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Korean Four Rivers Trail I

Some people say that Korea has the best cycling infrastructure in the world. That's great because this is exactly what I need this time!


My first bigger bike trip outside out Europe is about to start - I'll check if Four Rivers Trail is as good as it sounds.


Map courtesy of Wanderlog, the best travel planner app on iOS and Android

Quick prep in Seoul

Weather forecast just before I go looks interesting


Upon arrival it turns out that it wasn't that bad. And Seoul has some very interesting architecture

Wearing traditional dresses seems to be trendy in some areas

As sun sets over Seoul I'm heading towards my hotel to get ready for an early start tomorrow

Ready to go!

Going South

Bye bye to Seoul skyline - I'm going south

Four rivers trail - nearly 2000km of dedicated cycling paths ahead

As soon as I leave Seoul (and it takes a while) it gets really beautiful and quiet

Cycling slowly gets traction in Korea, but the farther from Seoul you go the fewer cyclists you meet

Speaking of great infrastructure - on the first day alone I passed through more than ten dedicated cycling tunnels

... and some less obvious features

If this is how the trail looks like I'm gonna love it.

On the second day I decided to detour slightly and it ended up in more climbing than expected (certainly no tunnels here)

For a short while I had to share the road with cars and people equipped with pitchforks

A lotus garden along the way

It's surprising to see relatively small cities in the middle of nowhere with extremely tall buildings

Quite a few bridges in this part of the country and it's all mountainous apart from the riverside. 

The day is almost over - need to push to find some place to sleep

My traditional Korean room in Gongju

What an awesome fridge! Let's see what did they leave for me inside

Hangers??

No such thing as small dish in Korea. Everything comes with five to ten side dishes

Next morning a quick visit to Gongju fortress or rather limited remains of what used to be a fortress

You won't enter even if you're cute

Back to the river trail

Sometimes it's better if you don't what's waiting for you

For those wanting to relax or even pitch a tent there are plenty of well prepared options along the way

No, this is not a dinner. Barely "makgeolli" (local type of alcohol made of rice) with side dishes. Quite a few.

Day 3 ends in a traditional Korean house in a city called Jeonju

This rainy day starts with some black soup. I won't even try to guess what is it made of

Views make me think that cycling in the rain can be pleasant too

Most of the day along the river

Just try to imagine the smile on my face when after long difficult rainy day I've found this in my hotel room 🙂

Today only a short 85km ride to the coast and then I'm jumping onto a ferry to Jeju island. In the south autumn seems to slowly unwind

And the weather makes it a great ride. This time it ends earlier than I'd want...

... but I have to jump on a ferry and go to Jeju island


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Location: South Korea

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