Person walking across suspension bridge to Jeokseoksan Mountain in Goseong

Suspension Bridge at Jeokseoksan Mountain

Address: San 122-4, Samdeok-ri, Hoehwa-myeon, Goseong-gun

Jeokseoksan Mountain has a cool suspension bridge bordering Goseong and Masan. The slope of sheer rock which is climbable is also very cool.

I chose to begin at the trailhead across from Cafe Sol Hyangi on the side of the road. There’s another trailhead just up the road at Oksuam Temple.

I am not sure if some of the large rocks I found in the beginning could possibly be petrified wood, but the streaks and lines made some of them look that way.

Like most mountain hikes, I passed by various graves along the way.

A gravestone on a mountain path

After reaching the top of the mountain ridge, I turned left towards Jeokseoksan. I come to a little pine growing from the rocks around one of the first clear views.

A small pine tree growing from rocks on a mountain ridge

Guksubong Peak

Not long before reaching Jeokseoksan Peak, I came to Guksubong Peak which had a nice view.

Nate sitting on a rocky ledge at Guksubong Peak

Jeokseoksan can be seen a short distance away.

View of Jeokseoksan from Guksubong Peak

So I pass more large rocks.

Large rocks in a forest on hillside

Then I heard a rustling in the dry leaves, and it spooked me thinking it could be a wild boar. But it turned out to be a pair of wild goats.

A pair of wild goats on a mountain

In this area I came to a signpost with a trail map.

Jeokseoksan trail map signpost

Looking back, I could see tree-covered Guksubong where I had been a few minutes ago.

Guksubong Peak from a short distance away

And just below me were my two new goat friends.

Two mountain goats on a rocky mountainside
Mountain goats on a rocky mountainside

Across from the trail map were more trail markers and a leaning rock which appeared to be amusingly propped up by sticks.

A large, leaning rock seemingly propped up by sticks

Maybe it’s a tradition, or maybe just one person did this recently? I wonder how long people have put sticks here like this.

Sticks propping up a large, leaning rock in South Korea

There are other interesting rock situations here.

Jeokseoksan Peak

Just after a set of stairs, I arrived at the broad, sloped rock that makes up Jeokseoksan Peak.

Pink flowers at the top of stairs on a mountainside

At this point, there was no real path anymore but just a freestyle up the rocky slope.

A small pine bush growing out of a broad, rocky slope at Jeokseoksan

It gets windy and it feels like I really am sticking out there, because I am!

The large, rocky slope at Jeokseoksan

This bare, rocky slope definitely is one of the things that makes Jeokseoksan unique among the mountains I have hiked around Goseong.

A large, rocky peak to climb

As interesting as the peak is, it is only 497 meters high, or 1,630 ft.

Nate at the Jeokseoksan headstone

Looking in the (mostly Eastern) direction of Guksubong Peak, one can see the peninsula and islands of Geoje.

Geoje viewed from Jeokseoksan Peak

In a more southeastern direction, one can see Gujeolsan Mountain in the center back, and Georyusan to the right of that. That reservoir in the somewhat foreground is along the highway and is just before the border of Masan which is to the left.

Mountain peaks visible from Jeokseoksan

Everything in the northern direction is Masan. These are the villages of Imram-ri and Yangchon-ri.

Villages of Masan viewed from a mountaintop

I always think of Masan as a sprawling city compared to Goseong, so it’s interesting to see the countryside fringes of Masan.

A countryside view of other mountains from a mountaintop

Suspension Bridge

Of course the other cool thing about Jeokseoksan Mountain is the suspension bridge.

The Jeokseoksan suspension bridge in Goseong, Gyeongnam, South Korea

To reach it, I first had to squeeze between two rockfaces.

Narrow space between two rockfaces

To be honest, I initially turned back after feeling the strong wind and the slight shakiness of the bridge. It took me by surprise as I usually love outdoor adventure stuff. But I went back to it and made myself go across

Facing the Jeokseoksan suspension bridge

The bridge is not exactly short and there is no soft water below. The wind made it feel like I was falling, but the fear subsided after a minute.

Looking down over a suspension bridge

Soon after I crossed, a lady with her tiny dog went across the bridge. I’m a little surprised the dog didn’t blow off the edge.

A lady crossing the Jeokseoksan suspension bridge

After crossing the bridge, I came to a cool little area where a group was eating on top of a rock.

People eating on a rock cliff

Proceeding involves ducking under a rock and taking little stairs down through a kind of cave.

Person going through a rock cave
Stairs leading through a hole in the rock

I explored the rocky area a bit, but that’s as far as I went.

The Return

I went back a different route towards Oksuam Temple, but not before first going back through the rock cave and over the bridge, with no trepidation this time.

Stubby plants growing out of a rocky cliff

I took a slightly different way around the rocky peaks. One path was quite narrow along a steep cliff.

Bamboo Forest

On this return route, at 0.4 km from Jeokseoksan Peak and 0.9 km from Oksuam Temple, I came to a bamboo forest.

Sun shining through a bamboo forest

It’s always nice to stroll through a peaceful bamboo forest. The phytoncides emitted by the bamboo are supposed to have healing properties. Another bamboo forest is in Goseong’s Namsan Park.

The entrance to a bamboo forest trail

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

ko_KR한국어