Woman Versus Mountain
Trip Start
Aug 20, 2005
1
7
Trip End
Aug 22, 2006
Hallasan, Jeju, Korea Rep.
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Oh, except the night before when I'd caught a bus from Sanbangsan to Jeju City and the bus driver drove like a lunatic down the highway. Actually he was psychologically quite adept at applying pressure to other drivers. He would drive like a maniac up to the driver in front of him and tail gate, which would freak out that driver and make them change lanes, the bus driver would then follow and repeat the process. He only ever did this to cars which could obviously change lanes but were slow pokes. We followed one SUV through the traffic for about 5 minutes, probably driving the SUV driver to the verge of a nervous breakdown. On the same bus, after we stopped near a work unit, a whole bunch of guys got on. The bus driver was having a rather agitated yelling match with one of them when he suddenly stopped the bus and grabbed a baton next to my seat (I was sitting in the front and he actually had to reach over me to get it, which freaked me out somewhat). He walked down to the back of the bus and whacked something two times, happily not human-sounding, but I really don't know what it was because I was too chicken to turn around and gawk. There was absolute silence. He returned to his seat and we resumed our journey.
Anyway, other than that bus ride, all had gone smoothly, whereas I had had train mishaps in Korea and Japan and near mishaps in both Spain and Italy. It was just as I was thinking this, that I realised the bus was not going on the route I'd expected and it occurred to me that the bus stop I got on at might actually service more than one bus line. Crap. It is recommended that hikers give themselves 9 hours to hike Mt Halla and that you have to start the final part of the ascent (which takes about 30 minutes) to the peak before 1:30, so I didn't really have any time to be piss-farting around on buses. Rather than wait and hope it ended up at the terminal, god knows when, I jumped off. No mean feat... it was a packed bus and took a lot of nudging. I flagged down a cab. I already knew cabs weren't too pricey because while waiting for a bus the day before, a cab driver had got out and kept me company/tried to get me into the cab. He told me prices that, although they were four times the price of the bus, were still not too expensive. So, I jumped in and said "Seongpanak". Either he was an odd sort or Korean cab drivers are of a different breed from Taiwanese cab drivers, who all drive kamikaze-style. Really. When I lived in Taiwan, cab drivers would run red lights, sneak in front of lines to be the first off at the lights. You name it. They obviously played too many racing car computer games as kids. I got to the park entrance by 8:30 and was on the trail seven minutes later, slightly ahead of schedule.
I'd looked up Mt Halla a year before when I'd thought about going to either Jeju or Okinawa for a break. When I watched My Lovely Samsoon, it occurred to me that the mountain she hiked might have been the same one. Anyway, the goal of the trip became to hike Hallasan or bust. In descriptions on the web and on the soap I'd watched, the trail looked like it was made entirely of wooden steps and boardwalks. There is indeed a section like this, it's true, but most of it is made up of big stones. Not huge, not tiny and definitely not flat, but jagged and uneven. If the rocks were smaller, you could walk over them naturally (well, in hiking boots you could anyway) and if they were bigger, you could step from rock to rock easily. Instead, every step you take, you have to place your feet really carefully, or else you will slip and twist something, or worse, land on the rocks and break something. The path is hazardous enough in dry conditions, but after rain it is lethal, especially on the ascent, which is why signs say to leave 4.5 hours for the ascent and another 4.5 hours for the descent. I laughed at first when I saw this because on most hikes I had done, the descent had been much quicker than the ascent, but when I saw the stones, I understood why going down would be much harder having to balance on those things, especially if your legs were already shot to pieces from the ascent. And I certainly did not laugh on the way down!
I tried to take it easy (this is hard for me because I tend to go a bit loopy as soon as I see an incline and want to gallop straight up it), made it to the peak in under 4 hours and felt really good, although the 'steps' at the end almost made my lungs explode. I took photos of the crater lake at the top just two minutes before it disappeared behind mist, wolfed down my kimbap (a bit like sushi rolls only better and my Korean hiking staple) and choc-chip cookies (OK, so this was a little self-indulgent but I was starving from the hike up) guzzled water and lay in the sun for a bit before deciding to scamper down again in case I got stiff.
There was this group I'd passed several times on the way up after (because every time I stopped for water or to go to the toilet they'd pass me and then I'd have to overtake them once I got going again) that I remembered because there was a guy carrying a phone playing Korean pop music that I could hear when they were nearby. Bounding down the steps I passed a group I'd met a few times on the way up the mountain as they were heading up for the peak. I remembered them because they'd been really friendly and full of beans, singing along to music playing from one guy's cell phone. They weren't so energetic anymore. One woman was on her hands and knees, crawling. She looked up at me in chagrin, with pure pain written across her face. Yep, those steps are bastardly. I felt a pang of sympathy, remembering how my own lungs had ached not half an hour earlier. I stopped and said 加油 (which is Chinese for giving encouragement) along with the dorky hand gestures which usually accompany such words. I guess it must be a universal sentiment because she responded with the Korean equivalent and then an English "I will try".
I had to stop bounding shortly afterwards as I hit a long stretch of rocks and almost wiped out into a stream. My feet slipped, but my hands caught two rocks arresting my fall when my nose was all but inches from the water. Phew! After that I went back into 'counting to eight in Chinese' mode, which reminded me a bit of doing aerobics. I hate aerobics with a vengence, but I have to admit counting like that can be a soothing thing to do when each step is painful and while in a mode of intense concentration desperately trying not to fall on one's butt.
Until I went to Huashan (Shaanxi, China) in 2009, Hallasan was the hardest hike I had done, which in surprising because it doesn't look challenging height or incline-wise. Although it is not steep, those rocks are really rough on the legs, especially the descent which took me 3 hours and sapped me of just about all I had. The first hour or two going up, I wandered along merrily thinking my own thoughts and humming happily to myself. The third hour I said 1-8 in Chinese. The fourth hour, I had to alternated between 痛痛(ouch ouch) and 加油 (go)! On the way down I was already in 1-8 mode for the first hour and then ouch ouch for the last 2. Actually the last 40 minutes was mostly ouch ouch careful careful slow down! I should have gone slower, for safety, but half way down I realised I was buggered, my legs weren't going to be able to cope for much longer and I needed to get off the mountain ASAP.
I love hiking, but I have a deep-seated fear of descents. I think it is justified, based as it is on several experiences of wiping out and falling over on my behind. In fact the last time I stacked it was actually in Korea. It was exceedingly embarrassing, but resulted in some new friends and a very rowdy eating and drinking session in the markets later on. The most spectacular wipe-out was in Germany's Haarz mountains. Snow on water on grass on while going downhill is a nasty combination, especially for someone like me who had never even seen snow until she was 20 and had no idea to beware of such things. Mind you, I'll take that combination over snow on marble any day. Anyway, given my track record of klutzy descents, I had the fear in me that day. I did not fancy wiping out on one of those rocks at Mt Halla. When I pulled a tendon earlier this year (I did it playing pool, which is kind of ludicrous... I mean, how is that even possible?!), I had my lower back x-rayed and found my spine has a slight curve to the left. A qigong master I went to for help said I had injured my tailbone in a past fall. I'll leave it to you to guess where he was prodding to diagnose that! The point being, my poor tail bone and spine have enough working against them without being brutalised by pointy rocks. Ouch.
I whooped with glee and almost cantered out the exit when I reached it, only the fear that my legs would be unable to cope with a flat surface and that I would most likely stack it stopped me. As soon as I stopped moving, my legs started shaking. Jelly legs only barely under control, I climbed onto the bus and almost froze to death. The air conditioning was too strong for me and I started shivering.
On the way back the bus got crowded and the guy next to me was doing that guy thing. You know, sitting with his legs wide open, taking up most of the leg space. This usually drives me nuts (I have very long legs and while I might not have dangly bits, I do actually need my leg space), but I was so cold, I was relieved to have my personal space invaded because he was warm! I slept all the way to the bus station, got off and ate an ice cream (ironic, considering how cold I'd been not too long before), then caught a bus to Hamdeok beach. I crawled off the bus, into a convenience store and grabbed some instant noodles and a chocolate bar, gobbled them back at the hotel, soaked in the bath with a mask on my face, then collapsed on the bed, beer in hand, and watched CSI on TV. I was sore as hell, but very smug. There is nothing better than feeling like crap after a good hike.
I don't know what it is I like so much about hiking. Sure, sometimes the views are astounding. Hallasan is pretty but the views down weren't great because it was misty. Plus even if the views were good, I was so busy balancing I probably would have missed them anyway. I had a ball. Why? A sense of achievement after pitting myself against something. An obvious goal and the stubbornness required to attain it. I should train before doing this kind of thing, but a broken toe and recurring back problems got in the way. Plus, I don't think anything would have compared with it except a stair master with weird-shaped rocks put on it. I am also convinced I am pig-headed enough to make it up most mountains that can be done as a day trip and desperate enough to make it back down again. This is not at all sensible and may result in my comeuppance one day, but it is true.
On my last day, I went for a final walk along the beach after breakfast, then headed for a taxi to the airport. I really like Korea. Jeju was plain in the built up areas, but stunningly beautiful in the south-west and mountainous areas. Sometimes stoic or obstinate, very polite and often amusing, the Koreans I came across made me feel comfortable and happy to be among them. And the food in Korea is delicious. The highlight of the trip? The mountain that almost killed me and the people on it. I find there is a fellow feeling amongst hikers regardless of where you are or the language you speak – a shared goal, shared struggle and shared (usually amazing) natural scenery.
I really doubt this, my fourth trip to Korea, will be my last. I like it here too much. I'll be back.
