Hemei Hill 和美山步道

 

 

An easy walk with great views, abundant birds and butterflies and verdant trails. A family friendly trip and a nice escape from the city that is also very easy to get to. The route starts at Xindian MRT Station, crosses the Bitan Suspension Bridge with its view of the river and green clad cliffs, climbs to the summit of Hemei Hill, continues to another view point over the city and then drops down to a road via a fun, steep (but short) dirt path. At the end we took the Xindian Ferry which is a human-powered ferry that has been in operation since 1881. 

 Distance/Time: 4.4 km/ 2 hours 45 minutes

The Trail:  This is a leisurely but very enjoyable walk.  The trail is framed by dense, green plant life and is replete with bird, butterfly and other insect life.  At the summit there are great views for relatively little effort. Almost the entire path is paved, stone or wooden steps or packed earth. At the end we took a steep but short trail along a wilder dirt path. There are steps almost all the way to the top but even these are not too hard. Only the final push just before the top got my heart rate up a little bit.  

 This is a wonderful hike for families and a great escape from the city for anyone. My oldest teenage son who usually complains about hiking even said that it was a fun day. 

The area is crisscrossed with trails and there are lots of paths to explore other than the one that we took.

What to bring: We packed a lunch and enjoyed a picnic on the flat summit. Any type of foot wear with good tread is fine for this walk. I just wore sandals. On hot days sun protection would be a good idea because at the top there is little shade.  Bring some cash for the ferry at the end. 

There is a 7-11 at the MRT station and lots of shops and restaurants in the area. 

Transportation: We took the MRT to Xindian station and started walking from there.  

At the end of the walk we took the quaint Xindian Ferry 新店渡口文學步道 back across the river. The fare is $30/person. 

The hike:  This walk is featured in Richard Saunders' Taipei Escapes 2 which is where I first read about it. This was my second time walking this trail. My wife and I were thinking of a place for a family friendly hike and had enjoyed this one so much the first time that we decided to try it again.  We had 7 people in our group and we met outside of the MRT station.  The forecast predicted a 50 % chance of light rain. In the end it was a cloudy day but did not rain.

We turned left outside the MRT station and crossed the road, climbing steps next to a big, red "Bitan" sign. At the top of the stairs past the sign we turned left onto a path that goes along the river. 

We could see the Bitan Suspension Bridge ahead. We walked to the bridge and crossed it.

The trail begins on the other side of the bridge climbing up steps on the left--at first between a stone wall and a fence but soon opening up. 

The trailhead is just past the bridge on the left.

We passed the ruins of an old house and a temple shrine. 

In about 100 meters we came to a junction. We took the "Green Path" on the right instead of the "Blue Path" on the left but either path can be taken to the summit.

 We kept walking up the steps and in less than 200 meters came to where the blue and green paths rejoined. 

We took the path up the stairs. A sign pointing the way read Hemei Summit 450 meters. 

We came to a large stone plaza and crossed over to the far right corner and continued up. 

Near here we got our first view of the Xindian River from the hill and came to an interesting concrete tunnel painted with graffiti. We took a short side trip to check it out.

Next came a long section with wood steps and then a short, steep push to the summit. There was a great view of the city and the river from a wooden viewing platform.

Just past the viewing platform there was an open flat area of grass and packed dirt with benches and stones. We were lucky that another group of people were just leaving and we snagged a great picnic spot. We took off our shoes (some of us) sat in the grass and had lunch. We stayed here for about 50 minutes and the sun even came out for a while.

After lunch we continued straight along a level path and soon turned to the right past a small pool of green water connected to a water channel that was full of peeping and croaking frogs. 

A short walk across concrete slabs brought us to a clearing that ended in a sort of cliff with a great view of the city. In the valley below we could see the white Tung blossoms in bloom. (This would be another good place for a picnic and some people were resting and eating here).

 After this we walked back the way we had come until we came to a narrow, steep mud path now on the right side of the trail. This path is a short-cut to the ferry and for me is one of the best parts of the walk. Its a little slippery and steep in places but still not that hard even for casual hikers. My friend who was hiking with us called it a "bonus" because it's a mildly adventurous way to finish the walk. 

 It went steeply up for a short way then passed under an electricity pylon and started heading down hill. At junctions we stayed to the right always heading downhill. 

We soon came to a spectacular view of the river and a water treatment plant. 

We passed under another electricity pylon and then came to a final steep section with ropes just before arriving at a road. 

 We went left along the road, almost immediately taking a left fork and then followed the road around a bend, past some houses to come to a junction with a clear sign pointing left toward the Xindian Ferry. 

We followed this smaller road for just a little over 200 meters and came out to the river and the ferry terminal next to a temple.

We paid our fares, put on life jackets and took a short smooth ride across the river enjoying the view. On the far side a sign said that the ferry has been in operation since 1881. 

 We turned left and followed the path along the river back to the MRT station. The lower path is closer to the river and the upper path passes by cafes and restaurants with outdoor seating. We took a combination of both paths. 

Map and GPS coordinates:

Hemei Hill trailhead: 24.956322, 121.53504

http://rblr.co/0d9vo 

 

Nuandong Valley Park 暖東峽谷 and Zhong Yao Jian 中窯尖 Loop Trail

Keep an eye out for the signs in Chinese pointing the way to Zhong Yao Jian

 

 

Dense, quiet forest, narrow rocky trails, a summit with a clearing and several stream crossings. This was a long, challenging but fun hike that felt very wild and isolated. We had the trail to ourselves the day we were there. The route climbs to the summit of Zhong Yao Jian, drops down to the Xishi Stream, follows it-- crossing several times--, then climbs back up and finishes at the starting point at Nuandong Valley Park.

 Distance/Time: 9 km/ 7 hours and 22 mins including rests. It was very wet and we had sort of a big group. It might take less time with a smaller group and under different conditions but at least 6-7 hours.

The Trail: The route makes a big loop starting in Nuandong Valley Park, goes to the summit of Zhong Yao Jian (605 meters), drops down to follow the Xi Shi Stream and then climbs up and finishes at the starting point.

This is not an easy trail. It climbs up to 631 meters, then goes down to 247 meters (along the stream) then climbs back up to 440 meters and then steeply down to around 170 meters at the parking lot at the end. 

 Parts of the trail are not in good shape. It was very slippery and there were lots of difficult sections to negotiate--climbing up and down and over rocks and tree roots. I think just about every one in our group slipped at some point and several fell. It's not a good idea to do this trail alone. After the park at the beginning we didn't see any other hikers all day. 

There were several very wet muddy sections and several stream crossings where the water was over the top of my boots. It had been raining a lot before our visit so the water level was high. 

Route finding was challenging especially in the beginning. Once we got onto the right path I was able to find the way with no problems but it is possible to get lost on this route. I used a maps app on my phone but also tried to familiarize myself with the route before we went. 

What to bring: I packed the usual things (plenty of water, lunch, snacks) but since I was pretty sure we would get our feet wet I brought extra socks. In retrospect, since we drove to the trail, I could have brought a dry pair of shoes and left them in the car. 

The trail was very slippery so shoes with good tread are important. Some members of our group were wearing trainers and I was concerned they might fall and get hurt. 

Transportation: This hike is easy to get to. We had three drivers in our group and went there by car but you can easily take a train to Nuannuan Station which takes about 40 minutes and costs NT$38.  

From Nuannuan Station take a taxi. It's about a ten minute ride and only costs NT$150.

The hike:  About a month before two friends and I had done a trail nearby and enjoyed it so much that we decided to go back and explore a different trail in the same area. At the end this route overlaps with the one that we did back in March.

 https://taiwanhikingjournal.blogspot.com/2022/03/nuandong-valley-park-xishikeng-old.html

 I didn't know anything about the trail. I had just planned a loop route by looking at the map. We had 8 people in our group. Everyone arrived in three cars at the parking lot and we got ready to set out. We got a later start than usual, starting to hike around 10:30. It was a cool, overcast day but with very little chance of rain.

The last time we had been here the park was closed because of construction and we had had to climb over the fence. This time construction was still going on but the gate was open. 

We entered the park via a wide path crossing over a stream. Immediately we turned left over a small arched bridge and then after the bridge went right on a stone path with a wooden railing.

The arched bridge still showing evidence of construction.

We went left up wide steps next to a sort of camouflage archway. 

This path continued to the right at the top. There was a railing on the right and a later a high rock wall on the left.  

 When we came to a dirt path going straight ahead with a sign board next to it, we went straight ahead and soon up narrow stone steps and onto a wide dirt path. The path on the left rejoined the one that we took after a while. 

There were signs indicating that we were on part of the Tamsui-Kavalan Historical Trail

In the beginning the route was frustratingly difficult to follow because there were so many other trails.

We came out to an open terraced area. There was a trail going across the terraced area and apparently continuing on the other side but our path was straight ahead keeping the terraces on our left. 

In this photo some members of our group can be seen mistakenly turning left here but our route was straight ahead.

The path straight ahead reentered the forest and became more narrow.  

As we were climbing I could hear a dog barking. Surprisingly we emerged at a farm house. The dog was in the front yard barking and unchained but he was not aggressive. The farmer assumed that we were looking for the Tamsui-Kavalan trail and pointed straight past the house. We told him we were going to Zhong Yao Jian and he said you could get there from there but that it was not easy. (Bu hao zou)

Facing the farm house we turned right and went along a wide path until we came to stone steps on the left. We went up the steps which is the only way to go because the way forward is blocked by a railing and a stream.

Here began a longer section with no turns for a while and it became a little easier to be confident we were going the right way.

After about a kilometer (though that is a very rough estimate) we came to one last confusing junction.  

There were two paths both sign posted in Chinese to Zhong Yao Jian. They both rejoin later but the one on the right looked shorter on the map.  We tried and failed to find the path on the right so it probably would have been better to just take the left fork.

We went right but the way was unclear. We came to a path going down on the right but it seemed to be going the wrong way (thinking back this was probably the right way and it probably turned soon in the direction we wanted to go but I can't be sure).  Looking up to the left we saw flags through the trees at the top of a slide area. We climbed carefully up the side of the slide on lose rocks and joined a clear trail but this turned out to be the left fork that we could have taken back at the junction. In any case we had already climbed up to get here and we were on the path so we just stayed on it. 

When taking the left fork at the junction its easy to tell you are on the right path by looking out for this huge stone. We took a short break here.

This huge rock is a good landmark to look out for. In this photo I'm looking back at it.

From here to the summit was one of the easiest and straightest sections of the whole walk and we made good time. The path climbed but not too steeply and went almost straight.

About 600 meters after the junction the two paths rejoined and we went left and up-- toward the summit. We reached this point about two hours after we started hiking.

It's 1.3 km from where the paths rejoin to the summit. Along the way there is a path to the right and then another to the left but we continued straight following signs for Zhong Yao Jian 中窯尖. There were a few views along the way. This was one of my favorite sections because of the lush forest and tall straight trees.

Just before the summit there is a small clearing with a path to the right but the summit is to the left and a sign says one minute to the summit. We came out to a small clearing (with no view) at the summit of Zhong Yao Jian (605 m) and stopped for lunch. It took us approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes to get here from the parking lot. 

Turn left and its one minute to the summit

The summit of Zhong Yao Jian. There is no view but there is a nice flat clearing.

We rested for about 45 minutes and then went back down to the clearing at the base of the summit.  We went straight to take the path to the Xi Shi stream. The path that we had taken on the way up was now of course on our right.  

The path passed through more forest and some high grass. 

Less than 400 meters from the summit we came to a four way junction. The path on the left goes steeply down and eventually to a road. The path straight ahead eventually climbs to Mount Jiangziliao 姜子寮山 which is one of the one hundred small peaks (Xiao Bai Yue) and which I wrote about in September of 2021: https://taiwanhikingjournal.blogspot.com/2021/09/jiangziliao-mountain.html

We turned right to take the path to the Xi Shi Stream.

In 230 meters we came to another fork and bore left. 

The trail crossed a grassy clearing

We bore left at this fork

From here the trail made its way down to the stream becoming wetter and trickier later on. Occasional signs indicated the way to the Xi Shi Historical Trail 西勢坑古道.

 

We rounded a corner and I was surprised to see a long man-made stone wall and a clearing. A sign said that this was once the site of a house. 

 

There were more steep sections to negotiate and places where we had to climb or scramble over obstacles.  We had to watch our footing here and take care not to slip into holes between rocks. 

 

We reached the stream at 3:25. Five hours into the hike. I lost track of how many times that we had to cross the stream--maybe four to six--but we crossed several times in quick succession. A couple crossings were just an easy step over but the water was about calf high in some places and we all got our feet wet. I always prefer to just get wet than to try to balance on slippery rocks and maybe end up falling anyway. 

 

 

 

 The last crossing was familiar to me because it was where we had stopped for lunch on our hike the month before.  It is a right turn across some large boulders. Take care not to miss it because another trail continues straight along the stream to the Xi Shi Reservoir which is several hours away. Once across the route starts to climb up from the stream right away.  We took a very short rest here but not for long because we were worried it might get dark before we finished. It was four o'clock when we left the stream. 

 

The trail goes up very steeply crossing back and forth across a rocky wet ravine and sometimes in it. The trail is at times unclear but there are plenty of flags in the trees. 

In just over 600 meters there is a four way junction. The path on the left is a short steep climb to the summit of Dong Shi Da Lun (455 m) and worth a look but I had just been here a month ago and it was getting late and we were tired. So we continued straight ahead. As I was asking if anyone wanted to go up and looking for the name of the summit on my map my friend joked that its called "Nobody wants to go there." 

From here the path back to the park is easier and easy to follow. Though the descent was steep and hard on tired legs. 

We passed large circular holes in the ground (which are the remains of indigo extraction pits), had another easy crossing of the stream and just after the stream crossing turned left at fork. 

 

At the next intersection we went left and downhill. 

The route had one more slippery stream crossing for us (though the month before with less rain this crossing had been very easy) and then we followed the path out to the park and back to the parking lot.  

 Map and GPS coordinates:

Nuandong Valley Park Parking Lot: 25.07675, 121.75476

Zhong Yao Jian 25.053788, 121.747766 

Dong Shi Da Lun: 25.069595, 121.745433 

 

http://rblr.co/0cwfS