I had lived in Taiwan from 2010 to 2013. In this time I biked around the island and hosted dozens of weekend bike trips around the capital Taipei. For this reason I thought I would add it to my bike tour company, even if it’s not part of West China of course. Its definitely one of the most underrated places in Asia. Not just great scenery but an interesting mix of traditional Chinese, some Japanese and aboriginal cultures. Since I had to add it to my tours I needed to bike it again to make sure what were the best routes. The summer is way too hot but it was the most convenient time for me to go. Its best to wait until October or November.
8/20 To Fulong beach
I took off in the morning and biked towards Liuzhangli Metro. From there you head east on Chongde Lu which is through the graveyards but has great views of Taipei 101 and views of south Taipei, like towards Muzha. I’ve done this ride dozens of times before. The climb is only about 3-4 kms.
I went downhill and past the zoo and continued east on the 106 uphill to Pingxi and Shifen. The road can get a little busy like leaving any big city. I stopped in Pingxi for lunch which is quieter then Shifen and you can still fly lanterns there. Shifen is touristy but nice. There is a train that goes thru the center of town and it’s known as the most popular place to fly Chinese lanterns. You can write some things on the lantern and then they burn a piece of fuel that fills the lantern and then they head up like a small hot air balloon.
A couple kms from town is shifen waterfall that is beautiful but also a little crowded unfortunately. I biked uphill a bit and then down to Fulong beach to end the day. My buddy Nigel has a restaurant and scuba diving business there called the scubar. I had dinner and drinks and caught up with Nigel and our other friend JJ whom I hadn’t seen in a few years.
8/21
I took off just passed ten and it was already hot as hell. I headed along the coast next to the main road for parts of it which is nice. There are a couple places you can stop with some nice views and air con which is great. In some areas you can bike off the main road but others I had to stay on the main road but there’s a shoulder at least. I was thinking that it might have been better to bike on the other side of the road and go counter clockwise. That would make more sense because I would be closer to the views of the beach etc. That might be a good idea but a good amount of the head winds come from the north so its better to go south in that regards. Also, it isn’t that you can see the coast or have great views all day. Just in certain sections and there are turn offs or parking lots anyway. I biked along a path near the beach in Waiou and headed to a pizza place there named drifters pizza which was nice and the Taiwanese waitress Dawn was really cool.
Below Waiou is the city of Yilan which has about a half a million people and is the largest city on the east coast. I could bike through the town in a couple hours but it’s not too special. Towards the mountains there are a couple waterfalls and things to see but I figured I would just head down towards Tarako gorge. However the road from Yilan to the gorge is probably the most dangerous road in Taiwan. It’s where the Chingshui cliffs are. Beautiful area but super narrow road, which is why I didn’t do it before. I planned on finally doing it this trip but forgot about all the big 18 wheeler trucks going this way. With a shoulder I don’t mind but I don’t want to be in tight areas in tunnels and narrow roads with tons of big trucks. I don’t think safe for bike tours either so I can skip the 100 kms through Yilan and the narrow road to start of gorge.
I went to the train station in the next town Toucheng before Yilan to get a train ticket but I couldn’t leave until late that afternoon. Taiwan is funny about bikes on public transport by the way. You can’t just get any train. Only certain trains are ok for bikes. Some of them you can take bike on the train with you in last or front car. Or other trains the bike can go in the back in a separate car. Also, you need to even see if the train station can accept the bike. For instance, you can’t get your bike on at Taipei’s main train station. You have to go one station east or west.
If you take a bus you need to take off the front wheel and put the bike in the bicycle bag. I assume so the storage area or the other luggage doesn’t get dirty. It’s pretty annoying though to carry a bicycle bag because it takes up so much space. However you can also use a large garbage bag. If there is no storage area like on some local buses you can bring the bike with you on the bus in that bag. Super annoying but its the way it goes.
I arrived in Xincheng that evening. It couldn’t be raining harder since a typhoon just hit the island. Luckily it is further south. I knew I couldn’t wait so I just had to leave and find the closest and most affordable place. A hotel was nearby but almost a hundred bucks so I biked around and finally found a decent priced guesthouse for 480 nt about a km away that was decent.
8/22 To Hualien
I was lucky it wasn’t still pouring in the morning but I’m sure it could change any minute or be raining further up in the mountain. Instead of wasting so much time and most likely getting stuck in the rain anyway, I decided just to rent a scooter. I had biked the gorge a few years before anyway. I did ask how much for a ride to the top at the hostel and they wanted about 2 or 3 times the cost of the renting a scooter so I got it and took off to make a climb of about 25 kms through the most scenic parts of gorge. I lucked out and the rain held off until I got almost to the top so I got some great views at least. It is an amazing place for sure and shouldn’t be missed on a trip of Taiwan, especially if your near this area.
I got back on the bike just before 2. Most of the rain held off. I stopped at a rest area around 14 kms from where I started. A local aboriginal guy was jamming and it sounded really nice, unlike a lot of the Chinese music I hear, which is usually pretty mediocre.
There are some bike paths or roads into Hualien that are pretty nice with some views over some cliffs before town, but one of the bike paths seemed like a loop or dead end. I was almost in the center of Hualien where I planned to find a hostel and began raining like crazy. I waited about 40 minutes then finally took off and went to the Cave Hostel which had a room. I wondered why it was called “The Cave” but realized when I got the room why. The beds in the dorm were more like capsules with blinds to close which was nice for privacy.
8/23 From Hualien to Changlong bridge 74 kms
I left after breakfast after ten. It was already hot of course. There were some nice views along the river and past some parks with horses. I changed roads and took the coastal highway instead of the main one going through the rift valley. I’ve done both and they are both nice. I had some headwinds which was a little annoying but the views of the light blue ocean nearby were great. I continued past Yanliao and had lunch at one of the few restaurants in the area since its pretty remote without any major towns. The beaches in most of the areas looked nice but are probably more of tiny rocks. Most of Taiwan’s coasts are either sand, tiny rocks that look like sand from far away, baseball sized rocks or large boulders or rocky areas.
I ate some slices of pork with onions and dip some noodles that were ok. I also got this pitcher of orange drink that looked like cool aid or something. Was hoping refreshing but it was pretty weird. The road changed from 4 lanes down to two but traffic wasn’t bad. I biked uphill a bit through a few tunnels about 400 meters each and then back down to a town with a shop and a couple other things. The road then went up and down a bit. I remember how it’s easy to assume that a coastal route would be flat but it’s not always the case that the best place for the road is next to a beach or that it’s the straightest direction, so it’s normal for the road to go up and down.
I went over a bridge with a gorge below named Fanshuliao. I guess the legend has it that the local Amis people decided who would be the local chief in the future by whoever could cross the gorge on a long bamboo stick. Of course many people died in the process. A couple kms later you come to a great view with a parking area and then down to Jiqi beach. I was going to take a look but I had to pay to get in so I continued but maybe a good place for a swim. They also had some places to camp if you wanted. Afterwards I was pretty close to the beach again for the ride.
Around dinner time I headed into Fengbin which is the first bigger town since Hualien. It was another 15 kms to Shitiping which had a bunch of nice hotels and about 70 kms from Hualien. I decided to continue and stayed at a pavilion just north of Changlong Bridge. There was almost no traffic since it was a dead end. It seemed like the pavilion was pretty new. Luckily there was a breeze so it was comfortable enough. It got darker earlier then I thought around 630 so I need to leave earlier in the morning. Plus the heat and some headwinds most likely from the Typhoon are not making it any easier.
8/24 Changlong bridge to Lou mountain campsite 62 kms
I left past 8 AM. There was a path to the left of the road I biked on for a while. I passed a sculpture for the Tropic of Cancer and a little further down the road is Baxian cave. Here are several caves you can check out that have some Buddhist things inside. I went up to check it out but it was closed for renovation at the time. Afterwards I biked pass a decent of beaches and views of the mountains in the next couple hours and places to camp. Some of nicest views since Hualien. I took a break in a supermarket for a bit. Taiwan is normally super hot during this time of year but it’s even higher since I guess there are record highs.
I stopped in Changbin and had a good lunch but the town itself is nothing special. Maybe the harbor is nice. I biked on to Ningpu which has a turn off over the mountain to the rift valley. I got some water from the police station and headed up. By the way, you can water at any police station and camp at many of them. 7-11’s and police stations usually also have bike pumps if you need it too. It was almost a ten km climb until I came to a tunnel. It was really steep and super hot going up so not fun but there were some great views at least. I ended up walking quite a bit of the way so I was actually glad when I saw the tunnel. It was less than three kms long and then I biked down and after a few kms I saw a nice creek that looked like a good swimming spot. I went over there for a bit to cool off which was great. Perfect spot to stop.
I continued on down to the intersection and headed south. The traffic was heavier but there were some nice side bike routes around that you can take that runs parallel to the road and there’s great views of the green fields and mountains. The bike path ended at Dongli cycling station. There was an old railroad here but now it’s a store and coffee shop pretty much. The Taiwanese lady at the coffee shop was really talkative and got my photo and chatted to me for a while. I thought she would try selling me stuff but she was just giving me honest advice.
I cycled another dozen kms down the road to Luo mountain campsite which was 300 for night. A little worn out, but decent. You can see a lot of places are like this in Taiwan and Japan. They made crazy amounts of money in the 70’s and 80’s but things have slowed down for about twenty years so you see a lot of places haven’t had too much investment for a long time.
There wasn’t any restaurant nearby unfortunately though so I got some things like canned for and drinks from a small shop nearby. I was just putting up my tent when it started to down pour. Luckily a pavilion was next to me so I just hung out under there and later I moved my tent there so I didn’t have to worry about the rain. There was a bathroom with showers and some sinks. They could certainly accommodate a ton of people but I doubt many people go there anymore.
8/25 Lou mountain campsite to Dulan 65 kms
I left before 7 and hit the road since I knew it would be hot going over another pass. I got to Fuli and then began the climb. The first few kms had some nice rice paddles and pretty scenic. I could hear and see a few monkeys like on the pass the day before. It was the kind of climb as many in Taiwan are. You think you are at the top and you go down a couple hundred meters and then back up again. Taiwan’s terrain is very unpredictable and generally not subtle, especially in mountain areas.
It was about 30 kms to the top but there weren’t any amazing views but still nice enough. At least there was hardly any traffic. There was still some small climbs going down but not too bad. You finally have a couple little shops in some villages along the way and finally I headed to the intersection to continue south. There was a town Donghe that I stopped for lunch. There was a good place to get Baozi that had many different flavors.
I arrived in Dulan around 145 and was glad I finally had some tailwinds along the way. I asked the Dutch guy at 98 hostel if it was the case and he said usually winds head south. I got a room for 500 nt for the night. I chilled for a bit and then headed over to the bar and restaurant next door and had pizza then went with some of the Taiwanese, a couple young Canadian guys and a few other foreigners down to the beach but I was already tired when I got there so I didn’t stay long.
8/26 Day off bike to scooter around
I got up and rented a motorbike nearby for the day. I headed back on the areas I had skipped basically on the coast or rift valley. I went up and stopped at San Xian Tai, a place I had been before. Its just some small islands going out into the ocean with some bridges connecting them. Pleasant enough place but pretty full of tourists. The views around that area are nice though.
The turn off or pass to Ruishui seemed like the nicest of the three passes I went over. Great views bike up along river and then coming down there are great views of the town Ruishui and the valley and mountains around. I headed back the way I came to see the coast north of route 64, which was rocky for the most part but some nice views and beaches.
I went back over to the mountains again and back south. Some of the views of the large mountains to the west look much bigger from here and get smaller as I headed to Ruishui. I kept on going down 193 and in one town I past some native people in a festival that looked pretty cool. If I didn’t plan on staying in Dulan again I might have stayed longer to observe the festival more. They were dressed similar to native Americans and in the middle there was a guy who some of the other guys were hitting with plastic bottles in the head which seemed random. Maybe some initiation to manhood or something but I have no idea.
I continued south towards Taitung instead of the road I took yesterday to Dulan. I passed some popular area for cyclists riding all around. Many of which were the bikes where four people can sit in and peddle along. It looked like a bunch of nice bike paths in valley to bike around but not sure how far the paths go. The 197 road eventually turns into a dirt road for about 14 kms which was ok on scooter but wouldn’t be great on bike. Although there was zero traffic at least. I went up and down and got to the road in Taitung and then I headed back up the coast in the dark to Dulan.
Next to the sugar factory they had some music and people hanging out a bit at a bar there. The American guy was pretty cool and had some good craft beer. I also saw another guy named Jeffrey I met a few years before which was cool. Dulan is a little hippy town more less. Pretty chill and not too bad but also not super special either. Like many Taiwanese towns, it’s a little worn out. The beach is super close or super nice. There are some nice hikes and areas to explore a bit. There’s a few different kinds of restaurants. Not a bad place to spend a day or two but probably not my first place to choose to live.
10/27 Dulan to Daniao 75 kms
Some rocky and half decent beaches as I biked south from Dulan. They had some artistic park about ten kms south that had some nice views but plenty of tourists. The traffic here were really busy, maybe some of the most since Taipei or parts of rift valley. A little further down I passed by Yeliaoyu which is some interesting rock formations on the coast. The stone was carved out in a weird way from the waves which looks pretty cool. As I headed into Taitung there wasn’t any special beaches or anything near town for most part. Just big barriers to break up waves or protect from typhoons I guess.
It was about 21 kms to get through Taitung. I had lunch and passed through. After Taitung you have some climbs but some awesome views of the coast line for several kms. Looked all like nice beaches for most part but not sure it’s really that nice up close. The heat was killing me as usual. I thought about skipping ahead a bit on train but when I got to the station they said no bikes could go on that station. Some more climbs and nice views of the coast but the traffic were heavy. The road was mostly 4 lanes at the beginning of the day but it was narrow and two lanes for a while before finally back into four lanes which was much better.
It was dark by the time I got to the village of Da niao. There was luckily a shop and small restaurant where I could get food just above a basketball court where local kids were playing. I noticed I have a small leak in my tire. I’m not surprised because the narrow road was under construction in some areas and also a bunch of debris on shoulder. After I ate and had a couple drinks I made my way back to the coast and found a place on the beach that seemed safe enough.
8/28 Daniao to Hechun 50 kms
I took off early and when I got to Dawu I got a flat tire. A guy helped me get it changed but it took about 45 minutes. I realized I forgot the tool to take off the tire easily. I got back on the road and luckily had tailwinds at least as I got to the end of the road and then I had to go up into the mountains a bit since the road south dead ends. The climb was about ten or 11 kms. I stopped at a break area for cyclists and other people going by.
You continue going uphill and when you get to a temple there are some nice views that is near the top. I finally went down a bit and came to the first village which had some guesthouses and a national park with a pond there but I didn’t go in. I passed another village as I went down and then in a bit my tire was flat again so I fixed it and hit the road but only after a km or so it exploded. Its not about the tube but the tire is garbage. Luckily I was near Jiuping which had buses so I was able to take that to the bigger town of Hechun where I was able to buy a new tire and get a hostel.
From Hechun there are plenty of cool areas to check out. The most popular area is Kending but if you don’t want a touristy area there are plenty of nice areas that are more remote. The next few days I met up with my buddy I knew before and I took a scooter around to check out the best areas. There’s some nice cliffs and views at the southernmost part of Taiwan east of Kending. If you’re looking for a decent beach you can head to Bai sha or white sand beach west of Kending. I later took a bus a few hours with my bike in a garbage bag to Taipei.
