Baengnyeongdo Island

Baengnyeong Island is a 45.8-square-kilometer, 8.45-kilometer long, and 12.56-kilometer (7.80-mile) broad island near the Northern Limit Line in Ongjin County, Incheon, South Korea. The Korean War Armistice Agreement of 1953 stipulated that the five islands, including Baengnyeong Island, would stay under UN Command and South Korean authority. North Korea and the United Nations Command both signed this pact. It has acted as a maritime border between North and South Korea in the Yellow Sea.

In Baengnyeong Island, the beaches are long and expansive. Shells wash up in large numbers on several of the beaches. Brightly colored flowers blossom along the roads. Kongdol Beach has round pebbles in a variety of colors such as gray, red, and purple. The most spectacular (and famous) view is that of the boulders and rock towers sticking up out of the water at Dumujin, a beach cobbled with beans. For the best view, walk along a path over the hillside to see rocks jut up tens of meters in the air from the sea. As an American from the U.S. West Coast, I consider the rocks to look like the mesas of Nevada and New Mexico.

Location: Ongjin County, Incheon, South Korea

Area: 51,09 km²