The Great Wall of… South Korea? Hwaseong Fortress

This is essentially one post in two parts. In this post: Hwaseong. In the last post: Namhansanseong.

The Korean Peninsula’s strategic position between China and Japan has increased its risk of military invasion for centuries. Vestiges of this history remain in the form of protective fortress walls in Seoul and beyond, many of which are now maintained and utilized as hiking trails. The ease of accessing these trails, as well as their tendency to be well-maintained, have made them a go-to for our hiking adventures since we arrived in Seoul.

In addition to trekking the Seoul city walls, we have visited Namhansanseong Fortress just outside of Seoul, and Hwaseong Fortress in Suwon. Each is worth the trip from the city and provided very different opportunities for exploration.

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Hwaseong Fortress

Hwaseong Fortress is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The current site is a reconstruction of the fortress that originally existed in Suwon, a city about 30km south of Seoul. The walls are nearly 6km long and encircle the center of Suwon on Paldal Mountain.

There are multiple points of entry to the fortress from the city. You can climb up a small mountain on wide, well-paved paths to access the main fortress, or you can enter the fortress itself and walk on mainly flat surfaces around the walls.

King Jeongjo of the Joseon Dynasty had the fortress built in the 18th century to honor his father, Prince Sado, the infamous royal who was exceuted by his own father. The plan may have been to move the dynasty’s capital from Hanyang (modern-day Seoul) to Suwon, although this never became a reality.

We were fortunate that a Suwon resident who is a member of the Seoul International Hikers Club invited the club to Suwon for the day to hike around the fortress. It’s always more fun to explore together!

Much of the fortress was destroyed during the Japanese Colonial Period and then the Korean War, but reconstruction of the damaged walls, gates, towers, and bastions began in 1964 and is ongoing.

Suwon’s main stream, the Suwoncheon, flows through the middle of the fortress and provides additional park space in the area.

After our fortress hike, a member of the club invited us to lunch at Hyudong restaurant with proprietor Kim Jeong-Soo, which led to our enjoying an excellent, traditional Korean meal together. Mr. Kim also makes and bottles makgeolli, a raw rice wine traditionally home-brewed and enjoyed by Korean farmers. These days, we have noted it is also enjoyed by Korean hikers! We often see makgeolli sold and enjoyed along popular hiking trails, and if not along the trail then certainly at the restaurants frequented post-hike. (Restaurant photo credit: David Lim)

Because somehow we were still able to walk after all that, we took a late-afternoon stroll along the nearby Gwanggyo Reservoir and dam.

There are other historic sites in Suwon we didn’t have time to see on this visit, so it may be worth a return at some point. We took the Mugunghwa train from Yongsan Station, which was easy, comfortable, and took only about 35 minutes. You can buy tickets for this train either in advance or at the station.

You can see more photos of our visit to Suwon’s Hwaseong Fortress on our Flickr page. If you missed our Namhansanseong Fortress post, you can find it here.