Why this ride
275 km from Kimhae to Kimhae, about 5 h 06 of riding. On the way it passes Tongdosa Temple, Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream, Gyeongju Historic Areas and back through Gyeongju Historic Areas.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Gaya Tumuli and Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 275 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 5 h 06
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Gaya Tumuli
Right in the middle of Gimhae, a busy city just west of Busan, a low ridge of grassy mounds rises between apartment blocks and roads. These are the Daeseong-dong tumuli, the burial ground of the rulers of Geumgwan Gaya, one of the small kingdoms of the Gaya confederacy that flourished in the south of the Korean peninsula from the first centuries AD until it was absorbed by Silla in the sixth century. In 2023 a group of Gaya burial sites, including these, was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list.
Read the complete Gaya Tumuli write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Gaya Tumuli is where the day begins. Next is Tongdosa Temple.
2. Tongdosa Temple
Most Korean Buddhist temples have a statue of the Buddha in their main hall. Tongdosa does not. Instead, a window behind the altar looks out onto a stone stupa that is said to contain relics of the historical Buddha, brought back from China by the monk Jajang, who founded the temple in 646. That makes Tongdosa one of the Three Jewel Temples of Korea, representing the Buddha himself, alongside Haeinsa, representing the teaching, and Songgwangsa, the community of monks. It is part of the UNESCO-listed Sansa, Buddhist Mountain Monasteries in Korea, inscribed in 2018.
Read the complete Tongdosa Temple write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Tongdosa Temple comes up about 46 km into the recorded legs. Next is Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream.
3. Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream
On a cliff face above a quiet stream in the hills west of Ulsan, prehistoric people carved hundreds of images into the rock: whales, turtles, deer, tigers, boats full of men, hunters with spears and nets. The whales are the most striking, with species that can still be identified, such as right whales and humpbacks, and scenes that seem to show whaling from boats, making the Bangudae petroglyphs one of the oldest records of whaling anywhere. A little upstream, the Cheonjeon-ri petroglyphs, with geometric patterns, animals and later inscriptions from the Silla period, add another layer. In 2025, the Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Read the complete Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 66 km into the recorded legs you reach Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream. Next is Gyeongju Historic Areas.
4. Gyeongju Historic Areas
For nearly a thousand years, until the tenth century, Gyeongju was the capital of the kingdom of Silla, and the whole city is a museum with traffic lights. Round the modern centre the old kingdom lies in plain sight: great grass-covered burial mounds in a park in the middle of town, the pond of Anapji where the court held feasts, the stone observatory of Cheomseongdae, one of the oldest of its kind in East Asia, and the forested hills of Namsan scattered with rock-carved Buddhas. UNESCO listed these areas together in 2000, and the pieces are spread around town rather than gathered in one compound.
Read the complete Gyeongju Historic Areas write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Gyeongju Historic Areas, about halfway. Next is Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream.
5. Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream sits at 123 km, about halfway. Next is back through Gyeongju Historic Areas.
6. back through Gyeongju Historic Areas
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Gyeongju Historic Areas write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Gyeongju Historic Areas comes up about 172 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream.
7. back through Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 206 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream. Next is back through Tongdosa Temple.
8. back through Tongdosa Temple
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Tongdosa Temple write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Tongdosa Temple, late in the day. Next is Gaya Tumuli.
9. Gaya Tumuli
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Gaya Tumuli write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 275 km.
Leg by leg
Gaya Tumuli to Tongdosa Temple
Gaya Tumuli → Tongdosa Temple is 46 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Tongdosa Temple to Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream
Tongdosa Temple → Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream is 20 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream to Gyeongju Historic Areas
Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream → Gyeongju Historic Areas is 36 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Gyeongju Historic Areas to Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream
Gyeongju Historic Areas → Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream is 34 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream to back through Gyeongju Historic Areas
Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream → back through Gyeongju Historic Areas is 36 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Gyeongju Historic Areas to back through Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream
back through Gyeongju Historic Areas → back through Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream is 34 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream to back through Tongdosa Temple
back through Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream → back through Tongdosa Temple is 22 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Tongdosa Temple to Gaya Tumuli
back through Tongdosa Temple → Gaya Tumuli is 46 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.