3,575.44
The Jeju Olle Foundation, the caretaker of the Olle Trail on South Korea's largest tourist island of Jeju, said Monday it will launch two hiking trails in Mongolia starting June that it has developed in cooperation with the state-run Jeju Tourism Organisation and a tourism agency in the Northeast Asian country.
'Olle' is a Jeju dialect word meaning 'narrow pathway'; the Jeju Olle Trail is a long-distance footpath on the idyllic Korean Island. The Jeju Olle consists of numerous secondary tracks.
The foundation and the Jeju Tourism Organisation have teamed up with the travel agency affiliated with the government of Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia, and the capital's travel agency association in the development of two Mongolian 'Olle' due to open on June 18th-19th.
According to the foundation, the trails are designed to familiarise walkers with the way-markings and trail signs of the Jeju Olle Trail and to offer them a chance to experience Mongolian nature, people and culture.
On the 14.5km first trail, travellers set out from a village of traditional Mongolian huts called gers (yurts) in the vicinity of Ulaanbaatar and return there after seeing a small forest by walking on the footpath while appreciating the country's nature and culture with the backdrop of the spectacular scenery.
The 11km second trail involves a one-night stay at a ger camp in Terelj National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site considered the most scenic national park in Mongolia.
Jeju Olle is arranging for a five-day tourist program for hikers who wish to participate in the opening of the two trails through travel agency Pongnang.
Under a pact, the foundation will help the Mongolian side develop the Mongolian routes, manuals for maintenance of the trail and facilities for trail guidance. Development of two additional trails on the Mongolian Olle are scheduled to be made by 2019.
The Olle Trail, the construction of which began in 2006, stretches about 422 kilometers along the coastline of the island off South Korea's southern coast. (Yonhap)
