Old Sanmagi Road © Lee Bok-seok

GOESAN | 괴산

Hidden valleys are treasure troves of natural splendor

Written and photographed by Robert Koehler

Want to escape civilization for a day? Goesan’s your place.

Tucked away in the mountains of central Korea, Goesan is a tapestry of deep valleys hidden amidst forested mountainsides. Korean landscape painters and philosophical scholars have been coming here in search for inspiration for centuries. Nowadays, it is largely tourists who descend upon Goesan’s valleys to recharge in the natural splendor of the great outdoors.

Deep valleys

Korea has roughly 40 long, deep valleys, or gugok (literally, “nine-bend valley”). Of these, seven are located in Goesan alone. Wind and water have carved great gorges from the weathered slopes of the Sobaeksan Mountains; in each gorge can be found individual worlds of inspiring scenic beauty. During the Joseon Dynasty, Confucian scholars and officials frequently visited the valleys, extolling their beauty through poems and paintings. They left behind many wooden pavilions erected at especially scenic points, where they’d spend days soaking in inspiration from the surroundings.

The most famous of Goesan’s valleys is the Seonyugugok, the centerpiece of Hwayang Provincial Park. Each of the 2 km-long valley’s nine bends were named by famed 16th century Confucian philosopher “Toegye” Yi Hwang, who toured the valley for nine months while on visit to a nearby clan. He etched the names in stone; some of the carvings can still be found.

The river gorge is lined by dramatic cliffs, fantastically shaped boulders, and verdant groves of pine. Some sections of the valley are said to possess a rugged, masculine beauty, while other sections possess a softer, more feminine beauty. In the upper part of the valley you’ll find the Hakcheonjeong Pavilion, built in 1909 by the Confucian scholar Yi Jae.

Nearby Hwayanggugok is just as lovely, albeit a bit grander in scale. The 3 km valley has its share of scenic cliffs and rocks, although the visual highlight is Geumsaam Rock, which is topped by Amseojae Pavilion, built by 17th century scholar “U-am” Song Si-yeol, who lived near the valley as a hermit. His tomb and an old Confucian academy he founded can be found nearby, too. Overlooking the jade water from atop a slab of white granite and surrounded by deep green trees, the pavilion is straight out of an Eastern landscape painting.

If those valleys aren’t enough, you can find lovely scenery at the Ssanggokgugok and Gareungugok valleys, too. For board game fans, Gareungugok has a baduk (also known as Go) board carved into one of its granite slabs.

Old Sanmagi Road

The old Sanmagi Road is a 4 km hiking trail that takes you along the the beautiful landscape of Lake Goesan, a scenic reservoir created after the 1957 construction of Goesan Dam, Korea’s first indigenously built hydroelectric dam. The trail follows the old walking paths that Koreans used to use to go from village to village in bygone days. To preserve the natural environment, the path is largely covered by an elevated wooden deck. There are even wood plank suspension bridges to take walkers through some of the wooded sections. Scenic lookouts have been built at strategic spots along the trail, including one spot overlooking an oxbow village shaped like the Korean Peninsula (requires an off-path hike up a mountain).

If you’d like to take in Lake Goesan’s scenery from below, cruise boats depart from several docks along the lake. The longest cruises take about an hour, with one-way and round-trip tickets available.

Amseojae Pavilion, Hwayanggugok ⓒ Seoul Selection

Cliffs, Hwayanggugok ⓒ Seoul Selection

Old Sanmagi Road ⓒ Seoul Selection

Off the beaten track: Nunbisan Farm

About a 10 minute drive from downtown Goesan is Nunbisan Farm, an environmentally friendly chicken ranch where eggs are produced in a humane manner. Unlike typical eggs, most of this farm’s eggs are fertilized—mating chickens are happy chickens.

The farm was founded in 1968 by the Maryknoll Fathers, a US-based Catholic missionary society, to help improve life in Korea’s rural communities. It is now a member of Hansalim, a Korean consumer cooperative dedicated to incorporating ecological principles into all facets of daily life. In particular, they work to link organic farmers in rural districts with consumers in urban areas through a network of grocery stores. Nunbisan’s eggs—and its egg-based snacks—can be purchased at Hansalim grocery stores throughout Korea.

Nunbisan Farm takes volunteers, too—it runs programs where participants can learn about ecological farming as they help out on the farm. Call 043-832-8063 for more information.

EAT>
Mat Sikdang (T. 043-833-1580) is small (just five tables) and would generously be described as rustic. It’s also so good it appeared in cartoonist Huh Young-man’s famous comic strip Sikgaek. They specialize in two dishes. The first is olgaengiguk, a spicy soup of fermented soybean broth, leeks, and marsh snails. It’s a regional specialty and particularly good for relieving a nasty hangover. The other is doenjang jjigae, a stew made from soybean paste that has been fermented for several years. Goesan is also famous for its red peppers—the Goesan Red Pepper Festival (in August) is a good time to taste them.

STAY>
Goesan has its fair share of small motels, inns, and pensions. If you’re looking for something more upscale, Hotel West of Canaan (T. 043-833-8814) has nice, clean rooms in lovely mountain surroundings beginning at KRW 149,000 a night. For something more traditional, the Cheongcheon-ri Goga (T. 043-832-4062) is a late 19th century home that has been converted into a guesthouse. Rates are very reasonable, beginning at KRW 25,000 a night during the high season (May 1–Oct 1), but with just seven rooms available, you should reserve a space early.

GO>
Buses to Goesan depart from Seoul’s Dong Seoul Bus Terminal (travel time: 2 hours).

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March 20, 2013 / Issue No. 572 Looking for Writers We are looking for writers to pen the Korea Essential 2013 series, a cooperative project between the Korea Foundation and Seoul Selection. We’ve published 12 volumes so far, which you can find on Seoul Selection’s online bookshop. This year, we plan to release four volumes: Hanbok and Korean Fashion, Taekwondo, Korean Traditional Medicine, and Korean Dance. Each volume is about 20,000 words; manuscripts should focus on providing readers fun, easy explanations rather than excessively technical content. If you are interested in writing, please send a resume and writing sample to the appropriate supervisor below: Hanbok and Korean Fashion: Hye Young Park pubco@seoulselection.com Taekwondo: Hwa-pyeong Kim word@seoulselection.com Korean Traditional Medicine: Eugene Kim planner@seoulselection.com Korean Dance: Jin Lee publisher@seoulselection.com Korea Essential Series Buy all 12 volumes in one convenient set Seoul Selection is pleased to announce that we’ve bundled all of our Korea Essentials volumes into one convenient set. The Korea Essentials series is a cooperative project between the Korea Foundation and Seoul Selection to furnish the international reader with insight and basic understanding into the arts and culture of Korea. The content of this series is based on material published in Koreana, the Korea Foundation’s magazine. Hangeul: Korea’s Unique Alphabet Traditional Painting: Window on the Korean Mind The DMZ: Dividing the Two Koreas Traditional Food: A Taste of Korean Life Jeju Island: Reaching to the Core of Beauty Museums & Galleries: Displaying Korea’s Past and Future Joseon’s Royal Heritage: 500 Years of Splendor Traditional Music: Sounds in Harmony with Nature Korea’s Natural Wonders: Exploring Korea’s Landscapes Religion in Korea: Harmony and Coexistence Korean Ceramics: The Beauty of Natural Forms Korean Architecture: Breathing with Nature Around the Web A miscellany of high-quality hyperlinks from the week, courtesy of SEOUL editor-in-chief Robert Koehler. Experiencing Korean culture at Incheon International Airport. Yonhap interviews the head of Harvard’s Korea Institute. A Korean photographer examines cross dressing through history. A North Korean taunt spotlights gender issues in inter-Korean relations. Plastic surgery baffles inbound tourists. Seoul from Mt. Achasan. Dale visits the ruins of Gulbulsa in Gyeongju. Fun times in Wolmido with Steve. Let’s explore the Sangdo Station area. The Jinhae Cherry Blossom Festival is coming soon! Events Tongyeong International Music Festival (TIMF) This month the annual Tongyeong International Music Festival kicks off its 10th year as the premier western classical music showcase in Korea. If you’re headed to Tongyeong for the music fest or just looking for a good getaway anytime of year, we’ve got some tips on where to go and what to do. VENUE: Tongyeong Citizens’ Center and other venues of Tongyeong-si, Gyeongsangnam-do PERIOD: Mar 23–28 ADMISSION: Depends on program MORE INFO: T. 02-3474-8315, www.timf.org GETTING THERE: Express buses to Tongyeong depart from Seoul Express Bus Terminal (travel time: 4 hours). The Script—Live in Seoul The biggest Irish band since U2 comes to Korea for the first time ever. So much has changed for the Script since they released their first album four years ago. First they broke into Ireland and Britain; then the States; then everywhere from Asia to South Africa. Along the way, they toured with U2, Take That, and Paul McCartney, sailed through the second-album syndrome that sinks so many bands, played to a 55,000-strong crowd at an historic hometown show in Dublin, amassed almost four million followers on Facebook and 1.5 million on Twitter, and saw their singer star on TV talent show The Voice. Their music has been featured in popular television programs such as 90210, Ghost Whisperer, The Hills, Waterloo Road, East Enders, Made in Chelsea, and The Vampire Diaries. VENUE: Uniqlo AX DATE: Mar 27 ADMISSION: KRW 110,000 Tickets: http://ticket.interpark.com/global MORE INFO: T. 02-332-3277 GETTING THERE: Gwangnaru Station 광나루역 (Line 5), Exit 2 Jane Birkin—Serge Gainsbourg via Japan English actress and singer Jane Birkin will dedicate her upcoming Seoul concert to her lifelong music partner and composer Serge Gainsbourg. In 1969, she and Serge Gainsbourg released the song “Je t’aime… moi non plus” (“I love you… me neither”), written by Gainsbourg and featuring both of them on vocals, which caused a scandal for its sexual explicitness. Some 20-plus years after his death, Birkin’s devotion to spreading his work around the world has raised his profile. Currently, Birkin is working with a jazzy quartet of European-based Japanese musicians. VENUE: Universal Art Center DATE: Mar 30, 7pm ADMISSION: R: KRW 132,000, S: KRW 110,000, A: KRW 88,000 MORE INFO: T. 02-6339-1232 Tickets: http://ticket.interpark.com/global GETTING THERE: Achasan Station 아차산역 (Line 5), Exit 3 Gwangyang Maehwa Flower Festival In English, the maehwa is called the “ume flower,” and Gwangyang-si was the first place in Korea where ume flowers were cultivated in bulk. This flower festival was the earliest of its kind and started in 1997 to publicize the ume flower, its fruit (a form of plum), and products made from them. The festival site is noted for its scenic beauty, filled with ume blossoms, and a famous Korean movie, “Chihwaseon,” and TV show, “Damo,” were filmed on this location. VENUE: Gwangyang Maehwa Village, Jeollanam-do PERIOD: Mar 23–31 ADMISSION: Free MORE INFO: T. 061-797-3714, www.gwangyang.go.kr/gymaehwa GETTING THERE: It takes more than three hours to get from Seoul to Gwangju Gwangcheon by express bus. One-To-One MBA Event Increase your salary potential, move up the career ladder, or work abroad with the most internationally recognized business degree: the MBA. A unique and customized event format that helps you select the right MBA program. – One-to-one meetings and workshops with Admissions Directors – Personalized MBA orientation – Interactive MBA conferences – GMAT, TOEFL, and IELTS advising – Scholarship opportunities Mandatory registration via this link. VENUE: Novotel Ambassador Gangnam DATE: Mar 21, 4pm–9:30pm MORE INFO: www.accessmba.com GETTING THERE: Sinnonhyeon Station 신논현역 (Line 9), Exit 4 RASKB: Visit to Sewang Brewery and Botapsa Temple Located in Jincheon County, North Chungcheong Province, Sewang Brewery is one of Korea’s oldest continuously functioning breweries. Built in 1930, and run by the same family for three generations, the beautiful wooden brewery—built of pine cut from the forests of Mt. Baekdusan—was so perfectly designed for its task, that when repair work was done in 2006, it was discovered its framework hadn’t rotted at all. The clay jars in the fermentation room are from the 1930s, too. The brewery even got featured in cartoonist Huh Young-man‘s serial in the Dong-A Ilbo, “Sikgaek.” If you’re a fan of makgeolli, you won’t want to miss this excursion—Sewang Brewery produces some of the finest makgeolli in the Republic of Korea, along with a wide variety of other interesting yakju (medicinal liquors). We’ll be trying some of its firewater at the brewery’s recently built tasting center and gallery. PS: I’ll be leading this tour. DATE: March 30 COST: 65,000 won for members and 78,000 won for non-members MORE INFO: See this link. GETTING THERE: See link above. Seoul Village Criers The blog Seoul Village is collecting recordings of the voices of the criers hawking services in Seoul’s various neighborhoods. Got a recording device? Why not help Seoul Village out. See this link for more information. Everyday Koreans Amseojae Pavilion   Amseojae, a scenic pavilion used by 17th century scholar Song Si-yeol during his time in exile in the Hwayang Valley, Goesan. Photo by Robert Koehler. *Click the photo to see a full-size version at our website. NOTE: If you have a photo you would like to see in our Everyday Koreans section, please sent it to story@seoulselection.com. Photos should be AT LEAST 950px wide. Send a one-line bio, too. Notifications Tell Us About ‘Your Korea’: If you’re a longtime resident of Korea and would like to share your story in KOCIS’s KOREA Magazine, shoot an email with your story idea to book@seoulselection.com. Update Your Shopping Mall ID – Seoul Selection encourages you to change your ID and password for our online bookshop and shopping mall at Seoulselection.com. The old IDs and passwords no longer work following our recent upgrade. Looking for translators – Seoul Selection is looking for a few good translators (Korean to English) for general translation work. Those interested should send a resume and cover letter to Eugene at planner@seoulselection.com. Seoul Selection eBooks – You can purchase some Seoul Selection titles in ebook format via Amazon.com (for Kindle) and Apple’s iBookstore. Titles include Ask a Korean Dude, Moon Tides, Doing Business in Korea, Once Around the Sun, and seven volumes of our Korean Film Directors series: BONG Joon-ho, IM Kwon-taek, KIM Jee-woon, LEE Chang-dong, LEE Man-hee, PARK Chan-wook, and SHIN Sang-ok. Seoul Selection via Ingram – Seoul Selection now has a direct wholesale distribution agreement with Ingram Book Group, the world’s largest wholesale distributor of publisher content. By choosing to allow Ingram to represent our material, we have opened our titles to a wider audience. Our titles will be available for order through Ingram at more than 35,000 distribution channels worldwide. Ask your local bookstore to have Seoul Selection titles available! Send Your Event Info – If you would like to advertise any upcoming events you are organizing, please send us the press release material at book@seoulselection.com by the preceding Friday in order for it to appear in the following Tuesday’s issue.

Freelance Contributors Wanted – SEOUL magazine needs writers who are fluent in both Korean and English. Writers should have a strong interest in Korean culture and be able to interview Koreans. Send your resume and writing samples to book@seoulselection.com.

Forward this email to a friend Unsubscribe / Change Profile Sponsors Recommended SEOUL (March 2013) Korean Verb Conjugation Dictionary for Foreigners A Gentleman’s Dignity New Books Yonsei Korean 1-2 (with Audio CD) Yonsei Korean 1-1 (with Audio CD) Talk To Me In Korean Level 3 Hello Korean 2 English Edition Hello Korean 1 English Edition New DVDs Barbie Lady Furious Paradox Circle The Peach Tree Almost Che (Iron Dae-oh: The Nation’s Iron Bag)

Amseojae, a scenic pavilion used by 17th century scholar Song Si-yeol during his time in exile in the Hwayang Valley, Goesan. Photo by Robert Koehler.