Autumn leaves turn red, orange and yellow over a hiking trail on the upper slopes of Mount Seorak National Park in Gangwon.SEORAKSAN NATIONAL PARK OFFICE
Mount Seorak has turned its first fall colors of the year, and a cold snap moving in later this week is expected to hurry the foliage south.
The Gangwon Regional Office of Meteorology said Monday that it observed the first autumn foliage on the 1,708-meter (5,604-foot) mountain in Gangwon. That is four days earlier than Oct. 2 last year and in line with the long-term average.
The Korea Meteorological Administration declares first foliage when leaves have changed color across roughly the top 20 percent of a mountain, measured down from the summit.
"The foliage on Mount Seorak's higher elevations is expected to stay beautiful through next week," the Seoraksan National Park Office said.
Nearby Mount Odae is turning as well. Patches of red and yellow have started to appear among the green along its high-altitude trails.
"The leaves that began changing at the top of the mountain will soon reach the foot of the mountain and create spectacular scenery," the Odaesan National Park Office said.
Leaves begin to change color along a high-altitude trail in Mount Odae National Park in Gangwon on Sept. 27.ODAESAN NATIONAL PARK OFFICE
The foliage front is expected to move south at about 20 to 25 kilometers (12 to 16 miles) a day until it covers the rest of the country. Temperatures falling through the week are likely to speed up the change.
Light rain is forecast on Wednesday for the greater Seoul area, including Gyeonggi, and many other parts of the country. Cold air from the north is then expected to send temperatures plunging.
"As cold air moves south from the north, temperatures on Thursday are expected to be about 5 degrees Celsius [9 degrees Fahrenheit] lower than on Wednesday, mainly in the central region," the Korea Meteorological Administration said. "Please take care of your health amid the sudden change in temperatures."
Daecheongbong peak, the summit of Mount Seorak, shows its first fall colors in a view from Jungcheong Shelter in Seoraksan National Park in Gangwon on Sept. 28.SEORAKSAN NATIONAL PARK OFFICE
In Seoul, the morning low is forecast to drop to 12 degrees Celsius (54 degrees Fahrenheit) on Thursday, with the daytime high stalling at 23 degrees Celsius. The morning low is expected to fall further to 9 degrees Celsius on Friday.
Peak foliage is likely to arrive earlier than last year as the chilly weather continues. Foliage on Mount Seorak peaked on Oct. 24 last year, compared with a long-term average of Oct. 17. Peak foliage is declared when about 80 percent of a mountain has turned.
Typhoon Surigae, the 26th typhoon of the year, has moved north to waters near Okinawa, Japan, and is expected to veer northeast into the seas off southern Japan. It is not expected to directly affect Korea.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
