| The beauty of Mount Halla in June 1989 Korea Times Archive |
By Robert Neff
When Charles Chaille-Long, the secretary of the American Legation in Seoul, traveled to Jeju Island in 1888, he toyed with the idea of climbing Mount Halla, but the island's governor quickly made it clear that it was a bad idea.
According to Chaille-Long, the governor ― who was fairly new to his post ― complained that the islanders were "rude and very ungovernable," and would be incensed if he tried to climb the mountain.
"The mountain is sacred and the traditions require that one hundred days of sacrifices must be performed before attempting the ascent. Without this, great ills fall upon the people and the island and the crops would be certainly ruined by the rains which would surely follow."
He then cautioned, "Halla-san is sacred and in the bosom of the mountain dwell the gods of [Jeju]."
In his report to the State Department, the American wrote: "I felt sorely disappointed at this unexpected state of affairs, but when the Governor asked me not to insist upon going to the mountains, I felt that there was nothing else to do. I had to submit to what was inevitable."
Prevented from climbing the mountain, he sought out additional information from the people he interacted with ― especially from an elderly islander. Rather than include the rough version he provided to the State Department, here is the polished version he published in his book several years later:
"Halla-san is the god of [Jeju]. Halla-san is the home of a great spirit. No one can ascend to the top of the mountain, it is the home of a fairy goddess whose face no one can see and live. Halla-san is the beginning of creation. There man was first created. Three men sprang up from the mountain-top ― Yang-ulla, Ko-ulla, and Po-ulla ― and stood in each other's presence. When they had recovered from their surprise they descended to the seashore, discussing serious things. Arrived there, lo! there appeared in the distance borne swiftly upon the waves, a huge box which fell at their feet. Three beautiful women stepped out. Yang, Ko, and Po married them, returned to Halla-san, and found there fruits, grains, fowls and animals. Thus the creation of the world, men, and beasts."
| Seogwipo in the foreground with Mount Halla in the background in September 1989 Korea Times Archive |
When Henry William Wilkinson, the British vice-consul, traveled to the island in mid-August 1895, his initial impressions of Jeju ― and especially Mount Halla ― were negative. As the Korean government steamer approached the island, he wrote:
"Here the land rose smoothly from the sea like the back of a monstrous cachalot studded with huge bosses, grey cones that seemed like ghosts of, what in truth they are, dead craters. Over Mount Auckland [Halla], whose mass might have broken the spell of this gruesome procession, hung a thick pall of clouds. The island, in its silence and awesomeness, appeared indeed such as we imagine to be, at closer quarters, the scenery of the moon."
He later added that it was not till he got ashore that this irrational horror began to lift and he was able to examine the city and its inhabitants.
Wilkinson met with the island's prefect and over dinner expressed an interest in the mountain. The Korean official graciously explained some of the "abundant traditions cluster[ed] round" the mountain and claimed the mountain was so sacred that "not more than one or two in 10,000 would have the courage to ascend to [its] top. In the past there had been Koreans brave enough to do so but "the few who returned came down in a tempest of thunder and rain."
| Hiking the trails of Mount Halla in the spring of 1983 Korea Times Archive |
Wilkinson seemingly conceded this point. In his report, he wrote: "[There] should be little natural difficulties in climbing [Mount Halla's] sloping sides. The woods with which they are clad would probably be the chief hindrance, and the superstitious fears of the people."
Two missionaries who visited in 1899 also took an interest in the mountain. They wrote:
"On the top of the mountain there is a small, round lake and at the bottom of one of the ravines another large lake. The first one is probably the old crater filled with water from the melting snow. We were told that ice lies on the top until June, altho the climate on the island is so warm that cabbage grows all winter in the open air. When we were there, towards the end of February, the grass in some places was four inches high and on the southern coast flowers were blooming. In spite of that a third of the mountain was covered with deep snow which would make all attempts to climb to the top useless."
Not content with just a physical description of the mountain they also added a legend associated with it ― perhaps one of the earliest references in English to the Obaekjanggun:
"Not far from the top of Mt. Auckland [Halla] there stand up in one place a number of rocks all alike and of the size of man; when seen from a distance they resemble a company of people and this caused the Koreans to call them [Obaekjanggun] (five hundred heroes)."
| A blaze of color on the slopes of Mount Halla in September 1989 Korea Times Archive |
While the weather and obstinate Korean officials thwarted earlier attempts to climb the mountain, Siegfried Genthe, a German journalist, would not be stopped. He called upon William Franklin Sands, an American adviser to the Korean court, who had returned from the island recently, and asked him if it would be possible to go to Jeju. Sands tried to dissuade him not to go, warning Genthe that a rebellion on the island had just been quelled and the islanders were "rougher and more bloodthirsty than the Koreans, Chinese and Japanese had ever been, and were daring pirates who hated foreigners."
Undaunted, Genthe took passage aboard a Korean government steamer and soon found himself before Yi Chi-ho, the governor, who informed him that "never has anybody been on the summit, neither native nor stranger. The mountain spirits would surely plague the island with bad weather, thunderstorms, poor harvest and pestilence if anyone were to approach them and disturb their rest. A bad harvest would cause the people to blame you, the foreigner, and no doubt would result in your physical harm."
Just as Governor Yi finished warning his German guest not to climb Mount Halla, a horrendous thunderstorm struck the city. The roaring winds and the pounding rain were too much for the governor, who fled back to his residence, convinced that the mountain spirits had spoken ― no one was to climb the mountain. But Genthe refused to listen and in the days following continued to hound the governor for permission.
| Baengnokdam (White Deer Lake) ― normally shallow in the summer months ― is filled during the rainy season of August 1994. Korea Times Archive |
Finally, for some unknown reason, the governor acquiesced and issued orders to the people that the German was not to be harassed. He even provided horses, porters, an interpreter, a guard and a guide (who had never been to the top of the mountain).
Perhaps acquiesced is not quite the proper word; the governor made one more attempt to get Genthe to postpone his climb for a few weeks until the harvest was over, but the German was determined to begin immediately.
This was an incredibly brave ― and, perhaps, foolish ― adventure. In his journal, Genthe noted hundreds of large birds circling about one of the small hills near Jeju City ― attracted by the sickeningly sweet smell of the hundreds of decaying bodies of massacred Christians who had been buried in shallow graves. The danger was real, but his determination was stronger.
Genthe's determination paid off and he is said to be the first Westerner to climb Mount Halla and to view Baengnokdam (White Deer Lake). Genthe was told by some of the islanders that it was extremely deep and was an entrance to the underworld. After taking pictures and measurements, Genthe descended the mountain and spent several weeks trying to leave the island. The steamship was delayed and he eventually ended up hiring a small, dilapidated fishing boat to take him to the mainland.
There were others who followed in his footsteps. In the summer of 1905, Malcolm Playfair Anderson, an American explorer and scientist, spent 40 days on Jeju Island and climbed Mount Halla. His trip was marred with misadventure from the beginning.
| Snow-covered Mount Halla greets the New Year of 1975. Korea Times Archive |
It began to rain as soon as he and his companions started up the mountain ― a rain that went on for days. When he asked an island farmer how long he thought the rain would last, the farmer confided to the American that this was not normal weather and then softly added that it would probably last for as long as Anderson remained on the island.
"It [was] true," recalled Anderson. "The stormy weather commenced the day after I went to my first camp upon the mountain, and the natives firmly believed that I had caused the anger of the Mountain Spirit."
Undaunted, Anderson eventually climbed to the top of Mount Halla, but it came with a price. Not only had bad weather plagued him and his assistants, but they were also stricken with severe colds, and the American developed a large boil on his thigh that made walking painful and difficult.
Although a scientist, Anderson apparently found some humor, or perhaps truth, in the islanders' belief in the existence of the Mountain Spirit. As he boarded the steamship to take him back to the mainland, the weather changed.
"The day was quiet, the sun bright, but one small cloud hung near the summit of [Mount Halla]. The Mountain Spirit was at last appeased."
My appreciation to Diane Nars for her invaluable assistance and to David Nemeth for providing me with copies of his articles about Siegfried Genthe's trip to Jeju.
Robert Neff has authored and co-authored several books including, Letters from Joseon, Korea Through Western Eyes and Brief Encounters.