Prior Posting: Songnisan National Park – Part 1

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From the summit of Manjangdae peak in Songnisan National Park, I proceeded south on the ridgeline towards the connecting trail that would lead me down a valley that runs parallel to the one I ascended the mountain on and back to the village:

Looking back along the ridge line I could see storm clouds brewing over the summit of Manjangdae peak:

The ever increasing storm clouds was my hint that I needed to get moving and get off this exposed ridgeline. However, it was tough to quickly leave a place with so many spectacular views of the rugged crags of the mountain range:

I reached the junction for the trailing heading down the mountain. Before I started to descend the mountain I made sure to take one last look of the spectacular view looking down the valley I was about to descend towards the tourist village.  The sides of the mountain as I was hiking down the trail were extremely beautiful with their vibrant autumn colors:

Soon I was back in the treeline and surrounded by these colors:

I really scenic portion of this trail are the multiple bridges I crossed that are cloaked by the mountain’s fall colors:

Needless to say, but the hike down was much easier than hike up and after a couple of hours I was back on the main trail heading towards the tourist village. Looking back I took one last look at the beautiful mountains I had just climbed:

Once back in the village it was recommended to me to take my shoes off and walk on these stones to relieve my aching feet. I was a bit skeptical at first but I decided to give it a shot:

Walking on these rocks was literally very funny. I couldn’t help but laugh because when I was walking on the stones they were tickling my feet. However, when I reached the end of the rock path, my once aching feet actually felt quite good.

Overall I covered 15 kilometers up and down the mountain in about a eight hour day. I could have done it quicker, but I took many side trips and hung out for quite a while on the top of the mountain enjoying the views. However, by the time I made it down the mountain I actually felt like I hadn’t spent enough time up there and I can’t wait until the next time I have a chance to visit the mountain again.

To easiest way to reach Songnisan National park from Seoul is to take a direct bus there from the Nambu bus terminal. Tickets cost about 13,000 won. Alternately you take a bus or train to Cheongju and then take a bus from there to the park as well. The fee to get into the park is cheap, at about 3000 won. Of course the best time to visit is the autumn as the leaves are changing. A spectacular experience to say the least.