the walk to Hanam City

I left my place later than I'd originally intended: 12:50 a.m. on Sunday, July 7. The 26K walk to Hanam City's Starfield department store took me until 7:50 a.m. I sat down for a few rest breaks, probably totaling about 30 minutes. So: 26K in 6.5 hours... that comes out to an even 4 kph. Still painfully slow, but a tiny bit better than last week's poor performance in the rain.

I was in the office all day on Saturday until I left for my place, only two subway stops away, a bit before 11 p.m. As I said above, I didn't start the walk until 12:50 a.m. I hadn't intended to take many pictures; the original idea was merely to photograph living things that popped up on the trail. But I ended up taking a few landmark pics, too. Couldn't help myself.

Here's a frog not far from the confluence of the Tan Creek and the Han River. He looks all blurry because (1) it was a nighttime photo that was (2) taken with digital zoom so as not to scare him off (you see he's already poised to move):

I imagine he's late to join some froggy chorus.

Almost 10 km into the walk, this security car drove by on the bike path. I find this sort of thing obnoxious and unnecessary, but here we are:

I'm having a "Get off my lawn!" moment.

Olympic Bridge, which always looks Soviet to me.

There's a 24-hour convenience store that sits exactly at the 10K mark (I checked). On the wooden deck/ramp leading up to the store was this cicada, with what appears to be a forked butthole or ovipositor. I once wrote a 100 Below story about an alien with several anuses.

Roses have been out since spring, but the summer heat is turning them all wrinkled and defeated. They won't be with us for much longer:

But the rain on their petals is reminiscent of morning dew:

There was a lot of construction, as always, along the route. About 12 or 13 km in, I passed a section of road that had been curtained off (if "curtain" is the right word for a flimsy cloth/tarp wall). A sign explained what was going on. I always love how these signs will feature just a tantalizing amount of English—enough to attract the attention of an English-speaker, but never enough to understand the sign if he doesn't read Korean. The sign explains that the "Amsa Greenway" construction is what's happening along this stretch. If I understand correctly, this is supposed to connect some prehistoric site with an ecological park. Construction, which started in March, is until Halloween this year.

Here's a wider shot of a flimsy metal wall and the occasionally exposed "curtain":

This must be around the 13K or 13.5K mark.

"Take it easy, take it easy when people are around."

the impressive Godeok Bridge (does godeok/고덕 mean "high virtue"?)

dawn is here... it's 4:51 a.m.

a sign warning that speeding is a deadly weapon
(and I learned that hyoong-gi/흉기 also means "weapon," like mugi/무기)

the Godeok Stream Bridge, which I call the Fairy Bridge because of how it lights up at night

one of my favorite straightaways

I've reached Hanam City. About 7 or so km to the end.

an official city-border sign for Hanam

Hanam to the left; Seoul to the right

The crossbar says Hanam is the city where you want to live. The left post calls this an eco-friendly city; the right post proudly proclaims this is a destination for seasonal birds.

first real glimpse of the sun

After a kilometer or so on a wide straightaway, you walk up a ramp to reach the almost-final part of the trail: a dirt path for walkers only (but motor vehicles are always on the path for whatever reason). At this time of day (6:21 a.m. for the photo below), all the old people are out in force, many walking the path barefoot, which I find insane given all the tiny, fallen twigs and pebbles. But I guess that, if you do something often enough, you can get used to anything.

The especially sandy strip you see on the right side is meant for barefoot walking.

possibly friendly cat watching us walkers

Taking its cue from the frog at the beginning of this photo essay, the cat makes to leave... but doesn't.

a bunch of tiger lilies

tiger lily up close

When I see this park (which I have yet to walk in), I know I'm near the end of my journey.

Some lonely-looking mugunghwa (Roses of Sharon), the ROK's national flower.

The fountain at the end of the dirt path. I refilled my water bottle here and took a few swigs.

At this point, I have a little more than a kilometer to go. I have to cross the stream (see below), then make my way via a ramp up to street level, then circle around to the front of the Starfield department store to where the bus stop for the 9303 bus is.

down the ramp; cross the stream; up the other ramp (hard to see in this pic)

the tower that is a local landmark

A tree photobombs my tower closeup.

We've arrived at Starfield. All that's left is to walk around to the front.

And here's the "bus drop."

I'll be taking the 9303 bus. Or that's what I thought I'd be doing.

You often can't trust anything you read in Korea, which forces you to adopt a "just wing it" mentality. The electronic sign below is telling me that the 9303 bus is coming in 5 minutes. Maybe 15 minutes later, the sign was still saying "5 minutes." In fact, the 9303 bus never came, and I ended up having to take the 9302 bus out of Hanam to Seoul's Jamshil Station, where I took a subway (one transfer) back to my place. The 9302 bus that picked me up was never announced on the electronic screen. I'd say "Go figure," but I'm jaded enough to know this is how things happen in Korea, one of the most nonlinear countries in the world. If you decide you want to live here, just stop having expectations, and you'll be perfectly happy.

A tired Kevin at the end of 26 km:

oh, those droopy, increasingly baggy eyes

So that was this weekend's big walk. 26K may be about the maximum for my summertime walks. While the weather wasn't really hot during the night (and there was an occasional breeze), I don't think a longer walk would end all that well: it'd probably end closer to afternoon, which means I'd be baking and possibly sunburned. So any 60K "crazy walks" and 35K walks from Hanam to Yangpyeong and 33K walks from Yangpyeong to Yeoju will have to wait until things cool down.

Otherwise, this was a pleasant stroll. There was evidence of an earlier rain (not announced on the weather website—see what I mean about not trusting anything?), and I had the path mostly to myself until a little after 4:30 a.m., which is when the first wave of bikers and walkers began to appear. Most of these people are fair-weather pussies: you'll never see them in full-on rain or wintry cold. Occasionally, though, there are dedicated crazies who come out to defy the elements. Today was quiet until the scene suddenly exploded with old people, all of whom moved faster than I did. We need a health culture like this in America. When I lived in Switzerland, I saw a similar enthusiasm for being outdoors and moving around. Americans are fat and sluggish people, and while I appreciate the unhurried manner of many of my countrymen, there's also something to be said for getting off one's ass and being energetic.