Gorgeous Gurye County, Road to Nature
Gurye county in Jeallanam-do is famous for such beautiful scenery that Tackriji, an ancient geography book written in the Joseon Period (the last dynasty of Korea [1392~1910]), extols the county for having three big things and three beautiful things.
The picturesque landscape of Gurye includes the Mt. Jiri range and the Seomjin River. Gurye is a central region in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and has been regarded, from olden times as the best scenic region. It also boasts broad fields, abundant crops, and the welcoming generosity of the people.
A Blessed County with Nature Intact
Mt. Jiri is the most noted mountain in the southern part of South Korea situated as it is on the southern edge of Korea’s greatest mountain range started from Mt. Baekdu. The mountain is beautiful throughout the four seasons with thick forests, meandering valleys, fantastic rocks and stone formations, and refreshing waterfalls and cascades. Gurye County is to the west of Mt. Jiri. From Gurye, it is possible to ascend up the Nogodan peak (1,507m) in the direction of the Hwaeomsa, a temple. Also, crossing over the Seongsamjae ridge, Nogodan peak can be reached.
Nogodan peak is one of three peaks of Mt. Jiri. It is named after the ‘Nogodan’, an altar enshrining the old goddess of a mountain. The highlands of Nogodan have the grand size of around 280 acre in Jirisan National Park. There can be found the altar where Koreans in the past used to perform religious ties to the goddess of Mt. Jiri. The whole neighborhood of the Nogodan is usually covered with a canopy of clouds and the mid-slope of Mt. Jiri is enveloped in this ethereal umbrella. The effect is imposing as if the peaks of the mountain float on a sea of clouds. The latter is one of ten scenic masterpieces that can be seen on Mt. Jiri. On Mt. Jiri, Manchurian black bears, an endangered species designated as natural treasure No. 329, attract the attention of visitors to the mountain.
Seomjin River embracing Mt. Jiri meanders for over 200km. Renowned for its beautiful scenery, the river is the cleanest in the country. Visitors can enjoy driving along the riverside road adorned with a motley variety of flowers. They can enjoy water leisure sports including rafting on the river.
A Spring County with Yellow and Pink Flowers in Full Bloom
Driving along No. 4 national road on the right side from the Sandong-myeon, northwards through Gurye County, for about ten minutes by car, one can reach Sangwi village. The village has the best plantation of ‘Sansuyu’ (Cornus officinalis) flowers in the nation. Toward the end of every March, Sansuyu flowers come into full bloom. Around that time, the Sansuyu flower festival is held and visitors around the nation flocked to see the yellow blossoms. They can participate in the festival, pick wild greens, and taste the sap of the painted maple (Acer mono) in spring and pick the fruits of Sansuyu and make Sansuyu tea in autumn.
In April a spring flower festival is held in the cherry blossom road - selected as one of the hundred most beautiful roads in Korea - along the Seomjin riverside in Muncheok-myeon. Walking down the cherry tree-lined road, it is easy to be intoxicated with the scent of pale-pink cherry blossom.
A Venerable County with History Breathing Alive
Hwaeomsa temple, a treasured monument of Buddhist culture, was built by Yeongi, an Indian monk, in 544 A.D., when King Jin Heung (534~576) was on the throne in the Silla period (one of the three early kingdoms in Korea [BC 57~AD 935]). Later in 1426 when the Great King Seo Jong (1397~1450) was on the throne in the Joseon period, Hwaeomsa temple was elevated to the home temple of Zen Buddhism. Before the outbreak of the Imjin war, when the Japanese invaded Korea in 1592, the temple had as many as 5,000 rooms, but it was burned down during the war and the monks of the temple fought to the death against Japanese invaders. After the war thankfully the temple was reconstructed. Some cultural assets, like the Gakhwangjeon, the biggest wooden construction in the East, the stone lantern, and the four-lion-supported three-storied stone pagoda of Hwaeomsa temple, were designated as national treasures and thus been protected.
Although Gurye does not produce a lot of green tea leaves, the Jangjukjeon green-tea leaves plantation in Gurye is famous. According to the Sam-guk-sa-gi (a history book about three the kingdoms of Korea in the early age, 1145), in 828 A.D. King Hong Deok during the Silla period ordered the seeds of the green-tea leaf to be sown on Mt. Jiri and the Jangjukjeon became the first plantation to grow green-tea leaves in Korea. Visitors can relish sips of traditional teas as well as green tea in the Jangjukjeon Jeda, a tea-making house.
Gurye county in Jeallanam-do is famous for such beautiful scenery that Tackriji, an ancient geography book written in the Joseon Period (the last dynasty of Korea [1392~1910]), extols the county for having three big things and three beautiful things.
The picturesque landscape of Gurye includes the Mt. Jiri range and the Seomjin River. Gurye is a central region in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and has been regarded, from olden times as the best scenic region. It also boasts broad fields, abundant crops, and the welcoming generosity of the people.
A Blessed County with Nature Intact
Mt. Jiri is the most noted mountain in the southern part of South Korea situated as it is on the southern edge of Korea’s greatest mountain range started from Mt. Baekdu. The mountain is beautiful throughout the four seasons with thick forests, meandering valleys, fantastic rocks and stone formations, and refreshing waterfalls and cascades. Gurye County is to the west of Mt. Jiri. From Gurye, it is possible to ascend up the Nogodan peak (1,507m) in the direction of the Hwaeomsa, a temple. Also, crossing over the Seongsamjae ridge, Nogodan peak can be reached.
Nogodan peak is one of three peaks of Mt. Jiri. It is named after the ‘Nogodan’, an altar enshrining the old goddess of a mountain. The highlands of Nogodan have the grand size of around 280 acre in Jirisan National Park. There can be found the altar where Koreans in the past used to perform religious ties to the goddess of Mt. Jiri. The whole neighborhood of the Nogodan is usually covered with a canopy of clouds and the mid-slope of Mt. Jiri is enveloped in this ethereal umbrella. The effect is imposing as if the peaks of the mountain float on a sea of clouds. The latter is one of ten scenic masterpieces that can be seen on Mt. Jiri. On Mt. Jiri, Manchurian black bears, an endangered species designated as natural treasure No. 329, attract the attention of visitors to the mountain.
Seomjin River embracing Mt. Jiri meanders for over 200km. Renowned for its beautiful scenery, the river is the cleanest in the country. Visitors can enjoy driving along the riverside road adorned with a motley variety of flowers. They can enjoy water leisure sports including rafting on the river.
A Spring County with Yellow and Pink Flowers in Full Bloom
Driving along No. 4 national road on the right side from the Sandong-myeon, northwards through Gurye County, for about ten minutes by car, one can reach Sangwi village. The village has the best plantation of ‘Sansuyu’ (Cornus officinalis) flowers in the nation. Toward the end of every March, Sansuyu flowers come into full bloom. Around that time, the Sansuyu flower festival is held and visitors around the nation flocked to see the yellow blossoms. They can participate in the festival, pick wild greens, and taste the sap of the painted maple (Acer mono) in spring and pick the fruits of Sansuyu and make Sansuyu tea in autumn.
In April a spring flower festival is held in the cherry blossom road - selected as one of the hundred most beautiful roads in Korea - along the Seomjin riverside in Muncheok-myeon. Walking down the cherry tree-lined road, it is easy to be intoxicated with the scent of pale-pink cherry blossom.
A Venerable County with History Breathing Alive
Hwaeomsa temple, a treasured monument of Buddhist culture, was built by Yeongi, an Indian monk, in 544 A.D., when King Jin Heung (534~576) was on the throne in the Silla period (one of the three early kingdoms in Korea [BC 57~AD 935]). Later in 1426 when the Great King Seo Jong (1397~1450) was on the throne in the Joseon period, Hwaeomsa temple was elevated to the home temple of Zen Buddhism. Before the outbreak of the Imjin war, when the Japanese invaded Korea in 1592, the temple had as many as 5,000 rooms, but it was burned down during the war and the monks of the temple fought to the death against Japanese invaders. After the war thankfully the temple was reconstructed. Some cultural assets, like the Gakhwangjeon, the biggest wooden construction in the East, the stone lantern, and the four-lion-supported three-storied stone pagoda of Hwaeomsa temple, were designated as national treasures and thus been protected.
Although Gurye does not produce a lot of green tea leaves, the Jangjukjeon green-tea leaves plantation in Gurye is famous. According to the Sam-guk-sa-gi (a history book about three the kingdoms of Korea in the early age, 1145), in 828 A.D. King Hong Deok during the Silla period ordered the seeds of the green-tea leaf to be sown on Mt. Jiri and the Jangjukjeon became the first plantation to grow green-tea leaves in Korea. Visitors can relish sips of traditional teas as well as green tea in the Jangjukjeon Jeda, a tea-making house.