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When people think of Taiwan they might come up with ideas of night markets, computer chips, boba tea, pro-democracy protests, conflict with Mainland China or even the famous pineapples. What I certainly didn’t think of was laid back surf towns that back onto seaward mountain ranges covered in lush sub tropical rainforest. To be honest, I didn’t really know anything about the amazing mountainous areas (including over two hundred 3,000m+ peaks), or the rich history of the indigenous population. All this and more was what we had the pleasure of discovering during our time in Taitung County. We spent a whole week in this area and did loads of great exploring, so buckle up as this is a slightly longer post than normal.
A week was the perfect amount of time to do a mixture of adventuring and chilling. We stayed in a town called Dulan, which had originally come onto our radar from a short surf film we’d seen about Taiwan, called Bouyancy. It shared the story of the owner of a surf shop in the area and showed some great footage of the nearby breaks. This time of year isn’t very consistent with swell, unless a Typhoon is approaching, and then you might get one of two days of good waves, before it gets too big. Josh had been checking the swell forecast, and this was about to happen, with Typhoon Bavi slowly approaching from the South East. We arrived on Thursday 2nd of July, and the waves really weren’t scheduled to start until the following Wednesday. It was the lure of good waves that had brought us to the area, but we had some time to kill before it began.
Up until now accommodation in Taiwan had been bankrupting us (consistently over $50 NZD a night), so we were very happy to find a hostel that had a cheap dorm room. It did not have AC, and we were sleeping on mats on the floor, Japanese style! The first few nights the lack of AC was tough with the high humidity, but as with anything, we did adapt and by the end it was still sweaty, but fine. The hostel was super social and we met loads of great people including two kiwis who we became fast friends with - Elsa and Louis. They were off bike packing for a few days but planned to come back when the swell arrived.
Dulan as a town was small. On our first night Elsa and Louis walked us down the main street and showed us most of the main spots to eat. Everything seemed to work on an unpredictable rotating schedule, so you never really knew what was going to be open each day! There were enough options to keep us fed, and of course we could always rely on the 7/11! We managed to rent some wheels - an old scooter from a Spanish guy who had made Dulan home. It truly seemed to be held together by zip ties, but it got us where we needed to go, including over some higher passes and a couple of more dodgy roads to beaches. With transport, cheap accommodation, great food options and some new friends, we were really excited about our upcoming time here.
The coastline itself really reminded us of the West Coast in New Zealand. The beaches were mostly stony rather than sandy and quite dramatic. The seaward mountain ranges rose directly behind the beaches, with just a small slither of flat land between. These mountains often hold low clouds during the day, especially at this time of year. The coastal road is windy and scenic, with small towns dotted every five to ten minutes. It was a quiet, magical place. Lots of people drive the road in rental cars, so there are many great lookout points. The cycle touring infrastructure here is also really good (did you know Giant bikes come from Taiwan?). You often see signs for cycle rest areas and they have amazing bike lanes, often totally separate from the roads. On the other side of the seaward mountains you have the Eastern Rift Valley, which is known as Taiwan’s rice basket. On the other side of the valley you have the Central Mountain range, which is where the big mountains begin. I know I’m talking about the geography a lot, but it was really stunning and totally unique to anywhere we have been before! It also sets the scene for some of the exploring we did over the next few days.
We spent quite a bit of time driving along the coast searching for swimming spots, nice cafes and good views. We love just pottering around on our little scooter in search of new places and adventures. It was very hot, so plenty of stops in 7/11s or AC cafes were needed. Highlights included a delicious lunch at a small place next to a river, coffee and cinnamon buns while writing postcards home, and the Sanxian arched bridge which was sadly closed, but still looked cool! Each of the towns had their own unique personality, and all had a strong creative flair. Lots of little shops, quirky cafes and amazing creative posters advertising concerts or events going on.
We went for a few hikes while we were in the area which was a really nice way of getting out of the heat and the humidity of sea level, and seeing some different parts of the county. One morning Josh had some work to do, so I went for a hike up Mt. Dulan. It wasn’t a long walk, about 9km total, but it got me up to the tallest point on the seaward mountains which was really cool. By the time I got to the top it was clagged in, but I had some great views on the way up. The forest was super lush, and I spotted heaps of spiders, butterflies and lizards. It was a good opportunity for me to test out how solo walking felt before my upcoming trip to Ladakh (a little lonely, but overall enjoyable!). Josh and I stumbled across another short hike the next day and we had just enough time to do it before it got dark. We followed a river to get views of the gorgeous Xingang Waterfall, and had the most beautiful secluded swim in a canyon below the falls. Perhaps my favorite hike though was the day that we drove across to the mountains on the other side of the Eastern Rift Valley, it was a 90 minute drive, which is a long time on a pretty shitty scooter. The drive was beautiful though, and felt well worth it. We walked 15km out and back sidling up the side of a big river valley. It was actually part of the first day of a multi-day trip, the Walamai Trail, which we will have to come back for! The views both down to the river and up towards the mountains were insane, and we both loved being out of town for most of the day. We found two great waterfalls to swim at, and a delicious coffee and cinnamon bun in town after our walk. The drive home felt particularly long, but we took a different route that wove through the valleys and villages and was incredibly beautiful.
Taitung county is the cultural heartland of Taiwan’s indigenous communities, and has the highest proportion of indigenous residents at 35.5%. The indigenous peoples of Taiwan are believed to be the ancestral source of the Maori people of New Zealand, as well as many other Austronesian peoples across Polynesia, Micronesia, Island South East Asia (including parts of Malaysia and Indonesia), and even Madagascar. We went to a great museum in Taitung city that shared the stories, history and culture of these people, and even had displays that featured New Zealand! Another cool link is that the indigenous Taiwanese carve greenstone, which is also found here in Taiwan. I had a long chat with a local carver who was very complimentary of the way New Zealand designs have put greenstone carving much more on the world map.
After a few days of exploring the swell finally arrived. I went for a walk on Tuesday night and got a view out to the bay and could see some big swell lines on the horizon. The next day Josh, Elsa and Louis all rented boards and were ready and rearing to go. Josh got two fun surfs in on Wednesday at Jinzun main break, and I enjoyed watching. The wave is a fun A-frame, and some of the sets coming through had some serious power to them. After being in Indonesia where the swell is so consistent, it was fascinating to see the same beaches that were flat two days ago suddenly have huge waves! By the next day the waves were too big to surf, but we all went for a drive to watch the giant walls of white wash rolling in. It was so incredibly powerful and crazy to think that it would get even bigger the next few days as the typhoon approached.
That afternoon Josh and I were on the train back to Taipei. We rode right through the Eastern Rift Valley and had some amazing mountain views. When we got further north we joined the coast again and got some final views of the big waves rolling in before we were back into cities and industry. Our week in Dulan was really special, we loved the laid back atmosphere and all the outside adventures we managed to fit in. It’s this side of Taiwan we can’t wait to come back and visit again - the mountains, waterfalls, beaches and waves.