Seoraksan (National Park)

Seoraksan National Park is located in the Gangwon-do Province of the Republic of Korea - in the northern part of the country not far from its east coast. The territory of the park is divided between the counties of Yangyang , Koson and Inje and the city of Sokcho . The total area of ​​the park is 398.539 km² ^[1] .

The Seoraksan National Park is surrounded by the mountain range of the same name , in total there are 30 peaks on its territory ^[1] , the highest of which - Dechonbon - reaches a height of 1708 meters, being the third in this indicator in South Korea ^[2] . Natural attractions of the park include numerous waterfalls, viewing platforms; The park has historical and cultural monuments - the Buddhist temples of ^[3] and ^[4] .

Near the park is Yangyang Airport, which receives domestic flights. The railway station closest to the park is located in Gangneung City, which connects railway links with Seoul , Busan , Daegu , Daejeon and Gwangju . Near the park there are motorways No. 50 (Yongdong) and 65 (Tonghe) ^[5] .

The official website of the National Parks Service of Korea reports that there are over 1,400 plant species (including more than 800 species of vascular plants ^[4] ) and over 2,000 species of animals ^[1] in the Seoraksan National Park. According to more detailed information on the UNESCO website, 44 species of mammals, 109 species of birds, 19 species of reptiles, 10 species of amphibians, 43 species of fish and almost 1700 species of insects live in the park ^[2] .

Among the plants of the Seoraksan National Park, the official site highlights the edelweiss ^[1] and the specially protected cedar dwarf population. The number of these stunted trees growing on the slopes of Mount Dechonbon is declining and populations are threatened with extinction due to global warming ^[6] .

Among the animals that live in the park are flying squirrels , the Korean musk deer Moschus moschiferus parvipes and the Himalayan bear , which have the status of a national natural heritage in South Korea ^[2] , and the Korean version of the eastern throat . In total, in the Republic of Korea, there are about 700 individuals of this species of goats, of which from 100 to 200 are concentrated in the Seoraksan National Park ^[6] . Also among the rare species in the park, the endangered Korean subspecies of the white-bellied Dryocopus javensis richardsi , Lenchok Brachymystax lenok and minnow Phoxinus oxycephalus are found ^[4] .

In 1965, 163.4 km² of land around the Seoraksan massif received the status of a natural monument in South Korea. Five years later, this territory, expanded to 174 km² , was given the status of a national park . Since 1982, this and some adjacent territories have been recognized by UNESCO as a biosphere reserve ^[7] , and in 1994, Seoraksan National Park was a candidate for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List ^[4] . In 2005, the International Union for Conservation of Nature granted Seoraksan National Park the status of protected areas of categories II and V.

• Mount Sorak . UNESCO Date of treatment October 9, 2015.
• Seoraksan National Park (OeSeorak ) . Korea Tourism Organization. Date of treatment October 9, 2015.