There were five ESL teachers who decided on one pleasant Saturday afternoon to ascend Suwon's largest mountain, Mount Gwanggyo. With their trusty maps in hand, they agreed to take Trail #1.
It was a challenging hike that took them a few hours, with a rope climb up a rock face to reach the peak. When they reached that point, they gasped at the sights surrounding them.
They could see most of Suwon City far below. They also enjoyed the serenity of the neighbouring uninhabited mountains. Often times, they could hear a friendly "Cuckoo" in the distance. All the teachers agreed that the hard climb was worth it and they felt a sense of accomplishment.
After a nice break, the teachers decided on walking towards Trail #3 so they could descend down the mountain. After walking a short while, the trail became steeper and they realized they were going up towards another peak. One teacher asked a native hiker about their whereabouts. He informed the teachers they had passed Trail #3. Surprised and a little confused, the teachers headed back to find their trail. They did find the trail only to discover that the trail was closed off with barbed wire. After some debate about what to do, they decided to continue in their original direction until they reached the next path down the hill as indicated on their maps.
More hours passed and the teachers found themselves without water or food. Though a kind stranger offered them ice water, the thirst was unquenchable.
With their muscles aching, they pressed on because nighttime was fastly approaching and signs suggested that wild boars may be around. Eventually their new path down the hill became smaller and darker as monsoon rains began. The teachers started to slip in the mud and wondered if they were going to end up lost on the mountain. They wondered if their path was really a path at all. No one was around whereas the other paths had many hikers. The paranoia was setting in, perhaps the boars were as well.
Eventually they could see brighter light and they realized they were coming out of the forest. The path they emerged from was dark, scary, and did not look well-travelled.
Breathing a sigh of relief, the teachers came across a reservoir they were expecting to find. After a few minutes of taking pictures, the exhausted and dirty group walked down a rural road filled with rice farms and huts until they found a tent masquerading as a restaurant.
There was a kind lady who worked there and served the teachers some pop and coffee. She also called a few taxis for them because the rain was coming down hard and they could not walk any longer. They had been hiking for a total of 5 hours!
After a change of clothes and a hot shower, the group went to a buffet since they had each only eaten a donut that morning. They ate for a whole two hours until they were completely full.
And then they were happy!
Editor's note: Shawn and Melodie have decided to not scale any more mountains for the forseeable future. Getting lost on Asian mountains has become a trend, remember last time?
Check out an album of photos from our hike here.
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