I bloody love a good hike me, granted not enough to do it that regularly especially now that my weekends are taken up by gigs and KTX trips but when the opportunity surfaces I take it...and that's one of the nice (and strange at first) things about Korea, you are ALWAYS surrounded by mountains.
In England, serious planning had to be done, early trains and buses into the heart of the peak districts and such...even then, the highest mountain in England, Scafell Pike, is only equal to the 59th highest mountain in South Korea...less than half the height of Hallasan (the tallest).
Roughly 70% of South Korea is mountainous....more buck for your volcanistic Earth zit.
One of Gwangju's most popular landmarks is Mudeung Mountain (무등산), and as of last year its surrounding park area was proclaimed a National Park by the powers that be, these pictures are from not too long after that around Buddha's Day 2013. Being a 'national park' basically means better routes, more signs, more English for those that need it, better care taken all round...
Although its highest peak is 1187m up there are many routes and a few lower peaks to aim for (as you can see above here, we didn't hit the top this time), overall I found it a very pleasant climb. Though, for those who don't enjoy a good ascent-ing, there some rougher terrains along the way. If you don't indulge in Korea's national passion then there are a lot of lovely things to see and eat within the national park itself.
How to get there:
Get to Gwangju. (Via Seoul, KTX Train. Via anywhere else, probably bus it...)
From Gwangju Bus Terminal:
Take Bus 9
Get of at Jeungsimsa Temple (증심사) Gwangju Bus Timetable Website, in Korean
Via Subway:
Go to Hakdong/Jeungsimsa Station.
Exit from Exit 3.
Do a U-turn.
Walk up the first left (Uijae-Ro). 15mins to the park, many cool sights on the way...
Soundtrack:
Are you ready?