First, on the way up, grabbed a hearty bowl of spicy ribs at a legit spot near the 5th Corps. The taste is still as solid as ever after all these years.
The sikhye for dessert was the perfect finish.
The entrance to Gakhulbong. I won't go into a long explanation, but those who know, know—entry to Gakhulbong is sometimes restricted for *certain* reasons.
So I checked with both Pocheon and Cheorwon (since the peak is right on the border) to ask about camping. Luckily, there were no restrictions this weekend.
Shots from the hike. As you all know, this Saturday had heavy winds and snow. So as you can see, I hiked right through a blizzard. The video doesn't catch all the flakes, but from a first-person view, it was coming down pretty hard.
Finally reached the ridge. That fence isn't a military restricted zone or anything; it's an ASF prevention fence to keep wild boars from moving between regions. Humans can just open the gate in the middle and walk through.
Once I hit the summit, the snow let up a bit, but there was a massive wind blowing along the ridge. It was attacking me by dragging up the snow already piled on the ridge, so it was pretty brutal.
Anyway... the sun was down, and there was no way I could make it to my goal, Gakhulsan, in this weather. I found a slope where a big rock blocked the main wind direction, shoveled it flat, and pitched my tent on the snow. Since I pitched on a slope, space was tight and I couldn't get a taut pitch, so I was a bit doubtful if it would hold up without collapsing in this wind.
Finally finished setting up and ate some castella I bought at the convenience store.
Temp inside the tent was -15°C. Stepped out for a second and it was still snowing. Couldn't see any stars because of the clouds, so I cracked some heat packs, crawled into my sleeping bag, watched YouTube, and fell asleep early.
Then at 2 AM, I suddenly woke up and went outside for a bit. The snow had stopped and the clouds were gone.
The stars were literally pouring down from the sky.
There was a bit of a blunder where the glow-in-the-dark parts of my headlamp got caught in the shot, but please be cool about it.
Anyway, it was so damn pretty that I spent about an hour just taking star photos.
After confirming the temp was below -20°C, I crawled back into my warm sleeping bag and went back to sleep.
Next morning, luckily I woke up before sunrise.
Those who know will realize what an absurd spot I pitched my tent in. Still, I slept pretty comfortably, and it survived both the wind and snow without collapsing once. Truly... the non-freestanding GOAT... X-MID...
The ridge looks absolutely beautiful covered in snow.
... Reminded me of the time I came here a few years ago.
The sun is slowly rising.
Pya~~ I think this is a great spot for a New Year's Day hike too.
My tent visible in the distance.
No matter how rushed I was at night, I really pitched that without any shame. Honestly, it's a miracle it didn't collapse in that wind with that kind of pitch.
Anyway, cleaned up quickly. Since I slept on snow, I couldn't do a perfectly clean LNT as usual, but I still picked up every single piece of trash.
The sun is high now, but the temp is still hovering around -20°C. Classic Cheorwon, no mercy.
Geumhaksan and Godaesan in the distance. Truly majestic.
Hiked back down the exact same route I came up. Looks like no one else came up after me.
Snow was up to my ankles, but I powered through with Gore-Tex boots + crampons + gaiters.
Had breakfast at a flat spot halfway down.
The beautiful pine forest at the end of the trail. I like it because there aren't many leaves to slip on and it just looks cool.
The stream at the end of the descent. Even though it's -20°C, the water is lukewarm. There must be a hot spring bubbling up from somewhere. Fascinating.
Since it was so fascinating, I actually went to a hot spring and did 3 cycles of hot tub -> sauna -> cold tub -> outdoor bath to melt the fatigue away.
Saw some eagles on the way home.
Finally, hanging the wet gear on the drying rack ends this adventure~ Source: Yuru Camp Gallery
"The community is impressed by the hardcore winter camping and the 'Goat' tent performance, though someone is asking the real questions about bathroom logistics in the sub-zero wild."
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