17 January 2026
Olle 14-1 seems to now miss out the top of Mundoji Oreum. I last did the route in September 2024 and the route is shown on the map in blue. The route now misses the oreum and takes a slight shortcut, shown in red. The old route is fenced off but it is easy to step through the fence. The path passes through a horse paddock. The horses were in a neighbouring paddock and I am not afraid of horses anyway. The forward route descending the oreum is at risk of being overgrown. A few thorny branches did catch my arm . The descent includes some steps and ends at a small gate, exiting at the half way stamp ganser.
I carried a tent and sleeping gear, but bypassing my intended camping site, I continued to the end and took a taxi home!
Map - red showing the new route
I carried a tent and sleeping gear, but bypassing my intended camping site, I continued to the end and took a taxi home!
Map - red showing the new route
18 January 2026
The next day, I returned on my bike and popped up the oreum before heading back home.
I returned on my bike the next day to investigate further and this is when I took these photos. The top of the oreum is hard compacted stony ground. I took a tent peg with me to see if I could peg out a tent. It is difficult to insert pegs the whole way but they hold halfway into the ground. There is nowhere totally flat and there is a certain amount of course and thorny vegetation that I would avoid.
I saw several other people walking the oreum and on my return to the horse paddock, there were three parked cars. Clearly the route is still being used.
Photos:
The path leading up the oreum. You can see the bare earth as it continues up through the trees.
The summit area
The gate at the oreum exit, next to the half way stamp.
As to why the Olle route no longer goes up the oreum, I can only guess. Most likely, the path has become eroded and maybe someone slipped and hurt themselves. Maybe the horses are considered a hazard. It could be that the land owner objected. It could be for conservation reasons.
For me, the route now misses the best bit.
I returned on my bike the next day to investigate further and this is when I took these photos. The top of the oreum is hard compacted stony ground. I took a tent peg with me to see if I could peg out a tent. It is difficult to insert pegs the whole way but they hold halfway into the ground. There is nowhere totally flat and there is a certain amount of course and thorny vegetation that I would avoid.
I saw several other people walking the oreum and on my return to the horse paddock, there were three parked cars. Clearly the route is still being used.
Photos:
The path leading up the oreum. You can see the bare earth as it continues up through the trees.
The summit area
The gate at the oreum exit, next to the half way stamp.
As to why the Olle route no longer goes up the oreum, I can only guess. Most likely, the path has become eroded and maybe someone slipped and hurt themselves. Maybe the horses are considered a hazard. It could be that the land owner objected. It could be for conservation reasons.
For me, the route now misses the best bit.
25-26 January 2026
Having carried my tent (and other gear) along the length of Olle 14-1 the previous weekend, without using it, I returned to repeat the route but with the camp. Last weekend was a little warmer. Last night dropped to around zero. There was a stiff breeze as I pitched the tent, but the wind dropped as the night went on. I only have a very lightweight summer sleeping bag with me on Jeju, so I boosted the insulation with down boots, down trousers and a thin down jacket. I was on the cold side of comfortable, but not to the point of shivering.
The highlight of the route venturing into a cave and finding a hibernating bat. I have done some research on this using Google Lens:
The animal you are looking at is a Greater horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus nippon), which is found on Jeju Island. The specific population on Jeju Island was once considered a separate subspecies (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum quelpartis) but is now generally acknowledged as part of the Rhinolophus nippon species found throughout South Korea and Japan.
Habitat & Behavior
Roosting: These bats commonly roost in sea caves, montane caves, tunnels, and even near villages. The caves on Jeju Island, such as the Gimnyeonggul and Manjanggul lava tubes, provide stable year-round conditions suitable for hibernation.
Appearance: They are the largest of the horseshoe bats in the region. They get their name from their complex, horseshoe-shaped nose-leaf, which aids in their sophisticated echolocation.
Diet: They primarily hunt insects and spiders.
What seems strange regarding this identification was that it seemed to be solitary. Maybe there were others deeper into the cave?
I only took hand held photographs and the bat was illuminated using a small head torch. I was carrying a small tripod and perhaps I should have used it. I might go back sometime to see if it still there and try to get a better photograph. My flash unit is in Scotland, so that is not an option.
The highlight of the route venturing into a cave and finding a hibernating bat. I have done some research on this using Google Lens:
The animal you are looking at is a Greater horseshoe bat (Rhinolophus nippon), which is found on Jeju Island. The specific population on Jeju Island was once considered a separate subspecies (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum quelpartis) but is now generally acknowledged as part of the Rhinolophus nippon species found throughout South Korea and Japan.
Habitat & Behavior
Roosting: These bats commonly roost in sea caves, montane caves, tunnels, and even near villages. The caves on Jeju Island, such as the Gimnyeonggul and Manjanggul lava tubes, provide stable year-round conditions suitable for hibernation.
Appearance: They are the largest of the horseshoe bats in the region. They get their name from their complex, horseshoe-shaped nose-leaf, which aids in their sophisticated echolocation.
Diet: They primarily hunt insects and spiders.
What seems strange regarding this identification was that it seemed to be solitary. Maybe there were others deeper into the cave?
I only took hand held photographs and the bat was illuminated using a small head torch. I was carrying a small tripod and perhaps I should have used it. I might go back sometime to see if it still there and try to get a better photograph. My flash unit is in Scotland, so that is not an option.
