Yeoncheon Adventure✨

Last weekend, a group of 20 individuals were invited by Korea Travel Easy and Sodosi Travel for a two-day trip to promote the city of Yeoncheon, the smallest city among the 31 cities of the Gyeonggi province. Although, small, it is the only city that can boast of having two rivers passing through it, the Hantangang (한탄강) and the Imjin river (임진강). Despite the short time, we visited many landmarks in beautiful Yeoncheon, namely, Jwasangbawi (좌상바위), the Hantangang (한탄강), Dangposeong Fortress (당포성), Jaein Waterfall (재인폭포), Yeoncheon Sunguijeon Hall Site (연천숭귀전), the Imjin-gil trail (임진길) and the Pureunae Village (푸르내마을).

First, we arrived at the kayaking site where we were given helmets, life jackets and a safety briefing before our paddle began. We were fortunate to have lovely weather which warmed up very quickly despite the cold autumn morning. We paired up and got into two person kayaks where we quickly adjusted to the paddling technique after just a few strokes. We leisurely paddled through lush green picturesque mountains on both sides of the river and also caught glimpses of beautiful autumn covered foliage sprawling alongside the columnar joints of the cliff sides along some parts of the river. Although this river was generally quite shallow, there were three parts where the speed of the river increased creating a short white-water rafting experience.

We all navigated safely with the help of the Wassap Geo Kayak Team and within an hour and a half, we arrived at the starting point marked by the 60m tall Jwasangbawi (좌상바위) rock. Originally, this rock was called suicide rock (자살바위) because of unfortunate past events but in order to have a more positive connotation, the name was changed to represent a guarding God which is believed to keep the village together.

After this activity, we were famished and headed straight to Café Hyoyeonjae to revitalise our energy supplies. We were warmly greeted by the café owner who explained that all the food was prepared from the local agricultural lands itself excluding the meat. We were treated to a wide variety of delicious fried pumpkin, stuffed tomatoes, beans, samgyeopsal, kimchi and other vegetables all spread on a beautiful outdoor table setting just infront of the restaurant. We were also served two types of magkeolli, the traditional kind and another resembling a wine taste. They were both very interesting flavors and went so well with the food that we couldn’t help refilling our glasses.

With no time to spare, we graciously thanked the owner and moved on to our next destination, Dangposeong Fortress. It was time for the traditional Korean archery experience! Our instructor quickly impressed us with his skilful shooting demonstration, hitting the target from a far distance, and then carefully explained the technique to us. There were also several different arrows on display which he explained all had different purposes, for example, there were some with duller arrow heads used for shooting practise while others were made to bounce upon landing for easier retrieval. For the true experience, traditional armour was also provided to set the atmosphere.

As we were all amateurs, we all shot within close range but could not help the arrow going astray at times. After some practise, we began hitting the target much to our delight. The instructor warned us of the importance of following the correct technique to avoid injuries as the bow can transfer energy to your body if the arrow is released the wrong way. I think I can safely speak for all when I say we all wish we could have had more time at this spot. Before leaving, we walked to the next side of the hill, against which we were shooting and were rewarded with an impressive view of the nearby Imjingang from the flat plane fortress piled up with stones during the Goguryeo Era .

In a race against daylight, we quickly rushed over to Jaein Falls but caught the sun already going down. However, we were still able to catch a glimpse of sunset although the views of the falls were not as nice due to recent flooding and low light settings. Nevertheless, we received a different reward though a light show display which was projected onto the cliffside near the waterfall. It quickly got cold and so we moved on to dinner where the food was again delicious and served in ssambap (쌈밥) style.

Next day, we headed to the Yeoncheon Sunguijeon Hall Site (연천숭귀전) which was the starting point for our trekking of the nearby Imjin-gil trail (임진길). At this site, we saw the onggi (옹기) which are tall brown ceramic vases used for storage of kimchi, gochujang and soybean paste, but in this case, was used to store the latter. Our tour guide was a doctor of oriental philosophy and he told us about feeling the “gi” energy from the earth that he believes is experienced there. At the Ongyeobong peak, the DMZ line is visible and as such there is a tall blue statue called the “greeting man” facing the direction of North Korea. This statue was erected as a symbol of peace, reconciliation and communication. He also led us in a simple meditation conducted in the shade of the tall statue. The trek took a total of approximately 2 hours round trip and we then moved on to Pureunae Village (푸르내마을).

Here, we were served with the most delightful buffet of Korean dishes including japchae, stewed pork, mushrooms, kimchi, anchovies, fried pumpkin, pajeon, beans, potato salad, kimchi stewed tofu and seaweed soup. The food on this trip was definitely a highlight for me. Of all the times I’ve had Korean food, this time was definitely the best as the flavors were very rich which made it very tasty to consume.

After stuffing ourselves with the delicious food, we were then guided through a soap making process with abundant cucumber extract from the Yeoncheon land and brightly colored glycerin so that we could make our unique design. Although we had a short space of time, we still managed to make very different designs and they all served as a unique souvenir to take home from Yeoncheon.

For the final activity, we made muffins from the simple ingredients of makgeolli, barley flour and milk, patterned with carrot shavings, red beans and green peas and placed in the steamer for roughly 20 to 30 minutes if I recall correctly. They tasted much better than I expected with a slightly sweet flavor but overall balanced taste. Served hot, we could not stop ourselves from munching on this snack and I ended up eating the ones we were supposed to take home as well.

Altogether, this trip was definitely one-of-a-kind in terms of the various experiences I was able to gain ranging from kayaking to archery to trekking and all accompanied with great food at each meal. I am also very grateful for all the new friends I made on this trip. Personally, as a lover of outdoor activities, I would say that I enjoyed the kayaking and the archery experience the best and would definitely recommend this city as a quick escape from the bustles of daily life. I think it will be good for families to enjoy simple outdoor activities together like camping and kayaking along the riverside or even for solo travellers to see breath-taking views of the mountain side while also catching a glimpse of North Korea in the distance. Although small, I think that this town still has more to offer and thus I will like the opportunity to visit again. For a total video recap of this experience, you can check my Youtube channel, Mari Chang, or Instagram page (@superkwlkid) and for the korean translation by Nikolett Korosi, please read below. See you on the next adventure! ✌

연천군의 재미있는 모험

지난 주에 코리아트래블이지와 소도시여행은 1박 2일인 여행으로 20명을 초대하여 저도 초대하게 됐습니다. 이 여행은 경기도에서 가장 인구가 적인 연천군에 있었습니다. 하지만 연천군은 큰 도시가 아니어도 한탄강과 임진강이 연천군에서 만나 하나가 돼서 아름다운 곳들이 많습니다. 저희는 시간이 부족하더라도 좌상바위, 한탄강, 당포성, 재인폭포, 연천숭귀전, 임진길과 푸르내마을을 다 가볼 수 있었습니다.

저희는 처음으로 카약을 타러 갔습니다. 여행은 가을에 있는데 그날 날씨가 아주 좋아서 다행히 꽤 춥지 않았습니다. 저는 강의 풍경을 아름답게 관찰하면서 너무 즐겁게 지냈습니다. 저희는 카약 타고 약 1시간 30분 뒤에 좌상바위에 도착했습니다. 이 바위의 이름은 원래 자살바위였는데 긍정적 내포를 하고 있기 위하여 좌상바위로 바꾸게 됐습니다. 

저희는 바위의 역사와 아름다운 자연을 즐기고 나서 카페 효연재에 갔습니다. 저희는 사장님께 환영을 받아 그분이 직접 만드신 다양한 음식을 맛있게 먹었습니다. 그뿐만 아니라, 그 지역에서 만든 막걸리도 마셔볼 수 있었습니다. 너무 맛있었습니다.

저희는 맛있게 먹은 뒤에 당포성에 가서 전통적인 활쏘기 체험을 해볼 수 있었습니다. 저희 선생님은 아주 잘 활을 쏘실 수 있었는데 저희는 실수를 많이 했습니다. 그래도 아주 재미있게 활을 쏘려고 했습니다. 저희 친절한 선생님께서는 부상을 막기 위하여 활쏘기의 올바른 방법도 너무 잘 가르쳐주셔서 저희는 매우 고마웠습니다. 또한, 임진강이 당포성 옆에 있어서 저희는 활쏘기 뒤에 강의 아름다운 풍경도 볼 수 있었습니다.

저희는 노을 전에 재인폭포에도 가보려고 했는데, 도착하는 대로 해가 거의 다 졌습니다. 그럼에도 불구하고 폭포가 매우 예뻤습니다. 저희는 풍경을 관찰하면서 즐거웠는데, 노을 후에 날씨가 빨리 추워져서 저녁을 먹으러 갔습니다.

다음 날에 임진길의 출발점인 연천숭귀전에 갔습니다. 길옆에 많은 김치, 고추장, 된장 등으로 가득한 옹기도 봤습니다. 저희 여행 안내자께서는 동양철학의 학자셔서 기(氣)에 관해 이야기도 하셨습니다. 저희는 옥녀봉 정상까지 올라가 DMZ도 보이게 됐습니다. 거기는 북한의 방향에 절하는 "그리팅 맨"이라는 커다랗고 아름다운 조각상도 있습니다. 

임진길이 거의 2시간 결렸는데, 그 후에 저희는 바로 푸르내마을에 갔습니다. 푸르내마을에서 아주 다양하고 너무너무 맛있는 음식을 먹었습니다. 저는 한식을 너무 좋아해서 이 여행 때 제공된 음식이 최고였다고 생각이 항상 들었습니다. 

저희는 먹고 나서 비누 만들기를 체험할 수 있었습니다. 시간이 많이 없었는데도 비누에 예쁘게 그릴 수도 있었습니다. 그 후에 마지막으로 막걸리, 밀가루와 우유로 한국식 머핀을 만들었습니다. 머핀이 20-30분 찌어 먹을 수 있고, 맛도 생각보다 더 좋았습니다.

이 여행을 전체적으로 보면, 다양한 경험을 하고 친구들과 재미있게 보냈습니다. 카약을 타고 활을 쏘고 비누를 만들 수 있어서 너무 많은 새로운 것을 체험하고 배울 수 있었습니다. 다양하고 흥미로운 체험을 좋아하신 분들에게 연천군에 가기를 추천해드립니다.^^ 도시의 풍경이 너무 아름다울 뿐만 아니라 자연의 평화도 느낄 수 있어서 아주 좋은 여행 목적지인 것 같습니다. 한번 꼭 가보시길 바랍니다.^^