Jiktang Falls (Hantangang River UNESCO Global Geopark)

Jiktang Falls (直湯瀑布) is a waterfall located on the main stream of the Hantangang River. Unlike other waterfalls in Korea, it is formed on flat basalt and spreads widely along the riverbed. Jiktang Falls was created as water flowed for a long time over basalt that had cooled and hardened in layers, undergoing weathering and erosion, causing the basalt to break off along its columnar joints, forming a stepped waterfall. Its height is only about 3 meters, but its width is about 80 meters. The rock forming Jiktang Falls is basalt created during the Quaternary Period of the Cenozoic Era, estimated to have formed between 540,000 and 120,000 years ago. This rock is part of the basalt that constitutes the Cheorwon Lava Plateau, formed when lava rose along a weak point beneath the Chugaryeong Fault Valley connecting Seoul and Wonsan, flowed down, and solidified.

(Source: Hantangang River Geopark website)