LION’S HEAD MOUNTAIN (Miaoli)

A guaranteed highlight of any visit to China is spending a day or two exploring one of its amazing sacred mountains: those lofty eminences shrouded in a misty veil for much of the year, studded with ancient monasteries inhabited by grizzled old monks, and chockablock with stunning vistas, cloud-kissing peaks, and the occasional hanging monastery clinging to a sheer cliff face. Lion’s Head Mountain (Shitoushan; 獅頭山) is Taiwan’s answer to amazing Buddhist (and Taoist) sacred mountains in the Middle Kingdom such as Huashan, Emeishan or Mt. Jiuhua, and while you’ll won’t see wizened old monks or centuries-old buildings on your visit, it’s a very special place in its quieter, less spectacular way. 

   While Lion’s Head Mountain is still only beginning to appear on the radar of foreign expats and tourists, it’s far from being off-the-beaten-track among the Taiwanese, attracting crowds on sunny weekends.  Not even hordes of people, however, can spoil the beauty and unique atmosphere of this rather special place. For all its popularity, Lion’s Head Mountain covers a large area, with many kilometers of marked trails, and only at peak times are the most popular paths likely to seem too crowded for comfort.

   Lion’s Head Mountain, about 25 kilometers’ drive south of Hsinchu city, is one third of the Tri-Mountain National Scenic Area (叁山國家風景區), established in March 2001 to protect three upland regions in central Taiwan.  The other two are Lishan (梨山), in eastern Taichung City, and the Mt. Bagua (八卦山) range of hills near Changhua.  This last is another major draw for the island’s Buddhists; a temple in the hills here right above Changhua city has a famous, 22 meter-high black statue of the sitting Buddha.  

   Lion’s Head Mountain is a rocky eminence, and most of the main temples on the mountain are built into small natural caves or overhangs in the rock face. The largest is Shueilien Cave (水簾洞; Water Curtain Cave), close to Lion’s Head Mountain Scenic Area Visitor Center, on the lion’s “tail.”  The walk down to the temple, through the small but attractive gorge of the Shijing Stream, is nice, but the cave itself is aesthetically challenged; its main feature is a tall and very ugly wall, which detracts from the beauty of its cave setting. Downstream (but reached by a different trail from the road above) is the very short (half-kilometer-long) “Sticky Rice” Bridge Walk (糯米橋步道). This is a more scenic experience, dropping into a short length of especially narrow and dark gorge, crossed by a century-old bridge, the stone blocks of which are cemented together with mortar made from (believe it or not!) a mixture of rice, brown sugar and lime! 

   Almost opposite the trailhead of the sticky rice bridge trail, a road passing through a temple gate is the start of the walking route that connects most of the temples on the ridge, from “tail” to “head.” If you’re short of time (or energy) the temples on this side (and the “trail,” which is a surfaced road most of the way) can be safely skipped, to allow more time at the opposite end of the ridge. This is the setting for Lion’s Head Mountain’s most impressive set of temples, and to reach it drive or catch a shuttle bus from the visitor center. Here at the lion’s “head,” nestling on the steep, densely forested mountainside high above a large car park, is probably the most aesthetically pleasing ensemble of temples and monasteries on Taiwan.

   The main structure of the group, Qinhua Tang (勤化堂), is a magnificent edifice of classical Chinese prayer halls, pagodas and gates, each crowned with bright orange-tiled roofs which shine in the sunlight. It’s complimented by a series of smaller structures, including the Morality Gate (道德門), Kaishan Temple (開善寺), and Lingyun Cave (凌雲洞), which all share the same photogenic classical architecture (reinforced concrete and uninspired functionality are almost nowhere to be seen) and combine to create a truly impressive scene. A couple of the temples, such as Lingxia Cave (靈霞洞), which has a florid, baroque façade, even show distinctly Western influences.

   The ensemble looks beautiful from the car park below, but to get a closer look, take the steps up to Qinhua Tang, after which the path is more-or-less level along the base of the cliffs, passing a succession of temples built into caves and natural overhangs at the base of the rock.  After the fine Morality Gate, the path climbs again, steeply at first, but this is a lamb in lion’s clothing, and it’s a fairly easy and brief climb to the base of the impressive Shishan Rock Face (獅山大石壁, below), near the summit of the mountain. Turn left here and you’ll probably have the path to yourself as it follows the base of this lofty and impressive wall of rock. It eventually loops round and rejoins the outward route at the Morality Gate, passing a string of peaceful, little-visited cave temples on the way. 

  

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 101: The books are out!

WARNING: This blog entry includes an image of a bawdy traditional folk belief which might offend some readers!

After three years of writing, and a gaggle of delays and headaches, my latest (and probably last!) books are out. They finally emerged at the end of May, just a week before I jetted off for my summer holidays (which themselves didn’t turn out anything like I had planned, although that’s another story completely…).

Anyway I think Taiwan 101 is my best work (although I suppose I would say that), and I certainly learned more about the history and culture of this wonderful island than while writing anything else about it.

I’ll keep this brief, since I’ve got to get back to regular blogging, so if you’ve bought a copy, thanks, and of not, buy them! They’re available in Eslite and Caves books around Taiwan, and I can send them by mail if you don’t mind paying the postage.

 

Thanks,

Richard

Salt fields in Tainan City, a reminder of an ancient industry that’s been practiced in today’s ROC for eight centuries

Memorial at Checheng, Pingtung County, one of several places in the area associated with the Mudan Incident of 1871, one of the key defining incidents in Taiwan’s history

Here’s the advertising blag (and I’ve scattered a few photos around to keep things colorful too…):

Taiwan 101: Essential Sights, Hikes and Experiences on Ilha Formosa  

Taiwan is a perfect illustration of the saying that good things come in small packages. In comparison with more popular tourist destinations in the Far East, Taiwan is very modest in size, but despite its diminutive scale, the island has an astonishing amount to offer the curious explorer.

The boat burning ceremony at Donggang, Pingtung County…

…and Yanshui Beehive Firework Festival, two of Taiwan’s amazing, unique traditional festivals

The two volumes that make up Taiwan 101 are the perfect guide for exploring the very best of Taiwan: not only the island’s finest hikes, but also its best historic towns and cities, brightest traditional festivals, unique Chinese and aboriginal cultural riches, and its little-known natural wonders such as eternal flames, mud volcanoes and badlands.

The huge Lulin Tree in Chiayi County is ranked only fifth in Taiwan, meaning that there are at least four larger on the island, while other bigger ones could exist. [There have recently been reports that a tree has been found that might now be the largest in Taiwan]

More giants, and the outrageous phalli, placed at intervals around the Man Rock in Taitung County, one of Taiwan’s more unusual sights!

Together, Taiwan 101 Volumes 1 and 2 present Taiwan’s finest attractions to anyone who wishes to get to know this island of kaleidoscopic charms, and comes with detailed information on getting around by public transport, and accurate GPS coordinates of nearly 800 fascinating places.

The Crescent Pillar at Taitung City, part of a huge prehistoric site that includes the largest known prehistoric graveyard in the Pacific Rim area

Liukou Hot Spring, one of many wild, untapped hot springs that can still be found around the island.

 

Taiwan 101: Part 6. Offshore Islands

My latest book, Taiwan 101: Essential Sights, Hikes and Experiences on Ilha Formosa, will be published in May (in two volumes), and the photos in the following six blog entries describe just some of the hundreds of places and events that appear in the book’s 101 chapters. After this main part, a substantial section at the end of volume two gives a run-down of Taiwan’s aboriginal tribes, the island’s listed historic relics, its National Parks, National Scenic Areas and National Forest Recreation Areas  etc. and there are tables with info on the complete Top One Hundred Peaks and the Little Top Hundred Peaks. About 800 GPS coordinates pinpoint the locations of all the main places described in the book, and there’s info on car and scooter hire from various cities around the island, and bus/train access, where available. It’s been the hardest of all my books to put together, but immense fun, and during these several years of selecting which places to include, re-visiting many favorite places and visiting many new ones for the first time has only reinforced what an incredibly dynamic, diverse, and outrageously beautiful place Taiwan is!  

Swallow-tail-roofed house on Kinmen

Temple at Qinbi, Beigan island, Matsu

The Old Man Rock, Lanyu

Rock formation on remote Hua Island, Penghu

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 3. Aspects of Taiwan

Museum of Marine Biology, Pingtung County

Guardian at the Zheng Chong-he Tomb , Miaoli County

On the 8-day-long Longde Temple Matsu Pilgrimage

Salt fields at Jingzaijiao, Tainan County

 

While the natural beauty of Taiwan will always be its greatest allure for me personally, the island also has an extraordinary wealth of cultural, historic and industrial attractions. Salt harvesting has been carried out on Taiwan for hundreds of years (with a history of eight centuries on the ROC-controlled island of Kinmen). Today salt production is a very minor industry here, but some of the salt fields (and a pair of unusual salt ‘mountains’) remain; the best have a strange beauty that’s quite unlike anything else on the island. Sugar, one of Taiwan’s biggest industries in the 1950s and 60s is now produced at only two sites on Taiwan, but some of

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

Taiwan 101: Part 1. The North

The Candleholder Rocks, Jinshan, New Taipei City

Disused logging railway tracks at Taipingshan, Yilan County

The Buddha’s Tongue, Stegosaurus Ridge, New Taipei City

Cave of Foreign Words, Keelung

I’ve started exploring new places again, and should start getting back to regular blog posts in the next couple of week. Meanwhile, I thought I’d make a few posts giving a short overview (in photos) of my latest book, Taiwan 101, which aims to show the incredible variety of sights around Taiwan (and the ROC-controlled islands). It really is an amazing place, and I’ve come to realize this even more during the several years I’ve spent researching and writing the new books (there are two volumes), during which I’ve seen loads of places, attended a number of amazing festivals, and done quite a few things that I’ve never done here before. Hopefully I’ll get out six posts, one for each of the six main sections into which the two volumes of the book are dvivided.

 

First up: the north: Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan City, Keelung City and Yilan County. Here’s a taste of the many, many places to

Taiwan’s Fascinating Memorial Arches, Historic Tombs and Ancestral Shrines

 

Here’s another (somewhat abridged) chapter from my new book, Taiwan 101: unforgettable places, events and experiences on Isla Formosa (working title: feedback and suggestions for improving it welcomed!). It’s a bit more ‘specialized’ than the majority of the 101 sections, but these historic curiosities become remarkably interesting when you start to explore them, and they’re sadly little known and under-appreciated. The chapter in the book will include more examples of each. 

Qinjing Arch, Kinmen

Guardian statues at Zheng Yong-xi Tomb, Hsinchu

The beautiful Wuluanqi Cemetery in Taiping, Taichung City

View from the Tomb of Huang Wei over the flat plains of northern Kinmen island

At first glance, Taiwan’s historic relics seem rather humble in comparison with the island’s magnificent natural beauty and its extraordinary cultural richness. It’s a sad fact that much of Taiwan’s history has been lost for good owing to a lack of money in the past to preserve many old and crumbling structures, combined with an unfortunate eagerness to tear down historic houses to make room for more modern structures, or rebuild precious old temples simply to make them bigger and grander. Thankfully though, the Taiwanese authorities are generally far better these days at looking after the island’s remaining historic treasures, and, although Taiwan has little that’s likely to quicken the pulse of the average European historian, there’s a great deal of pleasure and fascination to be found by exploring the island’s heritage structures.