on a rainy day

It's been raining on and off all day. Planned to go cycling in spite of the rain, drove to Ugok 우곡 village, parked at the township office and started cycling southwards in the clockwise direction. 

Ugok primary school opened in 1933 has 33 students and 10 teachers now. Out of all the students, only one is in the 6th grade(12 years old). The number of students has dropped significantly, as it decreased in other schools across the nation. The image on the right shows the Nakdong river and riverside village. The rain started picking up after arriving at the river bank. Looking back southwards, a bridge across the river spanned the cycling route.

On the way to Goryeong 고령 from Deokgok 덕곡, approached the 3-way intersection. Goryeong is straight ahead, and proceeded northwards uphill along the road and crossed a mountain pass down to Goryeong. Haeinsa 해인사 Buddhist temple lies around 39km away to the west.

heating up

Sunny sky and hot temperature are making it feel like summer already. The asphalted paved surface is heated up more by solar radiation. It's been about one year to go cycling around the rural areas in Gunwi 군위 and Uiseong 의성 county. Ubo 우보 and Uiheung 의흥 are in Gunwi, Gaum 가음 Uiseong.

On the way to Uiheung from Ubo, turned left for Gaum, headed up north and then crossed a hill pass down to Gaum with towering mountains in the background. An uphill stretch southwards to Gunwi dam awaits after your passing through the village of Nakjeon-ri 낙전리. Riding uphill is always a challenge. 

Gunwi dam. A lack of rainfall persists long enough and has brought water levels down to less than half its average level.

just after the main pollen season ended

The pollen season is nearly over. Cycled leisurely  around countryside and along riverside trail after one-month absence. It was really hard to start riding again after one month absence, but managed to cover the distance longer than 90 km.  

Gaejin 개진 village and the road to Goryeong 고령 and Ugok 우곡, which runs up the hill pass in the distance. A river flows near Ugok village. A traditional pavilion is nestled into the edge of a cliff on the other of the river, which flows into the Nakdong river. You shall discover the peaceful landscape from riverside between Ugok 우곡 and Gaekgi 객기.

The appoximate location of Gaekgi river dock 객기 나루터 by the Nakdong river and a Buddhist temple, Musimsa 무심사 in the middle of the hill on the other side of the river. This river dock had been one of the nodes within transportation and logistics networks along the Nakdong river since the ancient times. Historically, the Japanese army landed here and pushed on towards Goryeong during the Japanese invasion by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1592. Until the early 1990's, this river dock is said to have been used, but now can't find any trace of the dock after the construction of new riverbanks altered the waterway.