A dark blue pond sitting amid a broad green meadow crowns the summit of Mount Mindung. The hollow floor and circular pond anchor the landscape. The green summit rises high enough to overlook surrounding peaks, and without a single pine tree in sight, the view opens wide. This is Mount Mindung, an 1,118.8-meter peak in Jeongseon County, Gangwon Province. While Korea has many bare mountains, Mindungsan, which translates to “bare mountain,” uses this as its official designation. When autumn arrives, this expansive field fills with silver grass. This seasonal shift traditionally established autumn as the mountain’s peak visitor period. Recently, however, the summer season at Mount Mindung has drawn hikers’ attention on social media. The scenery, taking on a vivid green color sharper than in any other season, is a distinct feature that has drawn popularity online. The doline pond visible from the ridge has become a photogenic spot surpassing even the famous silver grass. If Mount Gwanak in Seoul was the mountain drawing the most attention on social media earlier this year, Mount Mindung has
