Popular at 900m Summit with Aster Flowers, Observatory, and Concert
[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] Gamaksan Mountain in Geochang-gun has become a new tourist attraction in Geochang as purple asters and white Korean chrysanthemums are in full bloom, harmonizing against the backdrop of a clear autumn sky and wind turbines.
In addition, in the post- and with-COVID-19 era, it has gained fame as a scenic spot where photos come out beautifully, attracting about 60,000 tourists nationwide and drawing attention as a new hot place in Gyeongnam Province.
The county is developing the area near the summit of Gamaksan with an anti-aging theme, planting ornamental flowers, building an observatory, and installing night LED lighting (media art).
Since 2014, the county has invested about 70 billion KRW to promote a three-track policy: creating a leisure adventure-themed forest sports park (44 billion KRW) in the northern region, a healing-type anti-aging healing land (27 billion KRW) in the eastern region, and a natural landscape-themed Gamaksan theme park project in the southern region.
Located in the center of the southern region, Gamaksan’s summit at 952 meters above sea level has a gentle shape and offers views of Korea’s three major national parks: Jirisan, Deogyusan, and Gayasan. A key advantage is that vehicles can access the summit.
Also, the Namgeochang IC on the Hamyang-Ulsan Expressway, just 5 minutes away, is scheduled to open in 2024. Tourist resources are concentrated here, including Yeonsusa Temple, a thousand-year-old temple, a 27-hole public golf course on the mid-slope of Gamaksan, an astronomical research institute laser observatory, and a wind power generation complex (7 turbines).
Especially, the summit of Gamaksan offers the best nationwide location conditions with views of the three major national parks. It has high potential for development as a stay-type tourist destination with eco-friendly wind farms, walking trails, observatories, wellness, and starlight experiences.
Until now, the summit area of Gamaksan (50,000㎡) was almost barren land, used for cultivating highland vegetables and medicinal herbs, but under the anti-aging healing special zone policy, medicinal herb flowers and others were planted. In summer, Shasta daisies bloom, and in autumn, purple asters, Korean chrysanthemums, and silver grass create a spectacular view, attracting about 60,000 visitors, making weekends crowded with traffic on access roads and at experience sites.
The county operates an on-site parking control team for visitors coming nationwide through voluntary viral marketing, and urgently runs temporary restrooms, agricultural product sales, food trucks, and busking performances. The purple asters, which were popular last year, are blooming at more than twice the scale, and projects are underway in various fields, including a pilot project for an observatory and LED night lighting (media facade), as well as income-generating services for nearby villages.
Geochang-gun has rolled up its sleeves to develop Gamaksan as a new key tourist destination in Geochang, energized by the explosive response from visitors last year.
County Governor Goo In-mo personally visited Haeinsa Temple, the head temple of Yeonsusa on Gamaksan, in April to explain the project plan and obtained approval to use 118,572㎡ of land for access roads, experience sites, and walking trails. This is expected to accelerate immediate projects such as widening and paving the access road (2 km) and creating a 4-meter-wide walking trail. Currently, the Gamaksan area comprehensive development council, composed of 11 members, is being expanded and reorganized to include nearby tourist spots, and a comprehensive tourism development service will prepare a concrete roadmap for the present and future of Gamaksan.
In the long term, the area will be developed into a nighttime experience spot combining starlight and astronomical observation with LED lighting (media art), revitalizing the local economy. To this end, a linked tourism tour is being planned, starting with short tours of Changpowon, Gyeongnam’s first provincial garden near Gamaksan, and Geochang Memorial Park, which holds the painful history of the Korean War, extending throughout Geochang-gun. In autumn, the scenery of Gamaksan filled with flowers and stars is being created through support projects linked to the Geochang International Theater Festival and busking performances.
As a countermeasure, the county is focusing on Gamaksan, which was selected as one of the 100 Untact Tourist Destinations in 2020 (7 in Gyeongnam). The summit of Gamaksan boasts natural scenery with views of sunrise, sunset, the Milky Way, and Geochang-eup, and has high potential as a stay-type tourist destination with flowers, wind farms, and night lighting.
Governor Goo said, “In preparation for the post- and with-COVID-19 era, we will make Gamaksan the nation’s best outdoor stay-type tourist destination as a new growth engine for Geochang,” and added, “We ask for the interest and participation of residents and tourists nationwide in the Gamaksan Flower & Star Travel event, held from September 24 to October 17 this year.”
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