울릉도

last weekend, i had the opportunity to go on another seoul hiking trip. this time we bussed and ferry-ed to ulleungdo island three hours off the east coast of korea. the original plan was to include a ferry trip to dokdo even further off the coast. an area whose ownership is disputed between japan and korea. 

we left seoul at 11pm and drove across the country until 3am, some camped and others crashed in a local pension. slept until the morning ferry. woke, found espresso, walked to the terminal. found our assigned seats, took seasick pills, and hoped for the best. i was in and out of sleep for the majority of the ride, and by the end of it, we had begun approaching mountainous cliffs emerging from the ocean. 

ulleungdo is one of two volcanic islands belonging to korea. unlike jeju, though, this island is lined by cliffs with a large fall-colored crater inside rimmed with peaks. my perfect landscape. 

we trudged off the ferry and found a man waiting for us with a bus. he drove us to our pension where we dropped our goods and immediately went to lunch. passed these drying squid on our way. 

after our light lunch of vegetables and soup, we got on another bus for a bus and walking tour of the island. we stopped at various rock outcroppings to explore and at one point we hiked up the mountain and came across the other side to see this: 

we drove around 80% of the island. at one point there was a building where we could walk under the water and see the fish feeding. at another, we drove into the crater and spun in amazement at the color of the trees and the beauty of the ridge. and at the end, we careened back down the mountain and stopped at the beach just in time to catch an amazing sunset. 

from either side of the ferry port, there were sea side walkways carved out of the side of the cliffs. joined by bridges and metal walkways. 

the water was a beautiful blue turquoise. a color i haven't ever seen in nature. more beautiful than the philippines. more beautiful than the bahamas. a tranquil brightness.

inside the crater

ulleungdo was one of the most beautiful parts of korea i've seen ! while each are different, this in particular was my favorite scenery: where mountains and sea meet in rocky cliffs. so it was a special treat. the last day, we went hiking and we were supposed to go to dokdo but due to rough waters, the ferry was cancelled and our ferry returning to the mainland was moved up. 

i managed to make it home a little after midnight that sunday. catching the last ktx and scurrying to the taxi stand. a mere 24 hours were spent on the island, but my fingers are crossed that i'll be going back for a trek around the circumference of the island next spring. 

happy november, everyone