave
Biryong Falls — the largest waterfall in the national park, which plunges 53 feet into a translucent natural pool
The famous Ulsanbawi Rock!
Outer Seorak Trails
Several hiking trails have been established to reach these attractions from the jump-off point at the Sogongwon Park Entrance. The attractions are spread out in different directions from the entrance, so there isn’t a singular hiking trail that can hit all the spots without having to return to the jump-off point. With that said, there are hiking trail options that can cater to all levels of hiking expertise. This blog covers the easiest and most popular hiking trails in detail and was a great resource for me when I was deciding on which trail to take. Here’s a brief summary for you:
Gwongeumseong Fortress Course — easiest and fastest (40mins including cable car rides): involves minimal walking and some stairs as the Seorak Cable Car takes you directly to the Gwongeumseong Fortress from the entrance
Biseondae Rock Course — easy to moderate difficulty (2.5hrs round-trip): includes stone steps with a slight incline and seeing attractions such as the Sinheungsa Temple, Bronze Buddha Statue and Biseondae Rock
Heundeulbawi Rock Course — easy to intermediate difficulty (2hrs round-trip): known for beautiful foliage in the fall and includes seeing attractions such as the Sinheungsa Temple, Bronze Buddha Statue and Heundeulbawi Rock
Waterfalls Observatory Course — moderate to intermediate difficulty (3hrs round-trip): includes crossing a long section of steep wooden steps and seeing attractions such as the Yukdam Falls, Biryong Waterfalls, and Towangseong Falls
Ulsanbawi Rock Course — easy to advanced difficulty (4hrs round-trip): involves a severely steep slope and steep steel staircase on the side of a mountain and seeing attractions such as the Sinheungsa Temple, Bronze Buddha Statue, Heundeulbawi Rock, and the Ulsanbawi Rock
When it came for me to decide on my course, I aimed high and decided on the Ulsanbawi Rock Course because it was this particular attraction that instantly got my attention when I first learned about Seoraksan. It is also the iconic rock formation that’s the “face” of Seoraksan National Park. The most optimistic version of my hiking day was to (1) do the Ulsanbawi Rock Course in the morning, (2) go up the Seorak Cable Car to Gwongeumseong Fortress, and then maybe (3) do a portion of the Waterfalls Course later in the afternoon if my energy allowed (hahaha). I say this is the most optimistic because I was only just a casual hiker at best. In the end, I was only able to complete only the first 2 out of my 3 agendas. But that was quite alright with me, as I had already gotten more than I bargained for in that first hike! If you want to see my detailed full-day Seoraksan itinerary, skip to this part.
Heundeulbawi Rock
The Hike
The Doubt
The worries around my big Seoraksan hike day began way before I arrived in Sokcho. First came the worry about the weather. I went in late July which was in the middle of a humid summer with frequent rainshowers. As my trip grew closer and as I monitored the weather so very closely, the forecast kept saying that it would rain that entire day in Sokcho. This made me so nervous that I would get into an accident while hiking, that I almost didn’t push through with the entire hike. On top of all that was my greatest worry: hiking all by myself for the first time ever (and in another country at that!) I am really not a very experienced hiker at all, and I did try to find joiner groups online but to no avail. It wasn’t that I would be lonely on the hike since I’m pretty used to being on my own, but I was more worried about falling into an accident and have no one around me to call for help. But despite all these worries, I really really wanted to see the Ulsanbawi Rock, so I pushed through.
When I began my hike, I was full of doubt and nervous laughter. It felt like I was just kidding myself with what I was trying to achieve, and I would just laugh to myself, thinking about what I got myself into :)) What’s worse was that because I began early in the morning at around 7:30am (and probably because of the rainy weather forecast), there were barely any other people on the hiking trail. There would be extended periods of time where I would literally be alone on the path, with no one in sight ahead or behind me. I admit this did terrify me in the beginning, and I doubted myself so much that I would keep telling myself that I was in over my head and should immediately turn around. But with every “maybe I should go back now…”, a small voice inside myself said, “…just a little further".
The crazy hike up to the viewpoint for the Ulsanbawi Rock—literally climbing stairs on the side of a mountain!
The Resolve
I think my determination came from all this newfound confidence I had when I began this whole Korea trip. It was my first time solo travelling for an entire two weeks and I truly revelled in all the independence I had. I’d already done so well on my own in my first few days of the trip, why suddenly back out of this hike, which was one of my most anticipated parts of the trip? This was the strong line of thought that pushed me forward throughout the hike.
In the beginning, my worries about the weather quickly dissipated as it fortunately didn’t rain during my hike up the mountain, just a bit of clouds but otherwise, good weather. It only began to drizzle when I was already down the mountain and nearing back to the entrance of the park. Then, when I worried about my safety while being completely alone, I would I try to keep up pace with anyone I would see on the trail just in case I fall down accidentally. Though this was essentially a good plan, this quickly became tiring as I was a lot slower than these seasoned hikers. I quickly felt the physical strain on my body, and had to learn to pace myself. I had to take breaks multiple times, leaving me to be on my own for most of the hike. This humbled me down as I had to accept that I had to listen and follow what my own body was telling me so I sustain myself for the rest of the hike.
The Bronze Buddha Statue and Sinheungsa Temple
This was especially true in the last 1 km of the hike from the Heundeulbawi Rock to Ulsanbawi Rock as this was the steepest portion of the hike and most of it was literally climbing up the side of rock mountains via a steel staircase (that was not at all friendly for those with a fear of heights!). Around this time, there were a lot more people on the trail, and everyone was just so polite and friendly, cheering each other on as we neared the top of the viewpoint. I actually got to talking to some of them and turned out that they were part of a university sports club from Seoul that did an annual hike in Seoraksan. That’s one of the things I really enjoyed about travelling solo: being able to make new friends and meet people from diverse backgrounds. (Also, it seems that I may look very friendly to most as I’ve been approached multiple times during this trip! Haha)
And finally—of course—the greatest contributor to my strong resolve during this hike: experiencing and being in nature. I am a firm believer in how going into a natural environment can heal so many ailments, especially those of the mind. As an anxious person, myself, a lot of my worries were immediately quieted down once I arrived at the Seoraksan National Park. Every view and every angle was breathtaking, and it only got better as I went on with the hike. There were some rest stops along the trail which offered gorgeous sweeping views of the mountain ranges and forests below. The entire park was also a UNESCO-designated biosphere reserve, so everything was very well preserved and the trails were well-maintained. Once I got to the top of the viewpoint to see the Ulsanbawi Rock in all its glory, I even shed some tears in how beautiful it was and how proud I was for reaching my goal. Looking back on the photos, it still seems unreal that I actually achieved that on my own. Just a great reminder on how an encouraging mindset can get you through anything!
The different types of paths along the way
A Seoraksan Hiking Guide
Things by the Seoraksan National Park Visitor Center (Sogongwon Park Entrance)
How to Get There
To reach the Seoraksan Visitor Center (Sogongwon Park Entrance) on the Outer Seorak (Oeseorak) side of the park to begin your hike, there are a few options you can take:
By private car: It will take a 2 to 3 hour drive from Seoul to get to this entrance of the park. Make sure to use local navigation apps like Naver or Kakao Maps to guide you on your way. Pay parking lots near the entrance are also available for use.
By public transportation: From Seoul, you can take an Express Bus to Sokcho that will take around 3 to 3.5 hours and will cost KRW 17,200 (PHP ~730 / USD ~13) at the cheapest. More details on that in my Sokcho post. Once you arrive in the Sokcho Express Bus Station, you can take a local bus (No. 7 or 7-1) which runs between Sokcho and Seoraksan National Park (Sogongwon Park Entrance). This takes around 30 to 45mins and only costs around KRW 1,100 (PHP ~46 / USD ~1), but local bus intervals can be a bit unreliable but you can refer to Naver Maps app for bus times. Alternatively, you can also take a taxi from Sokcho up to the Sogongwon entrance which would only take 20mins but would cost around KRW 20,000 (PHP ~840 / USD ~15).
By joiner group tours: There are several different Gangwon day tours operating from Seoul as well. These would be best for those who don’t want to stress about local transporatation and those who have limited mobility. Since these day tours usually only spend a few hours in Seoraksan, you might not be able to do longer hikes but you can definitely experience the closer attractions such as the Seorak Cable Car and the Gwongeumseong Fortress. You can book a Gangwon joiner day tour here.
Since I had already arrived in Sokcho the day prior and I wanted to get an early start for my hike the next day, I opted to take a taxi from my hotel in Sokcho to Seoraksan in the morning. But on the way back to Sokcho after my hike, I chose to take the local bus (No. 7) since it was much cheaper and I was no longer pressed for time since I didn’t have anything else planned for that day apart from just resting.
Rode the Seorak Cable Car to see the Gwongeumseong Fortress (but it was so rainy!)
Before The Hike
Do your research and plan out your hiking day. Choose the attractions you want to see and which trails you want to do. Allow for some time to wander around, rest and enjoy being in nature.
Monitor the weather and check the Korea National Park Service for any closure/weather disruption notices. Best season to go to the park is ideally in autumn when the fall foliage comes to life.
Save some offline maps in English just in case you get lost. There are plenty of signs (both in Korean and English) around the park and some large area maps at the entrance which you could take a photo of for reference. Here are some official links that you can refer to as well: Korea National Park Service and a full hiking trail map of Seoraksan National Park (as scanned and uploaded by Roamscapes Blog)
If you plan on going up the Seorak Cable Car to see the Gwongeumseong Fortress, you can get your tickets early for a trip later in the day. From what I’ve read, the lines for the cable car fill up quickly especially in the peak seasons. When I arrived at the park in the morning, I went to the Seorak Cable Car ticketing office first and bought my ticket for a 1pm ride later in the day so I didn’t need to line up again for tickets after my hike. Fortunately, I didn’t have to wait long to go on the cable car itself as it was not very busy. The round-trip cable car tickets cost KRW 15,000 (PHP ~630 / USD ~12).
Some useful items to bring along with you on your hike: rain coat/poncho, hiking/walking stick, drinking water, first aid kit, hat/cap, small towel, trail snacks, sunscreen, powerbank, camera, and wear light/dry-fit clothing and good hiking shoes!
Other Helpful Tips
The hiking paths are distinct and well-paved so you don’t easily get lost along the way. As mentioned, there are a lot of signs along the path to see how much further to the next attraction. There are different types of paths such as inclines made of stone steps, wooden and steel stairs.
There are cafes and restaurants at the Seoraksan Visitor Center area near the entrance where you can have a meal or buy water and snacks. I had the most satisfying bowl of vegetable dolsot bibimbap (stonepot rice bowl) in the restaurant beside the Seorak Cable Car building. I had this after I finished all my hiking and cable car activities so I was very tired and found so much comfort in that meal.
Phone service and internet data service is quite good in the park and even along the trail all the way up to Ulsanbawi Rock. Note that I did get a local Korean sim for my trip so I wasn’t able to test this out for international sim cards.
More links to other blogs that were great references for me: Roamscapes Blog, Travel on the Brain Blog, Korea to Do Blog, Trazy Blog
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7:00 AM Departed from Sokcho hotel to Seoraksan via taxi
7:20 AM Arrived in Seoraksan National Park (Sogongwon Par Entrance)
7:30 AM Bought Seorak Cable Car ticket for 1PM ride
7:35 AM Began my hike on the Ulsanbawi Rock Course
8:40 AM Reached the Heundeulbawi Rock
10:00 AM Reached the Ulsanbawi Rock viewpoint
10:30 AM Began my descent back to the Seoraksan Visitor Center area
12:00 PM Arrived in the Seoraksan Visitor Center area
12:20 PM Rode the Seorak Cable Car up to Gwongeumseong Fortress
12:40 PM Spent some time at the Gwongeumseong Fortress (but it was very rainy already)
1:00 PM Rode the Seorak Cable Car down to Visitor Center area
1:30 PM Had a very satisfying lunch at restaurant inside the park
2:00 PM Rode the local bus back to Sokcho
2:30 PM Arrived back at my Sokcho hotel
Wow, that was a lenghty post! Hope you learned something useful for your own hiking trip at Seoraksan National Park! I highly recommend a visit, even for just a ride up the cable car to see panoramic views of the mountain ranges. That’s all for now, thanks for reading all the way till the end :-) Also, please watch out for my future posts on other provinces and sites in South Korea!
I visited the Seoraksan National Park in Gangwon Province in South Korea in July 2023.
Note that all the location links in this post are using Naver Maps which is one of the main navigation apps used in South Korea.
(Google Maps may not always be accurate and has limited navigation.)
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