Post-159: In Jeomchon

I spent the weekend of October 19th-20th in Jeomchon [점촌, 문경시] in Geyongsang Province, taking a break from hiking. I was happy to find a large Homeplus there to stock up on supplies. They even had a pretty-good potato salad.

Here are some pictures of Jeomchon:

A view of Jeomchon from Jungang Park

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A street in Jeomchon

A banner for an "Apple Festival" in Mungyeong County, surrounding Jeomchon

At the train station:

A church van in the parking lot in front of Jeomchon Train Station.
Note the combined use of Korean and English in the slogan: "자유 [Freedom] in Christ Jesus".

An old traincar open for looking around in, on a sidetrack at Jeomchon Station.
Also nearby were a large cage for two dogs visitors play with, many flowers,
walking paths, a small library, rest-area, and a "mini-KTX" train ride for kids.
The station almost feels like an amusement park!

Jeomchon Station was awarded "Best Station" in 2012, and having walked around in it, I can see why...

Elsewhere around town, I kept seeing phone numbers which included "555" or "666", both combinations never-seen as phone numbers in the USA (for very different reasons). Here is one that includes both at once:

A truck with a "fake"-seeming phone number

Finally, a glimpse of the Four Rivers Cross-Country Bicycle Trail:

A bike rider on the outskirts of Jeomchon, and near the "Four-Rivers Bike Trail"

An unglamorous section of the Four Rivers Bicycle Trail in Jeomchon

Four Rivers Bike Trail Sign

Me in front of a sign
along the bike trail

I was interested especially in Jeomchon as a place to rest for because the so-called "Four Great Rivers Bicycle Trail" passes through it. In late 2011, South Korea completed its first long-distance bike trails, including the big one that will take you from Incheon and Seoul all the way to Busan on the southeast coast. The picture directly above is along that Incheon-Busan bike trail.

It's funny to think that I could follow this off-street bicycle trail all the way to Seoul. (As it's not a walking trail, though, I'm sure the bicyclists would be annoyed.)


Near where I found the bike trail, a reminder that Jeomchon is no big city:

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Jeomchon Industry High School. A rice field is in in the foreground, adjacent to the school.

I don't have any pictures of the $30-a-night motel I stayed in, from where I type these words, nor of the nearby giant Homeplus, where I spent $60 or so on food and other stuff. I am anxious to get back on the hiking trail while the weather is still pleasant...

Sunset, October 20th 2013, Jeomchon