Why this ride
From Hwasun it runs 320 km to Hwasun; allow about 4 h 58 of riding. It goes by way of Muan Hamhaeman Getbol, Gochang Getbol and back through Muan Hamhaeman Getbol. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Hwasun Dolmen Site and Gochang Getbol
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 320 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 58
- 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. Hwasun Dolmen Site
Walk through the rice fields near Hwasun and you can lose count of the dolmens. Nearly six hundred of them lie scattered across the slopes at Hyosan-ri and Daesin-ri in South Jeolla, the biggest concentration in a trio of Korean sites that were listed as a World Heritage landmark in 2000. They are huge flat capstones balanced on smaller upright stones, some of them over a hundred tonnes, built roughly three thousand years ago in the Bronze Age by a society that left no written word. Korea has more dolmens than anywhere else in the world, perhaps around forty percent of all that exist, and this valley is where you feel it.
Read the complete Hwasun Dolmen Site write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Hwasun Dolmen Site is where the day begins. Next is Muan Hamhaeman Getbol.
2. Muan Hamhaeman Getbol
The southwest coast of Korea is a maze of bays, peninsulas and islands, and when the tide goes out, it reveals immense mudflats, the getbol, stretching to the horizon. Hamhae Bay, in Muan county, is one of the finest examples, a sheltered bay where the tides deposit fine mud rich in nutrients, supporting an extraordinary variety of life: crabs, shellfish, worms, mudskippers and octopus, and the birds that feed on them. The Korean tidal flats were listed by UNESCO in 2021, recognising their importance for migratory birds on the East Asian-Australasian Flyway, including endangered species like the spoon-billed sandpiper and the black-faced spoonbill.
Read the complete Muan Hamhaeman Getbol write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Muan Hamhaeman Getbol comes up about 72 km into the recorded legs. Next is Gochang Getbol.
3. Gochang Getbol
At low tide on the coast of Gochang, the sea pulls back so far that it seems to disappear, leaving a vast plain of mud, sand and shell banks glistening in the light. These tidal flats, called getbol in Korean, are among the richest on earth, teeming with crabs, shellfish, worms and the birds that feed on them, including rare migrating shorebirds that stop here on their journeys between Siberia and Australia. Gochang's flats are part of the Getbol, Korean Tidal Flats, listed by UNESCO in 2021.
Read the complete Gochang Getbol write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 159 km into the recorded legs you reach Gochang Getbol. Next is back through Muan Hamhaeman Getbol.
4. back through Muan Hamhaeman Getbol
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Muan Hamhaeman Getbol write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Muan Hamhaeman Getbol, late in the day. Next is Hwasun Dolmen Site.
5. Hwasun Dolmen Site
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Hwasun Dolmen Site write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Hwasun Dolmen Site. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Hwasun Dolmen Site to Muan Hamhaeman Getbol
Hwasun Dolmen Site → Muan Hamhaeman Getbol is 72 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Muan Hamhaeman Getbol to Gochang Getbol
Muan Hamhaeman Getbol → Gochang Getbol is 87 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Gochang Getbol to back through Muan Hamhaeman Getbol
Gochang Getbol → back through Muan Hamhaeman Getbol is 94 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Muan Hamhaeman Getbol to Hwasun Dolmen Site
back through Muan Hamhaeman Getbol → Hwasun Dolmen Site is 67 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.