Gatbawi

Blair, Pete, and I hiked up to Gatbawi this past weekend. There are a couple beautiful temples on the way, and Gatbawi is a famous Buddha statue in the region.

The one downside is that this is a very crowded trail; here's a shot of the beginning of the trail. I'd tried it before and given up, partly due to a hang over. Now, spending my weekends sober and going to bed early, it was an easy afternoon.

After 1.2 km, you will reach this temple. There are two trails to Gatbawi from this point, on the right it is mostly rocks with some steps, and is 1km longer. The one on the left is very steep and is almost entirely steps. We took the less steep one up, and it was less crowded, an enjoyable hike. The way down, we took the steps. It wasn't terrible, but the trail was crowded.

This is 갓바위 (Gatbawi). Gat means hat and bawi means rock, so the name is quite fitting. Its a single slab of granite, and is 4m tall.

Directions take the 401 to the last stop. Chances are you will be standing the entire way on the bus, as it is always crowded. Also, when you're leaving Gatbawi, there will be a long line of hikers trying to get on the bus. If you are going to a few different tourist locations, though, you can take the Daegu City Tour, which leaves from Dongdaegu Korail Station (go out to the cab turn around, you'll see a tourist information stand and can buy a day pass there).