Hello! i am excited to go on a cycling trip down the east coast during chinese new year. I would really appreciate any advice anyone has!! here are some of my main questions:
any general tips and suggestions would be wonderful. thankyou!
Tara shvara5@hotmail.com
mmm… rainy season! actually, you may catch the good weather break after the winter rain and before the plum rains of late spring.
traffic: sucks on the coast at that time. road conditions: suck inland at most times, but better then than after typhoon season. the coast road is pretty flat and more enjoyable, while the central hghway is VERY STEEP in many sections and VERY HIGH…like 3000m plus, which makes for slow tiring cycling.
many traffic signs are bilingual, especially the larger ones with distance markings. smaller location signs are often in chinese only, or painted in some weird kind of rust on a delightful rust background… the rest are pictograms that make equal sense in any language. the traffic can be horrendous not in the number of vehicles but in their behaviour… beware of gravel trucks and tour buses, many will ignore you tho some do give you more room.
beware of narrow long tunnels with no shoulder and waterfalls inside: they are signposted “no bicycles” but you have no option in most (in some you can go around the outside on the old road, often degenerated to a walking track, but some are completely missing any other way around).
as for how far in 5-6 hours: how long is a piece of string? on the right road in the right weather and on the right bike, i can do 200km in six hours, on the wrong road and with a heavy bike i can do 50 km in six hours. how fit are you? what kind of gear do you intend to bring? what kind of bike?
Wowsers 200km in 6 hours, you are my new hero…ever since Tom Hill went off the rails.
Mittens:
Don’t even think about riding between Ilan and Hualien. Way too much traffic and way too many trucks.
I recommend riding from Hualien down to Taidong. You get a good tailwind.
If you are doing this for the first time, I highly recommend the coast highway (11).
By the inland highway I assume you mean highway 9 going down the rift valley. The rift valley is a great ride, but there are better ways to do it than 9. Highway 9 is doable since there usually isn’t all that much traffic but it’s a big road with fast traffic and the side roads down the valley are much quieter and prettier.
My Great Taiwan Bike Rides: Part II covers a somewhat more challenging variation on this route. I think if you bu some maps and 7-11 and use my ride description as a starter, you should be able to do the back roads all the way down. There is only one short section between Yuli and Rueisuei that you pretty much have to stay on 9.
Urodacus is talking about the cross-island highways They are much harder.
Most signage on Highways 9 and 11 will be bilingual. There will be very little English on the back roads of the Rift Valley. But don’t worry–there’s no where to get really vefry lost and the people are incredibly friendly and will go out of their way to help. Don’t worry about language–just go.
Here’s the deal with the New Year. There will be very little traffic (where you will be) on New Year’s Eve. the first and the second. But on the third watch out, because all of Taiwan will be on the road and finding places to stay will become a problem.
I would recommend shipping your bikes by train from Wanhua or Songshan Station (can’t from Taipei) two days before New Year’s Eve. On New Year’s Eve take the train down to Hualien and start your adventure. End up in Taidong on the third and head home.
One thing to note if you do decide on back routes (which are great). The 195 from Hualien to Ruesui is a fantastic road. Quiet, scenic. Relatively flat. But you can’t ride the 197 south of Fuli all the way to Taidong unless you are willing to ride over 14km on pure gravel (not dirt but loose gravel). Follow Feiren’s plan and take the 195 to Ruesui, the 64 east to the coast (and that is a gorgeous route). You’ll then be able to ride on a dedicated bike path (beside the hwy) for 20km or so. Then it would be only 30 km on the hwy before you could turn west onto the quiet hwy 23 and up to the even quieter county road 23 and across to the 197 and down to Taitung.
Are you planning on camping or what?
i was thinking you meant the road taipei-taoyuan-lalashan-nanshan-wulong farm-lishan-hehuanshan-etc. cant recall the road numbers off the top of my head. anyway, unless you like to take a long time and are really fit, don’t ride the high mountain roads no matter which route you stitch together… bad road conditions, poor weather, few suitable places to stay or camp, etc.
there isn’t really a central north-south road, but you can cobble one together by zig-zagging and climbing up and down a lot. the scenery is sensational tho, and worth the effort to say you have cycled at those altitudes. then you fall down from near the top of Jade mountain all the way to taitung. bring spare brake pads.
there are many smaller and more enjoyable roads that parallel the east coast highway in some areas, but in some places there are none, and you have to share with the traffic. pleasant enough cycling, but beware the traffic.
ilan to hualien you have few options other than highway 9 (i think that’s the number). further south of hualien your options improve a lot. the rift valley is really pretty but not as spectacular as the coast. feiren obviously knows the roads better than i do. follow his suggestions.
don’t know about further south than taitung.
i would choose to ride the mid west coast southwards, on provinical highway 3. not too steep or high, very scenic, road condition generaly pretty good, plenty of 7/11s to stock up at, and lots of min su to stay at. and then come back up the east coast away from the actual new year period to hualien, then get the train home.
thank you all for the advice! i have an idea in my mind now. i live in kaohsiung, so i’ll probably train/fly/bus to hualien and stay there for 2 nights, using one of the days to go into taroko. then i will head down to taitung, using hwy 9 or 11… maybe both? i see that hwy 23 connects the two north of taitung, has anyone used it?
i was considering heading south from taitung to kending, or at least to dawu, and then catching a train/bus home. any advice for hwy 9 south of taitung?
also, i don’t speak a word of chinese, i’ll bring a phrasebook with me, does this sound okay?
i’m excited! i’ve been riding alot the last few days and i can’t wait.
thanks a bunch… it always amazes me how helpful foreigners are to newbies like me! Gracias!
[quote=“MittensAlive”]thank you all for the advice! i have an idea in my mind now. i live in kaohsiung, so i’ll probably train/fly/bus to Hualian and stay there for 2 nights, using one of the days to go into taroko. then i will head down to Taidong, using hwy 9 or 11… maybe both? i see that hwy 23 connects the two north of Taidong, has anyone used it?
[/quote]
Yes. It’s a good 30 km ride through the coastal range. It’s a steeper climb up from the valley. Bring plenty of water if you go this way since there aren’t any shops in this direction for the first 15km or so. Great ride.
Don’t do it. Lots of truck traffic between Taidong and Kaohsiung plus a boring big road by the ocean with lots of traffic whooshing by. Take 197 out of Taidong and loop around the Rift Valley some more instead.
[quote]
also, i don’t speak a word of chinese, i’ll bring a phrasebook with me, does this sound okay?[/quote]
You’ll be fine. In fact, I wouldn’t bother with the phrase book. If you really speak no Chinese at all it will be more hindrance than help. Trust me on this. Point and use body language. There will often be SOMEONE around who speaks at least some English.
[quote]
i’m excited! i’ve been riding alot the last few days and i can’t wait.
thanks a bunch… it always amazes me how helpful foreigners are to newbies like me! Gracias![/quote]
You’ll have a great time!
I have a question on bike transport here - I went to Kenting by bus from Taipei with my Bike because the train would not allow me to cargo my bicycle. THis was no problem with the bus- and the bus was cheaper. But, I do not think you can take your bike on any train here- but please correct me if I am wrong. Oh and one key question too, I think the wind blows from the North to the South here on the East side right…? That would be a big factor for me (or you) if you are to just go one way down N-S or up S-N. To be honest though I am thinking of doing a big loop of the island - maybe do around 70-100 miles a day. Mmm if there are any guys/gals with road bikes (or are monster bikers and have those weird skinny and smooth tire fitted MTB tires) feel free to PM me. It would be da bomb if you had a wife/husband doing the sag wagon so we could ride unencumbered - I have to help pay for the gas in glorious thanks 
Sweet I am going to do the same thing soon- Maybe this February as well if I do not get a confirmed ticket to Palua. Not to boast and seem Pride filled with a huge view of my bloated legs and unaturally large developed heart and lungs but I did 116 miles in 6 hours in a Race I also happened to win. 
Umm so I like to ride with you but ummm how can I not sound pompous, ok ahh basically I R00Lz any road I am on- unless it is a climb- then my pride is hurt when cars and scooters pass me 
Also, I only brought my road bike- and my guess is you will be doing the massive rolling resistance on a 26 inch MTB. MTB are better when it comes to potholes / gravel though and I have no idea what kind of Mountain roads you are going to roll on.
I just did a Tianjung / Bedou / Jeje / Chuanwa loop only about 50 miles. The lonely planet claims the green tunnel is a magnificent canopy of camphor trees. I have to agree it was nicely tree lined but I ridden better in Southern Illinois. Still it was better than highway one.
Regardless, best of luck Mittens- if I see you I’ll have to let you draft me- or do the cheater push up the climb on the back 