One of the most memorable moments of our recent trip to Taiwan is the hike we did in Taroko Gorge. Although the beginning of the hike is quite challenging and I found myself wishing I had stayed in bed (“why am I doing this to myself” kind of moment), the feeling is quickly replaced by that of pure wonder. As we ventured further away from the highway and its car noises, higher up in altitude on the flank of the mountain, the natural beauty of the place caught our breath.

The mountains are made of marble and they seem to have been sliced open by the flowing of a river, producing beautiful looking canyons. Everywhere we are surrounded by exposed white and grey rocks and we can hear the constant flow of the stream washing through them. Green is everywhere, lush plants and trees hiding many mysterious animal creatures we could only eavesdrop on.

As it was winter time, the weather was on the chilly and cloudy side. We met very few hikers, barely a dozen in total, which made the experience even more zen. Unfortunately, at the time of our visit the second part of the trail was under construction. Our hike up took about three hours, which is quite easy considering our mediocre physical shape these days and the amount of breaks we took to take pictures and snack. The descent via the same way back to the entrance of the trail took a little over 1.5 hours. According to our guide, the complete trail would take about 10 hours, but leads to another end point.

I would’t say you need to physically train for this hike, it’s quite suitable for almost anyone, except maybe the faint-hearted. At some point during the ascent, the path became so narrow (only about three or four feet wide) that two people could’t pass one another without completely flattening themselves against the rocky wall. The alternative would be leaning towards the cliff side which, understandably, is far less inviting. Nevertheless, if you’re doing this hike, you mustn’t be too risk-adverse, as the security measures are close to non-existent. There are no fences, only a rope tied to the mountain side serves as a stabilizer. As an afterthought, maybe a few snap links could have been reassuring but no one recommended them to us prior to the hike, so we just sort of free-styled it.  After all, we met an elderly couple who did the walk with a cane…and almost walked faster than us.

Hualien County, Taiwan

When planning this trip, we decided to base ourselves in Hualien and do a day trip to Taroko for the hike, as there are almost no accommodation option close-by. We took a 3h train from Taipei main station to Hualien. We booked a self-guided tour with Eye travel Taiwan for someone to pick us up at the hotel and drive us to Taroko National Park. The commute is about one hour by car. The guide (William) also took care of applying for the hike permit, which was one less hassle for us prior to departure. The service was quite pleasant and efficient, so I do recommend them.

Otherwise, Hualien is a small suburban city, with quite a few other interesting attractions:

Thank you for reading! This piece of Taiwan is really a wonder to visit, and I do recommend it to anyone who likes the outdoors like me. A review of our accommodation in Hualien (Byeyer Hotel) coming soon!