Songnisan National Park

Songnisan National Park is a national park in South Korea. It is located in the center of the Sobaek Mountains range, on the border between the provinces of Chungcheongbuk-do and Gyeongsangbuk-do. The area contains the 1,058-metre (3,471 ft) mountain Songnisan, the park's namesake, as well as the valleys of Hwayang, Seonyu, and Ssanggok. It was designated as the country's sixth national park in 1970.

속리산국립공원, 俗離山國立公園
Songnisan National Park
Gwaneum Peak at Songnisan
Coordinates36°32′N 127°54′E
Area274.54 km2 (106.00 sq mi)[1]
Established24 March 1970
Governing bodyKorea National Park Service
Songnisan National Park
Hangul
Hanja
Revised RomanizationSongnisan Gungnipgongwon
McCune–ReischauerSongnisan Kungnipkongwŏn
The twenty-two national parks of South Korea.
Land-based parks are in red and marine parks are in blue.

One of Korea's largest Buddhist temples, Beopjusa, is a popular tourist destination in the park.

Name

Songnisan (the Korean letters spell out "Sokrisan" but the name is actually pronounced "Songnisan"[2]) became a national park in 1970. It is the sixth-largest of Korea’s mountain parks with an area of 275 km2. The name means “Remote from the Ordinary World”—a reference to its somewhat isolated position in the very center of South Korea.

It is sometimes called the “Second Geumgang” or “Sogeumgang (Small Geumgang)”, after the significant mountain now in North Korea, because of its beauty.

Description

Songnisan National Park was designated as the sixth national park in Korea in 1970.[1] The park lies on the border between North Chungcheong and North Gyeongsong Provinces.

The park's most popular attraction is the Korean Buddhist temple Beopjusa.[3] It is one of Korea's largest temples and was initially constructed in 653.[2] It also contains a pine tree, Jeongipumsong, that according to legend was awarded the rank of minister by King Sejo.[4] For wildlife, it contains otters, flying squirrels, mandarin ducks, and protected animal species such as the small-eared cat and the marten. Moreover, a variety of native fish species live in the streams flowing into Geumgang, Nakdonggang, and Hangang.

References
  1. "Sobaeksan: Intro". Korea National Park Service. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
  2. "Songnisan National Park". Frommer's. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  3. "Songnisan National Park". Korea Tourism Organization. Retrieved 18 September 2010.
  4. "Jeongipum Pine Tree". Korea Tourism Organization. Retrieved 12 May 2017.

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