Baegunsan Natural Recreation Forest: A Healing Journey into Autumn

Forest Museum and Wood Culture Experience Center Emerge as Popular Attractions
A Hub for Rest, Learning, and Hands-On Activities Draws Family Visitors

Gwangyang City in South Jeolla Province announced that Baegunsan Natural Recreation Forest is captivating the footsteps of citizens and tourists with its colorful autumn foliage trails and fresh air.

Baegunsan Natural Recreation Forest is not only a healing destination where visitors can enjoy walks and relaxation amidst fresh air, but also a place to connect with nature and experience a variety of activities.

Gwangyang Baegunsan Natural Recreation Forest is captivating the footsteps of citizens and tourists with its colorful autumn foliage trails and fresh air. Photo by Gwangyang City

As you walk along the forest trails, the Baegunsan Forest Museum appears between the trees adorned with autumn leaves, guiding visitors to a space of learning within nature.

The Baegunsan Forest Museum is a forest culture space where visitors can easily and enjoyably learn about the value of forests and humans, trees, and wood. It offers programs that allow visitors to participate and experience directly.

The museum interior consists of three exhibition halls: "Forests Disappear," "Forests Are Precious," and "With the Forest." Each hall provides a variety of content on topics such as forest ecology and functions, the four seasons and ecology of Baegunsan, and the growth of trees and the use of wood.

The first exhibition hall helps visitors understand the role of forests in the cycles of nature and climate change through videos and models. The second exhibition hall allows visitors to vividly experience the four seasons and diverse ecology of Baegunsan through dioramas and specimens. The third exhibition hall is a space where visitors can directly learn about the growth process of trees and wood utilization, making it especially popular among family visitors.

Located within Baegunsan Natural Recreation Forest, the Gwangyang City Wood Culture Experience Center operates a woodworking academy where people can learn woodworking firsthand and enjoy creative leisure activities.

The academy offers a systematically organized, hands-on program that covers everything from learning the basic principles of wood and how to use tools, to actually making household furniture. This goes beyond simple experiences, providing opportunities to learn about practical wood utilization and woodworking skills, while developing creativity and manual dexterity.

Currently, applications are being accepted on a first-come, first-served basis for the "2025 Woodcraft Skills Training Support Project" woodworking academy, targeting a total of 100 citizens.

Participants can choose from 13 courses, including "Making a Side Table," "Making a Hinoki Sofa," and "Making an End Grain Cutting Board," to enjoy creative leisure activities that suit their interests. The classes are operated in small groups, allowing for the advantage of one-on-one instruction from the instructor.

Shim Hyunwoo, head of the recreation forest, said, "Baegunsan Natural Recreation Forest is a comprehensive healing space where rest, learning, and experience come together in the beautiful nature of Baegunsan. We will continue to offer a variety of programs so that citizens and tourists can learn about and appreciate the value and importance of nature."