Exploration of Toggi-biri(Rabbit Cliff), Mungyung, Korea, for the Machine Gun Emplacement by a U.S. Unit of the 25th Army Division 70 Years Ago.

 

I and my wife visited the Toggi-biri(rabbit cliff) around Jinnamgyoban in Mungyung, Gyungbuk, Korea South. Let me tell you why did I selected that place as my tour; I saw the old photograph taken by an American soldier in the beginning of the Korean War, Jul. 1950, which was explained that a machine gun emplacement set up by two US soldiers looking down the bridge named as Jinnam the only bridge around those days. It was indicated this machine gun was targeting the bridge currently called as Gasuwon Bridge crossing over Kab-cheon(Creek) to link Taejon City with Yusong and Nonsan(refer to the below picture)

I found the Youtuber claiming the scene of this photo was wrong after investigating the scene of the picture. He had tried to locate the right point as the American photographer might be confused to remark, who was a member of the 8th US Army, but not a member of the US 24th Division maneuvering there in Korean War. He failed to seek other point related with the 24th Division during Jul. 1950, so he focused the position of the photographer and decided to seek other points along which the US 25th Division operating on the eastern side of the 24th Division to support South Korean Armies including the ROK 6th Division desperately risisting NK forces in north of Mungyung  . Finally he suceeded to identify the right place the US soldier took the scene 70 years ago and it was the place, Toggi-biri in Mungyung( refer to the below picture).

 

We had decided to explore the place and kicked off at 1000 with a packing lunch box to take Jungbu Expressway. We were driving southward to Hobeob Junction and taking Youngdong Expressway eastward to the Yoiju Junction. Keep southward on the Jungbu-Naeryuk Expressway packed up with many freight trucks till we arrived the Mungyungsaejae IC. It was about one p.m., so good to have lunches at the parking lot of the IC administration building by the toll gates. It took 3 hours for destination, but I would like to remind you of the truck streams on the expressway for a hazard of safe driving. Alternative roads, as like Road 6, can be used to drive if don't like to drive with trucks side by side. 

From the IC, it took 15 minutes more time to drive down to the Toggi-biri, passing through Yoncheon IC, Goeseong IC and Cheongju IC. We draw our car to the Gomosan Fortress Rest Area at first because of uncertainty of the place location. On the map, the Young River was flowed from north to south, and the bridge was straddled over north-eastward. The right point of the caliber 30 machine gun in the photograph might be the place where we could fully observe the bridge and set up a 30 mm machine gun. So we pulled out of the parking lot to drive, crossing the Young River and parked my car at the Jinnam Rest Area.

The rest area was consisting of toilets, canteen, restaurant and spacious parking lot with a unique Korean style architecture building. The Jinnnamgyoban was famous for its beautiful scenery matched with the artificial bridges, roads and rail structure , but we couldn’t feel it at a low altitude of the parking lot.  While looked around, we could identify a direction post for the Toggi-biri, Gomo Clay Fortress and Omija Tunnel(Wild Berries Tunnel) and know it’s near to go. We hiked up the trail of Toggi-biri, formed a thousand years ago, which had been used for a main route for the old Seoul by people. This trail was formed along the middle height of the cliff of the mountain Ojeong-san and from which we could look down the stream of Young River flowing through the Jinnnam Bridge. I was guessing the gun point was there along this trail in consideration of the map, Youtube clip and geographical condition. Half an hour walking, we could found the most identical place that could be matched with the photograph. There we inspected the rocks, trees, scenery and the frame of the bridge and could be sure it was the right point which a US soldier remarked of 70 years ago.(refer to the below picture)

We sat on a rock to take a rest, drinking a cup of coffee and chocolate bars, and appreciated the American effort to resist NK’s rapid onward and to stop the communist occupation backed by Soviet Union and Red China, in Korean peninsular.           

Even though the photograph has been referred to the Taejon Battle carried out by the US 24th Army Division, we could identify and explore the right place, thanking the Youtuber who worked for this photograph. The river is flowing downward to Nakdong River today and the mountains are standing tall too with a stream of wind and whispering leaves on a June as like as that of urgent situation in the photograph. I could still hear their whispering, smell their sweats and pray for their courage and sometimes sacrifice.

We returned to the inlet of the trail and hiked up to explore the old Gomo-san Fortress near from the inlet. One hoour later, we drove back at 1600 via Mungyungsae-jae(Pass) linking Gyungsang-do with Chungcheong-do(Province) and returned to my house at 2100.