How I planned my route
Trip Start
Nov 06, 2006
1
3
99
Trip End
Dec 31, 2008
Taipei,
Taiwan
Tuesday, November 7, 2006
Why walking? It is the slowest way of getting somewhere ( I thought until I saw the photo of a holy Hindu man in India crawling 2700km on his knees and hands - beats me!- see photo ) but allows a lot of time to contemplate about a lot of things, about what I see and experience and get in close contact with the local people. I also can change from road to trails whenever it suits the situation. Quite some people go around Taiwan by bike - just about the time I left in March 2007 for a major section a local produced film 'Island Etudes' about a young deaf-mute man cycling Taiwan had been released - but very few walk... and I have the time.
Route: One remark first: In Taiwan there is no such thing as the hundreds or even thousands of km long Trans-European trails, the pilgrim trails or the American Appalachian and Continental Divide trails.This basically means two things:
1) I have to do my planning on my own
2) I will not meet anyone twice and for sure will not meet anyone to walk with for a few days
Entrance to Snow mountain
. Luckily some friends have expessed their interest to join on some stretches for a few days.There are a lot of mountain trails in Taiwan with different levels of difficulty and development:
- several trails are listed ( also in English ) in a web-site of the Forest Bureau ( http://trail.forest.gov.tw ) - this information is not sufficient to start your hike!
- many trails are " historic trails ", often only in sections accessable. The trails are either former aboriginal connections between valleys, the mountain and the coast and indigenous villages. Others have been built at first by the Ming and Qing dynasties and later by the Japanese soldiers to controll the often rebellious indigenous tribes.
- Trails maintained by the National Parks Administrations and the Forest Bureau ( usually marked with sign boards )
- aboriginal hunting trails ( careful traps ) - not marked
- trails used by mountain hiking clubs - marked only with plastic stripes, showing the club's name, attached to trees ( they do not really help a lot, but when you see them you know that you have not completely got lost in the woods )
Rice fields in Yilan
. Some of these trails are also marked with handwritten small metal signs ( white with read arrow heads for direction ) showing the name of the mountain and time to go, but only in Chinese.- short, well developed trails in local forest parks
Please consider : Mountain trails often require ' permits ' of different levels. Better do not go alone - every year several hikers get into trouble, most get saved, but some have never been found.
Route continued: Knowing that the western plains with the major cities have 90% of the population, almost all industries, heavy traffic and outwardly less than beautiful villages and buildings - often an agglomeration of forgettable concrete boxes without colors, but 'beautified' with corrugated iron sheets in green or grey and thousands of large neon advertising boards - it was clear for me that I would not walk there. So my way will be: northeast coast, east coast, south, central mountains and the 3 cross highways ( in the true sense of the word ' high ' ), back to Taipei along the mountains on the west side and the main smaller islands Matsu, Kinmen, Penghu,Green Island, Orchid Island. I will use mainly country roads with very little traffic and where possible and when in company of friends mountain trails. To leave out the western cities is purely based on my 'walking' decision
Taroko gorge
. Most visitors will see the west side, and this also for a good reason: the Chinese and Taiwanese life, culture and history are best experienced here, in places like Taipei, Tamsuei, Kaohsiung, Taitung, the old capital Tainan, Lukang , Meinung and so on.Timing: Perhaps you have read my Taiwan entry from yesterday under climate - then it becomes pretty clear that spring and autumn ( especially the less rainy Autumn ) are the best times to balance the hot temperature of summer, the south and the plains and the cold temperatures of winter, the north and the mountains. This is important as my walk will lead me alternately from the mountains to the sea and the north to the south and back to the north of Taiwan. If I do not want to carry a too heavy backpack, my limited clothes have to work for all situations.
My backpack: The whole luggage should not be too heavy, a fact that became especially clear to me after I read the book " Guide to lightweight hiking " by Ray Jardine. It shows how much a hiker slows down with increasing weight, especially uphill. I must say many of the suggestions, although good, were a bit extreme and would have required a lot of preparation time or high expenses for high-tech gear. So I still end up with a 15 kg backpack, double his recommendation:
- a good, but much too heavy backpack ( I cut off two staps - that helped?
Hindu holy man - this way not for me
! )- a hiking tent with inner and outer tent ( Ray suggested only a tarp against wind and rain and the use sticks - Ha, I'm sure the mosquitos would have had their fun with me as western dinner! )
- sleeping bag - not special light
- Insulation mat
- I choose a children's tooth brush - saved annother 5 gram.
- sealable plastic bags for first aid and hygene stuff and washing powder - the bags later turned out not to be very durable and not very hygenic
- 2 to 3 sets of fast-dry underwear, trousers and sweaters, light wind jacket, sports shoes which I wear, light pair of slippers
- long umbrella - now that I have some experience I would not go without it - walking stick, rain protection, sun protection, fend off barking dogs
- maps, a book for lonely evenings, a set of Germany photos to show to the village kids, notebook to keep track, charger for my handy
- power snack bars and a special outdoor water bottle with filter to filter/drink mountain stream water
My dog - he has to stay at home
.Where to sleep?
In touristic places it is possible to find high class or mid-range hotels and homestays. In the villages the choice is very limited or close to none. Here the possibilities are:
- cheaper homestays, sometimes as Tong Pu ( big room with wood or Tatami floor ), shared shower/WC - get a brochure at the tourist office in airport
- Youth Hostels, affiliated to the International Youth Hostel Association. You will need the IYH membership card or the local membership card. The association in Taiwan is pretty new and hostels are limited many are former Youth Activity Centers of the Taiwan Youth Corps or homestays with a young flair. All info you need under http://www.yh.org.tw
- some Christian churches, mostly Tong Pu - price they will either tell you or as you feel appropriate ( at least you should feel something )
- some Buddhist or Taoist temples, mostly Tong Pu - price determined same as church
- some local ( mostly primary ) schools - price determined as church/temple. They may offer a stay in a class room on floor, their dormatory ( if lucky ), or camping in school yard.
- camping on camp site, village basket ball court ( all villages have ) - check village chief or police - beside police station - check police -, in school yard - check principal or janitor.
Tip: On holidays , weekends and during vacation time places can get crowded with local travellers. Then prices are pretty fixed. During all other times most places offer discounts and I suggest to compare and negotiate ( use calculator to show prices ).
Why I did not take my dog ( see photo ) with me - for two reasons:
- my dog loves walking in the forests, but hates heat and sunshine. When there is sun, he is the first to find a shadow - that's where I will find him under a tree around the next corner after I have lost him out of sight .
- too stressful, because he will get in fights with the village and farm dogs - which one will begin the fight and how it will end is open
OK, ready - see you tomorrow, hopefully on a sunny day.
Comments
comment from matrixsu
Kurt, thank you for sharing your experience of Taiwan.