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環島路線圖(黑色線條是實際騎車路線，紅色線條則是搭火車路程) Map： (The black line indicates cycling and the red one is route for taking the train.)（攝影／Catherine）
I never intended to cycle around Taiwan. I’d done quite a bit of cycling in the south – from Kaohsiung 高雄 to Kending 墾丁 and back, and other shorter trips. I’d ridden 400km across the UK, from Swansea in Wales to Greenwich, London, and I’d ridden 500km of the glorious Loire Valley in France, but riding around Taiwan didn’t appeal. As far as I was concerned, the west coast was over-industrialized and ugly, and the east was beautiful but too hilly and dangerous for me to attempt. And yet… and yet … every time I was out on my bike and saw those brown signs, those brown “環島” (Cycle Taiwan) signs, I couldn’t help thinking they were calling me.
環島1號線之一 ( Cycling Route No 1)（攝影／Catherine）
Finally, I gave in. I decided I could never look at one of those signs again until I’d at least tried. I decided to answer their call.
After several months of planning, perusing maps, reading blogs, talking to various people, I set off from my home in Kaohsiung 高雄 early one June morning, heading north up the west coast with equal parts excitement and trepidation. My plan to cope with the intense summer heat and to avoid sunstroke and dehydration was to start early in the morning, drink copious amounts of water, and avoid riding in the midday heat. The plan worked a treat, and it was quite magical to be on the road while it was still dark…. watching the sun rise and the world coming to life, the colors vibrant in the cool, clear morning air, and hardly another vehicle on the road.
For the western leg of my trip, I mainly stuck to the coast, taking routes 17, 61 and 15. The west coast turned out to be nicer than I’d expected – it was mainly easy riding, on wide, empty, clearly signposted roads which skirted the most industrialized areas, instead taking in a series of little seaside towns and fishing villages as I rode through the counties of Tainan, Chiayi, Yunlin, Changhua, Taichung City, Miaoli, Hsinchu City, Taoyuan City, and finally New Taipei City in the far north. I found a few unexpected little treasures on the way….
First was the little seaside town of Beimen 北門, just 80km north of Kaohsiung. I arrived just as the town was stirring, so it had a quiet, sleepy feel to it. I was struck by its traditional fishing boats moored in the river, and the little town square with its cluster of food and drink shops where I enjoyed a fresh mango ice (one of the joys of summer in Taiwan) in the shade of a banyan tree.
北門的膠筏 ( the traditional fishing rafts moored in the river )（攝影／Catherine）
Just a couple of kilometers north of Beimen is the magnificent temple complex of Nankunshen Daitian Temple南鲲鯓代天府. According to the signs, dating from 1662, it’s Taiwan’s oldest and largest temple devoted to the worship of Wangye, or the plague gods, and is a national historic site. Occupying more than 198,000 square meters, the complex boasts a collection of historic artefacts, as well as beautiful sculpted gardens. It was an interesting place to spend an hour or two wandering around and cooling off in the shade of the trees.
北門榕樹下小歇吃芒果冰 (the tree where I had my mango ice)（攝影／Catherine）My first night was spent in Budai布袋, Chiayi County, a busy little fishing town with a fabulous fish market where dozens of small restaurants tout for customers to try their fresh seafood. Yongan Fishing Harbor 永安漁港 in Taoyuan City was another similarly busy fishing port that is obviously a popular tourist spot as it was already bustling with visitors, including quite a few day cyclists, on the Sunday morning that I passed through.
永安漁村暫歇 ( Taking a rest: Yongan Fishing Village)（攝影／Catherine）
On the last leg of the ride north, in Bali 八里 I connected up with more than 20km of beautifully built cycling track that took me past the estuary and down along the river as far as the bridge and back on the other side to the settlement of Danshui (Tamsui) 淡水. The track was gorgeous, cool and shady after the hot dusty road, and practically empty, being early on a weekday - I honestly couldn’t think of a better way to spend a Monday morning! I learned later that I could have taken the boat across the river, but the ride was wonderful, and the views along the river and from the bridge certainly made the extra distance worthwhile.
淡水河濱樹蔭 ( Enjoying the shade on the Danshui River)（攝影／Catherine）Danshui was a great place to take a break and it seemed like a good opportunity to stock up on some cycling supplies before heading off round the top of the island and onto the much less populated east coast. It has the feel of a vibrant, bustling, artistic university town with a strong European flavor in its architecture and narrow brick lanes. An evening stroll along the riverside park was a great way to end the day.
關渡大橋 ( Kang-du Bridge )（攝影／Catherine）From Danshui 淡水I slowed down and took it easy, stopping overnight every 50-60km so as to have the chance to really explore the east coast. The roads were windier and hillier than in the west, of course, but felt safe as the cycling lanes were usually well separated from the main traffic. I couldn’t help being impressed by the efforts the government has put into developing the cycling infrastructure – the signage and the quality of the roads and cycling tracks were far beyond my expectations and better than anything I’d seen in Europe.
清晨的福隆吊橋 ( Early morning on the footbridge at Fulong )（攝影／Catherine）
淡水河岸 ( bank of Dan-shui River )（攝影／Catherine）
I stopped off in YehLiu 野柳, famous for its spectacular rock formations, including the Queen’s Head, and joined the hordes of tourists on a crowded but relatively pleasant and orderly wander around the Geopark. Following the #2 road which hugs the coast, except for a rather hilly and tiring detour through the city of Keelung 基隆, I headed south through Gongliao 貢寮to Taiwan’s easternmost point and site of the famous Sandiao Cape Lighthouse 三貂角燈塔. Rounding the cape, it was an easy ride down onto the Lanyang Plain 蘭陽平原 and into Yilan 宜蘭where I spent a couple of days exploring the little townships on the plain, following the narrow canals that crisscross the paddy fields. The air felt fresh and clean and the whole place exuded a quiet, peaceful and decidedly prosperous vibe.
東北角海岸自行車專用道 (a cycling lane separated by a concrete barrier of the northeastern coast)（攝影／Catherine）
From Suao蘇澳, in the south-easternmost corner of the Lanyang plain, I took the train to Hualien花蓮. The 100+km of mountain road is notoriously dangerous but offers spectacular views. The serious cyclists do it, but it was way too difficult for an amateur like me!
From Hualien there’s a choice of routes south to Taidong 台東 – the coast road or the road that runs through the Great Eastern Rift Valley. For a change of scene, I decided to take the valley road with an overnight stop in the small town of Yuli 玉里. Although it did include some challenging hills, it was gorgeous riding, and the intensity of the colors in the valley was quite stunning – the deepest blue skies with pure white puffy cotton wool clouds lining the crests of the dark forest-green hills, while in the valley, the ripe fields of rice turned gold in the early morning sun. The roads were quiet and oftentimes all I could hear was the sound of cicadas, frogs and birds.
花東縱谷公路 ( highway of the eastern rift valley)（攝影／Catherine）
The summer vacation was just starting, and as I headed south into Taidong, the cyclists were out in force. After seeing no more than a dozen in the preceding 12 days, I saw at least a hundred in one day, riding in twos and threes and in packs of 20 or even 30 – I didn’t feel quite so crazy to be out there on my bike in the sweltering summer heat!
The small eastern city of Taidong was my last stop. There was nice riding in the Seashore and Taidong Forest parks, and I ventured a few km north up the coast road to the tiny port town of Fugang 富岡 with its pretty blue fishing boats. It was bursting at the seams with tourists and tourist buses, all there to take the ferry to Green Island. Further up the road I discovered an exquisite camping ground at Xiaoyeliu 小野柳 with its large shady trees and rocky shore. I was tempted to stay or to head further north up the coast, but was out of time – it’ll just have to wait …
富岡漁港 (At Fugang harbor)（攝影／Catherine）Having decided to skip the southernmost tip of the island, on the final day I took the train from Taidong台東over the hills as far as the small west coast town of Fangliao 枋寮 so as to avoid the ever-present slips and trucks. I felt like a bit of a cheat to be taking the train again, but having had an accident-free trip so far, I was pretty keen to make it home in one piece… From there it was an easy, though hot, ride back through Pingdong 屏東 and finally home to Kaohsiung. I’d made it!
縱谷東方等待收割的稻田( a field of rice ready for harvest at the eastern rift valley)（攝影／Catherine）
It had been an amazing ride, and I had loved the landscape, but the locals were also a highlight. I met so many people on the way who were really curious about what I was doing – why would an older foreign woman be riding around Taiwan on her own?! And they were especially generous with their time and suggestions – the farmer who picked me up in his trailer when I had a flat tire, the B&B owner who hopped on a bike and gave me an impromptu guided tour of her hometown of Aodi澳底, the women in the drink shop who gave me patches for my aching shoulders, the railway station staff who helped me work out schedules and get my bike on and off the train, and all the B&B owners who gave me invaluable advice about the roads and riding conditions – I was really touched by how friendly and helpful everyone was. Of course, pretty much no one spoke English, and perhaps the reason I got such a warm reception was that people were so relieved to hear me speak Chinese and not to have to try to communicate in English! There’s no doubt it would have been a much more challenging and completely different experience without the language…
歇腳的無數便利商店之一 ( One of the countless convenience stores! )（攝影／Catherine）And finally, you can’t talk about cycling in Taiwan without mentioning the convenience stores. They made life so much easier! Even in the remotest east coast areas there was sure to be one not too far away, open all hours, where I could replenish my supplies of water and snacks, or take a welcome break from the road and the heat. I lost count of how many I stopped at, and it would definitely have been a much harder trip without them!
環島1號線之一 ( Cycling Route No 1)（攝影／Catherine）
Cycling can be tough at times – it can be slow and hot and tiring - but for me it’s the best way to see the country; it gets you so close to the sights and sounds and smells of the place, an experience so different from driving a car or even riding a scooter. Riding around Taiwan WAS a challenge, but definitely one worth trying. And now, whenever I see those brown signs, I think “I did it!” It’s a great sense of achievement, but then I think, “Hmmmm, maybe I should do it again…”
