Seosan Deoksungsan Mountain at Choongnam Province in Korea- Hike

1. Date and Time : Sept 5, 2018.  9:00~12:30 (Three and half an hour including one hour break).

2.  Location : Seosan City in Choongnam Province in Korea.

3. Distance and Course : About 8.21 km. Course is to start Sudeoksa Parking Lot => Sudeoksa Temple => Hyangungak Hermitage => Mangongtap Pagoda => Jeoghaesa Temple => Deoksungsan (495m Altitude) => Back to Sudeoksa Parking Lot through Ascending Course. If you like to overlook on video, please link to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5OC7slfXsM&t=431s.

4. Particular and Summary :

Deoksungsan Mountain is situated at Yesan District in Choongcheong Province which is inclusive of many extremely strange rocks and very curious landscapes and nominating as Provincial Parkat March 6, 1073. Natural scenery is so beautiful and sometime calling as Hoseo Keumgansan (South West Golden Mountain). There are many reputed hermitages here and there on the mountain which many visitors come and see.

Sudeoksa Temple is first built by Seungje, Buddhist Monk in Baeje Dynasty on the Deoksungsan Mountain which was renovated by Naong Monk in Goryeo Dynasty. There was another records this temple was built by Jimyeong Buddhist Monk at the 1st Year of King Beopwang in Baeje Dynasty which was renovated by Wonhyeo Daesa (Great Monk). But present Daeungjeo (main temple) was built at the Year 34 in King Choongryeol in Goryeo Dynasty which was positioned with Buddha Statue. We could say this temple is the oldest wooden house in Korea based on confirmed records.

5.  Access :

There is several ways to connect “Seoul Express Bus Terminal (”connecting at subway lines No. 3, 7 and 9) where you should get on Express Bus bound for Naepo Shindoshi Express Bus Terminal, non-stop and taking 1 hour and 40 minutes. When you get off at the Naepo Shindoshi Express Bus Terminal, you should walk to Naepo Shindoshi Intercity Bus Terminal taking about 1 minutes for about 45m distance and get on local Bus No 990 there taking 38 minutes for 17 bus stop passing and get off at Sudeoksa Bus Stop and walk to Sudeoksa Temple taking 7 minutes for 441m. Please refer more details to the “Transportation from Seoul Express Bus Terminal to Sudeoksa”. You could simply take reverse course on your way back home. I could estimate total transportation is about 3 hour for one way which comes total 6 hours for round trip. But you would reduce this transportation time to 4 hours for round trip in case you use private car or rent car which you could save two hour for the transportation.

6.  Overall Remarks.

Deoksungsan Mountain has been nominated by KFS (Korea Forest Service) as 100^th reputed mountain Korea taking into account following points. There are many strange elegant rocks going well together with beautiful nature scenery and appointed in 1973 as Provincial Park. Sudeoksa temple, widely well known to most people in Korea was situating on the Deoksungsan Mountain and Maaebul (Buddha on Cliff Rock) noticed as national treasure No 355.
6-1) Sudeoksa Temple
I walked through small village at Deoksan District which is mainly tourist business for major income as soon as I parked the car and reached Sudeoksa External Entrance Gate (First Gate) after about 5 minutes walking from the parking lot. There is ticket booth at the Gate stating as KRW 3,000 for adult, KRW 2,000 for teenager and KRW 1,000 for children. When I passed the ticket booth, I encountered neat and fresh air road connecting to Sudeoksa Temple which is well organizing various lining up on the way at right and left. As I walked this road for about 6 minutes, I reached 2^nd temple gate mentioning as Deoksungsan Sudeoksa in Chines. There is traditional Sudeok Inn at left which looks traditional style house at really nature atmosphere as see at the photo and thereafter stone monument of Sudeoksa Temple at left on the way. I passed Sacheonwangmun (Four Heavenly Guardian Gate) after 10 minutes walking from the Sudeoksa Gate (2^nd temple). I passed the Sacheonwangmun Gate where four guardians are taking care of four directions at heaven, east, west, south and north. As I walked this gate, I found Commemoration for Sudeoksa Temple Museum and temple layout map which we could see what is where at the temple. As soon as I pass the Temple Information and walked up on stone stairs and saw seven story stone pagoda at left and Sudeoksa Main Entrance Gate in front. I finally reached Sudeoksa Daeungjeon field where I could see all major temple facilities like Daeungjeon (Main Temple House), Beonjonggak (Temple Bell House), Beomgogak (Temple Drum House), Hwaneumjeon (annex temple house), Myeongbujeon (annex temple house) and Samcheungsoktap (three story pagoda). I stood somewhere middle of Daeungjeon temple field and saw so spectacular scenery matching together with elegant surrounding mountains. Please see the photo relating to these facilities. I spent about 10 minutes walking around these facilities and moved to mountain hike course junction.       
6-2) Deoksungsan Mountain Hike
I turned right on the way down from the Daeungjeon temple and headed to Deoksungsan Mountain Hike starting point and found at the corner of the temple landmark stating as 1.89km to the Deoksungsan Summit and 0.96km to Jeonghaesa Temple subsidiary to Sudeoksa Temple. They mentioned there are 1,068 stone stairs from this point to Jeonghaesa Temple which should be sick of continuous almost countless stone stairs at very sharp incline, sometime almost vertical. When I walked up these stairs and following valley stream and hearing nature sound like stream, wind and bird for about 20 minutes, I met landmark saying as 1.36km to the summit. I kept on walking up these stairs for 10 minutes and found Maaebulsang (Buddha on Rock Cliff) where I quickly looked around. I just walked up on the stairs about a minute or two and reached Mangongtap Pagoda made with Mangong Monk. I shortly took a break and contineo9usely moved up and found landmark saying as 1.11km to the summit. As I walked about 3 to 5 minutes, I found Jeonghaesa Temple at left which I could unfortunately not enter the temple due to monk’s asceticism. I continuously walked the hike road for about 10 minutes and found junction landmark stating as either taking left course going to the summit for 500m or taking right course going to the summit for 750m. I choose left course, shorter distance and carried on walking through stone stair road and ordinary mountain narrow road for about 20 minutes and reached next junction stating as 740m to the summit. As I turned left at the junction, I kept walking up through stone stair road and struggled against inclined granite big rock for about 15 minutes and reached next landmark stating as 160m to the summit. I continuously walked on small and narrow bush path for about 15 minutes more and eventually touched down summit saying as 495m altitude and looking around the summit. But I could not see surround view because taller tree are fencing around the summit. I took some photo and video and started to descend and walked down for about 5 minutes and found proper open landscape where I could look down some surround view and took a photo and video. When I descend the mountain for about 1 hour and returned Sudeoksa Temple again and took so nice temple picture again and finally back to Parking Lot after 15 minutes walking down from the temple.