Yeongsil Trail (Mt Hallasan)

As much as I would like to hike to the summit of Mt Hallasan, it's not realistic due to my physical condition and my location on Jeju. Instead I will do a shorter hike called the Yeongsil Trail.

I ask my erstwhile Mimong hostess for transport information. Not easy for her to explain, she calls her husband, speaks to him, hands me the phone and he promptly hangs up! Then he walks in a minute later so he can explain in person. I will need to catch a bus to Jungmun, no problem, exit the bus at the elementary school, walk back to the rotary and catch the 240 bus for the "1100 road".

Somewhat unusually, it actually pans out. I catch the bus to the Jungmun elementary school, walk back to the rotary and look at the timetable. Buses are hourly and the next one is some time away. There is a cafe nearby, I order a latte, receive a flat white (YES!) and sit outside to observe while sipping the coffee.

Shortly after finishing my coffee, the 240 bus arrives. I'm hoping it will go to the Yeongsil ticket office rather than just the Yeongsil entrance. Fortunately it does which saves a lot of time. From the ticket office there's still a 2.5 km walk to the trailhead, around 30 minutes walking.

The weather's pretty good today so there are panoramic views as the trail ascends. Plenty of crows around also, they seem to dominate the higher terrain. Autumn colours are everywhere, Mt Hallasan is always present and the sea can be seen in the distance. There are quite a few hikers out today, but it's not too crowded.

I want to catch the 14:22 or 15:22 bus back to Jungmun so I won't hike to the end of the trail. Instead I stop at Witseoreum Shelter, which is at 1700 metres. It's an ideal lunch stop as it has a restaurant, toilets and places to sit. The wind whistles through here though. What looks to be a school group packs up lunch and move out - the crows move in to pick through the scraps.

I've eaten, rested and so it's time to head down. Still a lot of hikers coming through but the weather has taken a turn for the worse. Clouds move in and obscure the view, looks like a morning hike was the better option.

At the trailhead I realize that I will probably miss the 14:22 bus by 10 minutes if I walk back to the bus stop. So I hand over 7000 won and take a taxi to the bus stop. Bus turns up a little late, I may have made it by walking but why risk it?

All good coming back to Jungmun, then to Seogwipo. It's 16:45 by the time I return to Mimong. I'm looking forward to a long hot bath to rest my aching feet. My erstwhile hostess tells me she hasn't made up the room, I tell her not to bother. Second day in a row, hopefully tomorrow is different!Read more