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Social media posts highlight dangers women face hiking, especially alone

Published: 24 Apr. 2026, 18:52

A screencaptured image from a video clip in which an elderly man makes a sexually suggestive remark to women in their thirties while hiking, posted on the YouTube channel “Hee in the Mountains″ [SCREEN CAPTURE]

As the spring hiking season begins, a wave of social media posts warning of the dangers women may face when hiking, especially alone, is heightening concerns.

Titled “Grandpa hitting on a woman hiking” (translated), a short clip was shared on an online community on Friday with edited clips of a video uploaded on April 3 by a hiking YouTuber, “Hee in the Mountains,” who has 331,000 subscribers.

While the YouTuber was hiking on Mount Wonmi in Bucheon, Gyeonggi, with a friend, an older man approached them as they were sitting on a bench, eating ice cream and taking a break. The older man sat next to them and attempted to start a conversation.

“Oh, how pretty. How old are you?” the man said, and they replied, “We’re 30.”

“What? You’re 30? Thirty, you say,” the older man said. “My daughter is well over 40.”

What began as a seemingly friendly conversation quickly turned awkward when he suddenly added, “Do I look like I could be your lover?”

Caught off guard, the YouTuber asked, “Pardon? What did you say?” and the person repeated, “I’m asking if I would be okay to be your boyfriend.”

The two quickly left without responding.

“I thought I misheard him,” the YouTuber said, with her friend adding, “I tried to act as if I didn’t hear it.”

Hikers take photos at Mount Baekyang in Busan on April 30. [NEWS1]

Another post on Threads on April 17 drew attention after a woman shared that she had nearly been exposed to what seemed to be a crime risk while hiking alone.

“As I was nearing the summit, a man in his 50s was coming down,” the writer said. “He suddenly turned around and said, ‘You came alone,’ then ran toward me.”

“I kept changing direction and ran,” she added. “I couldn’t even scream because I was afraid it would reveal my location. I ran for about 10 minutes in tears before finally encountering another hiker.”

When she met the other hiker, she asked for help, saying that a strange man was chasing her.

“[After I asked for help,] they went down the mountain with me,” she said, emphasizing, “Do not go hiking alone.”

Hiking trails are considered relatively crime-prone.

In 2012, a woman in her 50s was murdered on the Jeju Olle Trail, and in 2014, a suspect dubbed the “Squirrel Flasher” was arrested after committing sexual assaults and robberies targeting women hiking alone in the Seoul area over four years.

A woman also in her 30s died after being randomly assaulted on Mount Gwanak in southern Seoul in 2023.

Hikers crowd the summit of Mount Gwanak on March 7. [JOONGANGILBO]

Women are not the only targets. There have also been cases where men were victims. In 2016, a man in his 60s was stabbed to death on Mount Eodeung in Gwangju.

Local governments and police are focusing on safety measures for hiking trails.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency is strengthening crime-prevention patrols along the 156-kilometer (97-mile) trail that encircles Seoul's outskirts. The Seoul Gwanak Police Precinct has significantly increased the number of security cameras and formed a drone patrol unit, the first of its kind among police precincts nationwide. In Nowon District, northern Seoul, patrol officers conduct daily patrols along the trail at sunrise and sunset.

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.
BY JANG GU-SEUL [[email protected]]