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Iris Jiang

The latest hiking craze on South Korea’s highest peak, Mount Hallasan – enjoying a cup of noodles when reaching the frigid summit – is posing a threat to the mountain’s environment.
The trend, which has caught fire on South Korean social media, involves hikers taking about four hours to reach the 1,700-metre-high Witse Oreum point on the mountain and then relishing noodles.
The snack has been dubbed by enthusiasts as “the best instant noodles in the world” after the arduous journey.
Situated on Jeju Island, Hallasan, means mountain “high enough to capture the Milky Way”. It is a Unesco World Natural Heritage site and the habitat of many endangered species.
Government data revealed that last year the mountain attracted about 920,000 visitors.

The noodle phenomenon has even attracted international attention, with some overseas adventurers travelling specifically to experience this celebrated snack at the summit.
“Although the water in the vacuum flask was no longer hot, and the noodles were not well cooked, they were indeed the tastiest noodles I’ve ever tried,” one online observer wrote on Xiaohongshu.
At the foot of Hallasan, convenience stores stock a range of ramen brands with signs encouraging hikers to “enjoy ramen at Hallasan”.
As the number of visitors indulging in the instant noodles increases, Hallasan National Park has had to install food waste processors and collection bins to manage their disposal.
However, the facilities often overflow so hikers have been disposing of leftover soup in toilets or on the ground, Korea Daily reported.
About 120 litres of unfinished noodle soup, laden with salt, preservatives, and chilli powder, are left on the summit daily, according to a post on Hallasan National Park’s Facebook site.
This residue harms vegetation and contaminates the natural water sources in the valleys, posing a severe threat to the area’s endangered wildlife and insects.
The discarded noodles have altered the local food chain, with wildlife consuming them and experiencing health issues.
The park’s management has already detected overworked kidneys in the local deer population due to consuming salt.

To address the issue, management placed banners on the mountain stating, “Noodles taste good even with half the soup”, urging hikers to use less hot water and to finish eating what they make.
Additionally, volunteers are patrolling the mountain with banners bearing the slogan “Eat the noodles, drink the soup”. Requests have also been made that nearby shops stock smaller cups.
The attempts failed so the park announced it would be imposing fines of 200,000 Korean won (US$145) for people who breach the rules.
Online observers expressed concern and outrage about the behaviour of visitors to the mountain.
“As a hiking enthusiast, I cannot understand why anyone would litter while climbing. Even in remote areas of the mountain, one finds cigarette butts and leftover food,” one person said.
“Hallasan was listed as a World Natural Heritage site for its nature, not culture. If these actions continue, it might be removed from the list,” said another.


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People & Culture

Tourism authorities say huge daily leftovers of spicy soup and containers are putting natural environment at risk


After trekking for hours to reach the top of the highest mountain in South Korea, thousands of hikers are enjoying a noodle soup feast, but are wrecking the environment with litter.


South Korea

Environment