One of the things that I like to do when I have a spare few minutes is to scour the topographical maps for trails that are within walking distance of Taiwan’s railway network. That’s how Sanyuan Ridge Trail first came to my attention. I forgot about it for a while, but then I was asked to write a piece for Travel in Taiwan Magazine about attractions in Sanyi and we passed the ridge line on our way to Zhuoye Cottage. Johan, the magazine’s editor-in-chief (and fellow outdoor enthusiast), pointed out the ridge line, saying it’s somewhere he’s thought about walking but hasn’t yet gotten around to. It jogged my memory. Then another few weeks passed, and unexpectedly Teresa had to work close to Miaoli on a Saturday, and we decided to seize the opportunity for a couple of nights away. Originally we’d planned to walk this together on the Sunday, but Teresa wasn’t feeling up to it, so it ended up being a Monday solo walk after all.

Distance: 12km – With an option to make it maybe 13km if you if take a side trip to visit a traditional Hakka house.

Time: 5-6 hours – It took me 5¼ hours by myself (not including a couple of diversions), but I’m sure that if I’d had Teresa with me to stop and discuss things then it would have taken closer to six hours.

Difficulty (regular Taiwan hiker): 3-4/10 – Some steep ascents and descents, slippery surfaces in places, but easy in terms of navigation.

Difficulty (new Taiwan hiker): 6-7/10 – Steep climbs, several stretches have fixed ropes and require a bit of scrambling. There are a handful of places where there is a very steep drop-off on one side of the path, these are fenced in with rope but the floor is uneven and slippery so caution is needed. The trail is well-maintained and clear but it might feel a little narrow and wild if you’re more used to hiking paved routes.

Total ascent: Around 350 metres, although I’d swear it felt like more.

Water: I took 2L, but drank around 1.5L, and you’ll want snacks too. There are convenience stores at both ends of the trail, and (if you arrive during lunch/dinner hours) Tongluo has plenty of restaurant options, even for a vegetarian like me.

Shade: Dappled, just ok on a bright but not sunny day.

Mobile network: Clear throughout.

Enjoyment: A serviceable little ridge walk in an area that doesn’t appear on many tourist maps.

Route type: Linear A – B route with public transport at both ends.

Other: A hiking pole would help in places, especially if you want a little extra support going downhill.

Seasonal: Visit in April or early May to enjoy the tung blossom.

Permit: None needed.

Jump to the bottom of this post for a trail map and GPX file.

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DIRECTIONS:

There is only one way out of Sanyi Station and it’s on the wrong side of the tracks – literally. The exit is on the west of the railway line, but the walk starts further inland to the east. Head straight out of the station then take a right by the OK Mart. I had already bought supplies in Miaoli, but if you’re not fully stocked, make sure to check in here since it’s the last store you’ll pass.

Follow the street north until you reach this underpass. Turn right and head under the tracks.

The roads at the far side of the track are a weird criss-crossy mess. Once you’ve climbed above the tracks you need to take a sharp, almost 180° turn to the left, then after about 60m, take a 90° right by a factory building. You should spot a map at this last junction, although it’s not exactly a useful map, more an artistic rendering of the route. If you’re paying attention, you should also spot signs and spray-painted text at every junction directing you on towards Mount Sanjiao (三角山).

The path ducks through another tunnel, this time taking you under the monstrous roar of freeway No.1. At the far side of the tunnel take a left, then follow the single track road to the next junction. Turn right here and head uphill. From here until the first peak there isn’t really any let-up, it’s climbing the whole way.

The road terminates in a carpark and Denglong Fude Temple (燈籠福德祠). The trail proper starts either from the far end of the car park, or the left side of the temple, but it’s worth heading up to the temple if only to see the sprawling camphor tree abutting the back of the small building.

Beyond the temple, the trail starts to climb in earnest. Shallow steps make the way easy enough at first.

A small trail joins on the right here, ignore the smaller path and head up in the direction that this man was coming down from, then at the next junction take the righthand trail going more directly uphill. (Actually, the path on the left also heads up in the same direction too.)

About ten minutes after the last junction, I found myself with the first view of the walk – the freeway snaking its way south towards Taichung in the hazy air.

Not far beyond the viewpoint, I passed a machete-wielding grandpa who was trimming the trail as he went. A little further still and the trail levelled off for a brief while, and I found the first of two old gas canisters that appear to have been reappropriated as gongs (note the wooden stick attached to it by a thin rope.)

It was around here that I started to spot more and more of what would come to be a defining feature of the walk: hundred and hundreds of sandbags filled with dirt to make steps. I’ve seen similar in many other places, but the sandbag material here seemed especially good at gathering algae, meaning that these sandbag steps are uniquely slippery.

The trail gets quite steep, and in a few places I needed to use my hands as well as my legs. Here the trail meets back up with the path from the previous junction, (the joining trail was behind me as I took this photo). Take a right and continue uphill.

The trail passes to the right of this humongous tung-blossom adorned pylon. I had hoped to catch the tail end of this year’s tung blossom season on my visit, but this year we’ve had so much winter and spring rain that both the cherry blossom and tung blossom seasons were more or less a complete washout.

Beyond the pylon, the trail curves left (another alternative route joins from the right here), then reaches a pavilion. Machete grandpa had caught up with me by this point, and told me that from here it was a pleasant three to four-hour walk to Tongluo.

The trail continues to the right of the pavilion, and immediately reaches the first peak of the walk: Mount Sanjiao. Like so many “縱走“ walks, this one takes its name from individual characters in the two points at either end of the trail. In this case, the “San” from Mount Sanjiao, along with the “Yuan” of Mount Yuantun. At 567m, this is the highest point of the walk.

Once you’re past that first peak, the walk changes significantly in character, becoming your typical ridge walk.

Short periods of flat walking are interspersed with more climbs and brief portions of descending. Almost all of the steeper ascents and descents were done on these sandbag steps, and I very quickly learnt to aim for the less green sections. (Seriously, there are a few sections with pretty big drops where you really wouldn’t want to lose your footing.)

And this being a ridge walk, there are also a few sections where you come a little closer to the edge than you might want to. It’s hard to see from the above photo, but it’s just a few typhoons away from disappearing.

An hour and three quarters after leaving the station saw me taking a break atop the second peak of the journey: Sanjiao North Peak (三角山北峰, 560m). From here you can make out the golden walls of Shuangfeng Cihui Temple (雙峯慈惠堂 also written elsewhere as 雙峰山慈惠堂). I stopped here for a second breakfast (jam sandwiches from OK Mart, I hadn’t checked carefully when I picked it up and was startled to discover that each of the two sandwiches had a different flavour jam, one exactly like that used in Tesco’s raspberry doughnuts).

There is more standard ridge walking between Sanjiao North Peak and the next summit, and I passed the third and final other hiker that I would see all day (all lone, older gentlemen).

It was around here that I passed what is possibly the most exciting feature of this trail – a short handmade wooden ladder.

Mount Shuangfeng (雙峰山, 538m) was the third peak of the walk. Here there is a convergence of three trails, the way I came from, straight over and on to the next peak, and a left turn that will take you to the temple. Being curious, I took a side trip to find the temple. The walk to there takes 6-7 minutes in each direction, but I wouldn’t go out of your way for it (certainly not on a weekday), because I arrived to find it gated and pretty shut-looking.

I returned to Mount Shuangfeng, and after feeling the tiredness in my legs I decided I should probably have a little more food just to add some fuel. Then with energy needs met, I headed straight on along the spine of the ridge once more.

From Mount Shuangfeng onwards, the overall trajectory of the walk shifts to being more downhill.

It feels like this section might be a little more frequently traversed than the portion between Mount Sanjiao and Mount Shuangfeng because the path is less crowded by plants and there are quite a lot of seating areas.

Shuangfeng North Peak (雙峰山北峰, 451m), was less a discernible summit, and more just a clearing along the trail with a triangulation stone handily placed in the middle of the path to trip up unwary hikers.

As the walk snaked its way down towards Tongluo there were more views, although, with the day’s heavy grey skies and thick haze, they were not exactly spectacular.

As well as benches, I passed a few of these old viewing platforms, all of which were looking a little worse for wear.

The path dipped down to a clearing with benches and a shortcut down to Shuangfeng Road (雙峯路, although the sign nailed to the tree has it written in simplified characters as 双峰路). Head straight over and on towards the final peak.

More ups and downs, although by this point the ups are becoming fewer and fewer.

The stark straight lines of Chaosen Bridge making its way over Xihu River. Just up the hill on the far side are both Tongluo Tea Factory and Taiwan Hakka Museum.

Looking back the way I had just come – one of only two or three places where you can see the trail as well as part of the wider landscape.

And then very quickly I found myself at Mount Yuantun (員屯山, 339m), the last and lowest peak of the walk. I didn’t stay long, leaving the summit’s clearing via the opposite side to where I had entered, and making my way down through a circular pavilion.

From the pavilion to the next junction there is a wide, paved trail, and I imagine that it is quite popular with local retirees earlier in the day.

Head straight over at this first junction, it’s just a shortcut down to the road. A little further on there were more signs of the trail’s previous existence, a rotting wooden walkway that had been fenced off in parts and then totally dismantled in others, leaving just the metal girders at each side of the path.

When you reach this junction you’ll need to choose whether or not to take the longer route past a Hakka courtyard-style dwelling, then walk up the road (here you’ll find a temple that was built around a spring), or else the short way and straight down to Tongluo. To head to Tongluo directly continue straight over, or to take a detour to the Hakka courtyard house take a right. Since I was visiting on a weekday, I was worried that the Hakka place might be closed, so I decided to just head straight over.

The final descent is down some of that old brick-lined path that hopefully has long gone out of style because it’s very prone to becoming slippery. Then when you arrive at this seating area you can go either way. I decided to take a left and came out on Wenfeng Lane.

The steps end at the top of the lane, right next to a very pleasant-looking coffee shop that probably does a roaring trade on the weekends. There were three black guard dogs at the factory unit on the left. The one in the picture had very short legs, and would have ignored me I think if it’s taller bretheren hadn’t noticed. When they came barrelling out to bark at me, short legs got up and decided to do a little barking too, but it was obviously just for show. Head down to Shuangfeng Road and take a right.

Some cute artwork seen on one of the walls I passed along the way.

Follow Shuangfeng Road until it joins Xinxing Road at this T-junction, then take a left. (Actually, I took a brief detour here to pay a visit to Shuimu Niangniang Temple – that spring temple mentioned earlier.) Then you can either just keep following this road, or turn right and walk through the narrow strip of park beside the road.

The park affords you a slightly better view, and you can see down the road over the roofs of the town.

The road takes you all the way into the centre of Tongluo, with the buildings becoming increasingly commercial as you head further down. I paused in one of the convenience stores to enjoy an ice cream and some aircon before continuing again.

Even quite close to the centre of town the landscape remains very rural, rice paddies and allotments filling in the gaps between houses.

Before long I was standing right in front of the train station, but since I’d arrived just in time for lunch, I went in search of a bowl of braised noodles before boarding my train back to Miaoli.

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HOW TO GET TO SANYUAN TRAIL

Google Maps address: The walk starts from Sanyi Train Station, although the trail proper only begins once you reach Denglong Fude Temple. On the Tongluo end, the trail emerges right beside Shuangfeng Thatched Cottage Coffee Shop before making its way into the town proper and ending at Tongluo Train Station.

GPS location:

1. Sanyi trailhead – N24 25.285 E120 46.740
2. Tongluo trail – N24 28.425 E120 47.775

Public transport: This walk is perfectly designed for using public transport. You just need to hop on any train as far as Sanyi Train Station, then get another back from Tongluo Train Station.

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SANYUAN TRAIL MAP

GPX file available here on Outdoor Active. (Account needed, but the free one works just fine.)

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