The easy access to various mountain trails is something very unique to Seoul that the government has done a better job of promoting and maintaining hiking trails. This has led to a large increase in foreigners hiking these trails:
Wearing hanbok (Korean traditional attire) and walking around Gyeongbok Palace, eating street food and shopping for K-pop merchandise and cosmetics used to top to-do lists for people traveling to Korea.
Now, a new experience is climbing in popularity — literally. Hiking Korea’s urban mountains, often dubbed “K-hiking,” has quickly become one of the most unexpected yet popular activities among international tourists.
Searching hashtags like #seoulhiking, #hikingtourism or #hikinginseoul on Instagram now turns up over 10,000 posts. No matter which mountain in downtown Seoul, it is now common to see foreign tourists exploring mountain paths or taking photos at the summits.
You can read more at the link, but K-hiking has definitely become popular with foreign tourists. I have seen way more foreigners on Korean trails today compared to 20 years ago.
That is what one elderly Korean woman warned a Youtuber recently hiking alone on a mountain:
A video of a middle-aged woman warning a female YouTuber who climbed the mountain alone, saying, “You shouldn’t come to the mountain alone,” is a hot topic online.
On the 27th, a number of online communities posted an article titled “A lady advising a female YouTuber who climbs alone.”
This article is a compilation of a video filmed by YouTuber “A Million Songhee in the Mountain” with 280,000 subscribers at Samaksan Mountain in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province, on the 25th of last month.
At that time, YouTuber 1 million Song-hee said, “There are really no people today,” and “It’s a little scary because it’s been a long time since I’ve experienced this.”
Meanwhile, a middle-aged woman A, whom she encountered, began to tell a million Song-hee how dangerous it was to climb a mountain alone.
A said, “My friend was supposed to go with me, but I had a puncture, so an old lady went to the mountain alone,” and “A man sexually harassed and died on the spot.” It’s been about five years,” he told a million Songhee about what happened in the past.
You can read more at the link, but I think the dangers of hiking alone for females is overstated. There is probably more risk having a fall or medical emergency than someone hiding in the woods to kill you.
Some more interesting trails near the Korean DMZ are set to open this month:
Ten peace-themed trails near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), separating the two Koreas, will open to the public in mid-May, the government said Tuesday.
The trails are located across border towns and cities in the provinces of Gyeonggi and Gangwon, as well as the western border island of Gangwha, according to the defense and culture ministries.
The trails are set to open May 13. Visitors can sign up for trips on the government-run website (www.dmzwalk.com) and mobile app Durunubi, according to the ministries.
The DMZ, which is about 250 kilometers long and 4 kilometers wide, is one of the world’s most heavily fortified borders, with the rival Koreas technically in a state of conflict, as the 1950-53 Korean War ended in a truce, not a peace treaty.
Peak of Mount Mudeung Mountain climbers walk on the peak of Mount Mudeung in South Jeolla Province on Nov. 2, 2019, in this photo provided by a Yonhap reader, as authorities opened it to the public, the second of its kind since May. Citizens’ access to the peak has been restricted since a military unit was stationed at the peak in 1966. (Yonhap)
DMZ hiking trail to open in PajuUnification Minister Kim Yeon-chul (2nd from R) and Gyeonggi Gov. Lee Jae-myung (2nd from L) ring a bell during a ceremony in Paju, some 30 kilometers northwest of Seoul, on Aug. 9, 2019, to mark the opening the next day of the third and last hiking trail along the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas. The DMZ Peace Bell was made of barbed wire from one of 10- guard posts inside the DMZ that South Korea demolished under an inter-Korean military accord aimed at reducing tensions and building trust. (Yonhap)
I wonder how much money the Kim regime pocketed for allowing this hike? Important information that was not included in the article:
In this Saturday, Aug. 18, 2018, photo, Sinead of Australia, left, and Tarjei Naess Skrede of Norway walk past North Korean soldiers during a hike arranged by Roger Shepherd of Hike Korea on Mount Paektu in North Korea. Hoping to open up a side of North Korea rarely seen by outsiders, Shepherd, a New Zealander who has extensive experience climbing the mountains of North and South Korea is leading the first group of foreign tourists allowed to trek off road and camp out under the stars on Mount Paektu, a huge volcano that straddles the border that separates China and North Korea.
Foreign tourists looking to go off the beaten path in North Korea can now camp out on the country’s biggest volcano.
Hoping to open up a side of North Korea rarely seen by outsiders, a New Zealander who has extensive experience climbing the mountains of North and South Korea is leading the first group of foreign tourists allowed to trek off road and camp out under the stars on Mount Paektu, a huge volcano that straddles the border that separates China and North Korea.
Paektu was in 946 AD the site of one of the largest eruptions in history. It is considered one of the most beautiful natural sites in North Korea and is still active, though there haven’t been any big eruptions in recent years.
It’s revered in the North for its links to the ruling Kim family and is considered the spiritual home of the Korean revolution. Trips to the mountain are popular with North Koreans who visit with their schools, work units or other social groups on excursions that are part indoctrination and part recreation. It’s also popular with Chinese tourists and smaller foreign tour groups who can stay in nearby hotels and drive right up to its crater to see the blue waters of Lake Chon in Paektu’s caldera.
But Roger Shepherd, founder of Hike Korea, which is based in the South, managed to convince North Korean government officials to let him take his guests off the beaten path for the first time.
The area around the mountain features several reconstructed “secret campsites” said to have been used by national founder Kim Il Sung and his guerrillas in the fight against the Japanese colonial rulers before 1945 — a possible reason why the idea of allowing a foreign camping excursion clicked with the local authorities. But Shepherd’s group has for the most part managed to avoid the typical mini-bus and propaganda lecture experience that often awaits foreign tourists here.
On Saturday, the group climbed the mountain from near its base, walked to the lake from the rim and then hiked out across a volcanic plateau to pitch their tents for the first of five nights they were to spend on the hike. [Associated Press]
You can read more at the link, but this hike that was allowed by the North Korean authorities, is clearly being used to draw more western tourists to hike Mt. Paekdu. More tourists means more foreign currency for the Kim regime.
If people’s conscious is okay with their money supporting a regime that operates gulags, launches deadly provocations, sends out hitmen to kill people, and threatens neighbors in the region with nuclear weapons then feel free to go hiking in North Korea.
Despite the “bad” level of fine dust, hikers cross a suspension bridge in Wonju, east of Seoul, on March 25, 2018, amid mild temperatures. The 200-meter-long bridge, which opened in early January, is the longest of its kind in South Korea. (Yonhap)
I don’t see how hiking slow improves the environment, but that is what the National Park Service is claiming:
The Korea National Park Service will stage a campaign that encourages hikers to slow their pace when hiking mountains rather than just rushing to the peak.
The agency announced the campaign on Thursday, adding it will hold various promotional events as a part of the event that will go until Sunday.
There is an online event on how to improve the hiking culture, while events will be held at all national parks on Saturday to promote good hiking etiquette.
The slow hiking campaign is to help better protect the environment and prevent accidents in the mountains. [KBS World Radio]
There may be safety benefits from hiking slow to avoid tripping, but if the National Park Service wants to improve hiking culture in Korea how about people picking up all their trash they bring into the mountains?
