Cheongok Cave

By Shim Hyun-chul

The late summer heat still sweeps downtown Donghae, Gangwon Province, but a cool wind blows from Cheongok Natural Cave.

Cheongok Cave is the only limestone cave located smack in the middle of a city in Korea. It stands like an alien city amid buildings and apartment complexes.

The 1,400-meter-long cave was found during construction work in 1991 and about half of it is open to the public. It is estimated that the cave was created some 70,000 to 120,000 years ago, on a strata created more than 400 million years ago.

The cave is like a treasure chest full of the beauty of nature. In it, visitors can see stalagmites, curtain-shaped stalactites, calcareous terrace and limestone pillars.

It is some 20 degrees Celsius cooler than outside and has become a must for summer visitors to Donghae.

An educational park providing information on how the cave was made is located near a doline, or sinkhole caused by karst processes.

For more information, visit english.dhtour.go.kr or call (033) 532-7303.