Lele Hot Springs

Nantou (南投縣), Taiwan’s only landlocked county, is where I first fell in love with the island, a few months after arriving here in 1993, when I got a job in an English cram school in a rural part of the county. It’s also one of the richest and most spectacular parts of the country for hikers, river tracers and other nature lovers.

For most tourists, the attractions of Nantou County start and end with Sun Moon Lake (日月潭), a lovely place that has become one of Taiwan’s top tourist draws. Some also get to the Forest Recreation Area at Xitou (溪頭), and since opening in 2005, the Heavenly Steps (天梯) suspension bridge at Zhushan (竹山) has been a huge draw among locals. It’s worth mentioning though that what we can see along the Heavenly Steps trail today is a very pale shadow of the true wonders of the (presently inaccessible) main part of Taiji Canyon (太極峽谷) a kilometer or two downstream.  When (or rather if) that awe-inspiring place ever reopens to hikers, it will be a major cause for celebration.

Among its other tourist draws, Nantou County has more than its fair share of hot springs, although they’ve taken a bit of a battering in recent years. The springs at Aowanda (奧萬大) near Wushe (霧社) in the north of the county) are now all but gone, and most of the crowds visiting the Forest Recreation Area are there either for the cool mountain air, or for the spectacular display of autumn colors (probably Taiwan’s finest), put on each winter by the forests of maple trees in the park. Lushan Hot Spring (盧山溫泉; Chiang Kai-shek’s favorite spa) survives, despite damage caused by a series of typhoons in recent years, and several other hot springs sources in this part of Nantou have been tapped to supply smaller-scale resorts and bath houses.  

For such a rugged part of the island, it’s quite surprising that so many of Nantou’s hot spring sources have been developed. Happily, a couple do survive in all their splendidly untouched, natural beauty.  Just below Lushan (the aboriginal village area, not the hot spring resort downstream), Jingying Hot Spring (精英溫泉), although never formally developed, can be reached by a bumpy one-track road, and is besieged on weekends. A short clamber upstream a couple of small sources have, however, escaped attention and remain attractively untouched, and a kilometer or two further upstream, the beautiful Yunhai Hot Spring (雲海溫泉) is unknown to all but keen hikers, as getting up there involves scaling a couple of vertical dam walls on fixed ropes. [Since my last visit to Yunhai in 2017, it seems, from photos I’ve seen recently, that access to the hot springs might be easier now before, as ladders and foot holds could have been added to the dam walls].

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Easier to reach, yet still strenuous and awkward enough to keep all but fit hikers out, Lelegu Hot Spring (樂樂谷溫泉) lies in the deep gorge below Nantou’s second hot spring resort, Dongpu (東埔). The slightly odd name (which means “happy happy valley”) is in fact a transliteration of the original Bunan aboriginal name for the hot spring, Laku Laku, which represents the sound of the pressurized, boiling-hot water as it bubbles out of rock faces in the gorge, just above the river.

Before planning a trip to Lelegu Hot Springs, note that the place is one of many around the island that are officially off-limits to general visitors, yet remain very popular with hikers, so if you go, you do so at your own risk. The hot springs are accessible year-round, but the best time is December to late April, not only because of the cooler weather, but also because the river level will be lower, making the hike more straightforward. Definitely don’t attempt to visit for several weeks after a typhoon. 

Start the journey at Dongpu, the main drag of which is lined with hot spring hotels. Walk straight past these and follow the road, contouring the hillside, through a tunnel, and on to a residential area beyond, where fruit and veg are farmed on the flat alluvial plain at the foot of the gorge.

On the left is the modern trailhead of Batongguan Historic Trail (八通關古道), and for the first hour of the hike, follow it, first zigzagging steeply upwards, then round the sheer, severely eroded bluffs of Father and Son Cliff (父不知子斷崖). About twenty minutes after the cliff, there’s a fork, marked by a red warning sign familiar to anyone who hikes a lot along Taiwan’s less popular trails. Turn right.Officially there’s a NT$3,000 fine for going any further down this side path. In practice, many local (and foreign) hikers still visit the hot spring each year without incident. I’m not saying that you should ignore the sign, but let’s say similar signs stand at the start of the trails to many of Taiwan’s most fantastic places, and many hikers read them as warnings that trail conditions ahead are poor, and take appropriate care, rather than prohibitions banning anyone from using the trails. The trail that descends into the gorge. At first, it’s clear and wide, but soon narrows, and although easy enough to follow, it’s steep in parts, and the thick layer of loose leaf mold makes for slippery footing, so take care!

The trail zigzags down the precipitous face of the gorge, with one or two relatively easy scrambles. At the bottom the trail veers left and levels out, finally reaching the river bank just upstream from a rocky defile through which the water seethes, even during the dry season. 

Now simply follow the boulder-strewn left bank of the river. Cairns mark the best route through the maze of huge boulders, rock faces and thickets of tall grass. Keep high and well to the left as the river falls over a small waterfall and rages through a small gorge, and the first hot spring sources are in the rock face on the left just a little further upstream. The water emerges from the cliff at a perfect temperature for a bath, and there’s usually a pool or two, made from rocks, left by earlier hikers.

About a hundred meters upstream is a second area of hot spring sources, spluttering furiously out of the cliff, emitting large clouds of steam, and far too hot to dip even a toe into. Be careful where you tread in this area, as the water is close to boiling point in many places.

Continue another five minutes upstream (this last bit is impossible during the wet season), and more hot spring sources sputter out of the rock into a series of pools. You almost certainly won’t be alone here if you come on a weekend, but it’s a beautiful spot, and you’ll definitely feel happy happy!

The Stone Candle (石燭尖), Pingxi

NOTE: This article was written in 2017, so conditions may have changed since

The Stone Candle, as seen from the rocky peak next to it

  The little village of Pingxi (平溪) is synonymous with sky lanterns these days, so it’s only too easy to forget there’s actually a great deal more to do in the area, especially if you’re a walker! The three Pingxi Crags (Filial Son (孝子山), Loving Mother (慈母峰) and Mount Putuo (普陀山)) have also become very popular in recent years, as people discover this amazing adult adventure playground of rocky pinnacles and whaleback rocks and head out there to see if they are, indeed, real. For the reasonably fit hiker, however, the Pingxi Crags are just one of a whole range of excellent routes of varying difficulty in the mountains around Pingxi village, and a rather more environmentally friendly way to spend your day than releasing a sky lantern.

   Standing in the center of Pingxi village and looking around, it’s already pretty clear that the local landscape is rugged, rocky, and densely wooded, and at first glance it might seem that much of the area is inaccessible to the average hiker. And indeed it is, which is why sky lanterns, when they finally float back to earth, usually stay there, often for years, as the wire frames slowly rust away. However, some surprisingly wild-looking places can be reached relatively easily from the village. The Stone Bamboo Shoot (石筍尖) is the toothy-looking chunk of rock that sticks conspicuously out of the ridge to the north of the village. At first it appears to be a very steep and possibly technical climb, but following “improvements” made to the trail over a decade ago, two formally rather tricky spots are now much easier to pass, and it’s a relatively simple hike to the top from Pingxi. The views from up there are extraordinary.

The view from the summit of the peak

   Some of the area’s finest summits, however, are invisible from the road, and take a bit more searching out. I hope to highlight a few of the finest hikes in the area in future Off the Beaten Track installments. First though, I’d like to introduce the short but mildly adventurous hike to one of the least-known yet most distinctive natural landmarks within easy reach of the village: the Stone Candle (石燭尖). It’s true that the Pingxi area may lack the huge, wide-open spaces of Yangmingshan National Park, or the dramatic mini-mountains of the area around Jinguashi (金瓜石) on the northeast coast, but with so many fun, exciting hikes like this one, few places in northern Taiwan can hold a candle (so to speak) to this little corner of New Taipei City.

The wonderful needle of rock known as the Stone Candle is the pointiest of the many arresting peaks of rock (or “pitons” as the Chinese is oddly translated on maps) that jut out of these forest-covered hills. Although little known, it’s not too far from the road. However, distance in Taiwan is often little help in determining how difficult or how long a hike will be. A signpost at the trailhead suggests the Stone Candle is just thirty minutes away, but for the average mortal soul, this timing (like several others in the area) is very inaccurate. Several fairly steep climbs and a narrow, rocky ledge or two make getting to the Stone Candle a fun but surprisingly rough short adventure, so allow about an hour each way.

Three shallow caves have been hewn into the cliff on the climb up to the Stone Candle

   The trail starts opposite Pingxi Lower High School, just west of the village center. Climb the steps that scale the bank beside the road, and at the top ignore a second set of steps, instead bearing right along a dirt trail through a wooded gorge, above a stream. Soon the gorge opens out, and the trail wanders past an area of allotments and a house. Re-entering the gorge, the trail crosses the stream at a small concrete dam. The small pool it creates is a great place for a quick cool-off on a hot summer day. Continue upstream through rather beautiful little glen, and in about five minutes the trail veers right up a very long flight of stone-slab steps, covered in a thick layer of bright green moss.

   Now the fun begins as a slippery dirt trail continues upwards from the top of the steps, climbing through the jungle to the base of a long, vertical cliff, with three shallow caves artificially carved into its face. The trail now climbs steeply along the foot of this impressive rock face to connect with a short knife-edge ridge leading up onto the peak. It’s safer since several rough “steps” were cut into the blade of rock, but for less confident hikers there’s an alternative, easier route to the left along the bottom of the narrow ridge. The two trails rejoin just before the Stone Candle.

The mossy steps leading up to the rock shelters

   Finally, the jungle falls away to reveal a sloping rock face, dropping away vertically on the far side, at the summit of the peak immediately in front of the Stone Candle. The top of the spiky rock formation looms ahead, but to see the whole thing, wriggle up to the brink and peer over the edge. Beyond, looming out of the thick jungle ten or twenty meters away is a slim and very pointed tower of rock about 35 meters tall, the Stone Candle itself. A side trail around the foot of the ridge leads to the base of the pinnacle, but it looks much less impressive from below, so spend your time peering across at it from up on top, while not forgetting to enjoy the fantastic views over Pingxi, the shapely summits of Shulung Peak (薯榔尖) and the Stone Bamboo Shoot (石筍尖), and the verdant green valley of the upper Keelung River, far below.

Near the trailhead

Taiwan’s Top Hundred Peaks: 2. Eight Easier Treks

Yushan, Taiwan’s highest mountain, is also one of its easiest to climb

Mountains in Taiwan are famous for their sunrises, but often it’s the sunsets that are the most unforgettable

Early morning on Mount Tao, Wuling Quadruple

Jade Mountain is both an exciting climb and a surprisingly easy one

Let me start by saying I’m no expert at hiking Taiwan’s high mountains! Of the Top 100 Peaks (a list of one-hundred mountain peaks from the 270-odd summits in Taiwan that exceed 3,000 meters in height), I’ve so far only done 29 – a lot less than some hiker friends of mine. However I’m acutely aware that starting out on the Top Hundred can be be a bit daunting – the difficulty of the peaks on the list varies hugely, and while two or three summits on the list are within the ability of all able-bodied people, and a further ten or twenty can be conquered by anyone that’s reasonably fit and has a few Taiwan day-hikes under their belt, after that the difficulty level quickly goes through the roof, and inexperienced hikers could easily find themselves in serious trouble if they pick the wrong trek.

Mount Baiguda (白姑大山; 3, 341 meters)

The deceptively gentle-looking summit peak of Mount Baiguda

Dusk at Siyan campsite, day one

On the crags which lead to the final climb to the summit

Ancient trees (both standing and fallen) are a dominant feature of the trail to Mount Baiguda

Mount Baiguda (3,341 meters, no 45 on the ‘Top Hundred’ list) on the border between Nantou County and Taichung City doesn’t seem to get nearly as much love as some of the other summits on Taiwan’s Hundred Peaks list. Permission to climb is easy to get (only a police permit is required), yet there were few other people up there this last weekend, despite the absolutely perfect weather. It’s among the tougher peaks on the list I’ve done to date, especially since we did it in 2 days (meaning a 14-to-16-hour second day of hiking!), but it amazed us all with its beauty. Photos I’ve seen on blogs and elsewhere are usually of the deceptively gentle, rounded, wooded summit dome, which looks boring as anything, but is in fact steep and very rocky, with a stellar 360-degree view from the top. Even more rewarding are the series of crags which the trail follows on the way to the final slog up to the summit peak – nothing technical or difficult, but plenty of tough, knee-breaking  ups and downs, and absolutely stunning views over the surrounding wilderness. Definitely one of my top five high mountains so far, and among the tougher ones too!

Taiwan’s Wild Hot Springs 2: The Central Cross-island Highway

Waterfall on the way to Maling Hot Springs, Guguan, on the Taichung side of the highway

The beautiful marble canyon at Wenshan Hot Springs, Taroko Gorge

The beautiful Central Cross-island Highway, which once linked the cities of Taichung on the flat western plains of Taiwan, and Hualien, below the towering mountains and sea cliffs of the island’s east coast is, like the North Cross-island Highway, graced with a number of fabulous hot springs. Like their northern counterparts, developed resorts (at Guguan) can be found, but the remaining three main hot springs along the highway remain pristine, and fabulously scenic to boot.

Taiwan’s Wild Hot Springs 1: The North Cross-island Highway

The river at Sileng Hot Springs

Pool near Xinxing Hot Springs

Looking down into the Xinxing Hot Springs gorge from Galahe village

both hot springs (and the routes to them) are described in detail in Taiwan 101, volume 1, on pages 137 – 142.

We’ve got Taiwan’s position on the Pacific Ring of Fire to thank not only for its hot springs, spooky, steaming fumaroles and volcanic peaks, but for its very existence!  The island was created as the Eurasian Plate and the Philippine Sea Plate met, pushing the first under the second. Of course it’s not always peachy living on the scenic collision point of two massive chunks of the Earth’s crust, and earthquakes (most, thankfully, only big enough to jolt rather than do any real damage) happen several times each year, even in Taipei.

The benefits, of course, generally far outweigh the potential for violent natural mayhem, however. Taiwan probably wouldn’t be nearly as beautiful, as mountainous, or as enchanting if it were created any other way, and the chilly, rainy weather that descends on the northeast corner of the island every winter from December to about April (thanks to the prevailing northeast monsoon winds) would make life in the capital a lot more dreary if we didn’t have a choice of hot springs (to the north, east and south!) to head for during those long, cold, wet evenings.

Sileng Hot Spring waterfall

Taiwan’s hot springs were generally only enjoyed by the island’s aboriginal population until the Japanese introduced hot spring culture to the island during the colonial era (1895-1945). The ensuing popularity has since seen most of the island’s hot spring sources (many in beautiful, wild spots, deep in the mountains) developed, robbing them of their former wild beauty.  The last decade or two has seen a huge growth in more aesthetically pleasing hot spring spas, and while most of them make no attempt to blend into their surroundings, they do at least look less of an eyesore than the horrible, purely functional concrete-box designs that once seemed to be the default for hot spring developments island-wide.

Near Sileng Hot Spring

For the nature lover, however, the relatively few completely unspoilt, undeveloped hot springs sources that can still be found around Taiwan can’t be beat. Just a couple, such as Wenshan Hot Springs (文山溫泉) in Taroko Gorge and that wonderful gift to Taipei-dwelling nature lovers, Bayan Hot Spring (八煙溫泉) lie just a short walk from the road, and can be enjoyed by just about any able-bodied person. The real charm of most of Taiwan’s undeveloped hot springs, however, is in getting to them. Getting to several of the island’s remoter springs takes several days, which is too big a commitment for most explorers. A number of others, however, are day hikes – remote enough to keep the crowds (and the developers) away, but within the range of reasonably fit hikers. Over the last few years I’ve started exploring more of the island’s natural hot springs,  and a goal for the approaching winter/spring season (2016-7) is to get to some of the others. Meanwhile I’m hoping, in a series of blog entries, to write up those I’ve already visited. As I explore the others, I’ll add them to the blog.

Guguan Seven Heroes, Taichung

Near the summit of Mount Baimao

Mount Wuwowei, the steepest climb of the seven, is also one of the most interesting

Mt. Tangmadan, although the lowest of the seven peaks and the shortest hike, has one of the most unremittingly steep climbs

The Seven Heroes are also described in Taiwan 101, volume 2, on pages 57-60

Flowing westwards down from the mighty central mountains towards Taichung city and the coast, the Dajia River (one of Taiwan’s major waterways) cuts a magnificent gorge through the foothills of the Snow Mountain Range, threaded by highway eight (the Central Cross-island Highway). Before part of the road was severely damaged during the great 921 Earthquake in 1999, the highway connected Taichung with Hualien on the east coast, climbing over the Snow and Central Mountain Ranges. Once one of Taiwan’s best road trips, part of the western half of the highway remains closed in early 2016, although there are persistent rumors that the road may eventually reopen.

Until that day, heading eastwards from Dongshih (東勢), just east of Taichung city, highway eight can be followed for only about 35 kilometers, till just after the hot spring resort village of Guguan (谷關), beyond which a roadblock bars further progress. It’s a very scenic drive out there, however, and Guguan itself (apart from the charms of its hot spring resorts and hot spring park) has a magnificent setting, deep in the Dajia River gorge.

Taiwan 101: Part 5. The South

The endemic Formosan macaque at Shoushan, Kaohsiung City

The Boat Burning Festival at Donggang, Pingtung County

Titantic Rock, Chiayi County

Sperm Whale skeleton, Taijiang National Park

Southern Taiwan has some of the most interesting aboriginal culture on the main island, with atmospheric (and often remote ) villages of Paiwan and Rukai stone houses, and several of Taiwan’s most memorable traditional festivities, including the insane Yanshui Beehive Fireworks Festival, surely one of the most intense traditional annual participation events anywhere in the world.

For lovers of natural beauty, Chiayi County is unsurpassed. The crowds all flock to Alishan, but the best places in the area are

Taiwan 101: Part 4. Western Taiwan

Hakka sanheyuan house near Xinpu

Dabajianshan, Taiwan’s most magnificentlly distinctive high mountain peak

Temples at Shitoushan, Miaoli County

Shuiyang Lake, a beautiful creation of the great 1999 earthquake

In Taiwan 101 western Taiwan is everything from the Hakka lands of Hsinchu and underrated Miaoli, through Taichung City, Changhua, Yunlin (another under-explored corner of the island), and beautiful Nantou County. This long swathe of the island comprises the flat and (for a nature lover) relatively uninteresting western plains, but these are dotted with some of Taiwan’s most historic (and interesting) towns, the majority of Taiwan’s

Taiwan 101: Part 2. Eastern Taiwan

Mugumuyu, Hualien County

Stone Umbrella Rock, Chenggong, Hualien County

View from Dongao Rest Area, Yilan County

Daylilies at Liushidanshan, Hualien County

Hualien and Taitung Counties are finally becoming easier of access, with fast (although famously difficult-to-book) Puyuma trains, and big improvements (still ongoing) in the notoriously dangerous Suhua Highway, and the undisturbed, peaceful nature of this region might eventually change, but for now it remains one of the most enchanting regions of the island. Since the Central Mountain Range is relatively inaccessible from the eastern side, the main attractions of the region (apart from Taroko Gorge) is its rich aboriginal culture, beautiful, often