Hello, everyone.
Enjoyable riding in fine weather —
this is Ajae of the Weather.
I had a long business trip to Cheongju,
so I got to ride here and there along the Geum River and Nakdong River paths.
After completing the cross-country ride in 2013,
I had thought long events like a full traverse were not for me,
so I had not gone much — but since I was there anyway, I took my bike and had a look around.
This June was like a gift of weather from the heavens,
so cool and pleasant.
Are we turning into a Mediterranean coastal climate? ^^
The Geum River bike path.
The stretch from Gongju to Buyeo seemed poorly maintained.
There were more riverbed roads than embankment paths like this one,
so it was a little disappointing for enjoying the scenery —
but it was so quiet and peaceful that it had a romance of its own.
On the Geum River bike path,
the best-maintained section was the Sejong City stretch.
It was paved with asphalt,
and with almost no one else riding, I could grab the drops and open up for the first time in a while.
Fitting for a Sejong Special Self-Governing City.
Seoul’s bike paths had been the best I had ridden,
but short as this section is, I thought this one was even better.
That said, this is a riverbed road too, so the scenery leaves something to be desired.
Now, jumping ahead —
the Nakdong River section from Sangju to Gumi.
This is near Nakdan Weir.
To travel between Cheongju and Busan
I take the Sangju-Yeongcheon Expressway,
and crossing the big bridge near the Uiseong rest area on the Nakdong River,
wonderful scenery opens up on the right.
Driving past, I kept thinking I should ride that stretch on a bike some day…
and it turned out to be right by Nakdan Weir.
It was on the section running from Nakdan Weir toward Gumi.
I had heard the Sangju-to-Gumi section was splendid,
so I rode it.
Clouds, cliffs, river, riverside flats, sky —
the scenery is absolutely killer.
Gyeongcheonseom Island.
Back on my old cross-country ride,
was it Binaeseom? It was as scenic as that place.
Only, there were plenty of hills, which made it hard going…
A climb called Maehyeopje with a 22 percent gradient ㅠㅠ
The day ends with a cup of makgeolli.
Skim a couple of light cups off the clear top and it tastes like cheongju (clear rice wine).
And then shake it up and drink it as takju — superb.
A typical view of the bike path.
The road on from Nakdan Weir.
This is the spot I used to see from the expressway,
and sure enough, the scenery is fine.
The path runs on and on along the embankment,
and the closer you get to Gumi, the better the paving
of the bike path becomes.
Having finished a thoroughly enjoyable ride, on the way home…
I drove the uncongested expressway in eco mode
and arrived.
I came 167 kilometres from Gumi to Busan.
And by the way — fuel economy of 26.3 kilometres per litre.
It is over seven years since I bought the car new, but it is hard to replace —
surely the best fuel-economy car for this era of high oil prices.
What I felt while jumping between sections of the Four Rivers bike paths
was that management really differs from one local government to another,
and that our country truly does have beautiful mountain scenery,
with the ridgelines of the hills and the edges of the mountains differing from town to town,
so that the flavour of each is quite different.
The style of the good restaurants differs by town too, so it was a delightful bit of leisure amid busy days.
This one is a makgeolli introduced to me by someone from Dangjin in Chungcheong,
and it is the best makgeolli I have had recently.
I ordered it by delivery, received it at home, and in a single day
my son and I finished it all off. ^^
Thank you for reading.
The rainy season is coming, so train well at home
and I wish you a happy family life.
