The Jeju Olle, which were inspired by the famous Pilgrim’s Trail in Spain, was made from the hidden, forgotten routes of Jeju Island, which cars cannot access.
The route will take you to forests, mountains, beaches, and remote places and offer unrivalled views over Jeju’s unique, dramatic, volcanic landscape.
This particular olle took us up Dangsanbong - a hydrovolcanic edifice formed by explosive interactions of ground water and magma.
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There were spectacular views of the hinterland and the coastline
Splendid view of Chagwido, which comprises three islets, Daesom, Jisileeseom, and Wado. According to legend, an order to block 13 Hyeols (places of good spirit) on Jeju was given to a man named Hojongdan. However, he failed to complete his mission and on his return voyage a hawk suddenly turned into a storm and sank his ship. The name Chagwido means “Cannot go back” and was given from the belief that the mountain god of Mt Halla was angry and stopped Hojongdan from returning home.
A Korean walker was having his lunch in the hut at the top of Dangsanbong - he had his bowls of Korean food neatly laid out on the table around him - he certainly came well prepared!
For details of this olle see Dangsanbong olle
Sea level view of Chagwido
We travelled further down the coast to Songaksan
This mountain is also known as 99 Bong (99 peaks). The main peak rises 104m above sea level. There is also a crater about 500m in diameter and 80m deep
Along the jagged coastline are the large man-made caves built by local Koreans under the direction of the Japanese army during the Japanese occupation.
The caves were built for suicide attacks using small ships against the fleet of the allied forces. The facility comprises 17 caves which were built into the cliffs by the forced labour of the Jeju residents.
Songaksan is also the end of Olle trail 10 - apparently walkers would stamp a book to verify that they had reached this point.
For more details of Olle trails see Olle Trails
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