Seonyudo Island

Bare white rock peaks rise straight out of the sea. This is Mangjubong, with a long stretch of fine sand at its feet and a sea that turns red at sunset. Seonyudo, "the island where immortals play", is the hub of the Gogunsan Islands, a group of 16 inhabited and 47 uninhabited islands off Gunsan. For centuries it could only be reached by boat; today you can drive straight in from the Saemangeum Seawall.

History: once called Gunsando

The island's original name was Gunsando. In the Goryeo period it was a port of call on the sea route between Goryeo and Song China and the site of a naval base called Gunsanjin. Records describe the Song envoy Xu Jing arriving here and being received by the Goryeo statesman Kim Bu-sik, and a 2013 survey of the site of the Goryeo royal lodge Sungsan Haenggung found building foundations, roof tiles and celadon. When King Sejong of Joseon moved the naval base to the mainland, the name Gunsan went with it to today's city, and the islands became "Old Gunsan", Gogunsan. After his victory at the Battle of Myeongnyang, Admiral Yi Sun-sin spent eleven days here regrouping his fleet. The name of the main village, Jinmal, "base village", still recalls the old naval post.

What to see

• Seonyudo Beach (Myeongsasipri): a sandbar between the island's southern and northern halves holds a beach 1.3 km long and 50 m wide. The water is so shallow that it only reaches your waist a hundred metres out.
• Mangjubong: a rocky summit a little over 100 m high. After heavy rain, water streams down the rock as the temporary Mangju Falls.
• Eight views of Seonyu: the traditional list includes the beach, Mangju Falls, the evening glow over the sea and the lights of fishing boats off Jangjado. The sunset, Seonyu Nakjo, can be watched straight from the beach.
• Jangjado and Daejangdo: small islands joined to Seonyudo by bridges. From the observation point on Daejangbong you look out over the surrounding islands.

Good to know

The rocks around Seonyudo are rhyolite formed by volcanic activity about 93 million years ago. The white rock around Mangjubong is exposed so clearly that it shows up on satellite images. The Gogunsan road linking the islands to the mainland opened on 28 December 2017.

Nearby

• Saemangeum Seawall: linking Gunsan and Buan, it entered Guinness World Records in 2010 as the world's longest seawall. On the way to Seonyudo you can stop at rest areas such as the one on Garyeokdo.
• Munyeodo and Sinsido: islands you pass along the Gogunsan road, with small harbours and, on Sinsido, a fishing-village experience centre. Stopping briefly on each island makes the drive to Seonyudo part of the trip.

Tripto tips

• Getting there: drive from the Saemangeum Seawall via Sinsido and Munyeodo. On the island it is more relaxing to leave the car in the public car park and explore on foot or by bicycle.
• Parking: the Seonyudo public car park is listed as free for the first hour, then KRW 1,500 per 30 minutes for a standard car.
• Time needed: allow half a day for the beach, a loop around Mangjubong and the crossing to Jangjado.
• When to go: summer for swimming, spring and autumn for walking and cycling. Staying on the beach for the sunset rounds the day off.