[Jo Yongjun's Travel Stories] Sujupalbong, a Rising Car Camping Spot That Even King Cheoljong Admired

Chungju Healing Journey - Chungjuho Drive, Wellness Tourism Enjoyed at Gipeunsansok Ongdalsam

Sujupalbong with morning mist rising

The scenery of Susu Palbong where the Dalcheon River winds around

Kayak Experience at Hwalok Cave, a Hot Place in Chungju

A view of Chungju Lake and Alligator Island from Ak-eo Peak
Chungju City plans to establish a trail and an observatory at Ak-eo Peak by the end of this year.

Calm Chungju Lake

Deep Mountain Ongdalsae Healing Program

Chungjuho

[Asia Economy, Yongjun Cho, Travel Specialist Reporter] There are two reasons for choosing Chungju, Chungbuk as a travel destination. One is that it allows for non-face-to-face drive travel suitable for social distancing due to COVID-19. National Route 36, running along Chungju Lake, offers beautiful winding riverside scenery. Along this road is Alligator Island, a popular hot spot in Chungju. The ridge of the lakeside seems to creep into the lake like a group of alligators, hence the name. The other reason is that it is a healing travel destination where you can rejuvenate your body and mind tired from COVID-19. Chungju is gaining recognition as a wellness tourism destination, a new tourism trend pursuing well-being and happiness. Not only that, while enjoying a drive along the Dalcheon River, you can encounter the solid and dignified peaks of Suju Palbong rising along the river. There are plenty of places to enjoy your own travel while avoiding COVID-19, such as Chungju Lake Jongdaengi-gil and Haneuljae-gil.

△Chungju Lake Alligator Island ? The alligator family I visited again after 11 years is still doing well

Drive travel is the trend in the COVID-19 era. Chungju is no exception. A beautiful beach drive road runs all year round along Chungju Lake.

From the metropolitan area, it is recommended to drive along National Route 36 from Suanbo Rest Area on the south side of Chungju Lake to Songgye Valley in Jecheon. Passing through Naesari, Sinmaeri, Mureung-ri, and Sindal-ri, this road offers a view where the ridge of the lakeside seems to creep into the lake.

This scenery looks like a group of alligators entering the water, so the area’s terrain is called 'Alligator Island.' The best place to see Alligator Island is around Alligator Peak in Woraksan National Park. You can closely observe and view the natural scenery, vegetation, and ecology of Chungju Lake, making it a rising tourist spot in Chungju. However, to get to Alligator Peak, you have to hike illegally because it is a non-designated trail section of Woraksan National Park.

I set out to find the alligator family again after 11 years. I parked at a rest area along National Route 36 and started hiking. A warning broadcast from an unmanned detection system installed by Woraksan National Park announced that this is a non-designated trail. I felt uneasy about the illegal hike. Despite the warning, the mountain path was worn out by countless footsteps.

To reach Alligator Island, you have to climb a steep path for about 30 to 40 minutes. The hiking trail is steep and not well maintained, continuing to ascend until the summit. Once you reach the top and see the alligator group, the steep hike is instantly forgotten. The sight of the alligator group stepping one by one from the swamp into Chungju Lake is simply a natural beauty that makes you exclaim in admiration.

Chungju City plans to open a trail in the Alligator Peak section by the end of this year. This became possible after Woraksan National Park partially changed the wildlife protection area last December. The trail will have safety facilities such as ropes and decks, and an Alligator Island observatory will be built at the top. Once COVID-19 ends and the trail is completed, you will be able to comfortably hike up Alligator Peak.

△Hwalok Cave ? Reconstructed from an abandoned mine into a tourist attraction, thrilling cave kayaking

Another attraction along Chungju Lake is Hwalok Cave, which was transformed from an abandoned mine into a tourist site. If you visit thinking it’s a typical cave tourist spot, you will be surprised by its enormous scale. The main cave is large enough for a large bus to pass through with room to spare. Including the smaller side caves, the cave’s length is said to be as much as 55 km.

Upon opening the cave door and entering, a warm sensation was felt. Since the outside temperature was around minus 10 degrees Celsius, the warmth inside was unfamiliar and fascinating. Hwalok Cave maintains an internal temperature of about 14 degrees even in midwinter. It’s like a natural refrigerator even in summer.

Unlike the dark feeling of natural caves, Hwalok Cave is bright and luminous. The rocks forming the cave are light-colored, and the lighting is bright, making the overall atmosphere bright and gentle.

There are huge machines called 'hoists' used to lift mined minerals, exhibition spaces recreating mining scenes, remnants of the old mine, cafes, restaurants, a music room, a wine cellar, and health therapy facilities. There are also spaces decorated with luminous paint and sculptures shaped like animals or fish illuminated by lights.

The most impressive experience in Hwalok Cave was kayaking on the cave’s lake. Visitors rode transparent acrylic kayaks and paddled on the lake inside the cave. Schools of fish swam alongside the visitors in the clear water.

Originally, Hwalok Cave was a mine called 'Dongyang Mine' that extracted talc and other minerals. Talc, also called 'gopdol,' is a soft stone with a smooth texture like a candle.

The mining rights for the talc mine, first discovered in 1900, were given to a Japanese person who led mineral exploitation in Korea during the Japanese colonial period in 1912. Full-scale mining development began in 1919, and the heyday of the talc mine was after liberation. During the Korean War in 1952, Dongyang Mine’s talc production accounted for over 70% of the national output. Until the 1970s, Dongyang Mine was the largest talc mine in Asia.

△Suju Palbong ? The steep peaks along Dalcheon are solid and dignified

Since last year, Suju Palbong has become a popular 'car camping' spot. Car camping means camping by sleeping in your car. On weekends, car camping vehicles fill the riverside of Suju Palbong, which overlooks the flow of the Dalcheon River. However, due to COVID-19, car camping and camping are currently completely prohibited.

Suju Palbong was a famous tourist spot even before becoming a car camping destination. Among the landscapes created by the Dalcheon River, Suju Palbong was considered the best. Although its height is a modest 493 meters, it is a small but grand mountain with rugged rocky peaks. Each peak, such as Dagger Rock, Middle Rock, and Knife Rock, rises sharply as if piercing the sky. Their presence is solid and dignified. The scenery combining the river winding around the mountain base, waterfalls, and sandbanks looks like a painting in a folding screen.

Here is an old story. During the reign of King Cheoljong of Joseon, the king dreamed that he was sitting by the river with his feet in the water, and eight mountain peaks were reflected in the water. The king asked if there was such a place in the eight provinces and ordered a painting to be sent. Soon after, a painting of Suju Palbong was sent. The king saw it and thought it resembled the dream, so he visited the place.

He took a boat from Yujumak ferry to Palbong and admired the mysterious scenery. Upon reaching under Knife Rock, he looked around and joyfully declared this was the place. He found the exact spot from his dream and dipped his feet in the water. Since then, the place where the king dipped his feet and rested was called 'Eorimpo,' the path the king walked was called 'Wangdap,' and the village was named 'Wangdaragi.'

Suju Palbong is named after the eight peaks surrounding the Dalcheon riverside. The middle part between the eight peaks was cut off. During the Japanese colonial period, the mountain ridge was cut to reclaim farmland from the original river basin. A small waterfall formed between the cut peaks, and a cloud bridge was built.

△Deep Mountain Ongdalsem ? A wellness tourism destination pursuing well-being and happiness

The final destination in Chungju is Deep Mountain Ongdalsem, a mind-healing travel spot using meditation and rest. It is a wellness tourism center selected by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Tourism Organization, where you can experience healing and meditation. Wellness tourism is a new tourism trend pursuing well-being and happiness, and wellness destinations are places where you can discover a restored body and mind along with beauty, healing, rest, and health.

The meditation at Deep Mountain Ongdalsem is based on the motto 'healing the mind with the mind.' The most representative walking meditation is easy for anyone to start. You walk silently without time, direction, or goal, then pause briefly at the sound of a gong to listen to the sounds of nature and your inner voice. It is a calm and peaceful meditation method.

Log meditation involves relaxing stiff muscles from head to toe through cypress logs and shaking off tension and fatigue accumulated in daily life. It is a representative meditation method.

There are also various programs for different age groups, including one-day meditation, brief pauses, fasting meditation, Dreaming Couple School, and Beyond Dream Youth School.

Due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic and increased time spent at home, an online wellness travel program called 'Online Body and Mind Wellness Travel' is also operated. You can experience the sounds of nature, scenery of Deep Mountain Ongdalsem, and major wellness travel spots in Chungju online anytime and anywhere worldwide.

With just a mobile phone, you can participate regardless of time and place, tailored to your personal environment. You can communicate online with wellness experts in healing meditation, beauty spa, and forest healing, supporting daily routines and self-care that might be difficult alone.

Chungju = Written and photographed by Yongjun Cho, travel specialist reporter jun21@

◇Travel Notes

△How to get there=From the metropolitan area, take Yeongdong Expressway, then exit at Goesan IC on the Jungbu Naeryuk Expressway and enter National Route 36, leading to the Worak Ferry Terminal and the Chungju Lake drive road.

△Attractions=There are Tangeumdae, Mireuk Daewonji, Jangmi Fortress, Bonghwang-ri Rock-carved Buddha Statues, National Land Central Tower, Odaeho Art Factory, and more.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.