Hiking
Overview
Hiking is an outdoor activity in which people travel on foot through natural terrain such as mountains, forests, coasts, and valleys, strengthening cardiorespiratory function and experiencing nature. Compared with mountaineering, it targets gentler terrain and lower elevations, and because its intensity is lower than climbing or trekking, people of all ages can participate. With low equipment burden and high accessibility in everyday life, it has become the most popular outdoor sport worldwide.
Main Content
Definition and Distinction
Hiking generally refers to an activity of traveling on foot along a course of about 2 to 6 hours round trip with an elevation difference of 200 to 800 m. If trekking aims at multi-day long-distance traverses and mountaineering aims at summit ascent and elevation gain, hiking focuses on "walking itself," enjoying scenery, and resting. In recent years, the concept has expanded broadly to include walking trails near urban areas, riverside promenades, and forest paths.
History
The origins of modern hiking trace back to the Romanticism and naturalism movements in 18th- and 19th-century Europe. In 1857, the world's first mountaineering organization, the Alpine Club, was founded in England, and in 1879 the Ramblers Association was formed in the United Kingdom, leading the public right-of-way movement. In the United States, the Appalachian Trail (about 3,500 km) was created in the 1920s, establishing a long-distance walking culture. In Korea, mountaineering became popular based on the alpine club culture of the 1960s and 1970s, and after the 2000s, as "walking travel" brands such as the Jirisan Dulle-gil, Jeju Olle Trail, and Seoul Dulle-gil spread, hiking became established as an independent lifestyle sport.
Types
- Day Hike: A same-day round-trip course. The most common form.
- Forest Trail and Dulle-gil Hiking: Centered on gentle slopes and maintained walking trails.
- Ridge and High-Altitude Hiking: Large elevation differences and high physical demands.
- Night Hiking: For watching sunrise and sunset and observing stars.
- Plogging: Environmentally friendly hiking in which one picks up trash while walking or running.
- Trail Running: A derivative event in which a hiking course is completed by running.
Equipment
Basic equipment includes trekking shoes or lightweight hiking boots, moisture-wicking quick-dry clothing, a backpack (15–30 L), water (1–2 L), snacks, a hat, sunscreen, a raincoat, an emergency kit, a headlamp, and a map or GPS app. Trekking poles are known to reduce knee strain by 20–25%, and on courses with large elevation differences they are close to essential.
Health Effects
Hiking is effective for improving aerobic capacity, strengthening lower-body muscles, reducing body fat, and improving blood pressure and blood sugar. Walking on slopes burns 1.5–2 times more energy than walking on flat ground. In addition, walking in forests is reported to lower cortisol levels and alleviate depression and anxiety through the "forest bathing" effect. Regular hiking also helps reduce the risk of falls and maintain cognitive function in older adults.
Safety Rules
Before departure, check the course difficulty, weather, and sunset time, and do not leave the designated trail. During summer heatwaves, walk in the early morning, and in winter check icy sections and avalanche risks. As a rule, go with at least one other person, and prepare a portable battery and emergency communication means so that your location can be shared if you become lost. If knee or ankle pain persists, descend immediately.
Representative Courses
In Korea, there are the Jirisan Dulle-gil (about 300 km), Jeju Olle Trail (27 courses in total, about 437 km), Seoul Dulle-gil (21 courses, about 157 km), Bukhansan Dulle-gil, and Byeonsan Masil-gil. Overseas, famous routes include the Appalachian Trail in the United States, the Pacific Crest Trail, the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route in Spain, the Kumano Kodo in Japan, the Milford Track in New Zealand, and the Annapurna Base Camp trek in Nepal.
Latest Trends
In 2024–2025, the hiking market can be summarized as "lightly, often, nearby." As participation by the MZ generation and women increased rapidly, "hiking running," which combines running and hiking, spread, along with a shoe trend in which the boundary between off-road running shoes and lightweight trail shoes is breaking down. Eco-friendly outdoor products using Gore-Tex alternative materials, seamless laminates, and recycled fibers rose to the mainstream, and domestic and international brands released lifestyle lines linked to "gorpcore" style one after another.
Digital transformation is also clear. Apps such as Kakao Map, Naver Map, AllTrails, and Komoot have lowered barriers to entry by providing GPS-based course guidance, difficulty ratings, real-time hiking records, and offline maps. As the climbing elevation, heart rate, and body temperature measurement functions of wearables and smartwatches have become more sophisticated, the use of personalized training data has become commonplace.
Environmental and safety issues also came to the fore. Due to overtourism, entry limits and reservation systems were introduced in places such as the Maldives, Nepal, and Mount Fuji in Japan, and in Korea as well, advance reservation systems for national park trails and controlled sections for night hiking have expanded. As climate change increases the risks of heatwaves, heavy rainfall, and wildfires, recommendations to "stop hiking based on weather" are being strengthened. Plogging and the "Leave No Trace" campaign have become established as hiking ethics, and "walking tourism" products linked to local economies, forest trail wellness programs, and hiking connected to forest therapy are also growing. In Korea, since 2024, budgets for maintaining dulle-gil and forest paths have expanded and the creation of barrier-free trails has increased, improving accessibility.
Related Topics
- [[Mountaineering]]
- [[Trekking]]
- [[Outdoor]]
- [[Plogging]]
- [[National Park]]
- [[Wellness]]
- [[Camino de Santiago]]