A festival where visitors catch eels on mudflats recognized by the world and walk the country's longest 1.5-kilometer pedestrian wooden bridge to experience the mudflat ecosystem will be held in Muan, South Jeolla.
Muan County, South Jeolla, said on the 26th it will hold the 12th Muan Hwangto Mudflat Festival across Muan Hwangto Mudflat Land for nine days from the 29th to Aug. 6.
This year's festival theme is "the mudflat is alive." It is designed as an ecology and hands-on festival to promote the ecological value of the Muan mudflats, listed as a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site, and to let nature and people enjoy it together.
On the opening day, the 29th, a ceremony will be held to commemorate the World Natural Heritage inscription. Then from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m., a walking event will take place on the Muan Mudflat Exploration Bridge, the country's longest 1.5-kilometer pedestrian wooden bridge. Participants can walk over the mudflats and see the surrounding ecological scenery up close.
At the mudflat experience grounds, programs such as catching eels in the hwangto mudflats, Unjeori sea fishing, mudflat sound walking, and a mudflat pirate expedition will be offered. In particular, eel catching is a signature hands-on program of the festival and will run on the opening day, on the 30th, and on Aug. 5-6.
A new water tower was installed this year at the water play area in Nakji Square. It will be operated as a water play space that children and adults can enjoy together.
Considering the heat, indoor programs have also been expanded. At the Ecological Mudflat Science Museum, special exhibition "Sci-pop," which lets visitors experience scientific principles, as well as traveling science lectures, mobile science experiences, and Staccato will be offered. On the second floor of the Fiddler Crab Rest Area, a family rest space has been prepared where visitors can relax while looking out over the mudflat scenery, and shade canopies and rest areas have been installed throughout the festival grounds.
There are also a variety of programs for children and families. Sea art experiences with authors and mudflat experiences, a fairy tale camp, and a small cinema will be offered. At the Ecological Science Museum, there will also be art experience programs where participants can make fans, soap, mood lights, and water globes themselves.
At the local agricultural and fishery specialty product market, Muan's agricultural and fishery specialties will be sold, and hands-on programs that highlight local characteristics, such as making onion kimchi, will also be presented.
Park Mun-jae, chair of the Muan County Festival Promotion Committee, said, "This festival was prepared so visitors can directly see, feel, and experience the value of the Muan mudflats, which are listed as a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site, in nature," adding, "We hope many people will visit, have fun together, and become the protagonists of a festival to remember."