Blur Horizon: Trip to Alishan National Scenic Area

Alishan National Scenic Area, Taiwan
By Theresa Yiju Lin

Train in the Mist

For a long time, Alishan has been a very popular resort. In 2001, Alishan became Alishan National Scenic Area for its historical natural and entertainment values. My family chose Alishan National Scenic Area as our destination for the first family trip, kind of…I was only one and a half and my sister was not yet born. When I looked through my baby pictures, my memory was really hazy, like the pictures. My parents told me that we didn’t take another mountain trip until both my sister and I could walk well and will not complain about the long distance of hiking. They said that carrying us was too much workout!

When I was in grade school, my class took a trip to Alishan right before graduation, which gave me another chance to look at this amazing place. The trip was all about appreciating the great nature and creating bonding among classmates. Not only did we ride the Alishan Forest Train, we also saw many amazing things about what nature can do.

Because of the altitude, Alishan is usually misty throughout the year, and many people think it is another kind of attractiveness. When travelling to Alishan, warm clothing is a necessity because even in the summer, the temperature at night will drop below zero degree Celsius. The following are some must-sees: mountain wilderness, villages, waterfalls, high altitude plantations, forest railroad and hiking trails.

Sister Lake

Sister Lake is located near the Alisan Gou Hotel. Passing the forest, there is Sister Lake. They are two mountain lakes about only 50 meters away from each other. One lake that represents the younger sister and is a small, round lake. The other one is rectangular and about eight times bigger than the small lake that symbolizes the older sister. The names came from an aged story that two aborigine sisters who both jumped into the lake and died. Yet, they wished to stay together after life so they became Sister Lake. Shelters and walkways were built so the guests can tour the whole lake by foot and relax.

Alishan Chiyun Temple

The oldest temple in Alishan Chiyun Temple, home of the Buddha Shakyamuni, a present from the King of Thailand for Japanese Emperor in 1918. Japanese Emperor discovered that Yushan is in fact the highest mountain in the northeast Asia so he gave the Buddha to Taiwan. Chiyun Temple is built in 1919 and since then it attracts countless followers each year.

Next to the Chiyun Temple is the Botanical Garden. The architecture is classical Japanese style. Another must-see place is the museum, which carries a miniature version of the living creatures in Alishan. Like many other national level resorts, Alishan has many living creatures named after it because they can only be found in the area.

Tsou Village

There are four Tsou villages in Alishan. Visiting one of them really helps tourists understand the culture. There is a Wu Feng Temple inside the museum where the photo exhibition is about aboriginal tools, clothing lifestyle and rituals, but they are not as impressive as actually seeing Tsou people in the real world. Some of the festivals in the villages welcome visitors to participate. However, previous arrangements are highly recommended.

Alishan produces one of the best quality of high mountain tea in Taiwan. There are several tea plantations where visitors can learn about tea culture and producing procedures. Usually tea farmers are hospitable and will sit down with visitors, have a cup of tea and shoot the breeze when it is off season.

Aiyu

The other valuable plants in Alishan are aiyu (Ficus awkeotsang Makino), bamboo shoots and Japanese horseradish (wasabi). Aiyu only grows in an area where it is between 1,000 and 1,800 meters, and Alishan produces most of the aiyu in Tawian. Business people also named Taiwan the country of aiyu. Almost all kinds of bamboo shoots can be found in Alishan. It is a place with fresh bamboo shoots for four seasons. One economical plant requires critical environment to grow, and Alisan provides all it needs. Wasabi is cultivated on the plant that is 1,500 meters above the sea level and where it is dark and cold. Japanese brought the seeds of wasabi in 1914. Because of it is by far more profitable, many residents have been removing trees to grow more wasabi, which is very dangerous to the environment. Since 1989, the government has been involved with the wasabi farming in order to preserve the land.

The Alishan Forest Railway is an interesting experience. The complicated winding route gives passengers the illusion as if the train is hitting the mountain. The service offers two types of trains, modern electric train and shay steam train. Because of models of the trains, typhoon and earthquakes, the shay steam trains were on and off duty occassionally. Alisan Forest Railway is the only place in Taiwan that still serves the riders with shay steam trains, a type of train that was manufactured before War World II.

Shay Steam Train

In the past, if visitors plan their trip to ride the shay steam train without checking in with the tourist center, they might be disappointed because it is possible that the shay steam train is off for maintenance. The good news is that beginning at the year of 2005, shay steam train started to work again, which gives the tourists a brand new experience while taking the train. The price for the train ticket is from NT$15 to NT$399 depending on the destinations. If you do not feel like walking, riding the train is another way to sightsee in Alishan.

Looking for something else to do in Alisan, go to the Web site: http://www.ali.org.tw/ for more information about Alishan Scenic Area or http://railway.forest.gov.tw/ for the information about the Alishan Forest Railroad.

Photos are from http://travel.kingnet.com.tw/