NOBODY SAID THIS ABOUT HALLASAN

Last year April, I decided that I should hike Hallasan as my birthday celebration.

Was it a good choice? Yea, probably. Would I do it again? Nah.

I hiked the Gwaneumsa trail, which was supposedly more scenic, shorter but harder path. Was it really scenic? Maybe just certain parts as shown in the pictures. Otherwise, it’s mostly like the hike in Singapore - surrounded by trees. So if you’re not a tree person, then just go for the easier route, which is Seongpanak trail.

To make sure I knew what I signed up for, I googled about the trail, went through both TikTok and Lemon8 to find out about people’s experience. But no one talked about the ✨amount of stairs✨ there is for Gwaneumsa trail.

The hike was pretty easy for the first half, however, after the resting point, it was mostly stairs.

I spent 4 hours hiking up, with breaks in between. Out of that 4 hours, about 1.5 hours was spent climbing stairs constantly. My thighs were basically burning halfway through. They weren’t lying about it being a more tedious trail.

Some things to note if you decide to hike Hallasan:

1. Get a hiking shoe with good grip

While most of the path are paved, there are areas that aren’t, and have plenty of loose rocks. My partner has a loose ankle, and it was difficult for him when we are heading back down even tho he was already wearing a hiking shoe. Because of that, we spent 5 hours coming down.

2. Layer up if you’re afraid of cold like me

We went during early April, when it was transitioning to Spring. It was pretty cold at the top of Hallasan. I wore a puffy jacket that is suitable for 1-10 degrees. Even with the stairs and climbing, I was still feeling the chill.

3. Pack some hot food & sweets

I only packed 2 gimbap, some granola bars, 2 bottles of energy drink & 1 litre plain water. ITS NOT ENOUGH. We weren’t even hungry, but we were so low on energy. So I would say some chocolates and more energy drink is a must!!

It was lucky that this kind uncle that we met along the way very kindly gave us some chocolates before we went down the mountain. Otherwise, I might have to call for rescue.

4. TRAIN unless you don’t mind walking like a duck after the hike

I head to the gym 4-5 times a week, with 2 session being leg days. And even with that, my thigh was burning so bad while climbing the stairs. My partner hardly exercise previously, and the day after the hike, he used an umbrella as his walking stick.

5. Booking is required if you intend to hike to the peak

There are only two trails that lead you to the peak of Hallasan. And for these two trails, you will have to make an online booking. They will then send you a QR code for entry.

All in all, Hallasan is more of a one-time experience for me. I enjoy hiking whenever I head overseas, so this is definitely something off my bucket list.

The people we met along the hike were very kind as well. We met a group of commandos and they kept cheering us on, a group of aunties also offered us their bento when we merely made a remark that it looks good. And not forgetting the MVP uncle who gave us digestive biscuits, chocolates and water because he knew we ran out of it.

#storytime #lemon8travel #MyLemon8Diary #Lemon8SG #jejuexperience #KoreaTravel #ThingsToDo #hiking