Jeongdong-Simgok Badabuchae Trail
A 3.01-kilometre cliff-foot trail between Jeongdong and Simgok ports, following the East Sea below a nationally protected marine-terrace landscape
Coastal walking, marine geology, cliff views, former military-route history and point-to-point hiking
A linear trail with ticket gates at Jeongdong and Simgok, about an hour of walking, no toilets along the route and weather-dependent access beside an exposed coast
Along Badabuchae-gil, the modern sea runs below a terrace cut by an older shoreline. The former patrol corridor now passes directly beneath that raised coast, bringing geology and recent military history into the same three-kilometre walk
Character
The 3.01-kilometre path between Jeongdong and Simgok follows a coastal corridor once used for military patrols. Public access brought walkers below a marine terrace: a flat surface cut by an older shoreline and later raised above the present East Sea
The terrace is easiest to understand by looking vertically. Waves once worked against a shoreline higher than today's waterline, cutting a relatively flat bench at the coast. Crustal uplift then raised that surface, leaving the present sea below it. The Jeongdongjin marine terrace was designated Natural Monument No. 437 in 2004
The walking route occupies the narrow zone beneath those raised surfaces. For decades, the same strip was associated with coastal security and military patrol access. Its later opening gave ordinary visitors a close view of rock faces and shoreline that had been outside normal public circulation
The experience
The trail runs linearly between Jeongdong Port and Simgok Port. The operator gives a length of 3.01 kilometres and a typical walking time of about one hour, with ticket offices at both ends. The route stays close to the sea for most of that distance
There are no toilets along the trail itself. Facilities are concentrated around the entrances, and the two ends differ in transport and parking convenience. The Jeongdong side has no parking directly beside the trail entrance; the operator directs drivers to outside parking areas that can add a substantial walk before the coastal section begins
Exposure to the East Sea is part of the operating reality. High waves, severe weather or military operations can close or restrict the route, so access is controlled even during the published season
History
The oldest story here is geological. The Jeongdongjin marine terrace records a former shoreline that was cut by waves and then lifted above present sea level. Korea Heritage Service designated 107,673 square metres of the terrace as Natural Monument No. 437 in April 2004
The cliff-foot corridor acquired a very different use in the modern period. Coastal security restrictions kept much of the route outside ordinary civilian circulation, and soldiers used sections for patrol. That history survives in the basic geography of the trail: a narrow controlled passage between steep land and open sea
Public opening converted that patrol corridor into Badabuchae-gil in the 2010s. The new path connected Jeongdong and Simgok for walkers while keeping controlled gates at both ends. The name is now attached to a route whose main subject was already present long before the path itself: the changing position of shoreline, cliff and sea
Before you go
Badabuchae-gil is a point-to-point coastal trail with entrances at both Jeongdong and Simgok, and the transport situation differs at each end. There are no toilets between the gates. Sea conditions can close the entire route, and ticket sales end before the published closing time
- Hours
- April–October: 09:00–17:30, ticketing to 16:30. November–March: 09:00–16:30, ticketing to 15:30. High waves, severe weather or military operations can change access
- Admission
- General admission is ₩5,000; youth and military admission ₩4,000; seniors and children ₩3,000 under the operator's standard fare schedule
- Access
- Ticketed entrances operate at both Jeongdong and Simgok. There are no toilets along the 3.01-kilometre trail itself, so facilities are concentrated at the ends
- Transit
- Bus 112 connects Gangneung Station with the Jeongdong side. For Simgok, the operator lists a Bus 112 connection followed by local Bus 958; the two trailheads therefore have different public-transport patterns