[디갤] [긴 글 주의] 좌충우돌 한라산 등산기

The wife went to her parents' place. Left alone for a few days, I pushed my sadness aside and scouted the national weather forecast. Lo and behold, a heavy snow warning was issued for Jeju over Friday and Saturday! Praying that the Hallasan restrictions would be lifted by Sunday, I booked a round-trip ticket. I arrived Saturday night and stayed at a jjimjilbang, constantly refreshing the Hallasan National Park website to check the status. Unfortunately, even past midnight, the trails were still closed. As someone aiming for the Yeongsil Course sunrise, I prayed for a miracle in the early morning. I woke up at 4 AM to check, but it was still closed. Not wanting to give up, I checked again at 5 AM, and miraculously, the restrictions were lifted! I kept my composure, got ready in a flash, and hailed a taxi to the Yeongsil entrance. There are two parking lots at Yeongsil: one at the ticket booth and one right at the trailhead. Sadly, because the snow hadn't been cleared properly, cars couldn't reach the upper lot, so I had to hike an extra 40 minutes just to get to the start. Huffing and puffing, I reached the entrance at 7:10 AM. Thinking I might still catch the sunrise light if I hustled, I went into 'time attack' mode. I thought my calves and thighs were going to explode. By the time I reached the Byeongpung Rock observatory, a thick 'gomtang' (whiteout fog) set in, and I almost lost my spirit, but since I’d come this far, I pushed on to the Yeongsil viewpoint. I arrived at 8:00 AM. Forget the South Wall—I couldn't see even 50 meters in that soup. I met three veteran photogs there. We chatted away while waiting for the sky to open. One of them was 80 years old and had hiked Hallasan 600 times. His stamina and manners were top-notch; I thought to myself, 'That’s how I want to age.' The other two shared some snacks and tried to scout me for the Mountain Photographers Association website while we fought the cold. Around 10 AM, just as I was packing up thinking it wouldn't clear, the sunlight suddenly teased us by illuminating the world for a brief moment. It was a sign. With renewed hope, I stared at the South Wall. Just as I was getting annoyed by the stubborn sky, it finally opened up with a brilliant blue, revealing the South Wall. This was at 10:30 AM. My two-and-a-half-hour wait had a happy ending. I kept snapping the shutter so I wouldn't miss the mist flowing like a dragon. I couldn't stop smiling, knowing my trip from Incheon wasn't in vain. Here's the thick 'gomtang' whiteout from the Byeongpung Rock observatory.