I’m sure, by now, you’re all well aware of the regularity with which we use Air Asia. On a recent flight we studied their route map in the 360o onboard magazine and decided that we hadn’t explored enough! There were umpteen routes winging their way to places we’d barely heard, of let alone thought about visiting, and vast land masses as yet unsoiled by SHED’s boots. It was time to travel further afield and Taiwan won on; price of flights, number of outdoor activities on offer and extensive public transport system. We only had a week but Steve sussed out a route that would allow us to cram in as much as possible revolving around lots of exercise.
KL to Taichung
Our week in Taiwan started with a long travel day. The flight from KL to Taipei Taoyuan International Airport takes 4 ½ hours so this was our first foray into the realms of Air Asia X (their long haul services). We hadn’t pre-booked any meals but their trolley service was limited yet adequate and reasonably priced. We set off slightly late due to a storm directly over the airport and indeed it remained cloudy the entire way. We knew we were taking a risk, as regards the weather, as Taiwan was just about to enter its rainy season. On touching down we progressed through the airport quickly; you don’t need a visa and the airport staff were making sure the queues didn’t get too lengthy. In fact everything was as smooth, efficient and organised as we’d expected it to be. We made our way to the High Speed Train shuttle bus service but while we were queuing noticed there were buses going directly to Taichung. The bus would take twice as long as the train but it would drop us right where we needed to be in town as opposed to on the outskirts of the city. Since the bus was leaving in 10mins time we procured a couple of tickets and saved some money into the bargain too.
The journey was uneventful as we were on a highway that cut through one of the most built up areas of the country; lots of factories and high rise flat complexes. The bus did indeed reach Taichung in the advertised 2 hours but it then spent the next 40mins crawling through town, dropping people every 100m and catching every single red light. At least we got a free city tour chucked in and knew we wouldn’t be missing much from not having time to have a wander. Taichung is a bright, modern, wealthy city of about 1 million inhabitants and all the usual international chain stores and restaurants. The bus terminal is conveniently situated near the main train station and in an area where there are several hotels. We plumped for Fu Chan Hotel that was perfectly acceptable at T$860 (RM86) a night and a short stroll to numerous eating and drinking options. We decided to try the night market where we tucked into some tasty but bland food and had our first taste of Taiwan beer. It was most palatable while watching the world go by knowing it wasn’t going to break the bank.
Breakfast wasn’t included in the room rate and the coffee shop we’d spied the evening before was shut. So we had to resort to 7/11’s City Cafe for breakfast, however, judging by the queues we’d gone local! The 8am bus bound for Wuling Farm duly turned up but on boarding we were told we’d have to change in Lishan. No problem – we’d read the journey to Lishan would take 4-5 hours leaving us plenty of time to catch the 1.30pm connection. With the buses being run by the same company we assumed they’d been timed to meet up with each other. So we made ourselves comfortable and settled back to enjoy some of Taiwan’s countryside.
That was when things started to go wrong! We had only just reached the outskirts of the city when it started to rain. It didn’t stop, at all, ever, all day!!! We spent 6 ½ hours driving through a cloud and on getting to Lishan found we’d missed the connection. The next bus wouldn’t be leaving until 4.30, 4.40 or 4.50 depending on who you were talking to and it transpired it would in fact be the bus we’d just got off. That left us with 2 ½ hours to kill in a small, wet, cloudy hill town. Luckily the bus driver dropped us at the Visitors Centre and the staff there couldn’t do enough to help us. Their English was very limited but they have a great system where they simply phone someone in a different office who then acts as an interpreter. Since we were now going to arrive at the park much, much later than planned we needed the answers to many questions. Mainly we needed to know if the police station would still be open so we could get out permits checked and would there be somewhere to leave an extra bag.
The Lishan – Wuling Farm bus eventually departed at 4.40pm and the first stop was a secondary school. A bus full of high spirited teenagers only helped our spirits to dip further! We finally made it to the park at 6pm; hours behind schedule and with daylight hours fading fast. The police station was open and they dealt with the permits and all the other paperwork promptly. More importantly, they agreed to store our spare bag for us.
Sheipa National Park
We were finally ready to set off but it was 6.30pm, still raining, very cloudy and we had a 10km walk to do just to get us to the trailhead. From there we had another 2km steep walk up to Chika Hut (2500m) and our digs for the night. You can imagine that we were not in the best of moods but we had no choice but to put our heads down and place one foot in front of the other.
Luckily we flagged down an empty truck and with the aid of a bilingual map we indicated where we needed to be. This incredibly kind man went well out of his way to drop us at the trailhead. He was obviously worried about us walking in the dark and kept pointing to the campsite but we didn’t have a tent! Not knowing how else to deal with these crazy foreigners; he let us get out at the trailhead but insisted that we shared his chocolate biscuits. Even though we’d had a bad day the incredible kindness and hospitality of the people prevented us from feeling utter despair.
There was a hut at the trailhead and even though the TV and computer were on we couldn’t see anyone. There were a couple of benches outside and toilet facilities so we were tempted to spend the night there as it was already dark. Even though the benches were under a roof the cloud had swirled in and they were damp. We decided a hut with roof and walls would be a much better option. We’d been told that the first part of the trail was wide, clear and very doable in the dark so we got out the headlamps and trudged on. We reached Chika Hut in only 40mins (somewhat less than the 1 ½ to 2 hours we’d read!) and were very glad we made the decision to press on as we’d have a dry bed for the night. We were very soggy but it turned out there was loads of room to spread out our stuff to dry. In fact we had an entire dorm to ourselves while the other was chock-a-block full of one huge group.
We were hanging up our wet things and generally sorting ourselves out when one of the leaders of the group came to talk to us. He had excellent English and gave us some information about the walk up the mountain and how long it would take to cover the various sections. After a few minutes he reappeared with another member of the group to ask if we had everything we needed. Apparently they’d noticed that we were carrying what they consider to be small packs, and were worried that we didn’t have any food. We assured them that we had all we needed – bless them I’m sure they’d have shared their food. We were soon buried in our sleeping bags waiting to see what the dawn would bring.
Snow Mountain (Xue Shan) 3886m
On eventually realising that the night was almost done (yep – very little sleep) and the sun was rising, we strained our ears for sounds of rain. Nothing and in fact we could hear birds cheeping. On emerging from the hut we were delighted to find patches of blue sky and the sun shining. We set off at 6am for a long day’s walk up to the summit and then over the other side to our next hut. We believed it would take 5 – 6 hours to get to 369 Hut, then 3 – 4 hours to reach the summit and another hour or so down to the next hut. At the maximum that was 12 hours so we would have enough daylight to achieve it all.
The first part of the walk wound its way through a pine forest and it was great to gradually dry out. After a couple of hours we emerged from the forest to find ourselves on a ridge. A slight detour of only 100m, length not height, meant we could take in Snow Mountain’s east peak at 3200m. From there we had great views all around and we spied 369 Hut slightly below us at 3100m. The 5 hour walk took us 2 ½ giving us plenty of time for a good rest and second breakfast before tackling the 4km, 800m ascent to the summit. Against the odds it was still sunny and the clouds were actually thinning. 369 Hut is set in a grassy section of the walk and the views from their steps are pretty amazing.
On setting off again we zigzagged our way through the grass until we reached the Black Forest; so called because the trees bear black pine cones. We’d read that this is one of the trickiest sections as the path isn’t always very clear. Now most people do this section in the dark, as they are aiming to reach the summit for sunrise, but it is very clear during daylight hours. It was quite steep going but we made steady progress despite the fact that we were carrying much heavier bags than we’re used to. This isn’t a mountain where you get pampered with guides, porters, pack ponies and someone to prepare your food! Following a quick break at the top of the forest – you see I do sometimes stop! – we embarked on the last kilometre up a loose stone face to get to the top. The extra weight on our backs put extra pressure on our legs and we were soon feeling quite weary. However with less than a kilometre to go we weren’t to be defeated and in fact made it to the top in a creditable 2hrs 20mins from 369 Hut.
The views from the top were fantastic – 360o worth of mountain peaks to take in and we were on top of Taiwan’s 2nd highest mountain. Jade Mountain (Yushan) is the highest at 3952m but we weren’t sure if the routes had re-opened following the recent typhoon season. Taiwan has 100 mountain peaks over the 3000m mark that are climbable and we’d just done 2 of them. 98 to go! If they are all as spectacular as this – I reckon we’ll be back. On wandering along the ridge a way we spotted our path down to the next hut but it meant tackling a very steep scree slope. There was another couple on the top and one of them spoke very good English. Apparently their plans were the same as ours but she didn’t fancy going along the ridge as it was very windy. They were going to go back to 369 Hut to sleep there instead and they assured us there would be space should we also choose to change our plans.
On working out how long it would take us to; get back to the top, retrace our steps to the trailhead and walk the 10kms back to the police station, not only would we be knackered but we’d miss our bus. All things considered we decided the best plan was to follow the other couple’s lead and just hope there really was space in 369 Hut. There was indeed even though the big group we’d met the night before were there. Once again we experienced the generosity of the Taiwanese people as we were invited to share their food with them. A cup of tasty, warming soup was very welcome. As soon as the sun went down the temperature plummeted with it so we dived into our sleeping bags.
Following a night completely devoid of sleep we looked out of the window to catch a very pretty sunrise. It was mighty chilly so Steve was despatched to do the necessary with the camera! The weather was still glorious and we had a lovely walk back down to the trailhead. We accidentally popped back up to the top of Snow Mountain’s east peak so retook the photos – blue sky is always better than cloud. We reached the trailhead with plenty of time to spare and enjoyed the walk through the national park back to the main gate. Along the way we came across a fish lookout platform and the information board told us to look for the critically endangered unique Formosan Landlocked salmon. So we did and there they were! It might not be as exciting as a tiger but how many of you have seen these fish?!
We retrieved our bag from the policeman who was delighted / relieved to see us and embarked on a hunt for hot food. Other than the bowl of soup and a pot noodle in the visitors centre in Lishan all we’d had was plastic cheese butties and cereal bars. Now considering this is one of the most visited spots in the country you’d think they’d have a restaurant or two. Not one, just a minimart; so it was another pot noodle and a case of taking advantage of Taiwanese hospitality and pleading with the lady to put the kettle on! They did have cold tins in the fridge and, since the bus wasn’t due for an hour or so, we had time to celebrate summiting another substantial mountain. The Ilan / Yilan (take your pick it’s the same place) bus turned up on time and from there we caught the train to Hualien.
Hualien is a pleasant little town but doesn’t boast any grand tourist attractions. The main square where the bus stands and train station are situated is pretty central and there are a couple of decent enough hotels nearby. We were heading towards one we’d read about in our Lonely Planet when we were pounced upon by a lady in a pinny. Not your usual tourist tout and we were bamboozled into following her. To be fair the hotel she took us to was suitable for our needs and budget so we checked in. It was already quite late, we’d had a long day and all we wanted was a hot shower and to put on some clean clothes. By the time we felt more human again we were ravenous and set out in search of a hot tasty meal that didn’t come in a plastic container.
Since we’d not checked into our hotel of choice we decided to try the LP’s restaurant of choice – Buk Kut Ten. It was rather pricey as all the options were set meals, but we didn’t have the energy or the enthusiasm to try to find somewhere else. Steve’s meal wasn’t too bad and at least it was warm, rice and on a plate. I took one look at mine and knew I wasn’t going to be able to eat it. I’d ordered chicken rice and foolishly assumed the chicken would be cooked and warm. I can only think it had been boiled to produce such an anaemic looking item and on cutting into it and tasting a piece was dismayed to find it was stone cold. On further inspection the insides looked way too red for me to progress any further. The rice balls that came with it were tasty but it didn’t amount to the pig out I’d hoped for.
The following evening we found the night market and a lively little place it was too. There were loads of clothes stalls and all of them selling shockingly bad garments. However tucked in among them was a local restaurant where you help yourself to the prepared dishes and settle up at the end. Just like Nasi Kandar restaurants here in Malaysia. More cold fodder of course but there were loads of veggie options and it all tasted great. The proper butcher’s style pork sausages over there are fantastic and we did over indulge in them by the end of the week. A warm meal still evaded us but at least we’d had a decent feed for the first time since leaving Malaysia!
So if Hualien doesn’t have any tourist attractions why on earth were we there I hear you ask? It’s the town closest to Taiwan’s number one tourist attraction and I don’t just mean foreign tourists. In fact, far from it – Taiwan doesn’t get that many visitors and certainly not westerners (we only saw a handful). We’ve read that 40% of their tourists are Malaysians and the majority of those are Chinese Malaysians as they speak the same language. No, this place attracts locals in their droves and during the holidays, on a weekend, it’s said to resemble a huge traffic jam. Luckily for us it was mid-week and not school holiday time. So where is it?
Taroko Gorge
Following yet another breakfast from 7/11 (this was starting to get tedious) we jumped on a bus bound for Taroko Gorge National Park. We hopped off the bus at the park entrance as one of the numerous trails you can do started from nearby. The visitors centre provided us with a map of the area that included brief descriptions of the trials, and a bus timetable to Tienhsiang and therefore the top end of the gorge. Unbelievably we didn’t have to pay a park entrance fee. We had to on the mountain where we’d had to fork out for a permit too. It was time to find out why this area attracts so many people.
The Shakadang Trail starts at the end of a 1km long road tunnel and down a metal spiral staircase. From there you can walk 4.4km to Cabin 3 but beyond that you need a permit. The trail follows the Shakadang River and we were early enough to be ahead of the bus tours so the whole place was very peaceful. The Gorge here is beautiful with amazing patterns on the marble rocks and huge boulders dumped in the middle of the narrow river. At points where pools have formed the water takes on a wonderful turquoise hue courtesy of the limestone. The path is literally carved into the side of the gorge and there are loads of signs warning you to watch your head. Not something I needed to worry about! We walked back to park entrance in time to catch the bus going up the main gorge towards Tienhsiang. We wanted to jump off before that in order to do a couple more trails but this time we didn’t have a bilingual map. Luckily a member of staff in the visitors centre wrote down what we needed for us to show the bus driver. Then a couple of passengers with good English helped us out to – this country knows how to make you feel welcome.
Anyway we got down at Jiucyudong or Tunnel of the Nine Turns Trail to you and me. This is only a short walk and it is actually part of the original highway. At the entrance we were handed a Bob the Builder style hat as the tunnel and gorge walls are a bit crumbly in places. In another situation I might have assumed this hat business was a good way of getting a laugh at Johnny Foreigner’s expense; rest assured the Taiwanese are simply not like that and anyway they all had hard hats on too. At first I felt a bit robbed as I thought we’d come to take in wonderful views and here I was stuck in a tunnel. I soon had to eat my words, as on exiting the tunnels you’re suddenly presented with wonderful views. The new road is a bit narrow and hairy in places so this must have been prang central back in the day.
We carried on up the road that follows the river so of course we constantly had great views, deep clear water pools, narrow strait sided cliffs and all the usual stuff you associate with gorges. I’m not going to bang on with my limited descriptive powers as I know there are plenty of photos for you to peruse. To get off the main road for a while we used the Lushui- Holiu trail that like the first walk is cut into the cliff side. At the bottom of the trail there is a suspension bridge that gives you a different angle from which to admire the beauty of the area. We eventually reached Tienhsiang having had a grand day out and walked a fair distance (approx 20kms). This was turning into one of the healthiest short breaks we’ve had in a long time but then all the exercise was planned as it was part of our training for Africa. We were there in plenty of time to catch the Hualien bus so put our feet up and tucked into sausage on a stick and a tin of beer. Okay, so not all healthy then – but hey, we’d earned it!
The next morning we packed our bags, grabbed breakfast from you know where and jumped on a train that would take us to Taipei.
Taipei
We’d booked One2Stay Hotel via the tinterweb before we left and I have to say I’m extremely glad we did. It was a great price for a capital city hotel, spotlessly clean, all the mod cons including fridge and flat screen TV with satellite channels and a cracking bathroom. Plus it was in quite a happening area with loads of shops, restaurants and a strip of bars. Most importantly it was a hop, skip and a jump (30 m) to the nearest MRT station making getting around the city very easy. You can buy an Easy Card that gives you; discounts on journeys, saves the hassle of queuing up for a ticket every time and when you’re leaving, simply return it to get back your deposit and any remaining credit. The MRT system is very easy to use and there are signs in English everywhere pointing you in the right direction. The only station we struggled with was the Main Station as it is a huge hub and we weren’t always sure which exit we needed. To be honest we avoided it if at all possible.
So what can I tell you about Taipei - not as much as I hoped as it was raining when we got there and didn’t stop all the time we were there! On picking up some great brochures we found out that there is actually loads to do and see in and around Taipei but most of the stuff that appealed to us was outdoors. This is a country geared up for spending time outdoors. There are mountains, trekking trails and walks all over the country and from our experience they are all very well maintained with loads of information boards and direction signs. Plus people are actively encouraged to go and use them as wherever possible public transport links up. The MRT and train systems are designed to allow you to take your bike on and there is even a section of a carriage specifically for this purpose. Steve and I seriously did not expect to come away from Taipei thinking – you know what? I reckon I could live here.
So what did we do? We popped to a Chinese temple but of course they are very familiar to us. Went to have a look at what was, for a while, the world’s tallest building Taipei 101 but it was covered in cloud. Visited one of the many night markets and luckily by the time we got there the rain had eased and we managed to stay dry. We tried a few different foods from the street vendors and most of them were very tasty. We found a big indoor food court as Steve was determined to try stinky tofu. We found a tofu stall and, from the animated look of glee on the lady’s face, as she pointed to the dish she thought Steve should buy, we can only guess we’d found what we were looking for. If I hadn’t known for a fact that it was veggie there is no way I’d have tried something that looked and smelt that bad. Judging from the taste; we’d found stinky tofu alright and even Steve declared it to be inedible!
We found a whole row of outdoor gear shops so they kept us busy while it was still raining. A lot of the stuff wasn’t any cheaper than here in Malaysia but it was great to have so much choice. Many of the shops had sales on so we did manage to pick up some bargains and I actually tracked down a pair of Gortex boots to fit me. Not only were my Hitec glorified trainers not really good enough for some of the hiking we do they began to disintegrate on Snow Mountain. I’d had to tape the front of the toes together with gaffer tape and in Taroko Gorge had to keep making running repairs. So armed with new boots in a country full of walking trails we weren’t going to let the weather get the better of us. We were up early the next morning ready to navigate our way around Main Station and find a train to take us out to the coast.
Caoling Historical Trail
It was still damp and gloomy when we woke up but Steve reckoned the weather would be different by the time we reached the coast. He was right; we reached Daxi to find we were in lower, thicker cloud and it was raining! The start of the trail can be found just outside the village and once again there were maps, signposts and information boards. The path starts from a car park area straight up a steep flight of steps. It’s great that the path has been so lovingly maintained but warning – the path is treacherously slippery when wet. You’ll not be surprised to hear that the car park was empty and there wasn’t a soul in sight. That’s not quite true; at the top of the first couple of flights of steps we found some allotment land and one old boy was tending to his veggies. There was also a dog up there that came to say hello and walked along with us for a while.
The steps kept going up and up and up while the rain kept coming down and down and down! We knew the highest point of the walk was in the region of 600m but had expected the path to undulate across the headlands. Ever onwards and ever upwards taking in the views along the way. Well we would have done had we not been in thick cloud but the information boards showed us what we were missing. I think you’ve got the picture now – it was proper miserable!! We’d been trudging along for an hour or so and realised that the dog was still with us – he seemed to know the path very well so we suspected this wasn’t his first time on the trail.
You’re waiting to read: by the time we got to the top the cloud had lifted and the sun was starting to peep through. No such luck this time; our 10km coastal walk didn’t even throw up one glimpse of the sea but it was all good exercise. If we’d just stayed in Taipei for the day we’d have quickly tired of shops, even outdoor and book shops, and found ourselves in a local hostelry. We had planned to walk the entire 16km, joining with the Taoyuan Valley Trail to Fulong, however by the time we reached the trail junction we’d had enough. So we cut down to Dali where we knew the trains to Taipei stopped and unbelievably the dog stayed with us. Right to the station and onto the platform where the station master didn’t seem at all surprised to see him. There’s only one platform in Dali with trains pulling up on both sides for either north or south bound destinations. We knew the dog had to go south where we needed to go north. Our train pulled in first but he didn’t even attempt to board it. How we wish a south bound train had turned up first as we’re convinced he would have jumped on and returned to Daxi.
Thoroughly wet and our appetite whetted for more we packed our bags and bid a fond farewell to Taiwan. How can we not return to a country that is so geared towards the outdoors? Along with shops for us to buy all the gear and gadgets we can conceivably find a use for! Neither of us had too many preconceived ideas before visiting but we anticipated a clean, organised and efficient country and got that in spades. At times too much so; in Taipei’s Main Station food court I thought we’d accidentally landed in Japan. The level of Americanisation and amount of packaging used is predictable and depressing respectively. That said, there were times when the former went in our favour (no 7/11 = no breakfast) and there were recycling bins to deal with the latter. Now we’re British and know all about queuing but these fellas take it to the nth degree – the right hand side of the escalator is for standing and the left for walking and don’t you dare deviate. I think if I spent any length of time there the naughty, devilish element in me would have to surface periodically just to maintain my sanity!!
Above all else we were both bowled over by the friendliness, helpfulness and generosity of the Taiwanese. It’s like the conclusion to The Philippines trip; why did it take us so long to venture this way on and when can we squeeze in another visit?
Travel Information
Hiking in Taiwan
We paid Barking Deer to sort out our permit for Snow Mountain and it cost about RM300 for the permit and 2 nights in huts. Loads of info on the website and probably a lot less hassle to let Richard at Barking Deer sort it all for you.
http://barkingdeernews.blogspot.com/2008/10/snow-mountain-diy.html
http://barking-deer.com/mountainhiking.htm
For info about Snow Mountain and hiking in Taiwan check out.
http://www.taiwanese-secrets.com/taiwan-travel.html
http://www.wuling-farm.com.tw/english/aboutfarm.htm
http://hikingtaiwan.wordpress.com/
http://hikingintaiwan.blogspot.com/2009/05/snow-mountain-xueshan.html
To get to Snow Mountain on public transport from Taipei, get a train to Yilan (1.5 hrs) and then a bus to Wuling (2.5 hrs) – much better than via Taichung.
Taipei Hotel
We can highly recommend – One2stay, email one2stay@gmail.com tel. 886(02)2314-3912 or book via
http://b2b.hotelclub.net/DirectHotel.asp?Checkin=2010-7-8&Checkout=2010-7-10&ncl=&id=131850
