In August, the prime month of summer, I took a bus bound for Sunchang-gun, Jeollabuk-do to reach Mt. Gangcheon. It was so hard for me to bear such a dull time of three hours in the bus. However, when I arrived in Mt. Gangcheon, fresh air was waiting for me.

Mt. Gangcheon is the first county park, located on the edge of Sunchang-gun, and it has various shapes and sizes of rocks, beautiful green forests, clean water, beautiful and cool valleys all of which are enough for us to call it the Geumgang of Honam.When I started to climb the mountain, what I saw at first was a big waterfall called ‘Byeong Poong’ of which the name was given by the shape of shielding the rocks there like silk. The height of the waterfall was 40 meters and it has the legend that if a person passes below it, his soul could be purified; even if he were a criminal.

The passage to the mountain is diverged with two roads: a log road and a sand road. The sand road makes it possible to walk with bare feet, so I selected the sand route because walking on the sand route with bare feet will be good for my health. The sand route got wet from the rain that day and it made my feeling fresh with the surrounding good smell of the forest.

At the mountain’s breast there was an already constructed footbridge. The height and length of it was each 50 meters high and 75 meters long: the longest footbridge in the country. However, when the footbridge swayed in the wind, I became so scared. In spite of the fright the footbridge brought me, the beautiful scenery from it was beyond description with words. Coming down from the footbridge, I walked more until a waterfall came out. The name of the waterfall I headed for is ‘Nine Generals,’ of which the name originated from the legend of nine generals. The height of it is 120 meters. Seeing a small and big two water streams from it, I felt my mind get cooler and cooler.

The next stop of my tour was the metasequoia-lined road, located in Danyang-gun, Jeollanam-do and designated as the most beautiful road in Korea by the Ministry of Construction and Transportation many times. A lot of trees were planted on the both sides of the road. This road became more popular since it was used as the background location of the recently released movie, Splendid Vacation. The road used to attract 400-500 people per a day, and that number has nearly doubled because of its popularity. I think it’s a wonderful place to take a stroll with your loving partner just as Jun-sang and Yoo-jin in Winter Sonata did.

Mt. Gangcheon and the metasequoia-lined road, which I visited this time, are the places which have different impressions for each of the four seasons. In spring, all the fresh and green leaves and flowers spout out the feeling of spring. In summer, when these leaves grow thick, they give out the feeling of prime summer. In autumn, when green leaves change their colors into autumnal tints, the mountain became a gold mountain and the road a gold road. In winter, when the trees shed the dying leaves and snow falls, the mountain became filled with beautiful snow flowers.

Many people vaguely think the best method of escaping hot summer weather is to go to the beach. However, I think going to the mountains, conversely, will present you with a more refreshing experience of enjoying the summer. Don’t forget to think of Mt. Gangcheon and the metasequoia-lined road for your travel course.