Yueshanhu Shan月扇湖山 Trail and the Danlan Historic Trail 淡蘭古道

 

This tunnel-like trail passes under white cliffs on the way to the summit.

A less well-known route in the Shenkeng District of New Taipei City, this loop trail has a lot going for it. It starts in the village of Wutuku, passes an old coal mine and then embarks on a fun, stiff climb. On the way up it passes under a white rock wall by way of a very cool, tunnel-like trail. The summit of Yueshanhu Shan (583 m) is grassy and flat. After the summit the trail pops out onto a road before heading back into the forest: passing several, pretty streams and more vestiges of the coal mining industry. After completing the loop, I also walked the easy, level Danlan Historic Trail --which follows a wide stream for its entire length-- all the way to the Danlan Suspension Bridge at Shuangxikou.

Distance/duration: The Yueshanhu Shan loop is 4 hours/6.3 km. 

Including the Danlan Historic Trail, I walked 5h 24min/11.4km.

More details as well as a map can be found here  on my ramblr account.

What to bring: Nothing special is needed, though shoes with good traction are necessary.

The Trail:  The Yueshanhu Shan loop is a moderate walk of moderate length and not too hard but after rain is very slippery and wet. The climb to the summit is fun and steep. It follows a ridge covered with exposed roots and rocks. There are plenty of hand holds and fixed ropes. Sometimes the trail is very narrow. 

On this visit the trail was messy because a typhoon had hit at the end of the previous month. I was surprised at the amount of downed trees and debris and there were some rocks that looked like they had fallen recently. 

It is a well-established route with a clear trail but there are a couple of important turns to look out for. (I took one wrong turn that led to a house with three aggressive dogs.) There were a couple of dogs on the correct trail and one of them barked at me but neither bothered me. The loop trail is all dirt except for near the end where it passes through a village and by some farms on a road and a stone path--sometimes with slippery stone steps. 

The summit of Yueshanhushan is flat and wide and there is a view but it is partially obscured by trees. There are some nice views from the ridge before the summit. Both times that I have been there I have thought it would be a good place to pitch a tent and spend the night.

The section of trail that passes under the cliff  is the highlight of the walk. At 300 meters, it's the longest rock wall trail in northern Taiwan. Other highlights include the old Taisong coal mine entrance, a stream burbling under a shadowy cave-like overhang and remains of charcoal kilns.  

The Danlan Historic Trail is surfaced and level. It's a good path for a leisurely hike. There are even a few cafes next to the trail. I walked it in 2023 but at that time the suspension bridge was damaged and the section between Shuangxikou and Waian Bridge was closed. Since I was in the area, I wanted to go back and pick up the section I had missed. It is one of four extant sections of the Danlan Trail which used to lead from Tamsui to Yilan in the 1860's. Here is my post about it from September 2023.

Route landmarks: Wukutu bus stop -- trailhead -- Taisong coal mine entrance -- Yueshanhu rock wall -- Yueshanhu Shan -- "cave" with a stream -- old charcoal kilns -- Sifenzi village -- Wukutu bus stop -- Danlan Historic Trail trailhead -- Shiding Elementary School -- Waian Bridge -- Danlan Suspension Bridge/Shuangxikou

Transportation: I took the MRT to Jingmei Station exit 2, crossed the street and walked straight down Jingzhong street to the bus stop in front of Jingxing Park.

I took bus 666 (Wutuku) at 8:20 to Shuangxikou which took about 40 minutes. There are three different 666 routes. Not all of them go to Wukutu so be sure to take the right one. You can also catch the bus at Muzha Station. 

On the way back, I took the same bus from Shaungxikou to Muzha Station.

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The walk: Only one other guy got off the bus a the same time as me. He looked like he was kitted up for hiking too but after I went to the toilets near the bus stop he was gone and I never saw him again. It was a dreary, gray day but there was very little chance of rain. I started hiking at 9:15.

I walked straight on 北 47-1 passing between houses. 

At the next junction I kept left. On a utility pole there is the symbol for the Damsui-Kavalan Trail and an arrow.

In just 8 minutes I came to the turnoff for the trail on the right --a road next to a farmhouse that led to a concrete bridge.

There was a T-junction on the other side of the bridge. Even though I had been here before I took the right fork by mistake. It led to a house where three fierce, barking dogs made it clear I was not welcome. They ran toward me with a black dog in the lead. I made a slow, backward retreat and they relented. 

The left fork -- a narrow, cracked road-- is the correct way, which soon led to the trailhead next to a building with the Chinese characters for roofing tiles on the side. 

In just a few minutes I came to an open area. Two short paths on the right led to the old Taisong coal mine entrance. It was flooded with water that seeped slowly out of the mouth of the mine. 

 Fifteen minutes from the trailhead I came to a junction and turned right, uphill.

Turn right and uphill here

The trail went steeply uphill for a while. There were lots of fixed ropes. It descended at one one point but overall trended upward on a rugged, rocky ridge.

Just before reaching the rock wall there is another trail heading down on the left. The correct trail is straight ahead, staying on the ridge. I'm not sure where the lower trail goes but I took one look at it and decided it wasn't safe to walk on. It seemed to have been damaged in the typhoon. One part of it was completely washed out and beyond it I could see that there was a gap between the mud path and the stone it was clinging to. 

I stayed on the ridge here and avoided the trail going down on the left.

Next I came to the cliff wall.  Five other hikers were there but they were just leaving and I soon had it to myself. 

The soil under the cliffs was dry and dusty.

After the cliff I kept climbing on a nice trail with more roots and rocks. I caught up to the group of five hikers who were struggling with a difficult section where the trail went up to a more exposed part of the ridge. 

 

A tree had fallen and its root system had taken a part of the trail with it. I had to put one foot down into the pit made when the roots ripped out to get by but it was stable. 

There was a viewpoint from the ridge.

The group let me pass and I went on. From here it was not far to the flat summit of Yueshanhu Shan.
 

A few bees buzzed around. I could see raptors floating in the valley between my position and Bijiashan 筆架山. I ate some bread and cheese and took a rest. The group of five arrived as I was getting ready to leave and offered to take a picture of me with the summit sign. A couple of them had large, 45-50 liter backpacks that looked pretty full. I wondered why they had such big packs and thought maybe they were planning to cook lunch at the summit but they said they weren't.

 I descended on the other side of the summit. The trail goes down to a road. It is steep and does not take very long.

I turned left on the road, walked 160 meters and took the second trail on the left back into the forest. It starts between a gap in the guard rail. 

 

The forest here was very pretty. I passed small, rushing streams. Thirty minutes after leaving the summit I came to a shadowy "cave" --really an overhang-- with a stream flowing under it.

 After the cave I ran into quite a bit of typhoon damage. There was a jumble of banana trees across the path and other places with fallen trees and limbs. 

I passed two old charcoal kilns on a raised area to the right of the trail. 

After this the trail was less messy and was really enjoyable. I crossed a footbridge over a beautiful rocky stream.

I came to a road and passed through Sifenzi village.

The road ended at T-intersection where there was a gravel lot. I remembered that the last time I did this hike there had been a greenhouse in this spot but now the greenhouse had been torn down. I kept to the right side of the lot and went straight on a trail passing stone steps. A sign that said in Chinese "No Entry. Private Land" --the Chinese version of a "No trespassing" sign gave me pause. But then I figured out that it referred to the fenced off area to the left of the trail. 

 I passed an Earth God shrine on a raised stone platform. I stopped for a moment to silently pay respect and to ask for safety on the trail as I often do. 

Just after passing the temple I slipped on the stone steps 4 times and the last time I almost fell. I am not superstitious or religious but it made me wonder mildly if I had not paid proper respect to the Earth God. 

The stone path passed some farmhouses and the view opened up. I passed an old man outside of one of the houses who nodded at my greeting.

The trail went back into forest. I passed more fallen trees, another temple and came out to the road. 

I turned left, walked by beginning of the hike and back to the bus stop. Normally I would have stopped here but I wanted to hike the Danlan trail so at the bus stop I kept walking along the road with the stream on my left. In just a couple of minutes I came to the southern entrance of the Danlan Historic Trail. I crossed over the stream and turned right now following a level, surfaced path with the stream now on the right.

I didn't take many photos since I had been here before. I also will keep my description brief since I wrote about this trail before. It's an easy and lovely trail.

The water level was higher than the last time I had been here and I saw lots of fish in the stream. Sometimes the trail splits into a higher trail and a lower one. I usually chose the one closer to the water.  It started to rain but it was just a light mist that was hardly noticeable.

When the trail arrives in the small town of Shiding it cuts left through a narrow alley moving away from Wutu Stream. I passed between Shiding Elementary school and Shiding Jishu Temple. 

I kept to the left and went through an alley. Soon the road was next to the Beng Shan Stream. There is a highway that passes high overhead.
 

 

Looking back the way I came: the road next to the Beng Shan Stream.

I passed the entrance for the Bijia Shan trail. On the right was the beginning of one of the nicest parts of the Danlan Historic Trail but it was blocked with fencing and yellow tape--more typhoon damage. I was disappointed but I thought I could stay on the road --which runs above and sort of parallel to the trail-- and rejoin it later which turned out to be the case. 

I walked on the road to the top of a hill and down the other side.  

Eventually I rejoined the trail just past Waian Bridge. This was the section I had missed the last time I had been here. 

It seemed only a few minutes until I reached the Danlan Suspension Bridge and the end of the trail. 

 

There is a bus stop at Shangxikou, toilets and a Seven Eleven and a Family Mart. I had about 40 minutes to wait for the bus so I bought a snack and sat outside the 7-11 until it was time for the bus to come. 

 Nearby hikes: 

Danlan Historic Trail 淡蘭古道, Shiding Section 

Bijiashan 筆架山 Ridge Hike 

Tukuyue 土庫岳 

Dakengshan 大坑山, Wild Boar Tears Pond 山豬淚湖, Tukuyue 土庫岳 and Tukuyue East Peak 土庫岳東峰 

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 Map and coordinates:

Wukutu Bus Stop: 24.975512, 121.657413, Google Maps link

Yueshanhushan: 24.959344, 121.65869, Google Maps link

Shuangxikou/Danlan Suspension Bridge: 25.005701, 121.651575, Google Maps link

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