Gwanaksan rises over the southern edge of Seoul, a ridge of bare granite with a small hermitage perched on a cliff near the summit, and its rocky profile is one of the landmarks of the city. Seoul National University, the country's top university, sits at its northern foot, and the trails up the mountain are crowded with hikers in bright outdoor gear on weekends.
This finish lies on the western side of the mountain, near Anyang, a city of apartment towers and industrial estates south of Seoul. The Anyang Art Park, in a valley on the slopes, has outdoor sculptures and pavilions by international architects and artists, set among the trees and the stream, an unusual open-air gallery.
The Anyangcheon stream, which runs north through the city to the Han, is lined with cycle paths and parks, and on summer evenings it is full of walkers, joggers and cyclists. The stream was cleaned up in recent decades after years of pollution, and it is now home to fish, herons and ducks.
Coming back from Yangpyeong, a day of mountain roads and river valleys east of Seoul, the final stretch crosses the city or loops around it on the national roads. Without the expressways, it is slow, with traffic lights and heavy traffic at rush hour.
If daylight allows, ride up into the art-park valley before you call it a day; the stream, the trees and the odd pavilions are a quiet decompression after the national roads. Down in the city, fuel stations and konbini-style marts are never far away.