Sutasa Temple 수타사

Sutasa Temple, Hongcheon Gun, Gangwon-Do

September 16th, 2017

A visit to Sutasa Temple 수타사 in Hongcheon County, Gangwon-Do

We were planning to go last week because I was in Hongcheon anyways but when we checked online (the temple’s website) for times and other stuff… we noticed that there was an event the following week (this Saturday)… So we delayed our temple trip for a week

Back to our Trip Itinerary:

We departed for the Temple at 8:30am from the apartment and we arrived at the Hongcheon Intercity Bus Terminal. The night before we called the travel hotline in Korea (1330) and asked about the times [please take note that the bus to sutasa only runs 4 times a day!] – Sutasa is the last stop! Don’t worry! and you get on the bus at the same place you got off the bus!

Bus Times:

Hongcheon - Sutasa: 6:30am/9:10am/1:30pm/4:50pm

Sutasa to Hongcheon: 7:30am/9:30am/2:00pm/5:20pm

So we hopped onto the bus and was on our way to Sutasa! The way to Sutasa is so pretty and the weather was so nice today that it made it a great outing! There were many tour buses and there’s a lot of food outside of the trail if you do get hungry! I initially thought that there would not be that many people because it is pretty out of the city… but no, was I wrong! There were a lot of people! People everywhere!

Before you enter the trail to go to the temple, there are information boards that introduce the different sceneries on the trail, as well as the places that are tourist attractions in Hongcheon! I would recommend taking the time to look at it because is it quite interesting 

After walking for about 20 mins, my friend and I have reached the temple! The temple is just as I expected… It is so pretty! Apparently, the temple was built in 708, and it remained here on the mountain until the Japanese Invasion of Korea. During the invasion, the temple was destroyed by a fire where the ruins laid there (untouched) for 40 years. Until 1968, it was restored again… to the state that it is in now. I must say, it is so pretty and so majestic!

Sutasa also houses an extremely old copper bell that is protected by gates/fences… It was founded in the 1600s and it’s kept in such great shape!

The reason why we chose to delay our trip to Sutasa was that there was a traditional tea ceremony that would take place this weekend. The tea ceremony was not like what we experienced at orientation, it was a good kind of different though. As well, we got to try out the teas prepared by them and it was delicious! I wish I understood Korean so I can communicate better with the people there!

After we visited the temple, we took a stroll around the park beside it… It’s so nice to be this close with nature and have it be so serene at the same time! It was so peaceful and quiet that I actually want to take my laptop there and just lesson plan for the entire day!

I suppose fall really is coming because I see hints of autumn foliage… It’s that time of the year again!

This trip to Sutasa was a success, and I would definitely go back again now that I know how to take the public transportation here! It was unfortunate we didn’t get to hike a whole lot to the other viewpoints but there’s always time in the future to come back! If you are interested, I would definitely give this place a try! I know they welcome foreigners because they were surprised that we knew this temple existed!