Seoul Blog: Tour of Seokchon Lake

1 June 2023

Jamsil Station (잠실역) — Line 2

Seokchon Lake, also known as Songpa Naru Park, is Seoul’s one and only major lake. Sure, Seoul has many bodies of water, but come to think of it, there is nothing that tops the beauty of this lake. Attracting thousands of tourists and locals alike, Seokchon is most famous for its cherry blossom festival in Spring time, though you’d be missing out if you only came for the cherry blossoms. The lake is worth visiting in all seasons of the year, and there are many things to do in its vicinity, such as shopping at Lotte Tower’s Shopping Mall or visiting Lotte World, Seoul’s biggest amusement park. In Summer too you can enjoy the views of the lake and the surrounding city while walking under a canopy of green trees, safe from the sun’s blistering heat.

Seokchon Lake is made up of the East Lake and the West Lake, split in the middle by the Jamsilhosugyo, Jamsil’s Lake Bridge. A 2.5km trail runs along the entire lake, though it is possible to walk half that distance by going around one of the two lakes. West lake is characterised by Lotte World’s ‘Magic Island’, and artificial island that extends some way into Seokchon lake, and that is connected to Lotte World via a bridge. There are other various buildings along the lake that house coffee shops and art galleries, as well as exercise areas where people can freely use hula hoops, skipping ropes and other exercise equipment.

When I came to Jamsil yesterday, I had not originally planned to do a complete tour of Seokchon Lake. I had gotten off at Jamsilnaru Station, with as plan to visit Seoul’s Book Repository (서울채보고) first, and then head in the direction of either the Olympic Park or Lotte Shopping Mall at Jamsil Station. Honestly, while it being a good spot for an instagram picture, I left the the Book Repository feeling a bit underwhelmed by the experience. The book repository had many second-hand books on sale, but it felt more like a book warehouse than a bookstore where you want to spend some time.

As I headed in the direction of Jamsil Station and Lotte Shopping Mall, I decided to cool off at the lake, which sits directly at the other side of the shopping mall. The lawn in front of Lotte Tower, connecting the tower with the lake, is always a nice place to wander about. Often they will have some sort of art display where people can take pictures (such as last year’s giant teddy bear, Bellygom). This time, Lotte Tower had installed ‘Garden Werther’, a floral garden inspired by Goethe’s novel ‘ The Sorrows of Young Werther ‘.

A little after 3pm I set off on my tour of the lake, heading in the direction of West Lake. As I walked under Jamsil’s Lake Bridge, I remember watching the fish, whilst someone was playing the piano, and the music echoed around the passageway under the bridge. In the distance, you could hear the screams of excitement from Magic Island, but this didn’t bother me. In fact, I get a thrill just from walking around the island and watching various park rides swinging back and forth over the water. On my walk around the lake, I also discovered that there is an outdoor stage next to Seokchon Lake called Seoul Nori Madang where you can watch traditional Korean folk performances for free.

In the months of May and June, when the sun is high, the lake has a beautiful blue-ish green tint, which really comes alive under the blue sky. Walking around the lake also gives you a perfect opportunity to take pictures of Lotte Tower from different angles. There are several spots along the lake where the trees are cleared and you can get a good shot of the lake with the tower in the background. The far side of Seokchon lake, past Magic Island, offers the best such spots. Alternatively, if you are short for time, you can get onto the Jamsil Lake Bridge to get a better view of the lake and the tower.

By 5pm, I was back to where I started. It took me a little over two hours because I had stopped on the way to get a coffee. Having completed my tour of the lake, I was ready to head back home, but not before having some food and checking out some of the stores at Lotte Tower’s Shopping Mall.

Originally published at http://seoulunexpectedblog.wordpress.com on June 1, 2023.