I do not get paid for writing this site. In fact, it’s the reverse—I need to pay annual fees to ensure it stays online. Money aside, I pour a silly amount of my free time into creating and updating the information here. So, if you also enjoy what I write and would like to help pay for the cost of running this site or train tickets to the next trailhead, then feel free to throw a few dollars my way. You can find me on PayPal, Buy Me a Coffee or Ko-fi. And if you just want to keep enjoying the site for free then that’s totally fine too.
So far I have used donors’ contributions to upgrade the site so that I can remove adverts and give it its own domain name for two years, and letting the site pay for itself this way feels great. A little also went towards getting my boots resoled – one year of walking wore them out!
As to why there are there separate options, different people seem to prefer different platforms. PayPal is direct, so there’s no cut taken by the service providers, Buy Me A Coffee seems to be a format that most people are comfortable using, and Ko-fi offers a monthly option.
Happy hiking!
Thank you to the kind folk who have donated to the site:
Christine T.
29/1/2024
“Thank you for the detailed information.”
Christine is a long-distance walker and author from Germany who is planning to take on several of Taiwan’s multiday routes later in the year.
Ricardo P.
27/1/2024
Ricardo didn’t leave a message.
Kristel / Rewild Taiwan
12/10/2023
“I just find your site to be very useful in finding new trails to hike.“Your posts are extremely helpful to me right now as I try to find some good places for forest/nature therapy. You’ve saved me a lot of time and given so much valuable information! Thanks for your wonderful posts!“
Kristel hasn’t asked me to mention this, but she has recently started up her own company that seeks to facilitate experiences for people who feel they want to reconnect with nature. It is called Rewild Taiwan and you can find her on both Facebook and Instagram.
Thomas S.
26/1/2023
“Amazing site!”
Melinda J
3/1/2024
“Great description! My husband’s parents live in Taipei. You helped me discover a trail that I wouldn’t have tried without your information! Thank you both!”
L.K.S.
12/10/2023
“I just find your site to be very useful in finding new trails to hike.”
Ivan W.
12/12/2023
“I just find your site to be very useful in finding new trails to hike.”My partner (American) and I (Taiwanese) really love your site – such a helpful resource and the photos are gorgeous! Hope this donation can help defray some of the hosting costs.”
Anonymous
9/11/2023
“Thank you! Great work..”
L.K.S.
12/10/2023
“I just find your site to be very useful in finding new trails to hike.”
Simon L.
14th September 2023
“I’ve hiked in Taiwan a few times and always enjoyed the trails and views, finding and planning the hikes however was never easy. Your site has saved me countless hours planning my next trip’s hikes, thank you! Seriously, the Taiwan Tourism Bureau should be paying you a salary! P. S: I’ve noticed that a few of the GPX links are dead in your older posts.”
Simon, thank you very much for the tip, and apologies that I can’t reply to you directly. It’s the one downside of using PayPal. I’m very happy to hear that you find the site useful, and thanks for the heads up about the GPX links. I’m in the process of going back through and fixing them one at a time but it’s slow going! (Update: I think I’ve fixed them all.)
The Rosenburg Family
11th September 2023
“Hi! We’re traveling with our 3 daughters in Taiwan and your blog and trail recommendations have quite literally made our trip 🙂 There’s so little information in English about trails and hikes in Taiwan your blog and Google Map has been incredibly useful. Thanks a ton!“
Joseph P.
29th August 2023
“Thank you so much for all your hints.”
Jos & Marjan V.
31st July 2023
“We just booked tickets to visit Taiwan in October! We have visited Taiwan several times for work, but now we will be visiting the country to just have fun! We love nature, hiking and biking so when I found your site, I was so excited! It gives me a lot of pre-trip fun and it allows me to prepare in a lot of detail.”
J & M, Paypal doesn’t allow me to reply to you directly, so I will have to do it here. Thank you for the contribution, and I really hope your trip to Taiwan is as fun as all the planning you’ll be doing before you arrive!
L.K.S.
22nd June 2023
This mystery person left no comment, so thank you, and I hope you’re having fun in the hills.
Sharlene
26th May 2023
“Been reading your blog and I love how informative and easy to read everything is. Please keep on writing.”
I intend to!
Oleg D.
8th May 2023
“Thank you so much for your writing.”
John S.
13th April 2023
“Thank you for the helpful & thoughtful trail information.“
Amy
5th April 2023
“Thanks for keeping up such a great site – super informative and useful!“
Vincent
4th March 2023
“I have been in Taiwan for 4 years, and discovering your blog has certainly been a great contribution to making this time so special. I love the way you write, that it is so accurate and useful; and at the same time the nice storytelling. Merci!”
Kin
16th February 2023
“Thank you for great trail details, giving me confidence to plan my Taiwan hikes from Singapore.“
Ms. Zhang
10th February 2023
Ms. Zhang didn’t leave any message. Thank you, mysterious person.
Joseph C.
6th February 2023
“Really appreciate the content.”
@foreigndevil666
20th January 2023
“Nice to run into you today!“
I bumped into this “Foreign Devil” in the hills near home and had a brief chat.
Marcela V.
19th December 2022
“Finding your routes in Wikiloc and then finding your website has made such a difference to my life in this country.”
Marcela made her donation through Paypal and left the sweetest longer message. Marcela, if you read this, Paypal doesn’t give me the option to reply, but I was really moved by your words. I wish you have many happy future adventures.
@deepseasee
12th January 2023
“It’s so nice that you’ve carefully archived the information. It’s cool to walk and climb the mountains and roads all over Taiwan!”
Michelle K.
19th December 2022
“Thanks dearly for documenting your adventures, sharing your knowledge, and taking these gorgeous photographs. I’m such a fan of your site!”
This is the first repeat donation received, thank you Michelle! And everyone else, I strongly advise you to subscribe to her and her partner’s Substack newsletter.
Damir
15th November 2022
“What a well-made website, wow! Very much appreciate the options of filtering by difficulty and by area. Will definitely donate again once I actually try one of these hikes!“
Max A.
2nd November 2022
Max didn’t leave a message, just a much-appreciated donation. Thank you, and happy hiking!
Samu
26th October 2022
“Thank you for covering every trail with such precision, I have been on a few hikes following your tips and it was great!”
Sonny H.
17th April 2022
Sonny left nothing except for a generous donation, thank you Sonny!
Vandana
20th March 2021
Vandana left no message, but from the name left along with the donation, I think she is the creative soul behind Anahata Artisan.
Steph
9th March 2022
“We’ve enjoyed so many spectacular hikes using your website and excellent routes. You’ve helped us to explore so many parts of the island that we wouldn’t have been able to access otherwise. Thank you.”
Catherine L.
6th February 2022
“Your account of the Taipei Grand Hike has been invaluable this last week, thank you!”
Catherine has also written about her epic, one-week mud-bonanza challenge. You can find her account of that here.
Jaya
22nd January 2022
Jaya left no message, but we’ve chatted a bit, and she’s a fascinating, prolific creator and lovely human with blogs (multiple!) and a podcast of her own. Check out the Healthy Taiwan podcast if you’re interested in the intersection of Taiwan and wholistic (not a typo) health.
加油
19th November 2021
“Every blog sharing the beauty of Taiwan’s hiking trails is worth supporting. Thank you for lots of great inspiration for my own adventures!”
Michelle K.
7th November 2021
“Thanks for your beautiful site!”
Michelle and her partner, Albert, have an insightful, beautifully written, and often very moving Substack newsletter that I highly recommend you subscribe to. Each week there are two new posts – one English, one Chinese – which dive into a whole host of Taiwan and Taiwan-adjacent subjects.
Blair C.
23rd October 2021
“Something nice.”
Edgar
23rd October 2021
“Love your hiking blog. Even more after I have left Taiwan early this year after 4 years with many trails – some of them inspired by you and some walked earlier than you. Now your blog is like returning to some of the lovely places I have been or discover the ones I had not yet been. Thanks”
Reed
17th August 2021
“I have a hard time defining just how much I love the outdoors of Taiwan and having your site just gives me access to areas that I may never have found. Thank you!”
taiwan trails and tales 