[Hiking in Seoul] Gaehwasan Trail

This year, many people have postponed or cancelled their summer vacation to Korea due to COVID-19. You could keep this in your itinerary list, and hopefully have the chance to visit this place when COVID-19 is gone.

In this post, we will introduce Gangseo Trail, where you can enjoy hiking in Seoul city.

To get to Gangseo Trail, you can easily walk from Banghwa Station or Gaehwa Station. This trail is suitable for adults and children and along this trail, you can visit Haneul-gil Observatory, Ara Waterway Observatory, Yaksa Temple and Forest Book Cafe.

There are many signboard showing Gangseo Trail so it is not difficult to find your way to the destination that you want.

The first destination is the Haneul-gil Observatory.

The road to Haneul-gil Observatory Deck is easy and not too far, so you can reach this place in a short time.

The view from the observatory is much better than what we expected. You are able to see Gimpo Airport far away and even watch planes taking off. It makes you feel better when you look at this scenery.

After leaving observatory deck, we continue walking again. The path is neatly paved so it is okay if you bring small children along. Along the way, you will be able to observe that they are making effort to protect the trees. In addition, you can enjoy beautiful scenery of nature and pretty birds that you don't usually see in the city center as you walk along the train in Gaehwasan Mountain.

The second destination is Sinseonbawi. If you follow sign, you will come to this stairs (in the image above).

After going up the stairs, you reach the point full of rocks in unique shape.

Long time ago, this rock is called the rock road where the mountain gods of Gaehwasan Mountain comes down to rest. Since the view is nice, you can rest here for awhile before continue hiking.

From one side, you can see planes stopped at Gimpo Airport.

The next destination is the forest rest area. Perhaps this is not a special spot, but you may just take a rest here before moving to next stop.

After the Forest Rest Area, you will arrive at Ara Waterway Observatory.

It is hard to see Ara Waterway due to the forest, but this is a good spot to enjoy the cityscape.

Next, we are going to Yaksa Temple. The trail to Yaksa Temple is slightly longer than other spots but it is not difficult to walk, so you can easily find it.

As you walk along the trail, you will see a wide-spread helicopter landing site after passing two beacon fire stations.

The Gaehwasan Observatory is located next to the helipad. In Summer where the sky is clear, you may be able to see Banghwa Bridge located at far away.

You can find signboard showing Yaksa Temple on the trail next to the Gaehwasan Observatory. If you go straight and walk down the path, you will arrive at the Yaksa Temple.

Yaksa Temple is a temple located in Gaehwasan Mountain. Yaksa Temple has a long history and you see the three-story stone pagoda and stone Buddha statue, which are the tangible cultural properties.

When you walk along Gaehwasan trail, you can easily find small messages on trees.

If you return to the original path after passing through Yaksa Temple, walk along the road next to the wire fence near the military base and you will see a path on your right. If you follow the path, you will reach a rest area where the Gaehwasan Mountain rocks are set up. For your information, you're not allowed to take pictures at the hiking trail near the military base.

To get to book cafe, you have to come back down the road that you took. As you follow the trail, you will find a small downward path on your right. If you look down the road, you can see a deck at the end of the path.

If you walking down the deck, you will find a small rest area Gaehwasan trail, which is a tree book cafe.

At the book cafe on Gaehwasan Mountain, there is also a table where you can enjoy reading leisurely, and you can freely read the books on the bookshelf. Since it is a sharing place, you should put back the book at the original place after reading it.

There is another book cafe located about 5 mins walk down the trail, so you may also visit this place.

It will talk about 2 hours to complete the whole course at Gangseo Trail.

If you would like to go for a short hiking trip in Seoul next time, do keep this in your list!

[Information about Gaehwasan Trail]

1. Getting here : At AREX Gimpo Airport Station, transfer to Subway Line 5  ▶ Get off at Banghwa Station Exit 4, Walk 9 mins 

2. Address : Gaehwa-dong, Gangseo-gu, Seoul

*Please wear a mask and practice social distancing to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Wash hands frequently and practice cough etiquette. Stay safe!