Daeamsan hike info

Daeamsan rises between Yanggu and Inje in Gangwon at 1,312 m. It is not a mountain of rock spires. What it is known for is Yongneup, a high moor lying around 1,280 m, almost at the top. Thick moss and sedge have piled up there for thousands of years over a peat bed, and it was the first site in Korea listed as a Ramsar wetland. The name comes from a tale of a dragon resting here on its way to the sky.

You cannot just walk in. The moor sits inside a military protection zone and is protected for its ecology, so only booked visitors enter in small groups with a guide, from mid-May to the end of October. There are two ways in: a long forest climb from the Seoheung-ri village side, or a drive up a forestry road from Gaa-ri followed by a short walk. On the boardwalk the ground beside you is a springy brown meadow, nothing like ordinary mountain scenery.

In autumn the moor grasses dry to gold and the forest above colours early. It is also much colder than the valley, so bring a windbreaker.

From Seoul (BUS)

From Busan, Daegu and elsewhere (BUS)

To the trailhead (LOC)