After the finish of leg 7, entering the
industrial areas of Ulsan as it did, I was somewhat unsure of what I
would find on leg 8. Would there be a lot of industrial intrusion?
Would it be ugly? Would it be more natural?
I headed back to my end/start point for
leg 8. I was somewhat off the official start point, but I still
couldn't find the sign, so I will probably never know how far. From
my start point, the trail headed up the hill to a rather nice park.
Unfortunately, I didn't take any photos in the initial stages up
there because, the trail once again became convoluted. There were
several turns where the way was not adequately marked and I got all
turned around, and off the trail. I ended up heading kind of
northeast, I think. Finally deciding I was going the wrong way, I
stopped and was trying to figure out where I should be in relation to
where I was. Standing there with what must have been a thoroughly
confused look on my face, a helpful man came along and asked me what
I was trying to find. I told him, but I don't think he understood
very well. I think maybe this East Coast Trail is not very
well-known.
He looked at my map and asked where I
was trying to go. And then he looked confused and took me back to
the summit area where there was a map and then suggested that I
should find a path down the hillside and then ask for directions to
the beach. He never truly seemed to grasp that once I found the
flags marking the trail I would be all right. It is really nice that
he stopped to help me, but once he did, he kept trying to tell me
where he thought I should go rather than where I actually wanted to
go. However, I kept that thought to myself and let him “help”
me. Then I headed off in my new direction, he in his, and I picked
up the trail again a hundred metres from where we separated. Quite
annoyed by the conservators of the trail by now, I still didn't take
any photos until I realized that I was headed for what had seemed
from a distance to be some kind of control tower for the harbour.
It wasn't. It was actually an
observation tower for the “glory” that is Ulsan harbour. Photos
weren't allowed from the top of the tower, but there were photo zones
down below.
And they record this...
This bench seemed far more
appropriately set. It faces the nature of the hill/mountaintop and
puts the observers' backs to the harbour.
And I have to say... I have no idea
why Ulsan thinks this is a scene to be celebrated, a scene to be
shown and something which is encouraged to be photographed. It's
ugly. It's rather horrifying, to be honest. And...
Every year, the media decries the
pollution that comes from China. China has rampant smog and dust
that clouds into the air and drifts to Korea, causing all kinds of
health issues here. People buy it as well. China is evil. Only
from where I was standing on that hilltop, looking down on the smog
producing factories and plants that took up virtually all of the
harbour area in Ulsan, that kind of attitude was incredible
hypocrisy.
From the observation area, I got down
off the hill and to a seaside port. It would have been pretty
enough, except for the knowledge of what was just around the point.
I moved on quickly.
It got much nicer, as I distanced
myself from the industrial complex. The shoreline had nice rocks and
surf and, if you looked in the right direction, views of endless sea.
This continued for much of the remainder of the hike into Ilsan
Beach.
Along the way, there was what seemed to
be a special island just off the shore. The sign describing it told
of a king from a thousand years ago, King Munmu. He was so devoted
to his kingdom, he wanted to protect it in death as well, so he
arranged to be entombed at sea. This isn't his tomb. But his queen
also wanted to protect the kingdom. So after her death, she changed
into a dragon and flew to this island and settled underneath it and
protects the peninsula to this day. It seemed to be a nice story,
and one that would mean that the island would enjoy some protection
from the hordes...
...or maybe they are just going to
build a bridge to it so the hordes can tramp all over what the story
would suggest is a somewhat sacred island. There are things I will
never understand.
After this island, I headed into the
final stretch of the leg into Ilsan Beach. The last bits were along
shoreline that was a park, and a really nice one.
The beach itself seemed to be quite a
nice little beach as well...
... as long as you look in the right
direction, ignoring the big Hyundai plant at the end of the beach...
and don't think too hard about all that heavy industry just around
the point in Ulsan harbour. I would never, ever want to swim at this
particular beach.
And I didn't want to stay in this town,
between the Hyundai plant and Ulsan harbour. It was getting late,
but I just didn't want to stay there. So despite possibly running
out of day, I pressed on into leg 9, a long hike day for the second
day in a row.
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