Our friends at ZA Adventures are going to put on another WFA (Wilderness First Aid) Course for us over the Oct 31-Nov 1st weekend in Yangmingshan National Park.

http://soloschools.com/wilderness-first-aid-wfa/

Matt, is flying over from the states again to lead the course, and this is a great chance to get a first-aid qualification from an extremely knowledgeable and experienced professional. The course can also serve as a refresher for WFR (Wilderness First Responder) if you took the WFR in the last 3 years.

WHO IS THE WFA FOR?
The WFA is the perfect course for the outdoor enthusiast or trip leader who wants a basic level of first aid training for short trips with family, friends, and outdoor groups. It also meets the ACA guidelines.

WHAT IS TAUGHT?
The WFA is 16 hours long (two days), and focuses on the basic skills of: Response and Assessment, Musculoskeletal Injuries, Environmental Emergencies, Survival Skills, Soft Tissue Injuries, and Medical Emergencies

WHAT IS THE COST?
The cost is $6000NT and this includes meals, instruction and certification.
CPR certification can also be done over the weekend, and this is an extra $1000NT
The course is limited to 20 persons. Please sign up via the Google Form below, then we will get in touch with you.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1jXVVkpKWOLA6qjB8qPf2SvT0Ho3WCIO6JXOB1BnvtWM/viewform?usp=send_form

Baiyang Waterfall Revisited

The Water Curtain Tunnel

Bilu and Yangtou Mountain, Taroko Gorge National Park

Walking through a frost covered forest in Taroko Gorge National Park

Mount Bilu and Yangtou are located near the top of Taroko Gorge National Park.  Both peaks are above 3000m and can be done as individual days hikes, a mad single day traverse or a 2-3 day traverse with camping.

Day 1

It’s a long drive from Taipei to Dayuling for the start of the hike.  With the restrictions on the Suhua Highway, we had to come via Lishan and it took almost 6 hours to get there.  The trailhead starts next to the Dayuling Tunnel which is the intersection for Lishan, Hehuanshan and Taroko Gorge.

Teapot Mountain and Banping Mountain

Teapot Mountain as seen from Banping Mountain

Teapot Mountain on Taiwan’s north coast has to have some the most amazing views you can get for a day hike from Taipei City.  The hike begins in the rejuvenated Jinguashi Gold Ecological Park. I remember visiting this area years and just thinking how depressing it was, but it’s now fully open and makes for a nice place to visit especially in the morning when the crowds aren’t too bad.

Yushan Single Day Ascent

With Yushan’s Paiyun Cabin still not open, the best way to climb Taiwan’s highest mountain is the tough single day ascent.  Starting at Tatajia you have to ascend and descend some 1700m and cover 26km in a single day.  It’s not for everyone, but is makes for a great challenge for those who are up to it.

Sunrise at the trail to Yushan

Yushan and the New Rules for the Paiyun Cabin

Sunrise as seen from the peak of Yushan

When the new Paiyun Cabin for Yushan opens (if that ever happens!) there’ll be a new policy of charging foreigners $700 to stay there.  Locals will continue to pay the usual $220 as before.  I’m very much against this as I think it’s unfair and it will damage Taiwan’s reputation.

The reason given for the increase is to pay for the new English services, but a blanket charge for foreigners will affect those coming from non-English speaking countries too.  How do they benefit?  I also worry that we’ll see no changes to the poor English on the website/signs in the park etc.

In addition to this change it is also rumoured that when the cabin opens, foreigners will no longer have the option of climbing Yushan as a single day ascent, regardless of experience.  I can only think that this is because the park wants foreigners to stay in the cabin to extract money from them.

If you too are against this, Richard Saunders has set up a petition for anyone who would like to sign it.

Online Petition

Also you can email the national park directly to ask about the new pricing policy.

Email the Yushan National Park

Yuemeikeng Waterfall

The Yue Mei Keng Waterfall in full flow

Richard Saunders let me know about the Yuemeikeng Waterfall sometime ago and he mentioned that it was a relatively unknown and hidden place and so when I visited last year, I decided not to write about it to try and keep it that way.  But now it has been discovered by the masses and the trail is well tagged and well beaten, I think it’s OK to write a quick post.

Beidawu – 北大武山

Sunset near the Kuaigu Cabin

Having failed to get a permit in the Yushan National Park because of the snow season, we headed a little further south to Pingdong County to hike Beidawushan which is Taiwan’s southern most Baiyue (top one hundred mountain). In the past this was a reasonable 2 day hike, but a large landslide caused my Typhon Morakot means the trailhead is much lower and further back making it a much tougher walk. We did it in 2 days, but if you’ve got the time, I think 3 days would be more enjoyable.

Although it’s one of the smaller Baiyue (3092m), Beidawu is a mammoth rock that rises sharply from the ground. The strip of land that it lies on is only 80km from the west coast to the east coast and on fine days you can see both (or so I hear!)

Sandiaoling Waterfalls 三貂嶺瀑布群

The weather in northern Taiwan is notoriously bad in the winter and this year has been no exception.  So f you’re going to hike in the rain, there won’t be much scenery to look, unless of course you visit a waterfall and the Sandiaoling Trail 三貂嶺 has waterfalls in abundance.

Hegu Waterfall, the first waterfall on the trail

When I woke up on Sunday the weather in Taipei wasn’t too bad, just a slight drizzle and so I had high hopes for our hike.  However, the further east we got, the heavier the rain became and when we finally arrived at the tiny station of Sandiaoling, it was pretty much a persistent downpour.  Still, everyone was in high spirits as we headed along the tracks and got onto the very muddy trail.

Some Upcoming Hikes

We’ve got two open hikes planned for February.  The first is to Snow Mountain on the 10th-12th and the second is to Dabajianshan on the 25th-27th.  February 27/28th are both holidays and so we’ve got a 4 day weekend then.

Snow Mountain is Taiwan’s second highest peak and a great climb.  Some amazing scenery!

Snow Mountain Facebook Event

Dabajianshan is probably Taiwan’s most distinctive mountain.  Look on the back of a $500NT note, that’s the one!  It’s a great 3 day hike to this huge mountain and back.

Dabajianshan Facebook Event

If you’re interested in joining us on either hike or on some gentler day trips around Taipei, then join the facebook group, Taiwan Adventures – Group Hikes.