Taroko Gorge

My mother and I visited Taroko Gorge (link to pics) last week, in Hualien County, on the east coast of Taiwan. The National Park enclosing the gorge is perhaps the top tourist destination in Taiwan. It features marble cliffs towering hundreds of feet over crystal blue water. It's quite spectacular. One amazing thing is how fast the place is changing. In Taroko, erosion is not just a theory, it's a daily occurrence. We bought a guide book upon entering the park that was published in 2008. We drove past one trailhead listed in the book on the first day because it was buried in a massive rockslide. I think that's one of the best excuses I've ever had for missing a turnoff. They just built a new road over the pile of rocks. One other trail in the book seemed to have disappeared completely. The trails that were still open were quite enjoyable.

I do have to give myself a little pat on the back for using a few of the fragments of Chinese I know on this trip. People in Hualien weren't as likely to speak English as they are in Hsinchu or Taipei. I rented a car using about half Chinese. The driving was a little sketchy in town but not too bad overall. I've ridden in enough cabs to know that anything goes here, so I didn't stress out too much about following any particular driving etiquette.