Baekdu-daegan

Baekdu-daegan describes a 1,500 km long mountain range that runs from Paektu Mountain in the north to Cheonwangbong Peak of Jirisan in the south. In South Korea, hiking the South Korean portion of the trail, generally from south to north until the Korean Demilitarized Zone, is seen as a significant achievement. The South Korean trail was designated as a national nature-preservation park in 2006 by the South Korean government. The desire to also hike through the border until Paektu Mountain is also relevant to Korean reunification sentiment. This sentiment is also shared in North Korea, according to Roger Shepherd of HIKEKOREA. It is important in traditional Korean geography and is a key aspect of Pungsu-jiri (the Korean analogue of feng shui). == History ==

Under traditional Korean thought, influenced by Taoism and Neo-Confucianism, Paektu is regarded as the origin and patriarch of all Korean mountains, while Jiri-san or Hallasan The notion of the mountain ranges that prevailed during the Japanese occupation era was one based on geological structures under the ground, rather than topographical ones. and Roger Shepherd, hikers from New Zealand, trekked all of the available crestline trail while keeping careful records, and then with research & editing support from Prof. Mason, wrote a guidebook to the trail. Their book is the most extensive information about the Baekdu-daegan in English . Their effort attracted international hikers. On January 3, 2011, Mason was appointed the Honorary Public Relations Ambassador of the Baekdu-daegan by Minister Chung of the Korea Forest Service, under authority of Korean President Lee Myung-bak. Shepherd continued his explorations and international promotions of the Baekdu-daegan, including expeditions into some parts of it in North Korea. At the 2018 Winter Olympics held in Pyeongchang, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said in a speech that the two Koreas were bound together by the Baekdu-daegan. At the April 2018 Inter-Korean Summit, Chairman Kim Jong Un and President Moon symbolically planted a native tree using soil from both Paektu Mountain and Hallasan. ==See also==