Korean Trails...and Pyeongtaek Farewell

On our last full day in Korea we were still in the boundaries of the Seoraksan National Park and we all went for another hike. First we had to pay to park, and then had to move the car because Andrew didn't park it exactly as the owner wanted him to. Then we needed to communicate with the visitor information people and see about getting a map to the trails in the area so we knew which way to go. Andrew is very good at finding ways to work around the language and let people know what we need! It was another beautiful day and we headed out with a backpack full of snacks to see what we could see.

Oh wait, I forgot the first picture. I had to include this one!! See the flowers along the roadside? They are Cosmos, a very common flower here in America, and it grew everywhere in Korea! In ditches, along the roadsides, or anyplace else a seed could fall and sprout. I loved seeing them, and the photo below was taken out of the car window as we drove to our hiking destination this morning. 

Now we are on the trail and before long we passed by this gentleman singing and tapping a rythm on his percussion instrument. (A gourd?) Thanks for the melody!

Oh it was pretty in this area! I took several landscape pictures just BECAUSE.

 

More big steps....there's Sophie at the top...

The trail goes through the big rocks. Charlotte was not in a hiking mood today. :)

I wanted to get a picture of this rocky trail, and when Ken stopped to wait for the others, his red shirt made a great bright spot in the photo!

Finally we reached the end of the trail! Anyone need to use the potty? They were "squatties", so no one else used them except me. Ha ha!

The trail ended here in a small parking area and we quickly determined that returning the same way we came with the girls was not an option so Ken and Andrew decided to get the car and come pick everyone up. But the roadway to where the car was parked had almost no shoulder and was too dangerous to travel on by foot, so they RAN back down the two mile trail to fetch the car while we waited (near the outhouses.). Ken said they had so much fun running back down that trail...he considered it the highlight of the day. (And it only took them 40 minutes to return with the car!)

It was a several hour drive back to their hometown, so there was plenty of napping in the car on the way back. The sun was going down as we neared our destination...this photo was taken from the car window as we cruised along. We loved this three day trip into the mountains and what a beautiful sight at the end of the day. :)

The next morning Ken and I packed our bags and prepared to leave. We said goodbye to the girls as they went off to school. How I love those sweet young ladies!! Andrew came home from work to drive us to Pyeongtaek where we were catching a bus to the airport. We had some time before the bus left, so we wandered around town a little and I took a few more pictures just for the sake of memories.

At the appointed time we reluctantly hugged our goodbyes to Andrew and boarded the bus for Incheon and the airport. He waved one last time as the bus pulled out of the station. OH! I wish it weren't so LONG between visits! Our bus ride took two hours, and we managed to find our way around the airport terminal to get boarded and on the plane headed towards home. 11 hours in flight. Sleep did not come, so we watched movies until we were bleary eyed. Then got off the plane and waited for another one in Vancouver BC, which was another hour and a half, then arrived in Portland.

 Ken thinks it is interesting that we left Incheon, Korea at 3:30 PM on Tuesday and arrived in Portland at 3:30 on Tuesday. Yep, the same day! After two Max train rides, and one Tri-Met ride to Oregon City, Kathy picked us up at the bus station and dropped us off at home. Thank you, Kathy! We were two very tired travellers!! Thank you Andrew, for hosting us so well and showing us around the land you call "HOME" right now. We LOVED our visit!!