Taiwan Hiking Journal: January 2026

Clockwise from top left: steep trail and mossy tree; view from near the summit of Mt. Wufen; resting at a temple; rocky ridge trail

A long walk that starts at Sijiaoting Train Station and ends at Nuandong Gorge: this walk passes through some really beautiful country while avoiding the throngs. It starts on a less-trodden but established trail that goes over a couple of small peaks before climbing to the main ridge leading to 758 meter Mt. Wufen --which has great views on clear days and a radar station just past the summit. Later it descends to beautiful Nuandong Gorge --next to streams and through a deep canyon. Route finding can be confusing and some parts are steep and rugged. This walk may appeal to hikers who have already been to Mt. Wufen but are interested in a more adventurous hike. Transportation is convenient since it starts at one train station and ends near another.

Distance/duration: 6 hours 30 mins / 10.8 km.

More details as well as a map and GPX file can be found here on ramblr.

Trail Overview: I wanted to go back to Mt. Wufen but had already hiked the traditional route. (See: Mt. Wufen 五分.) So for this trip I planned a route that would take in the summit but begin and end in different places than the usual route.

This hike starts in Ruifang District of the New Taipei City and finishes in Nuannuan District in Keelung. It's a long hike and some parts of the trail are rough and overgrown but overall it is not too strenuous. It can be divided into four distinct sections:

1. Sijiaoting Train Station 四腳亭 to Shangtian Fu'an Temple 上天福安宮

This is the part that sees the least amount of foot traffic. It alternates between narrow, overgrown sections and very clear ones. A few times I was not sure which way to go but I just kept an eye out for the hiking flags and checked GPS. It goes over two small peaks Zujishan and Cuokengtoushan. The second peak has a distinctive dome shape. The trail leads right down the face of it; at first almost vertical but there are ropes and hand and footholds.

2. Shangtian Fu'an Temple to Wufen West Peak 五分山西峰

The temple is a good place for a rest. Right next to it is a trail that climbs up to Wufenshanxifeng (740 meters) and the ridge that leads to Mt. Wufen. It's a very clear trail and only really steep toward the end.

3. The main ridge to Wufenshan 五分山

The ridge is a part of a popular hike. It is paved and there are benches and shelter houses. There are great views on both sides. It leads to Mt. Wufen and the radar station that is just past it. There is another viewpoint at a road past the summit. I walked to the road and then backtracked to a shelter near Dingziliaoshan (550 meters).

4. Dingziliaoshan 頂子寮山 to Nuandong Gorge 暖東峽谷

Most of this section is on well-maintained trails. There are a couple of short road walks and a rugged short-cut trail next to a stream. It finishes at Nuangdong Gorge park.

What to bring: I packed plenty of water and snacks. There are stores near Sijiaoting station if you need to stock up. Long pants are recommended even in hot weather since the trail is narrow and there are a few thorns. I always take a hiking pole for trips like this. Mt. Wufen is relatively high so I would recommend packing an extra layer even in fine weather.

An offline map for navigation is highly recommended. I use Maps.me

Transportation: On the way I took a local train from Taipei Main Station to Sijiaoting which takes 40 minutes.

On the way back I called an Uber taxi to take me to Nuannuan Station and then took a local train back. The taxi cost $185.

Nuannuan Station is a small unmanned station. You need to swipe an Easycard.

On the train I was reading System Collapse by Martha Wells which is book #7 in the Murderbot Diaries series.

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The Walk

I exited Sijiaoting Train Station by the west (Dabu Road) exit. It was a cold, overcast day but with almost no chance of rain. The exit faced Dabu Road and I walked straight down the road and over a bridge with a covered walkway lined with pictures of local tourist attractions.

At the end of the road I turned left and walked to the next traffic light.

I turned right. There were steps leading up a hill in the bend of the road but I did not take them. I continued to where there was a basketball court and a temple on the right. The small trailhead was just across the road from the basketball court.

The trailhead

The trail climbed to the top of a low ridge where there was a view past an electricity pylon. I turned right along the ridge and was on my way. It was about 10:15 am.

After about half an hour I went over Zujishan which had a messy, grassy clearing and no view.

Shortly after this I came to a confusing spot where the trail split into two. I checked my direction using GPS and took the right fork. It just felt correct and it turned out to be the right way.

The trail descended and, surprisingly, came to an old road bed. It was covered with grass but there was a track worn by feet in the middle. I turned left on the road.

The road was really pretty and I enjoyed this part but it did not last long. Around a bend I came to a thick clump of silver grass and a barely discernible path through it. On the other side the trail climbed back into the forest.

From here it was about 1 km to Cuokengtoushan up and down small hills and through forest and a bamboo grove. I saw the remains of stone walls and what was maybe the foundation of an old stone house.

Just before the peak there was a junction. One way goes around the peak to the left and another goes over it. At first I started to take the trail around it but it was very indistinct so then I went back the other way, reasoning that most people would go over the peak and the trail would be clearer.

At the top I passed a trail on the left going straight down the peak face. It was so steep that I looked at it and said to myself "F**k that." I thought the trail continued straight but soon realized it petered out and that the steep trail was actually the trail I had to take.

It turned out I was being dramatic and it was not as bad as it looked. Actually, it was pretty fun. It was vertical at first but there was a rope and there were roots to hold onto and places to put my feet. I only slipped once when I stepped on a crumbling ledge. After the first few meters it got much better.

At the bottom I passed in front of a tomb and then came out to the road. It took 1 hour and 50 minutes to get to this point.

I turned left on the road. Around the bend I came to a temple which was a natural place for a rest and snack before starting the climb up to the main ridge. There was a nice view from the road of the dome of the peak I had just gone over, a valley below and above and to the right, Mt. Wufen. I could see the radar station which looked really far away.

After a 20 minute rest I started again. The trail was to the right of the temple. This trail was much clearer and I was able to pick up the pace a little. There was one fork on the way up where I kept to the left. As I got higher there were more pine trees and some views.

left fork

There was a final steep push and then I arrived at Wufen West Peak. It took just over an hour to get there from the temple.

Shortly the trail led to the main ridge and a paved concrete trail.

I turned left and walked toward the peak. I stopped at a shelter to have lunch. There was a nice viewpoint on the other side of the shelter. Maybe because it was such a cold day, there were not many hikers. While I was eating I just saw three other people pass by.

I walked to the summit of Mt. Wufen which is reached by a dirt trail through tall grass. I kept going past the summit to the radar station.

trail to the summit

I went back out to the main path, turned right and continued to where the trail ended at a road. I mentioned in a previous post that this road is a popular cycling route.

Then I backtracked, past the shelter-- past the trail I had taken on the way up-- I walked about 2 km along the easy trail, downhill until I came to a shelter and temple near Dingziliaoshan. There were really nice views even though it was a little hazy and I saw a few other hikers.

I took another short rest at this shelter while I looked at the map and planned my route to Nuandong Gorge. The hike was taking longer than I expected and I wanted to take the most direct route.

Just before getting to the shelter/temple (facing it coming down) there is a path on the right. Immediately it splits in two. One path is level and another drops down sharply on the right. I took the path going sharply downhill.

This path turned out to be a pleasure to walk. It was wide and well-maintained. There were some stone steps that I had to be careful on at first but later the path was made of compacted earth.

I followed it for about 900 meters. I passed a wide area with a very small Earth god shrine made out of stones. Eventually the trail drew near a stream that gurgled beneath the overhanging trees. Just before the end I ignored a left turn onto a wooden boardwalk, continued straight, crossed a stream over a foot bridge made of wood and stones and came to a road.

Clearing and Earth god shrine

I kept straight ahead here.

emerging at a road

There was a rest area at the end of the road overlooking a stream. Several cars were parked there and a group of older people were getting ready to leave. There were simple toilets just down the road. I turned right, walked just a little over 100 meters and came to a trail on the left side of the road descending to the stream.

This trail was pretty narrow and rough and I had to climb over some logs and rocks but it was only 650 meters long. It crossed the stream and went along the other side.

I stepped over the deliquescing corpse of a deer. It looked pretty rotten but there was no smell.

There were some inviting looking spots along the stream that looked like a good places to idle but it was getting near dark and I kept moving. I came to another road.

Now I was almost at the end. I turned left on the road and came to what I think was a campground. Just before reaching a yellow building there were stone steps going downhill through a big, open grassy area. The best way is to turn right down the steps.

I followed the path to a concrete bridge.

Right after this the trail split and I took the left fork but I could have taken either.

It turned out the left fork had been damaged and there were huge rocks that had tumbled down. However, I was so close to it rejoining the other path that I could see a stone bridge through the trees, so I just pushed on through. When I came out onto the main path there was yellow tape across the trail entrance.

From here it was easy to walk out to the parking lot. I followed signs for "Cuxia Square." Nuandong Gorge is really nice but I was kind of ready to head home and had been here before so I just passed through. There were a few other hikers around. I passed Wanshan Cave where old bones are stored in urns and the Lapopo Campground and finally arrived at the parking lot.