At the very first week of January, on one regular afternoon I was scrolling down my facebook timeline and one headline with a big picture of an icy cliff from the Korea Times did capture my attention.
The post described that it’s just about time that earlier that week the valley walls of Juwangsan in Cheongsong county had just fully been covered with ice. This prompted me to make this specific valley my first trip destination of 2020. So, my boyfriend and I managed the roadtrip that weekend.
Cheongsong-gun (Cheongsong County) in North Gyeongsang Province is known among Koreans as the largest apple growing region. If you happen to swing around during November, ‘apple picking’ is a must fun activity you should put on the list. Now in January all orchards are dry empty but you can still expect some crates full of luscious red apples selling along the road.
Situated about 290 km southeast of the peninsula, nearly four-hour-drive that was how long it took us from Seoul to the foot of Mount Juwang, the county’s famous natural landmark which is where Cheongsong Eoreumgol (Ice Valley) sits. We were very fortunate that our visit was surprisingly coincided with UIAA Ice Climbing World Cup of 2020 which was held right before our journey’s end. All we had to do was just follow the abundant signs to the event.
Once we were approaching the place, it turned out there were more than one alley covered with frozen water cascading from its top. We opted to stop at the one where the main stage of the ice climbing competition was installed.
Behind the scene there was a cliff called Wonja Rock which privides a beautiful sight of 62 meter-high waterfall during summer. But come cold weather, the waterfall turns into a stunning solid tribute to winter designating how vigorous the season could be to solidify even the most powerful forces of nature.
We arrived pretty late in the afternoon so it didn’t leave us much of time to make it to the other valleys nearby. The vale is situated amidst stupendous mountains. The temperature plummeted extra low after exclusively early sunset. I remember distintively it was just a minute before 6 p.m. as we were about to depart back to the city but at least three stars were already twinkling brightly in the night sky. So make sure you have sufficient winter clothes when visit in January and manage your schedule to leave the valley before 5 p.m. if you are not a skilled driver.
How to get to Cheongsong Ice Valley via public transport
From Seoul: Take Suseo High Speed Rail (SRT) at Suseo Station to Dongdaegu Station (1.30 hr/37400KW) –> Go to Exit no.1 –> Board a suburb(시외) bus at Dongdaegu Bus Terminal (1.05hr/11500KW) –> Get off at Andeok Bus Stop (안덕정류소) –> Take a cab (45min/31800KW) –> Cheongsong Ice Valley (청송얼음골)
From Busan: Take KTX train at Busan Station to Dongdaegu Station (40min/17100KW) –> Go to Exit no.1 –> Board a suburb(시외) bus at Dongdaegu Bus Terminal (1.20hr/14400KW) –> Get off at Bunam Bus Terminal (부남버스터미널) –> Take a local bus Bunam-Okgye (부남-옥계) or Jungi2-Okgye (중기2-옥계) (1hr/1100KW) –> Get off at Hangri Stop (항리 정류장) –> walk 7 min towards Cheongsong Ice Valley
Quick Info about Cheongsong Ice Valley
Address: 경북 청송군 주왕산면 팔각산로 228
Naver Map: Cheongsong Eoreumgol Valley
Website: http://csgeop.cs.go.kr/Access Map
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