A walk down a Metasequoia-lined Road in Damyang

16 November 2025

We made a day trip from Gwangju to Damyang to explore the famous Bamboo Forest (Juknokwon). Thereafter, we went to see the Metasequoia-lined Road, located about 2 km away.

What is the Metasequioa-lined Road?

As the name implies, the Metasequoia-lined Road is a 8.5 km boulevard with towering metasequoia trees planted on both sides. The canopy of the trees form a nice “tunnel” if you walk down the road. It is especially beautiful in autumn when the leaves of the trees turned golden and crimson in the afternoon sun.

Metasequoia-line Road lined with giant metasequoia trees.

Getting to the Metasequoia-lined Road from Juknokwon

There is a very beautiful park called the Gwanbangjerim Forest located in between Juknokwon and the Metasequoia-lined Road. So walking there from Juknokwon was part of the fun. 

The route we took was along the banks of Damyangcheon Stream. We crossed this stream located on the south side of the Juknokwon. Although there was a vehicular bridge over the stream, it was more fun and physically less exhausting to walk across the stream via one of the many “stepping stones” walkway.

Crossing the slow flowing stream just outside the Juknokwon.

The walk to our destination was very nice on this warm autumn afternoon. The landscape in the Gwanbangerim Forest was very photogenic, with the autumn foliage of the trees reflecting from the still water of the stream.

Another “stepping stones” bridge further downstream. Families with babies, the young and elderly and even pet dogs were crossing the stream using the stepping stones.

The vehicular bridge and Juknokwon could be seen in the background.

Even before reaching the Metasequoia-lined Road, we could see many metasequoia trees on the banks of the Damyangcheon Stream.

As this was a Sunday with a pleasantly warm autumn weather, many local families were out in force. We could see kids on trikes and babies in strollers. Some families with no kids brought their little pet dogs in the strollers too!

Nice shady path along the banks of the  Damyangcheon Stream.

The golden and brown autumn foliage was especially striking when lit by the late afternoon sun.

We could either walk on the paved road along the stream or on an elevated pathway.

After walking about 2 km through the forest, we came to traffic junction. Right across is the Meta Provence, located right next to Damyang Metasequoia-lined Road.

Meta Provence is a small village with pastel houses and cafes that supposedly resembles the French town of Provence. We did not have time to explore this place. We headed straight to what we came for.

The Metasequoia-lined Road.

The road used to be National Road No. 24 and was one of the most popular driving routes in Korea. It became pedestrian walking path after a new highway was constructed next to it.

A small entry fee of 2000 KRW per person is payable to walk on this road and access the park with a pond. 

Map showing the metasequoia-lined road, Meta Provence and Damyangcheon Stream.

The Metasequoia-lined Road on this day was full of people. My hopes of taking natural photos of the road with its majestic trees were dashed. Besides the many people on the road, there are Christmas decorations strung between the trees.

Christmas decorations on the trees.

We took a stroll down the road, enjoying the vibes. About halfway down the road, we came across the pond with some of the most striking views. My disappointment of this place turned into delight.

We joined the many people snapping photos of the golden trees reflected on the mirror-like pond.

Walking around the pond with the beautifully lit trees was the highlight of our visit to the Metasequoia-lined Road. There were plenty of photo opportunities around the area.

Enjoying the views and warm of the autumn sun.

 

There are less people further down the road and I managed to get a photo of the road without the people.

Getting back to Gwangju from Damyang

To return to Gwangju, we had to walk back to Juknokwon to catch the local bus No. 311. On the return trip from Damyang, the bus would not stop directly outside the Gwangju U-square Bus Terminal.

When we boarded the bus, the bus driver asked for our destination so he could deduct the appropriate fare from our T-money card. I told him “Shin-sa-gae” which is the name of the bus-stop outside the Shinsagae Department Store in Gwangju. This prominent department store is located next to U-Square bus terminal.

Like before, the journey on the local bus took over an hour. It was dark when we arrived at Gwangju. We collected our luggage from the lockers at the bus terminal and took a taxi to the Gwangju Madrid Hotel. I chose this hotel which is located within walking distance from the Gwangju Seongjeong KTX Station since we would travelling by KTX (South Korea’s High Speed Rail) on the next 2 days for a day trip to Naejangsan National Park and then to Seoul.