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

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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.

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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.

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Taiwan Adventures Mobile Guide for iPhone and iPod

Well it’s finally here!  Our mobile guide to Taiwan for the iPhone and iPod is available in the app store now.

The features include;

• More that 900 points of interest that cover everything from hotels to hot springs to hiking.
• More than 2000 photos, many of which you’ll only see in the app
• Online and offline maps to make finding you way around so much easier
• Street addresses with both in pinyin and Chinese
• Easy to use:  Search by district, category, distance, map or just browse through our photo albums.

One thing that we’ve really tried to push with the app is Taiwan’s superb outdoors.   You’ll find that may of the points of interest are waterfalls, hikes, forest recreation areas, swimming holes, beaches, wild hot springs etc. and with the online and offline maps, it’s so much easier to find these hidden gems.

The Taiwan Adventures app can be downloaded from the app store for free.  Inside you’ll find a free database containing information about Bali and Danshui and from the store, you can then make in app purchases for the other areas of Taiwan.

Hope you enjoy it!  And look out for updates coming in the very near future!

The entry for the Bishan Temple near Neihu

Entries all have info regarding prices, opening hours and the address in Chinese and Pinyin as well as links to websites

The map shows your location in red and all of the entries are in blue.

Zoomed in the map give enough detail to find your way around

The free database contains info about Bali and Danshui. The rest of Taiwan has been divided into 5 areas, Taipei, Northern, East, Southern and Central

I personally really like flicking through the photo gallery to look for interesting places

Available in Chinese and English

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Taiwan Adventures – The Online Guide

It’s been a hectic and crazy year for us, but finally our comprehensive online guides to Taiwan are finally ready.  Myself, Neil Wade, Ross Tweedie and my brother, Phil Dawson have spent the last 8 months or so building the two guides.  There is one in English and one that we have had translated into Chinese.

It’s been hard work to say the least.  Working full time jobs and then spending the evenings writing and the weekends travelling and visiting places, but I’ve thoroughly enjoyed.  It gave me a real kick up the arse to get out there and visit some of the places that I had been meaning to go to for a long time but had never gotten round to.

Some of my personal highlights include Guguan which I knew nothing about but absolutely loved, especially the hiking, getting the car stuck in snow at the top of Hehuanshan,  and motorcycling up and down the east coast between Hualien and Taidong with Neil this summer.

Each guide is divided up into 5 main areas, Taipei, north, east, south and central and then each area is divided up into specific places, such as Kending, the North East Coast or Danshui/Bali.  You can use the site to search for what’s near you or to plan a trip to another part of Taiwan or simply browse through the categories for things that interest you.

We have some 900 places listed including hotels, hikes, hot springs, transport etc.  Each place is listed on a google map and the address is in Chinese and English to make it easier to find.

Hopefully next week the mobile app version will be released in the itunes store and each area will be available for download to your iphone, ipad, or ipod. The app version will have online and offline maps so getting directions will be even easier and there are some 2000 photographs included.  We will continuously update the app and so, unlike a guide book, you won’t have to wait 3 years to pay for a new version., the update be available for free!

We hope that people find these guides useful and we’d love to hear some feedback about how we can improve them – info at taiwan-adventures dot com

 

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Nenggao Historic Trail 2

A view of Nenggao Mountain on the Central Mountain Range of Taiwan

Neil and I revisited the Nenggao Historic Trail this weekend taking a group of 7 people with us.  This was a first go at guiding people on an over-nighter and we were lucky enough to have great company, weather and some fabulous views near the top of the Cilai South Peak.  It was a great weekend out away from the cities and into nature.

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