Xinxing Wild Hotsprings 新興溫泉

The Xinxing Wild Hotsprings 新興溫泉 are another wonderfully remote hotspring set in the bottom of a steep valley in Taoyuan county.  It takes a while to get there, about 3 hours by motorbike from Taipei but if you like riding, you’ll love the drive out on the number 7.

The Xinxing Hotsprings

Snow Mountain – 雪山

Snow Mountain 雪山 is Taiwan’s second highest peak (not counting Jade Mountain’s sub-peaks) and is possibly the most beautiful place in the whole of Taiwan. The main peak is 3886m above sea-level making it a very cold place to be in winter but the scenery is second to none.

So close and yet so far....

Happy New Year! – 新年快樂!

Taipei 101 on new year's eve

Happy new year to everyone!  Hopefully 2010 will be as good a year for hiking as 2009.  I’ve been to so many wonderful places and hiked so many great trails this year and writing the blog has certainly inspired me to get out there and find more interesting things to do.

Looking back on the last year, I’d have to say the 4 day trip we did as part of the tourism bureau’s promotion of Taiwan was definitely the highlight of the year for me.  However as far as hiking is concerned the trip we did to Jiaming lake at Chinese year was the best and hopefully that area will reopen soon after the damaged caused by Typhoon Morokot.

To everyone who has ever read this blog, thank you and enjoy the new year!

Beichatian mountain II

Beichatian is in my opinion one of the best days hikes you can do in the north of Taiwan. It’s high, 1700m+, and a tough hike, especially if the weather is bad but the scenery and the challenge more than make up for it.

The last time I came to Beichatian was during the summer when I hiked from Manyueyuan 滿月圓.  It was really hard work in the heat but I enjoyed it immensely.  When we got near to the top a park ranger of sorts chatted with us and mentioned that the hike could also be done from Xiao Wulai 小烏來.

The forest near the beginning of the trail

Ba Yan Wild Springs – 八煙野溪溫泉

Sitting on the pacific ring of fire has many disadvantages, earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanoes to name a few but as is often the case there’s always a  flip-side and Taiwan’s hotsprings are one.

The Ba Yan springs 八煙野溪溫泉, located in Yangmingshan national park, have to be one of the best wild hotsprings I’ve been to and with your own transport, they’re relatively easy to get to.

Relaxing at the Ba Yan springs

Tapung Fort – 李棟山古堡

The front gate of Tapung Fort

The Tapung Fort at the top of Lidong Mountain is a fascinating relic of Taiwan’s past.  It was built by the then occupying Japanese army as a way to control the local Atayl tribes and, even though only the walls and main entrance survive,  it still provides an intriguing glimpse into just how far the Japanese went to gain control over the island.

Qixingshan by night – 七星山

The moon was exceptionally bright and we didn't even need torches to walk up the trail

Qixingshan, otherwise known as Seven Star mountain, is the highest peak in the Yangmingshan national park.  This area is very different to most mountains around Taipei because there are very few trees and the trail is almost entirely exposed to the elements.  This means it can be a painful hike to do in the heat of the summer but it also means that you get fantastic 360° views from the peak.

River Tracing near Wanli

This was the second time we’ve been to this spot.  The first time we actually found it by accident.  Our intention was to go to a completely different place but we couldn’t find it and so we just settled on anywhere, anywhere being next to the Dixi bridge.  This time was pretty much the same!  Not finding the river we where looking for, we decided to revisit this one.

Danshui Cycling

Enjoying the views at Danshui

I recently got myself a new bike and so I was keen to get out on it this weekend.  I did the graveyard run a couple of weeks back and it was great, apart from the mental stray dogs. However, this weekend I wasn’t in the mood for climbing hills and so a nice easy ride along the riverside park up to Danshui seemed like the perfect alternative.

Wai Niao Zuishan – 外鳥嘴山

After a couple of rainy weekends, we were desperate to get out of Taipei. And when the weather looked like picking up, we all jumped at the chance to get on the bikes and head towards the mountains.  The place of choice this time was Neiwan 內灣.