Thanks Feiren!! I suppose from Hongshulin MRT it will be very easy to get onto / find the bike path along the river?
If I stay in Pingxi, should I take the 2 down to toucheng or is it better to take the 5 and 9 down to toucheng?
Given it will be a Sat night, would Yilan still be boring? Would there be any nightlife in that area? If not, where do you suggest we stay instead of Yilan (we will be riding from either Fulong or Pingxi (based on your recommendation).
The bike path is next to the Hongshulin MRT station. Easy to find.
You can’t take that 5. It’s a freeway.
You should take the 2 to Toucheng.
Yilan has very little nightlife as far as I know. Maybe someone else on the boards will know of where a foreign pub is or where the EDM people congregate. Plenty of KTVs I’m sure if you like to sing.
try the Caoling Tunnel from Fulong when heading towards Toucheng. It gets you off the 2 for a while, which is a road that really sucks with trucks.
http://tour.ntpc.gov.tw/page.aspx?wtp=3&wnd=314
And you might find more nightlife in Jiaoxi, rather than Yilan or Luodong. Hot springs, folks down from Taipei, etc. etc.
I would say Luodong is the best place for stuff to do at night. There is a very popular night market there and (FWIW) it’s a college town too, I’m pretty sure. There have been parties or live music around the night market when I’ve been there in the past. As far as clubs go, I have no clue. I’ve never even bothered with that stuff when I’ve been on the east coast.
Here’s how I would ride from Hongshulin to Toucheng via Pingxi.
bikemap.net/en/route/2496117 … &gsc.tab=0
Note that after Jiufen I have chosen a route through the hills that involves some short climbs of intermediate difficulty by Taiwan standards. If you don’t like this kind of terrain, you can ride with the trucks on the 2 instead. This route will take you onto the backroads where Taiwan’s best riding is.
I can’t draw on the bike paths by the rivers, so please check this to understand where the bike paths actually are. Unbelievably I can’t easily locate a simple map showing the bike paths in Taipei… Edit. Here is one that might help. blog.taiwan-guide.org/wp-content … ke-map.jpg.
Thanks everyone for the help!
We stopped at Pingxi for our first night and am on day 2 now. Stopping for lunch at Fulong and will restart soon through the Caoling Tunnel as suggested by Feiren.
Despite a broken tube as well as broken rear fender this ride has been amazing so far!
Great. I for one would enjoy hearing your reports from the road if you have time.
Me too. Keep us posted.
Right after we left for lunch we found out my friend’s bike had a flat tire. And he’s riding an e-bike which has a larger wheel therefore the numerous bike shops in Fulong didn’t have a spare tube. We ended up having to take the train to Luodong to get it fixed.
We ended up just riding back to Yilan where we had originally booked a nicer hotel to stay overnight.
Today we rode the 9 all the way down to Suao. We met two other Singaporeans along the way so we ended up riding with them. However they were much more adventurous than us and decided to ride from Suao to Hualien. We decided to take the train instead (for those taking the train make sure you check the schedule ahead of time as we had to wait over 2 hours for the next train. There’s also two stations in suao so make sure you go to the correct one).
We got off at Xincheng and from there we rode the 8 to see the Toroko Gorge. After that we took the 9 all the way to Hualien. Overall today’s ride was quite flat although riding on the 9 didn’t provide a lot of scenery…
The 9 sucks. Don’t ride it again on your trip. It defeats me when I see folk riding that, day after day. The 9 is for cars.
From Hualien you take the #193 (which sucks in town, but gets gorgeous after) or coastal #11.
Or, if you want flat, there are plenty of beautiful roads that run parallel to the #9 the whole way down the Huadong valley.
[quote=“Nuit”]The 9 sucks. Don’t ride it again on your trip. It defeats me when I see folk riding that, day after day. The 9 is for cars.
From Hualian you take the #193 (which sucks in town, but gets gorgeous after) or coastal #11.
Or, if you want flat, there are plenty of beautiful roads that run parallel to the #9 the whole way down the Huadong valley.[/quote]
Yes, the 9 is flat, boring, and has too much fast traffic. To be avoided at all costs as you have done according to your itinerary for the valley.
Unfortunately the 9 is flat and boring after Taidong as well although at least it is next the ocean. If I were you, I would consider taking the train from Taidong to Dawu. There are local trains at 6:30 am and 5:18pm that you should be able to take your bike on. You could also get off at a stop along the way. Jinlun would be a good choice because you can ride up the valley and check out the hot springs etc. If you do this, you will have time to ride the 23 from Fuli to Donghe, which is strongly recommended in addition to Ruisui to Dagangkou. The 702 leaving at 9:53am also has a car which you can put your bike on.
That’s Feiren’s idea of ‘flat’ then! I can think of at least 2 long hills from Taidong to Dawu. Which makes his train suggestion an even better idea.
That’s Feiren’s idea of ‘flat’ then! I can think of at least 2 long hills from Taidong to Dawu. Which makes his train suggestion an even better idea.[/quote]those hills are pretty flat compared to biking up hwy 9 after DaRen or the ups and downs on 199/200/26 on the east coast going towards kending. Or crossing from the rift valley to the coast on Hwy 23.
tbh - One of the biggest reasons for taking the train from Taidong to Dawu is that you can go from DaWu to Kending in one day instead of staying getting stuck with 1.5 days and nowhere to stay for the last 1/2+ day until kending.
There. I have completed my journey as planned. Here’s a 12 point summary of my Journey.
Cyclist Type: 50+yo Singaporean Chinese, enthusiast roadie with MTB and Triathlon background with 300km each week for past year on road bike. First time in Taiwan, first time in mountains (highest point in Singapore is 150 odd meter), first time touring.
Eating: Days on mountain passes - heavy dinner, light breakfast; days on flats - normal dinner, heavy breakfast.
What I did? Roll off each day at 6:30am, arriving at various noon times. Somehow, I ended up doing a Yinyang symbol like shape. Day 01, Taipei to a B&B along #7 called Shabaling, an accomodation 200m from the entrance to Lalashan, Day 02, to Nanshan, Day 03, to Hehuanshan, Day 04, to Sun Moon Lake, Day 06, to Taichung, Day 07, train (815NT, bike goes free) to Hualien (my plan was to bike to Hualien in reverse but the ride up Hehuanshan got me into AMS so much so I rested 2 days at SML and my resting heart rate at night up Hehuanshan was 86), Day 08, to Taitung on Highway 11, train to Kaoshiung, Day 09, HSR (1430NT, 200NT more if before 8pm) to Taipei. All rides, basically non stop, no lunch just munches. I didn’t book stays in advanced, just search for one upon arrival.
Most Challenging Ride? Up Hehuanshan.
Most Exhilarating Ride? Down from Hehuanshan to Sun Moon Lake. No pedaling required.
Longest Ride? Hualien to Taitung. The Dongbei Fong didn’t seem to be on my back and though it’s along the East Coast, it surely didn’t feel flat as I had expected.
Longest Day? Hualien 6:30am to Taitung, clean up at Taitung station, had quick beef noodles at 7-11, catch 8pm train to Kaoshiung, arrive Kaoshiung at 11pm, find a place to stay. Slept at 2am. Passing the Tropic of Cancer was memorable, at the 70km marker.
Best Stay / Worst Stay? Grano House, at NT1100. Taichung. Next to Fengchia Night Market, where I bought a pair of walk abouts for 390NT. Wen Ming Hotel, Sun Moon Lake at NT1000 - not a place to rest after Hehuanshan.
My Bike? Surley Long Haul Trucker sized 54 with 70mm riser stem (I’m 1.76m, 0.84m inseam, 65kg), rented 600NT/day, for 10 days from Alan’s Bike Shop in Taipei (friendly lady boss, Yen, proficient Mechanic), got a discount too; fitted with Ortlieb Rear Panniers and Shimano XT drive train, hubs with Kendas. No puncture, 60psi all the way from start to completion. I’d have no other for this duty. I brought my Shimano XT pedals. No electronics on this bike. I relied totally on free HERE Maps on my SIM-less Windows phone for direction, not navigation.
People I Met? Singaporean couple Tony and Mary doing Round Taiwan on their foldies, didn’t note the brand but appears worthy of duty; British Anthony, mountain climber on his new Tern doing North South via the mountain passes, Anthony is touring solo, like me, though he would rather have water proof panniers; a Singaporean young man going everywhere in Taiwan on his Bike Friday for 30 days, though he wished he had used a 26incher.
Most Dangerous Moments? Firstly, I was not prepared for Hehuanshan since I traveled really light with only 2 t-shirts, 1 jersey, just my SIDI shoes and a wind breaker I bought at Alan’s. Secondly, At Sun Moon Lake, I discovered both my MTB cleats were loose, that was after the entire 3275m descent. Thirdly, en route to Hehuanshan from Nanshan/Lishan in the mountain passes, I encountered falling stones the size of my fists or larger. The Surley and Kendas held up well as I raced out of that stones hewn section fast as I could.
Funniest Moment? Shirtless guy on motorbike in Taipei, at traffic stop, turned to look at me, and said “it’s a hot day to be cycling”.
Others riding for the first time in Taiwan please note this point. You must be prepared for cold, wet weather above 1000 meters and especially on the high passes above 2000 meters. It can very cold even in the summer and the weather changes very quickly.
Yep, the weather on Taiwanese mountains gives you feeling of having suddenly changed country: 5 minutes earlier you’re sweating and hoping for some fresh breeze, and then suddenly you’re welcomed by the cold embrace of the Frozen Wind of Destiny (usually that’s how I describe that kind of wind to my European friends and they always think that’s its real name).
Which is a better ride? From Nanshan or from Hualien up Hehuanshan? Also, a guy I met at Taichung said he could cycle Hualien to Taitung on #11 in 6 hours. For the life of me, I will have to be pretty strong to get that done. I did not have a computer on bike but bikemap.net says 169km.
I think it’s doable, but you need to be VERY fit and have a very light bike. That would be an average of almost 30km/h, I can do that on a flat road for up to a couple of hours when I ride my carbon bike, but would never manage to do it steadily for 6 hours.
If it’s a planned trip from A to B with no extra weight on the bike (light bike + water and that’s it), and the guy is extremely well fit, ok.
If he’s claiming to do that on a touring bike with rack, bags etc then I’m calling bs xD
Both rides from Nanshan or Hualien are outstanding. Riding up from Nanshan makes a lot of sense if you are coming off the Northern Cross as you should be (Sanxia to Yilan 7). I can give you a map with some interesting back roads. The Nanshan climb is easier in my opinion.
But I prefer riding up from Hualien. The slow climb give you a chance to savor the beauty of the gorge and Taroko National Park. Guanyun is a good place to stop for the night. There is a CYC hostel there that is very reasonable.
Some guy from Australia has rated it the second best climb in the world. sbs.com.au/cyclingcentral/st … the-planet.
IMO, the best ride in Taiwan is the Southern Cross. See the threads here. Won’t reopen till May if then.
Can anyone tell me where was this place I went to and stayed at, please? It should be on either #7 or #8, before or after the Ming Chih Forest Recreation Area.
plus.google.com/photos/10279700 … qXTsdy-1wE
