The people of the Gaya confederacy never built an empire, which is why they are overshadowed by the neighbouring kingdoms of Baekje and Silla. But in the fifth and sixth centuries they ran a loose group of small states in the south of the Korean peninsula, famous for iron, and the tumuli in Jangsu, on the high ground of Jeolla province, are evidence that this mountain county had its own ruler. The round grassy mounds of Yugok-ri and Durak-ri sit on ridges and in fields, and iron tools, horse gear and weapons have been dug out of them. They are part of the UNESCO listing for the Gaya Tumuli, added in 2023.
It helps to know that Jangsu is a plateau, around six hundred metres up, and one of the highest and coolest counties in the region. The county is known for apples, sweet, crisp and grown in cool nights, and for its beef, and in autumn you pass orchards with red fruit and farmers selling boxes by the roadside. The mounds are quiet and low, not showy, and the pleasure is the setting, a high green valley surrounded by ridges, where you can look around and see the same view the people who built them knew.
Jangsu itself is a small town of about twenty-six thousand, with fuel, convenience stores and restaurants, and the larger town of Namwon, further south on the edge of Jirisan, has more. The riding in the area is a delight, with narrow, smooth roads over passes and along valleys, thickly forested slopes, few cars and surfaces that are generally excellent, even in the countryside. Bends tighten as you climb into the foothills of Jirisan, the great mountain of southern Korea, and the weather can be much colder at height than in the plain.
Spring brings blossom, and autumn brings colour, but winter can bring ice and fog on the high roads, and some mountain passes get closed after snowfall. Eat local pork or beef, rice with mountain greens, and in Namwon try the catfish soup, which locals prize. Allow time for stopping, because the road invites it.