Godaesan Mountain

This description was machine-translated from the Korea Tourism Organization's Korean original.

Godaesan Mountain (832 m) is a mountain on the boundary between Yeoncheon-gun, Gyeonggi-do, and Cheorwon-gun, Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province. Among mountains where hiking is permitted, it is the closest to North Korea. From Godaebong, the summit of Godaesan Mountain, you can see the plains of Cheorwon and Baekmagoji, a fierce battlefield during the Korean War, as well as Geumhaksan Mountain, Jijangbong Peak, Bukdaesan Mountain, and Hyangrobong Peak to the north. From old times, Godaesan Mountain has been regarded as one of Korea’s Three Sacred Mountains, associated with the legends of the prophetic place names Johwasin, Gyohwasin, and Chihwasin of the ancient sages. The place name of Godaesan Mountain is also said to have derived from “big whale,” which appears to be related to a charcoal-producing place name; it refers to “banggorae” (the flue channel under the ondol floor stones of a heated room using firewood, through which flames and smoke pass and exit), and Godaesan Mountain is called Godaesan because its valleys are deep and high. On old maps it was also written as Gotae, meaning a place likened to a high constellation. The area around Godaesan Mountain was formerly rich in dense forests and forest resources and was also suitable for making timber and charcoal, and because there were many inns that had formed into villages, it was also called by the place name Sintanmak; before the Korean War it was also a place widely known for its famous charcoal.