Moaksan (모악산)

Moaksan Provincial Park (모악산도립공원) was the second mountain of this moody, rainy summer day. In many ways, it was similar to Maisan – our first provincial park of the day. It shared the same easy accessibility, thanks to its location close to civilization. Moaksan, like Maisan, featured runnable trail on rolling earth. The weather made both parks misty and moist. But the similarities end there! Maisan has a short trail leading up one of its twin peaks. Moaksan has a long ridge trail over a single peak. Maisan’s summit is quaint and quiet. In contrast, Moaksan’s peak is is active and busy, dominated as it is by communications infrastructure!

A panoramic image taking in a sweeping green and grey vista. The mountain slopes rolling away down the bottom of the frame are emerald and jade. A flat area stretches across the middle of the frame, topped by more emerald mountains and thick grey clouds. A radio tower climbs up the edge of the frame on the left.

Upon arrival, we hit the ground running. Getting to the park had taken a bit of a bus journey, and we were starting in the afternoon, so there was not a moment to lose. First, we raced up a road that led to a fortress-like, silent hermitage. A moment or two in contemplation, then onward, branching onto a tiny trail that saw us enter a dense, lush, jungle of a forest. We chased a little river upwards as millions of insects cried out in chorus around us. Nature was demonstrating its abundance, and we encountered a couple of snakes, a mouse and several kind of frogs! We ran alongside butterflies and into swirling clouds of them. Sometimes the trail itself was a splashing stream, tumbling down sets of stone steps.

An image taken from a grassy area above a temple. There is a lantern and some stone steps in the center of the image. A temple made of plain brown wood and black roof tiles sits on a flat plain of rocks. In the background, a mountain slope leans left, out of the frame, and a misty expanse of farmland is faintly visible. — The serene Cheongnyongsa temple

An image of the first snake we saw on our Moaksan outing. This one is brown with a pattern of stripes on its back. It is coiled up but alert, warming itself on the paved surface of an access road. — First snake!

An image depicting a trail in Moaksan Provincial Park. Several rock steps head upwards through a clearing in the foliage, but they are all covered with rushing water! — Trail, stream…or both?

The rolling trail and the lovely lushness of the forest below made this mountain a pleasure to run. The rain was intermittent and cooling – literally but not figuratively dampening our fun. I particularly liked a high platform that we spotted from afar, and made it to at just the right moment to catch a break in the clouds!

An image showing a green prominence rising from the ridge. It is dense with foliage right to its rocky edge, where there is a small lookout platform. Swirls of dark grey clouds hang low on the horizon, seeming to almost touch the platform. A lighter mist obscures the details of the valley beween the platform and the clouds. — Let’s go here!

An image of the author standing on the platform seen in the previous picture. In front of the metal railing and a background of grey mist, the author balances on one leg with her arms stretched out to either side. — Silly celebrations

The main peak was a surreal telecom complex – but we were allowed to climb on the roof of a big building. This made for great views! There were several sets of mounted binoculars, through which was spotted colorful hikers making progress on the ridge and a soccer game in a distant field.

An image of the communications infrastructure on Moaksan's peak. This shot was taken from a helipad, where a sign points hikers in the direction of the main peak. The peak itself is a prominent green rise, with multiple buildings and radio antennae on top. There is a low layer of heavy clouds hanging in the sky, and mist in the valley below the peak. — Moaksan’s summit: a working bong

The usual image of the author standing with the summit stele. Only this one is actually a faded wooden sign, surrounded by fencing, cameras, satellites and a loudspeaker. The background is a staircase leading up the side of a building on the left, alongside a catwalk and fence to the right. — Unique stele

A summit selfie: the author and her husband face the camera, smiling over a background of green foliage. Far below is a town surrounding a small silver lake. Mountains are lost in mist in the distance.

On the way down, I helped a frog navigate some steep steps. We enjoyed a speedy descent alongside a rushing river. The green foliage overhead protected us from most of the rain, and a small, ankle-height forest of mushrooms appeared in places along the path and perfumed the humid air.

An image taken on the way down from the summit. The paved road is dark; wet from the rain. It curves around a river, which is white with rushing water. — Flowing down

A close-up image of three mushrooms with red heads and white stems, just like in Super Mario. — Mario mushrooms!

Post successful summit, we stopped to enjoy the beautiful Geumsansa temple at the base of Moaksan. We decided to linger for an outdoor bibimbap – our second such meal of the day!

A panoramic image of the scene at Geumsansa temple. The bare grounds extending across the center of the frame have remarkably few people, perhaps because of the rain. Several colorful temple buildings frame the grounds, with the one in the left-hand corner rising higher than the others. — Geumsansa temple

Know and Go! Moaksan

Transportation

Like Maisan in the morning, Moaksan Provincial Park gets points for easy accessibility. It’s located just south of Jeonju, so you can take a public bus or taxi for a day hike! Jeonju is also an easy city to get to, with plenty of rail and road connections to other major urban centers across Korea.

Hike & Run

The most popular trails in this park start and end at Geumsansa temple, making loops up to the peak. But more trails do exist, making longer ridge explorations possible. We were a little restricted by time during our adventure, so we did a medium-sized loop. However, I’d imagine that heading away from the main peak on its secondary ridges would probably be pretty peaceful. We especially enjoyed our time in Moaksan’s forests – and I think you will too!

An image of the trail network in Moaksan Provincial Park. Trails appear in yellow over the green mountain slopes and ridges. Summits and other areas of interest are indicated with Korean text. — Moaksan Provincial Park trail map

Stay & Eat

As is often the case, we got to Moaksan in a bit of a rush after two bus rides. So we didn’t thoroughly check out the tourist town below the mountain for accommodation. I can, however, vouch for the food! There were some great little restaurants serving mountain vegetable fare, and we availed ourselves of some bibimbap at one with attractive (covered) outdoor seating.

For those with allergies or a customized diet, the Jeonju metro is not far off. There you can find large grocery stores, markets and a greater variety of Korean and Western restaurants.

Other Notes

Moaksan’s summit is 794m. It’s recognized on both the Black Yak and Korea Forest Service lists of 100 famous summits in South Korea. Check out the Black Yak challenge entry here, and the Korea Forest Service description here.

Although the peak is topped with some buildings and radio towers, there are great views to be had from the roof. The summit stele is maybe a little unusual, but there are binoculars so you can better scope out the area you’re standing high above. Also, in addition to the peak, there are some observation decks at prominent places, so you can take in the views from a more naturalistic setting.

Kent and I made a 13.2 kilometer loop during our run of Moaksan Provincial Park in July 2016. We started and finished our adventure near Geumsansa temple. This was our 7th provincial park adventure of our mountain mission year.

I didn’t know much about Moaksan before we arrived there for our adventure. You can read a brief introduction to the park here if you’d like!

Check out our Maisan Provincial Park experience from earlier the same day! This was a massive, three-mountain weekend for us – so you’re welcome to join us in Yeonhwasan Provincial Park too. Or, join us for other provincial parks and more of the 120 famous summits!