Knife-Edge Hikes

The last two weekends, we hiked Huangdidian and Wuliaojian, two of Taiwan's notorious knife-edge ridge hikes. Huangdidian is near the town of Shiding, to the southeast of Taipei, and Wuliaojian is near Sanxia, to the southwest of Taipei. The two ridge systems are similar, but separated by about 20 miles.

On February 15, we went to Huangdidian. Originally we were planning to hike near Wulai, but the weather was so good we decided to do this hike, which requires good weather.

Here's what the ridge looks like. On either side are steep, bare rock faces.
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Here's Kat, slipping off the ridge to her doom...! (Just kidding!)


There are a lot of ladders here. (Wuliaojian, in contrast, has few ladders, but a lot of ropes.) Kate, Kitty and Kat.


Robert


A section without safety ropes:


Kitty


Kat wowing us with her mountaineering skillz:


The ruins of an old house we passed on the hike back down:


A night-time scene in Shiding


We finished our day with a meal at a tofu restaurant in Shiding that we had discovered a few months before.

On February 22, we went to Wuliaojian, which is more hardcore than Huangdidian.

Lots of rope climbing:


After a great deal of rope climbing and scrambling over rocks, we finally reach the ridge. Here's Filippo.


Soon after this is the toughest part of the hike: the descent down a sheer rock face with a slope of about 55 degrees, using a knotted rope.


Kitty


Filippo


After this, there are a few more rather tricky rope descents, but they're a breeze after that big one.




Then a hike down through a humid jungle. Here's Filippo contemplating a bird's nest fern (Asplenium nidus) up on the tree:


The fruits of the cluster fig (Ficus congesta). They're edible, but have no flavor. I know: I tried one. They would make good bush food if you were stuck in the wild.


We saw a snake on the hike down! It was a Taiwan Beauty Snake (Elaphe taeniura), a non-poisonous rat snake. No pictures: it got away too fast.

Finally, we reached the road, and walked through a quaint country village:




Just down the road a but there was a farmer lady selling vegetables, Kitty bought some. The woman saw that Kitty was with three foreign men, and said to her, "You're with these foreign guys...aren't you afraid?" We found that somewhat amusing! She then realized that we understood Chinese, and started apologizing. She said "I hope you don't think all of us mountain folk are backward!"

After that, we got to the car and drove to Sanxia, where we ate at Belgian Pie's restaurant.

Amazing Race addenda

Here are a few more locations (all at Gongguan) from The Amazing Race before I finally move on to another topic!

From the show:


My pic:


From the show:


My pic:


From the show:


My pic:


From the show:


My pic:

Taipei and The Amazing Race

One of the few TV shows I enjoy watching these days is The Amazing Race, a reality show in which teams of two people race around the world following clues.

In July 2007, The Amazing Race came to Taiwan for the first time. It can be seen in Episode 10 of Season 12.

The first thing they did was take taxis to the Taipei Train Station, where they found the clue box by the east entrance.

From the show:


My photo:


Then they had to take the High Speed Rail to Taichung, then another taxi to Jiji (a ride of about an hour and a half!) where they had to take a harrowing ride on an acrobatics jeep. I'd never heard of this place before, but some online Googling shows that it's a place called 集集特技村 (Jiji Stunt Village), run by a stunt driver named 吉普阿諾 (Jeep Arnold). How the producers of The Amazing Race found this strange place is beyond me. But the producers have a penchant for the bizarre when it comes to challenges.

Then they taxied back to Taichung and took the HSR back to Taipei for their next task. The next place they had to visit was a teahouse that just happens to be around the corner from where I practice kung fu with Nick. Unfortunately I wasn't there to witness it myself, but I know the location.

The place is the GK Teahouse, right in the National Taiwan University/Gongguan area of Taipei, behind the big Baptist church on Xinsheng S. Road.

From the show:


My photo:


Their task there is to drink a cup of very hot tea, and at the bottom of the cup, printed in Chinese, is their next instruction, which is to go to the Gongguan Night Market (which is very close by - essentially across the street once they get out of the alley).

Asking the way:


Location:


I noticed that the tea they drank was roselle tea. Roselle is a flower, a kind of hibiscus, that imparts a strong, plum-like flavor to tea.

From the show:


What I ordered today:


Now, there's no way anyone in Taipei could hop in a taxi, tell the driver "GK Teahouse", and even hope to be brought to the right place. They wouldn't know what hell you're blabbering about. First, few drivers speak English. Second, the teahouse is not well known. Third, it's a chain with about 10 locations around the city. But all four teams managed to find cabs where the driver knew exactly where to go. Their clue cards must have had the address printed on them in Chinese.

Anyway, at the bottom of the teacups are printed, in Chinese, the words 走到公館夜市找小丑 ("Walk to the Gongguan Night Market and find a clown"). Gongguan is the area on Roosevelt Road opposite National Taiwan University, and the night market occupies the alleys along and behind Roosevelt Road for about a block or two. They find the clown here, in Lane 108:



My photo:


Their next task is to go to Youth Park and walk barefoot along a stone path. These paths are notoriously painful for the uninitiated.

From the show:


My photo:


Nate & Jen are given bad advice by a bystander. She tells them to take the MRT because the traffic is heavy. But the MRT doesn't go to anywhere near Youth Park. They are told by the information desk that they have to go to Ximen Station and take a bus from there. This should have been a clue for them to rethink their strategy. Had they asked at the information counter if a cab would have been faster, as Nate suggested doing, the answer would have been a resounding Yes. But Jen's insistence on taking the subway cost them the game. Ronald & Christina, on the other hand, did the optimal thing, which was to hop in a cab heading the right direction along Tingzhou Rd. That is the quickest way to get to Youth Park from Gongguan.

The street corner in Ximending where Nate & Jen have a rip-roaring fight:


My photo:


They then hop on the No. 212 bus to Youth Park. Even in light traffic, the ride is about 20 minutes. What a waste of time!

After cutting their feet up on the stone path, they take a taxi to the pit stop, Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall. Of course every taxi driver knows where it is, but few know what it's called in English, so most teams have little luck at first, since the Chinese is Zhongzheng Jinian Tang, which sounds nothing like the English. Thankfully, with the help of some bystanders, the taxi drivers find out where to go.

At the plaza, the teams meet up with Phil Keoghan, the host of the show, to find out if they've been eliminated or not. The last team to arrive, the ones who took the subway to Youth Park, is eliminated.

Highlights: CNY hikes

Sorry...free time has been at a premium of late.

Over the Chinese New Year holiday, we took part in four hikes. Here are the highlights:

Jiajiuliao Hike (Tuesday)

Intrepid hikers about to start.


This scene reminded me of the lyrics of a Leonard Cohen song: "And she shows you where to look among the garbage and the flowers":


On the main trail from Wulai to Sanxia.


An Aboriginal Christian shrine at a major resting point on the trail. Notice the little Jesus and Mary statues. There's also a Santa Claus. The corner where this shrine is located marks the point where a side trail descends to one of our favorite swimming holes, where there's a natural water slide. We went straight on.


Red tree in a green forest.


Crossing the rickety bridge.


A picnic lunch in the shelter. This is a place where we usually encounter local Aborigines brewing tea and enjoying the day. We had the place to ourselves this time.


Here's the shelter from the outside.


Next to it is what we call the FarEasTone Hotel...a hut with a platform where you can sleep should you decide for some reason to camp out here for the night. Bring your own sleeping gear.


We trudged on through the mud and drizzle, until we came to a stream crossing. We stayed here and chatted for a bit before heading back. On a finer day, with an earlier start, we could follow the trail all the way to Xiongkong (Bear Hollow) near Sanxia.


Xindian Hike (Wednesday)

It was a beautiful day, and we itched to get out. It was just Kitty and me this time. We started at Bitan.


A lot of people were here enjoying the day. It's a popular place to rent paddleboats.


We crossed the famous suspension bridge. It was a little unnerving walking across with the bridge swaying erratically.


We walked along the road to a hill community, just to explore. I had the sudden need to go to the bathroom. The guy at the community guardhouse was kind enough to let me use the loo. While Kitty was waiting, she discovered a big sign with a map to the trail we were looking for.

We passed through a butterfly trail, but there weren't too many butterflies to be seen at this time of year.


On the way up, I found a maqaw tree (Litsea cubeba). This is the spice that the Atayal people use, mentioned in my Trip to Wulai entry. The berries have a strong lemony scent.


We climbed to the top of Hemeishan, which overlooks Bitan.




Then we went down and had roti at Athula's Curry and some stinky tofu in the Bitan night market.

Sishoushan Hike (Thursday)

This is an easy hike accessible from downtown near Taipei 101. We started out by climbing Elephant Mountain. In fact, this is an ideal place to take photos of Taipei 101...when the air is clear. (It was a little hazy this day.)


A butterfly fluttered by. This is a female staff sergeant (Athyma selenophora laeta).


Two dogs (Canis lupus familiaris).


Like most trails close to the city center, it is well paved and maintained.


Here's an image well-known to hikers in the area. Some guy hikes along trails in the area leaving his mark: this smiling visage. Nobody knows who this vandal is, but local hikers call him the 笑臉怪客 (smiley face weirdo).


After a steep climb up the trail, we came to the ridge. Here we found an aerial lift used for transporting equipment (and perhaps staff) up to a TV relay station.


Nine-Five Peak








And we ended up at Cihui Temple, at the base of Tiger Mountain.


Maokong Hike (Sunday)

Jenny's friend Filippo, who's in Taiwan for a semester, joined us. We hiked up the Thousand Steps from the back of National Chengchi University up to Zhinan Temple, then along the Tea Pickers' Trail to Maokong. We lunched at Xiaomuwu (The Little Cabin), our favorite restaurant up there (I had the carbonara). Then we continued on to the ridge above Maokong.

Here we are at the arrival point on the ridge:


Back down in Maokong, we came to this area where people were selling food. The woman on the right is selling corn dogs. Pictured here are Filippo, Patty, Kitty and Kate.


After that, we walked to Zhangshan Temple before heading back down to Muzha.

Divining blocks at Zhangshan Temple. Locals take a pair of these, say a prayer, and throw them on the ground. If, three times in a row, they land one flat-side up and one flat-side down...


...then they can proceed to Step 2, which is to randomly select a divining rod from this holder. On the rod is a number that corresponds to one of the drawers on the side.


Inside the drawer is a slip of paper with obscure writing on it. The devotee then takes it to the temple office to have it interpreted.