Hallasan Baengnokdam: The Jeju Crater Day Hike Guide
The Highest Point in South Korea Is Also One of the Most Rewarding Day Hikes At 1,947 metres, Hallasan is the tallest mountain in South Korea, and the crater lake at its summit — Baengnokdam, 'White Deer Lake' — is the kind of view that justifies the entire flight to Jeju. I've driven dozens of foreign visitors to the Seongpanak trailhead over the years, and every single one of them comes back to the car grinning and slightly wrecked. That combination is usually a good sign. This post covers the Seongpanak route specifically — the longest but most manageable trail to the summit — with the honest timing, the cutoff rules that catch people out, and everything you need to know before your boots hit the trail. Why Seongpanak, Not Eorimok or Yeongsil? Hallasan has five trails, but only two go all the way to the summit crater: Seongpanak on the east side, and Gwaneumsa on the north. The other routes — Eorimok, Yeongsil, Donnaeko — top out at the crater rim or a subsidiary...