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Over 10,000 workers chipped and chiseled their way along granite cliffs to carve out the last 19 kilometers of the Central Cross-Island Highway, connecting Taichung, in the West, with Hualien, in the East. Little could these workers have known that their toils would astound the thousands of visitors to Taroko Gorge for decades.
Taroko, meaning "beautiful" in the aboriginal Atayal language, is exactly the word that springs to mind when describing the marble gorge located in the East of central Taiwan. Taroko National Park, founded in 1986, was the fourth national park to be established in the ROC. It faces the Pacific Ocean, to the East, and covers over 92,000 hectares of the Northern section of the Central Mountain Range. The park straddles three counties: Hualien, Taichung and Nantou, and has the Rivers Tachia, Chosui, Sanchan and Mukua running through it.
Despite its relatively isolated position, the park's high mountains, steep gorges, plunging waterfalls and sharp peaks have been attracting local and international visitors for decades. Some may parallel Taroko Gorge with the Grand Canyon in the United States in that both earn their reputation from the magnificent canyon vistas. But unlike the latter, Taroko's narrow canyons and rock formations offer great geological diversity.
Visitors to the park can choose to ride the bus, drive their car or hire a scooter and ride along the narrow road that clings to the rock faces. Energetic tourists can walk along the old paths and trials that crisscross the national park.
Several hiking trials exist in the park, but only four of them, around the village of Tienhsiang, are of any interest to tourists. Because of its accessibility the Baiyang Trail is the most famous of Taroko's trials. The Baiyang trail, once an important footpath connecting different aborigine tribes living in the surrounding mountains, was later rebuilt by the Taiwan Power Company after it fell into disrepair. The trail meanders through the gorge and 25 tunnels.
About 1.8 kilometers from the start of the Baiyang Trail, visitors can see Baiyang Waterfall and a series of water curtain tunnels. However, geologists warn that these tunnels might collapse at any time due to continuous water erosion. Consequently, the national park's administration has forbidden entrance to the tunnels. However, visitors pay little attention to the warnings and still proceed into the tunnels.
If ever the might and beauty of Mother Nature were in doubt, these doubts would be dispelled after seeing her handiwork in the form of the Liwu river which shapes Taroko Gorge. The Liwu River, the main artery cutting through the park, is also the widest river in the gorge. Its drainage basin covers two-thirds of the park.
When tourists visit the park along the Central Cross-Island Highway, they are not only impressed by the natural beauty of the gorge, but also by the skill and sacrifice that went into building the road. The highway was inaugurated in 1956, but it wasn't completely finished until 1960, at a cost of 450 retired servicemen's lives.
From the Taroko National park entrance to Tayuling, the highway leads tourists through 78 kilometers of breathtaking scenery and 38 tunnels. As visitors reach the higher levels of the highway, the weather changes considerably as the park's elevation ranges form sea level up to 3,700 meters.
Although, there are over 1,100 species of native vascular plants living within the park, 57 of them are close to extinction, according to the park's administration. In terms of wildlife, there are 24 species of mammals, 122 species of birds, 25 species of reptiles, 14 species of amphibians, 108 species of butterflies and five species of fish living in the park.
As anyone who has visited the park during fall or winter can tell you,
the higher you go, the colder it becomes. Therefore, visitors who want
to see the "sea of clouds" surrounding the higher mountains of the park,
should remember to take extra warm clothing. The village of Kuanyuan
is a popular place from where visitors like to watch the "sea of clouds."
From here tourists can also see towering Chilai, Hobuan and Pingfeng mountains
in the distance. This year, visitors can watch this spectacular sight from
8:00-11:00 a.m., and from 3:00-6:00 p.m.
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