A special island off a rocky shore near Sangjogam cliffs in Goseong,. Korea

Observatory near Sangjogam Cliffs and Trail to Obscured Island

주소: 경상남도 고성군 하이면 월흥리 3-1

Turquoise water meets hexagonal-sided columnar joints at this observation deck. A short hike from the deck takes you to a special island.

I had an encounter with the Korean military at the island. More on that later!

In the map below, #1 refers to a suggested starting point of this trail, and #2 is the observatory just above the rock cliffs where the columnar joints are. Across the water from #2 is 상족암군립공원 and the 고성공룡박물관과. The special island is a little ways beyond #2.

Map of Sangjogam area of and observatory in Goseong

Observatory

The Korean name for this place with the rock formation and observation deck is 입암 병풍바위.

You can pick up this trail at a small breakwater around the address at the top of this post. This breakwater was under construction at the time of my visits in March and also in April 2022.

The Sangjogam Observatory Trailhead at a breakwater in Goseong

The boardwalk runs along the coastline and brings you to set of stairs with short steps.

A sign seems to say that this goes through a private area and requests visitors to respect and have gratitude for the trail.

The observatory extends a bit over the cliff and water below. There is also a see-through section of the floor.

A toddler standing on an observation deck facing the sea

Walking into the observatory deck, immediately on the left are the columnar joint rock formations. The photo below is unedited. It shows the beautiful turquoise color of the water around these rocks.

Turquoise water against columnar rock formations in Goseong, Korea

Noah liked to travel with his snacks. Some of our adventures were quite off the beaten path and it was always nice to have a snack ready if needed.

Rock formations on cliff along the water

Coastal Trail

From the observatory deck, a coastal trail keeps going. It’s not very far to get to the island. I could see the island with a little bridge in the distance.

A rocky, dirt trail through the coastal forest with an island in the distance

Eventually a set of stairs leads down to another boardwalk along an area full of these rock formations.

Blue-green water over special rock formations

The boardwalk does a curve around these rocks, and then winds up along another hill.

The lower the tide, the more exposed rock there is.

Blue water between rocks and an island during somewhat low tide

It is tempting to climb around on the rocks.

A rocky shore during low tide facing islands in the sea

I only picked Noah up for the photos. He walked the whole way by himself, which he wanted to do.

Toddler walking up stairs in a pine forest trail

The trail ends up along a military facility. The path runs alongside the building for just a bit.

Island

Eventually this gives way to a rocky beach. Noah explored the rocks and got to do one of his all-time favorite things: tossing rocks into the water.

A toddler on a rocky beach in Korea

The island is here at this beach. A low tide exposes seaweed.

Seaweed exposed among rocks along an island

It is here that I was approached by an armed Korean soldier. I was a bit alarmed as his weapon was quite intimidating, and my Korean language abilities were limited, but he was nice and asked to check the photos I took to make sure I was not taking photos of the militarized facilities including details on the island. It is prohibited to enter the island or to take photos of the facilities which I made sure to obey. There are signs posted on the bridge to the island that explain this to visitors (in Korean; I don’t believe it was in English).

Overall it’s a nice little hike especially if you’re already in the Sangjogam area and enjoy more of the hiking and natural aspects of the area.

A winding boardwalk along a rocky Korean coast

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