Mt. Chiri (1,915m)

According to the Historical Record of the Three Ancient Kingdoms, Mt. Chiri was considered as one of the Five Major Mountains (Mt. Chiri, Mt. Baekdu, Mt. Myohyang, Mt. Kumkang, and Mt. Samgak).
Here, the Shilla Dynasty conducted mid-level religious rites and built the Nam-ak Temple to deify the god of Nam-ak since Mt. Chiri was thought to be a mountain of divine spirit.

In "Tekriji," a book written by Lee Joong-hwan on Korean geography during the Yi Dynasty, Mt.Chiri is named as one of the Three Holy Mountains where a supernatural being lived. Mt. Chiri is called Mt. Bangjang, Mt. Kumkang is called Mt. Bongrae, and Mt. Halla is called Mt. Youngju.

In Mt. Chiri, there are 39 families of 165 bird species, 15 families of 41animal species, 245 types of trees, 579 species of grass, 174 kinds of medical herbs, and 285 different types of edible plants.

The main ridgeline of the mountain is 140-km long, covering three provinces: Kyongnam, Chonnam, and Chonbuk, and five counties, and 13 towns.
The total area amounts to 439km2. Mt. Chiri has about 20 peaks that are higher than 1,000 metres, and is formed of 85 small and big peaks.

Many Korean mountains are beautiful throughout the year but none of them quite matches Mt. Chiri in its transformation for each season.

Countless time and history passed by Mt. Chiri, yet its beauty remains unchanged.
Mt. Chiri was and will remain eternal. May all the gods be with Mt. Chiri.

Ha Sung-Mok