ulsanbawi 울산바위

817 meters

7km return

📍trailhead

I finally got a little taste of hiking in Seoraksan National Park and I can’t wait for more. Andrew and I first visited Seoraksan a few years back and after crawling along in traffic for over an hour and finally parking, we got turned back at the trailhead by park staff due to it starting to rain heavily. I was super disappointed after making the long journey up north, but there wasn’t much I could do about it.

Flash forward to Chuseok of 2019 and I finally got my chance again! Andrew and I had a trip planned to nearby Yang Yang to stay at a pension on the beach. I didn’t want to completely desert Andrew for the whole day, since he couldn’t come because we had our pup, Gimli with us. So I thought Ulsanbawi would be a perfect short hike allowing me to return mid-morning.

Upon arriving at the trailhead slightly after 6am, I had most of the parking lot almost entirely to myself, which lead to a near empty trail. The skies were clear and the sun was casting a beautiful warm glow on the mountains. It was magical.

After entering the park, the first ten minutes is mostly walking past coffee shops, souvenir shops, and bathrooms. You’ll also notice the cable car on your left. If you have more time than I did, it’d be interesting to combine this with an Ulsanbawi hike since it only took about 3 hours including hangout time at the top (I should mention that I really hustled on my way back down since the trail was filling up quickly and I was eager to get back.) I’d allow for 4 hours for this hike if you weren’t in a hurry and to account for a lot more people on the trail.)

There are a few points of interest within the park entrance area, such as Sanheungsa Temple and a large sitting Buddha. Shortly after starting, you’ll be walking over a concrete bridge, then turning right to get to the actual trail. This was as far I we got last time before getting turned back by park staff.

You’ll start out by following a narrow concrete roadway that runs alongside a stream. During my visit there was a makeshift walkway bridge under construction. It looked rickety, but it was still pretty fun to walk over. After crossing over this you’ll be on an actual trail. Much of the hike from here on out to the last kilometer is quite flat so it’ll be easy going for some time.

Soon along the trail, you’ll come to a very small prayer area; Naewonam 내원암. The trail will begin to curve slightly to the right after this. It’s still relatively flat along here and easy to keep cruising along.

The next interesting stop along the trail is Heundeul Rock 흔들바위 and another temple; Gyejoam 계조암. This temple area is more elaborate than the previous one on the trail as there is a prayer area built into the rocks themselves. As for Heundeul Rock, It seems to be a tradition to try and push the rock over…who am I to break tradition? So I gave it a go as well.

A few steps after this, the trail will change quite dramatically. You’ll be going from a relatively flat course to about 1km of stairs with rocks perched above. It’s a short distance though and hopefully it’ll go as quickly for you as it did for me.

Climbing, climbing, climbing…

Finally, you’ll emerge at the top. You’ll be able to turn right to get to a higher vantage point (where the cover photo was taken), as well as go left to get closer to the rocky ridge ahead.

From this point, there is a stunning view all around and you can see the jagged rock formations of Seoraksan as well as the highest peak in the park: Daechongbong 대청봉. Looking towards the other side of the rocks you can see the coast line and the outskirts of Sokcho city.

Take your time at the peak and enjoy those views before making your way back the 3.5km to the beginning.