Hiking in the Moonlight...

Mt. Apsan Night Hike:

I was lucky enough to get to tag along with a group that was going on a night hike last Saturday! When I say tag along, I mean I really had no idea what was going on except that we were going to hike at night. After a bit of a journey to get to our meeting location, since our driver actually dropped us of at a non-bus stop location, we made it to the base of Mt. Apsan. 
Some of the small mountains near me have lights installed going up the mountain that stay lit up until 10:00 pm. So I was thinking that is what we would be hiking with. Once we got there, I quickly realized that maybe we should have brought flashlights! Whoops!

Websites are so misleading in this country. Some sights said it was a 30 minute hike up and some said an hour. Some said it was a "very easy" hike and others said it was challenging. I will say that it was waaaaay different than the hiking that us foreigners are used to! We have switchbacks. Korea does not. The options are either ridiculous incline, and when that incline turns to great, then they have stairs. Now... after the 7 kilometer Jirisan hike of stairs, this was no biggie for me. But only because I had had that previous experience. Hiking is serious business in this country! 

The journey up took about an hour. I was so glad that I didn't bring a flashlight. I hiked by the light of the moon. And even though it was an overcast night, the full moon provided enough light to safely get up and down the mountain. I found it very therapeutic to be honest....Though the incline was quite challenging compared to hikes that are used to, I enjoyed this hike. Probably because I have been running for a while and that helped my body make it up all those stairs! 

The view when we made it to the top was stunning. You could see all of Daegu and realize how big it really is. I hope to do it again maybe in the spring when there is another big moon and clear skies! I think the moon on the mountains could be magical! :)

So to sum up: The first .5 kilometers are a steep inclined road. The next .5 kilometers are stairs. I would bring a flashlight if the moon isn't bright. And the view is awesome! I would budget at least 45 minutes to get up to the top...unless you are a crazy awesome hiker! :) The End.