Daejeon Diaries: View From the Top

Last weekend I went hiking for the first time in Korea. I had been wanting to go since I got here, since Korea is well known for their hiking, but life has a way of happening. It was a perfect first hike, though, and hopefully the start of many more.

My friend and I hiked 계족산 황톳길 (Gyejoksan Mountain Red Clay Trail). We actually hiked the first part of the trail (the red clay part) sans shoes. Hiking barefoot in soft, wet clay is very therapeutic; I highly recommend it. (Bonus, my feet were nice and smooth afterwards!) Once we washed and dried our feet we stopped for snack. Then we decided to climb higher. Up until then, the terrain had been fairly flat, good for us beginners. But then it went up. And up and up. We about doubled our distance and felt fairly accomplished, but then a nice gentleman told us we should keep going - the view was worth it. Now, hiking in Korea is very popular. People of all ages enjoy it, but it seems to be particularly favored by older Koreans. We could not let the many ajummas and ajusshis, kitted out in their best hiking gear, put us to shame. So up we went. This time the climb was even steeper and the breaks even longer. With what little breath we had left we laughed at how out of shape we were. But finally we made it. You can decide for yourself if the view was worth it.