Designated as a natural monument, Bijarim Forest has a group of about 2,800 Bija trees which are 500∼800 years old. They are 7~14m high, with diameters ranging from 50~110cm. This is the largest forest of bija trees in the world...In 1992, Jejudo Island renovated a walkway at this site for the citizens and tourists to enjoy forest walks through the wonderful forest.
It's a little tricky getting there if you don't have your own vehicle, but once you sit down to figure it out, it's still manageable. Take a bus from Jeju-si or Seogwipo-si to Sehwa-ri, where you can then take a cab to Bijarim for about 7,000 won; admission is free with your Jeju residency card.
We decided to bring a lunch with us, since the bus ride was about an hour and a half and we weren't sure what kind of place we were going to be dropped off at; gimbap with tuna sandwiches and some flavourful raspberry makgeolli to wash it down.
The beginning of the path into the woods is quite nice, with a big freshly mowed grassy field in the center and a quaint pebble walkway leading towards the forest. There are various species of trees and bushes, each with a marker to indicate what they are.
After finishing our lunch on a picnic table near the entrance to the woods, we started our walk through the old nutmeg forest.
A natural nutmeg grove (Torreya nucifira community) on Mt. Hallasan (designated Natural Monument #384), extends over 448 thousand square meters...In the past, nutmeg was valued as vermicide and its wood was popular for high quality furniture and paduk (go) boards for the wealty. The area is also noted foor many rare orchids which grow naturally.
The canopy within the forest adds to the atmosphere; you feel like you're walking through an enchanted old forest.
After walking roughly half of a kilometre, you come to this crossroad; one path leads towards the exit, another back the way you came from, and the third to the mysterious "Millennium tree". We went with path number three.
In the middle of the forest is an 800-year-old tree, the oldest tree on Jeju-do Island. The tree is 25m high and has a girth of 6m and is called the ancestor tree of the Bija trees.
As we approached the Millennium tree I felt somewhat eery by its presence, like the first time I saw the Great Deku Tree in Ocarina of Time; another 1998 classic.
All around the forest are name tags on the nutmeg trees, indicating they're "sister trees". Trees that are part of an ongoing project working towards bringing awareness about this forest to people in Korea and beyond.
There are also some campgrounds not too far off the returning path. So for anyone looking to stay the night or bring the family out, there's somewhere to camp. I spotted some oreum in the distance which looked like they would give a pretty good view of the area, but Brian and I were unable to find a path up.
If you're interested, you can find out more about Bijarim and other Jeju forests in my Jeju Weekly cover story, "Walk on the wooded side."
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