Bogildo Island

Off the south-west of Wando, Bogildo is best known as the island where the Joseon poet Yun Seon-do stopped on his way to Jeju and stayed to build a garden retreat. Yet the island as a whole has much more to offer: the Yesong-ri pebble beach, more than 1.4 km long, an evergreen forest protected as a Natural Monument, and Geulssin Rock, where Song Si-yeol carved a lament. It easily fills a full day.

Yun Seon-do's island

Yun Seon-do (1587–1671) was sailing towards Jeju after hearing that the king had surrendered in the Qing invasion of 1636 when the scenery of Bogildo persuaded him to stay. From 1637, aged 51, he lived here, dug ponds, built pavilions and a study, and wrote poems such as The Fisherman's Calendar. Some of the names he gave to the island's rocks and peaks are still used. Yun Seon-do's Garden on Bogildo, with Seyeonjeong, Nakseojae and Dongcheonseoksil, is a Scenic Site and a Historic Site, and makes a natural starting point; Tripto covers it on a separate page.

Beyond the garden

• Yesong-ri Beach: on the south coast, covered in small round pebbles instead of sand. Sources give its length as 1.4 km or 2 km. The stones rattle with every wave, and a string of islets sits just offshore.
• Yesong-ri Evergreen Forest (Natural Monument): the windbreak behind the beach, with pines, hackberries, Japanese bay trees and camellias. Villagers still honour the pines as guardian trees and hold a sea ritual every year.
• Geulssin Rock: a screen-like rock at the tip of Baekdo-ri on the south-east coast. The scholar Song Si-yeol, sent into exile on Jeju at the age of 83 over a dispute about the crown prince, is said to have stopped here and carved a poem lamenting his fate.
• Beaches and woods: the island has three bathing beaches and is a popular summer escape. Locals also recommend the Buyong-ri camellia wood, sunrise at Yesong-ri and sunset at Seonchang-ri.

Getting to the island

Ferries land on neighbouring Nohwado, which has been joined to Bogildo since 2008 by the 628 m Bogil Bridge, so you can drive between the two islands. There are two mainland ports:

• Ttangkkeut Port (Haenam) → Sanyang-jin Port, Nohwado: the busiest route, with dozens of sailings a day.
• Hwaheungpo Port (Wando) → Dongcheon Port, Nohwado: handy if you are coming from Wando.

The island at a glance

Bogildo covers about 32 km² and lies some 12 km south-west of Wando Port. Yun Seon-do named its valley Buyongdong and is said to have built 25 structures, including Seyeonjeong and Nakseojae, during more than a decade here; sources give his stay as about ten years or thirteen.

Off Yesong-ri Beach float islets such as Dangsado, Yejakdo, Dakseom and Giseom, and the beach is about 50 m wide. It is a year-round resort visited by hundreds of thousands of people a year: swimmers in summer, sunrise-watchers in winter. Some thirty species of trees and plants grow in the evergreen forest behind it.

Tripto tips

• Time needed: allow a full day for the garden, Yesong-ri and Geulssin Rock; staying a night makes it more relaxed.
• Getting around: the garden, Yesong-ri and Geulssin Rock are spread across the island, so taking your car on the ferry is easiest. On peak-season weekends the queue to board with a car can be long.
• Ferry times: sailings change with the weather and maintenance, so check the timetable with the operator the day before. Plan your day backwards from the last boat.
• When to go: July and August for swimming, winter to early spring for camellias. The pebble beach is a good walk in any season.
• Please note: the Yesong-ri pebbles are protected, so do not take any home.