Cherry blossom spots, Seomjin River Bicycle Path, Bicycle Camping, Day 1

Hello, this is #RunningHaeYoung, a woman who enjoys exercising.

When it comes to cherry blossom spots, there are so many places that come to mind.

I wanted to combine cherry blossoms, cycling, and camping,

so I packed my backpack on my Brompton (folding bicycle)

and headed to the Seomjin River Bicycle Path.

According to the Bicycle Happiness Sharing website,

the Seomjin River Bicycle Path is a pristine natural

landscape that preserves the beauty of the Seomjin River,

making it a premium cycling path.

(Bicycle Happiness Sharing website)

https://www.bike.go.kr/index.do

​

The 174km course is considered the most scenic cycling path

in the country.

(The actual route for the entire course is approximately 149km.)

10:00 AM Board the bus to Jeollanam-do Gangjin

It wasn't the first bus, but the second one.

There were so many bicycles, not people,

that I wouldn't have been able to fit if it wasn't a folding bike.

Even the existing bikes had their wheels removed

and were stacked up... it was very packed.

(From the comments, it seems like the first bus was even more packed.)

I gave the riders who helped us load our bikes

#Orion protein bars as a thank you.

​

13:00 PM Arrive at Jeollanam-do Gangjin Terminal

We arrived, but couldn't have lunch,

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step"... We went to

a Korean-style eatery at the terminal and had a delicious meal.

Besides, we had to stay overnight,

so we needed to find rope and other things to secure

our backpacks, tent, and other items to the bike.

​

15:30 PM Departure

Finally, we set off. We were a little late,

the entire route is about 149 km,

so we aimed to cover at least 49 km.

Seomjin River Sports Park – Janggunmok – Hyangga Resort – Hwangtanjeong – Sasungam – Namdo Bridge – Maehwa Village – Baealdo Waterfront Park

The Seomjin River Sports Park is 1.5 km from the terminal?

It's very close, so consider the starting point as the Seomjin River Sports Park.

​

(We started our Garmin from the terminal and it measured 155 km.)

Seomjin River Sports Park Certification Center

We started stamping our cycling journal.

We are now heading towards Janggunmok,

but since this is our first time bike camping,

there were more inconveniences than I expected.

It's not fast and it's heavy,

I really miss my road bike.

​

Janggunmok Resort Certification Center

After riding for about 14 km, we reached

the Janggunmok Resort Certification Center.

There's already a campground here.

There are no convenience stores within 14 km,

so you need to bring everything with you.

​

Next, we head towards Hyangga Resort.

Hyangga Resort is located about 25 km away,

and the road there was quite beautiful.

As we passed Yufong Bridge and saw the open space,

I started to see cherry blossoms.

(There were no cherry blossoms until about 30 km.)

Then, the sun began to set,

so we started looking for a place to set up our tent.

That's how we ended our first day with 46 km.

144 km in total, over two days,

Seomjin River Bicycle Camping.

We still have the task of riding 100 km the next day,

but we'll ride with a happy heart.

Stay tuned for Day 2.

​

For more details,

please check out #RunningHaeYoung's YouTube channel!