Bukhan-gang, here we come!

My buddy JW proposed a walk earlier this week. It's one I've never done before; it goes along the North Han River, i.e., the Bukhan-gang in Korean. (Buk = north; han = Han; gang = river.) JW originally thought the path would be 30 km long, but when I measured it on Naver Map, it was only 16 km. We're going on Saturday, when it'll be about 90ºF, so I'm not sure how much I'm going to enjoy this. This time of year, given how hot, humid, and miserable Korea becomes when summer rears its ugly head, I'd much rather walk at night. But I sighed and told JW I'd be happy to do the walk with him and his kids (both are coming along this time—his son and his daughter). He'll be picking me up Saturday morning at 9 a.m.; we'll drive out to Chuncheon Station, which is on the Gyeongchun Line. The walk will take us south and west to Gangchon Station (I assume "Gangchon" means "river village"), 16 kilometers along a lovely riverside path. Theoretically, we could walk longer, but JW doesn't want to push his kids to do too much. His daughter has done several walks with him; JW tells me that she's much more of a natural distance walker than his boy is, although I think his son did a pretty good job the last time we walked out to Yangpyeong (and without any whining!). Once we hit Gangchon Station, we'll take the rail back to the top again, to our starting point at Chuncheon Station, where JW will have parked his car. Perhaps we'll do a late lunch somewhere.

JW's wife never joins us on these walks. She may be relishing several hours of peace and quiet with no kids or husband in the apartment. I don't blame her; I hear that life has been stressful for her these days, what with her son, a pre-teen, becoming somewhat sullen and obstreperous. She may also have no interest in distance walking, which is understandable; we all have our particular preferences. It's sad, though: the only time I ever talk to her is around Christmas, and even that has been happening less frequently: we used to have a tradition in which I'd bring food over to JW's place, and we'd have a little Christmas Eve celebration. The past couple of years, though, JW and his family have chosen to travel around South Korea, and I don't think I realized how much I enjoyed those small family gatherings until they stopped occurring. Ah, well. You accept what life hands you, I suppose.

But Christmas aside, I can at least look forward to a family outing this coming Saturday. I'll wear my toshi to protect my forearms, plus my hiking hat to protect my head and neck. I hope 1.5 liters of water will be enough. 16 kilometers is relatively short, but the day will be hot, and I will be very sweaty. We'll see.