January and February were crammed full of things to do. The Lunar New Year was busy. The coronavirus outbreak hit and closed schools, so I worked long hours to compensate for the children being out of school. By the time the weekends rolled around, I was too tired to do anything but find a cute cafe and hunker down.
However an upcoming weekend was a three day weekend and coincided with Emily’s birthday. So Emily and I, fed up with being stuck in the city for so long, decided to take a trip up into the mountains. We were hoping to make it to Alishan, a famous mountain range known for stunning sunrise views of a sea of clouds, but since we booked kind of last minute, everything was sold out or crazy expensive. So we set our sights a little closer to home, on XiTou and the Nature Education Area mentioned by a friend to have good hiking. We found a decent place, booked and waited with eager anticipation for our getaway.
Last Friday morning we caught the train to XinWuRi HSR station and from there caught the 8663 bus to XiTou. There were two accidents on the way, so traffic was terrible and it took three hours to arrive in XiTou. The moment we stepped off the bus, a light drizzle started to sift from the low hanging grey clouds. Not a particularly auspicious start, but we rallied nonetheless.
It was too early to check in, but we walked by our place, which seemed very closed and unoccupied. This was worrisome, but we decided to eat our worries away with fried noodles and ice cream. We found lunch in the little kitschy spread of shops with food and trinkets near the entrance to the park. We still had an hour to kill before check in, and we didn’t want to walk through the park with our luggage, so we backtracked to a cute little cafe I had seen through the bus window.
Owl Bar and Cafe was great. They let us pick leaves to create our own tea. They had a ton of boardgames to play. And the manager had been to Seattle a bunch and so we were able to chat about all the different wonderful places of my hometown. It was a blissful hour of chatting and sipping fresh tea before setting off to find our accommodations.
The place google maps led us to was closed and locked, which immediately ruined the peaceful cafe mood. Trying not to freak out, we called the number and through a rough mix of Chinese and English were able to find our place just a few doors down. Our hotel was a home stay style, and had many features of a grandma’s house, from a Galileo thermometer to floral Victorian couches. But it was comfortable and definitely better than not having a place at all. We dropped our things and made a beeline for the park to take advantage of the last hour before it closed at 5pm.
The entrance fee is 200NT (~$6USD) and we paid happily. The air of the park was crisp and clean. We wandered through a tall copse of trees, pulling out our cameras and snapping away. The silence was mesmerizing after so many months spent wrapped in the constant background hum of traffic and cities. A muffled quiet draped the hills like a favorite old sweater.
We wandered through the nursery, drinking in the beauty of baby pink cherry blossoms against the backdrop of cascading green mountains. The XiTou Nature Education Area is part of an experimental forest grown by the National Taiwan University. As such, with the exception of a small portion, much of the area is cultivated, clean forest with a wide variety of different fauna. The park is a blend of paved roads, groomed walkways and hiking trails that weave and twist through the many different natural attractions. You could wander all day and still not see everything.
With closing time approaching we were heading back when we had our first monkey sighting. It was deep back in the forest, so I was surprised Emily even managed to see it. But there is was bouncing through the tree branches. We were stunned. Apparently the “Don’t Feed the Animals” signs were actually there for a reason.
The next day began with a breakfast of 包子 and black tea delivered to our room at 7:00am. We ate breakfast in bed and despite our intention to get up early and head to the park, we dragged our feet a bit. But we had purchased snacks and were walking through the gate by 8:00am.
We had our sights set on knocking out the hardest hike first, which meant a steep climb to the Astronomical Observatory for about two miles. The hike was challenging, made up of a mix of decrepit stairs and steep incline. When we finally arrived at the summit, the view at the top was...cloudy. Based on the pictures, it would appear on a clear day, the view is amazing. We got to imagine it, while watching a vast sea of clouds roll over the cliffs in sweeping waves, which was cool too. While other hiking parties pulled out entire kitchen sets to cook at the top, we ate our convenience store snacks and peered through the occasional clearing in the clouds at the valley below. We couldn't sit for long though. The air was chilly and we quickly decided to get moving again.
Our way down the mountain proved to be the most arduous task of the day: we had to contend with a hoard of Taiwan Macaques. As we came down the trail, we saw a couple off in the trees. We oooh and ahhhed and kept walking. Then as we came upon another group of hikers, they motioned behind us. I whipped around and there on the path, not even 10 yards behind me, were two monkeys. I darted down the trail and they continued after us, hopping onto the railings on either side of the path in a “Thou Shall Not Pass” signal from the universe. Emily and I took one look and hurried in the other direction.
Alas, the universe was not done with us. As we crossed a suspension bridge, there was a monkey in the trees snacking. He was a safe distance away so we stopped to take a couple pictures. We were still on edge, though, so a rustling in the trees behind us caught our attention. As we watched, a monkey descended from the trees and started to book it across the cables in our direction. A second one dropped down and followed close behind. Feeling bold I tried to snap some pictures as they streaked toward us. Emily urged me to leave it from further down the trail. I took one last picture and then hustled away.
We were nearly at the trailhead when there was a rustling on our right. Five yards off the trail a monkey sat munching in the trees. I could have reached out and pet it's silvery fur (and probably would have lost a finger in the process). We stared, shocked by the number of monkeys that had magically appeared in this part of the forest.
"好危险哦." (Very Dangerous) A fellow hiker warned us as we slipped by. Once we made it to the trailhead, he told us a little more about Taiwan's Macaques; namely that they bite, are aggressive and are not afraid of people. As he talked, the last monkey decided to come see what the fuss was about, traipsing down the trail and sending resting hikers skittering away. Once the monkey found a good spot to chill and scratch, people ventured closer to take pictures.
Running high on adrenaline, we headed off to see the rest of the park, still marveling at our close encounter with the monkeys. We walked along a paved logging road for a ways, before swinging by the Rainbow Bridge Trail and Giant Tree Scenic Platform. We stopped for a quick lunch break which consisted of sausages and whole roasted sweet potatoes (both typical hiking fare in Taiwan). With the boost of energy, we pushed on to the Skywalk. The Skywalk is seven stories above ground, allowing visitors to walk among the forest canopy. It was both nerve-wracking and a unique change of perspective to walk through the tops of the trees and look down at the forest floor way below.
After our foray in the treetops, we trudged on to University Pond, an iconic picture spot for XiTou Nature Education Area. By this point we were struggling. Weary and sore, we barely made it to the pond. When we arrived we discovered that it wasn't the peaceful quiet place of contemplation we were looking for. Instead it was overrun with families and small children. We contemplated pushing on, but on the brink of exhaustion we found a bench and sat for an hour, doodling and writing instead.
It was exactly what was needed. We continued on, refreshed and no longer on the verge of collapse. As we wandered back to the entrance, the sun broke through the clouds and wove in long streams through the trees, washing the forest in a golden glow. We took our time, venturing up promising side paths, and meandering along the main road. All the while, we looked forward to what awaited us at the end: hammocks.
Near the entrance of the park, there is a stretch of groomed forest strung with a mix of wooden and net hammocks. We had seen them on our first night, and all day were looking forward to kicking our feet up and relaxing. We both nabbed a hammock and for a solid 45 minutes rocked and watched clouds float through the sky.
As dusk settled over the mountains, we packed up and headed out. We dragged ourselves to dinner, which was a hearty bowl of ramen, and then traipsed to the Owl Bar and Cafe for some beverages and a game of cards. At the end of the night, we fell into bed, exhausted and content. Total miles walked: 25.6.
This weekend getaway was perfect. I wouldn't say that XiTou is a must-see place if you are only in Taiwan for a short time. But it's a great place that can be reached by public transportation, and will get you out of the city and a breath of fresh air. Up until stepping into the park, I hadn't realized how much I'd missed being in the mountains. Going forward, my focus will be on finding more wonderful hikes and mountain adventures for the last few months here.