This is an excellent urban cycling path - well built and maintained, and flat the entire way so it's an easy ride. The bike path runs along the top of the flood levy on the south bank of the Lanyang River. On one side you have a view of the Luoyang suburbs (mostly rice paddies and farm houses), and on the other side is the flood plain beside the river. Because the typhoons wash down rich topsoil from the mountains every year, the fertile flood plain is farmed after typhoon season ends. If you ride from fall to spring, you can watch the farmers tending their crops.
The bike path is pretty long, so you can start wherever you want. Riding the entire length and back takes about 2 1/2 hours. It runs from the mouth of the Lanyang River up to the foothills. Halfway along the route you pass by the Luodong Sports Park, which is a big popular park with many recreational facilities. You might want to make a detour and take a look. At the point where the bike path dead ends upstream, it's an easy ride along a local road to get to Meihua Lake (see my post), which is worth a visit. To get to Meihua Lake, ride upstream until the path comes to an end at a traffic roundabout. Cross the roundabout (be careful! - roundabouts are bad news for cyclists) and take the road going downhill. After a couple of minutes you will see a brown sign pointing the way to the lake. Turn right and follow this road to the lake. There are some shops along this road selling snacks in case you're hungry or thirsty.
One great thing about this bike path is its central location. It connects with several other bike paths, so from here you can get to quite a few places. If you cross over to the north bank of the river at the 
Qingzhou Bridge 清洲橋, you can get on the Annong River Bike Path 安農溪自行車道, which you can ride as far as Sanxing 三星,which is popular with Taiwanese tourists. Near the mouth of the Lanyang River, you can cross over to the north side and get on the Coastal Bike Path (see my post), which I highly recommend. Or, near the mouth of the Lanyang River you can turn right and follow the little local roads south to get on the short southern Coastal Bike Path, or else the Dongshan River Bike Path 冬山河自行車道 which runs through Dongshan River Park next to the Center for Traditional Performing Arts. You can also easily get to several smaller bike paths from here, or else explore the surrounding neighborhoods.
If you don't have a bike, you can rent one at Meihua Lake. To get to the river from the lake, just take the road away from the lake and turn left at the first corner. Follow this road uphill for a few minutes to the traffic roundabout. On the other side is the beginning of the Lanyang River Bike Path.
One problem with this bike path is that there's almost no shade - you're exposed to the sun almost the entire way. On a summer day, it will be a really hot ride. Be sure to put on sunscreen, wear a hat, and drink plenty of water.
This is a prime bird watching area. From fall to spring, when it's not raining there are always some bird watchers from Taipei here every weekend.
Before the Han came to Yilan, this area was originally a swamp. Settlers cleared and drained it and turned it into rice paddies. However, unlike the south, where farmers can get three crops of rice per year, here they only get one crop due to the cooler weather. The rest of the time the fields are fallow. In winter the fields are empty of vegetation, but the rains fill the paddies with a thin layer of water, recreating wetland conditions which are perfect feeding grounds for many types of birds.
Starting in October, migratory birds start to arrive in this area. Some are just passing through on the way to areas farther south, while others spend the winter here. In all bird watchers have spotted more than 170 species of birds in the area - an impressive number for such a small place. These include some big birds (cranes, egrets, herons, ducks) as well as many smaller wetland birds and song birds. Some of the endangered black spoonbills pass through here on the way to nesting grounds in the south. And occasionally a small group of black spoonbills will spend the entire winter here, attracting a horde of excited bird watchers every day.
There are three types of migratory birds here. Some spend the summers in places farther north (Siberia, Korea, Hokkaido, Manchuria) then fly south to spend the winter here. Other birds (such as geese) spend the summers in places to the north, then fly through here on their way to winter feeding grounds in the south (such as the Philippines or Vietnam). A third kind of migratory bird spends the summers in Taiwan then flies south to spend the winter in tropical regions.
Because the little roads between the rice paddies are so narrow, getting around by bicycle is ideal. Also, a bicycle is quiet so it won't scare away the birds. But a car or scooter is also ok. There are a
couple of good bicycle paths nearby (see my posts about Coastal Cycling Path and the Dezikou River Bike Path) so you can take a spin after you've gotten your fill of bird watching.
Because the birds move around, it's impossible to predict where they will be on a given day. But from October to April you can always find some interesting birds here. If you have a camera with a long lens, you can get some great shots of birds here as there is no vegetation to obscure them.
To get here, go down the main street of Jiaoxi (road 9) and turn onto the street next to the post office. (The scallion pancake stand on the right is locally famous, by the way. On weekends it attracts long lines.) Turn right at the dead end at the end of the street. Take the first left, after the convenience store and next to the steamed bun shop (which also attracts long lines of customers). Cross over the railroad tracks and just keep going straight for a few kilometers until you see an enormous metal sculpture of a giant shrimp on your right. (This area used to have lots of shrimp farms.) Turn right at the shrimp and cross over the bridge. The street on the other side of the bridge is called Wendi Road 塭底路. The rice paddies on the right side of the street (toward the mountains) constitute the Wendi Wetlands. Just turn off Wendi Road as soon as you can and start to explore the little roads amoung the rice paddies until you find a place with lots of birds.
The dedicated cycling path that runs along the coast of Jiaoxi and Zhuangwei townships is without question the best bicycle route in Yilan. It runs between two rivers, with a total length of 14.5 kilometers. The sand beach is gorgeous and usually empty - most Taiwanese don't like beaches. Along the entire route the condition of the path is excellent. This path used to be a military road where soldiers rode aound in jeeps and patrolled the coast. After martial law was lifted and beaches opened to the public, the government turned the military road into a dedicated bike path. Occasionally a rude fisherman or tourist will drive a car or scooter along the path (even though it's illegal) but the path is usually empty of traffic.
There is a barrier running along the entire coast which protects the inhabitants from communist invaders, typhoon storm surges, and tsunamis. For most of the route, the bike path runs along the top of the barrier, although it goes down on one side or the other in places. Because the barrier (and bike path) goes up and down, it provides a variety of scenery and also some good exercise. A round trip ride is less than two hours.
The north point of the path is pretty ugly - for the first kilometer you ride past the river flood plain and concrete flood barriers. Then you get some very nice views of the sea and of course Guishan 
island. You pass a military base parallel with the town of Dafu 大福. If you want something to eat or drink, you can ride down to the main coastal highway here. There is a 7-11 in the village, next to the police station.
Sometimes the bike path is closed in front of the base when soldiers practice firing their big guns over the ocean. A bored-looking soldier stationed on the road will tell you that it's closed. In that case you just have to go over to the coastal highway and ride down the road until you see a little path that leads you back toward the beach.
The southern half of the bike path has much more foliage. You can't see the ocean for most of the way here, but you get some shade and the coastal forest is attractive. The path dead ends at the point where the Lanyang and Yilan Rivers come together and empty into the ocean. There is a flood plain here which is good for bird watching in winter and spring.
The beach is perfect for swimming - it's extremely shallow near
the shore, so it's very safe. In most 
places there aren't any people, so you can go down and enjoy your private stretch of (swimsuit optional) beach. Considering how crowded the beaches are at Baishawan and Feicuiwan, the long empty beach here is an amazing luxury.
Watch out for sand drifts. Sometimes lots of sand blows onto the bike path where it runs close to the beach. The local sand is incredibly fine, so it can be very slippery when it accumulates. And once I saw a cobra here - it's the only time I've ever seen a cobra in Taiwan. I came up on it from behind and took it by surprise, and it reared up and hissed at me. It scared me so much I almost fell off my bike. But I've ridden that path many times and only saw a cobra once, so don't let that put you off.
You can get onto the bike path in lots of places - there are access roads running from the coastal highway down to the beach along the entire length. For more information see my posting on Yongzhen Beach.
This trail is a short and easy walk up a mountain called Guishan 龜山 (not Guishan island - this is a different Guishan) next to Nanao harbor. Even though you're walking uphill most of the time, it isn't very steep, and the trail is excellent - mostly stairs made from soil and rock held together by large blocks of wood. Because the mountain is next to the sea, there is a spectacular view of the ocean from the top and at various points on the way up.
The only bad thing about this trail is that it only goes for about a kilometer. You can go up and back in about an hour, although will surely want to linger at the top and enjoy the sea view. Considering how remote Nanao is, it really isn't worth coming here just for this trail. You should try to do something else in the area while you're here. However, since Nanao is on the road between Yilan and Hualian, this is the perfect stopover.
I saw lots of mushrooms growing by the side of the trail - many different species. I've never seen so many kinds of weird mushrooms. And next to the train station in town, there was a woman selling 
different types of (presumably edible) wild mushrooms. They seem to be a local specialty.
Nanao 南澳 is on the twisty little road between Suao and Hualian. To get there from Hualian, just drive north. From Yilan, take the No. 5 highway south until it ends at Suao. Then follow the signs guiding you toward Hualian. Do NOT follow the signs toward Nanfangao 南方澳. Although Nanao and Nanfangao sound similar, they are in opposite directions. The road toward Hualian is pretty bad - it's just one lane each way, and there are always lots of big gravel trucks driven by insane idiots, so the road is slow, annoying, and dangerous. You're pretty much guaranteed to get stuck behind a slow moving gravel truck, so just relax and enjoy the scenery. The drive from the end of the highway to Nanao will take about 45 minutes. Before you get to Nanao, you will see a set of huge wooden signs on the right directing you toward the Chaoyang trail and other attractions. If you get lost, just head toward Nanao harbor. The start of the trail is well marked, and is right next to the harbor.
Another way to get to Nanao is to take the train. The train station is some distance from the mountain, but there is a shop in front of the station (on the right hand side) which rents out bicycles and scooters. Some bike trails around the mountain and surrounding farmland which have been marked out, and it looks like a nice place for a relaxing ride.
This is one of the most famous trekking trails in Yilan.There are always some people on the trail, but you don't have to worry about crowds. The trail is an old Qing dynasty road which used to be the main route into northern Yilan county. The trail runs from the town of Dali 大理 in Yilan county, through the mountains, and down to a riverside park a few kilometers above Fulong 福隆 beach in Taipei county. The two towns are connected by railroad, so it's very convenient to make a circuit. It is also very accessible from Taipei by train, and makes an excellent day trip for anyone who wants to get out of the city and enjoy nature.
There is just one problem with this trail - the trailhead on the Fulong side is several kilometers from the train station, and there isn't any reliable public transportation. So if you come out on this side, you have to walk down the mountain beside a busy road. For this reason, you should definitely start on the Fulong side and finish up at Dali.
I suggest you start the trip by taking the train to Fulong. This is easy to reach from either Taipei or Yilan. If you want, you can go to the beach at Fulong, or else rent bicycles and explore the area. There are several kilometers of cycling paths around the town.
When you are ready to start walking, you can get a taxi in front of the train station and go to the trailhead. This is in a pleasant riverside park. If you like, you can go down to the river and go for a swim. The cool water feels wonderful on a hot day, and some stretches of the park are really beautiful.
When you're ready, just start walking up the trail. The path is made from large flat stones and is well maintained. At first you will pass through some fields with water buffalo. Then a humid rainforest. The stones get slippery here, so be careful. The trail slopes gently uphill for the first 2/3 of the route. It's not very difficult. You will pass two old inscribed stone tablets, which are major tourist attractions.
There are lots of bilingual signs along the way explaining historical facts and introducing the flora and fauna, and maps along the way showing how far along the route you have come.
Eventually the forest thins out and you are walking through a grassy mountain landscape. During the descent down into Yilan, there are spectacular views of the ocean and Lanyang plain.
At the Dali end of the trail there is a visitor's center complete with coffee shop, so you can sit down in the air conditioning and relax with a cappucino if you feel like a taste of civilization. From here you can walk down to the main road, turn right, and walk a hundred meters or so down to the train station to get home.
This is a short but high quality cycling path just to the north of Jiaoxi. I have also seen it referred to as the Shanming 善明 or Ercheng 二城 bike path.
The best place to get on the bike path is Road 2 - the main road from Jiaoxi and Toucheng. If you're heading north from Jiaoxi, after you pass the Number 5 highway interchange, you will soon come to a little bridge beside two little temples. These are Fude temple 福德廟 and Ruiyang temple 瑞陽廟. There is a little parking lot between them. Also near the bridge is Yingfeng 迎風 cafe and a concrete pillar erected by the Lions club. An excellent large 
bilingual map standing at the start of the bike path will get you oriented.
The bike path follows the river on both sides. The best part of path heads west (upsteam toward the mountains). This is an incredibly wide dedicated bicycle path - bigger and better than a lot of country roads. And the river along this stretch has been beautifully landscaped. To the side of the path are rice paddies and guava orchards. Everything about this streth of the path is wonderful. The only problem is - it's really short. If you ride down to the highway underpass and back, it will take less than ten minutes.
However, there are a couple of things you can do while you're here. 
Once you get to the highway, you can park your bike and walk up the stone and concrete path that runs next to the river. This leads to Houdong Waterfall. (see my blog entry) which is well worth the 15 minute walk.
Afterwards you can get back on your bike and explore the neighborhood on the other side of the highway overpass. The neighborhood that runs near the mountains has some pleasant parts, as houses alternate with fields.
Head back to the two temples, cross over the bridge, and keep going east (downstream) along the river. This bike path is much narrower, but it's in decent shape. The only problem is that every time the path intersects with a street, there are metal barriers to keep scooters off the bike path. Unfortunately, these also block bicycles, so you have to stop and lift your bike over the barrier. It's an odd design, but not a problem.
This stretch is nice, but not nearly as scenic as the path upstream. Even so, in summer the rice paddies that line river are beautiful. In winter the paddies just empty mud, but you will have a chance to see some migratory birds.
Feel free to get off the bike trail and explore the little roads that cut through the rice paddies. The landscape is flat and you won't encounter many cars here, so it's easy cycling.
When the bike trail comes to an end, if you like you can get on the little road beside the river and 
keep going. This will take you all the way to where the Houdong River merges into larger rivers and eventually to the sea. The landscape becomes steadily less scenic as you pass by industrial areas and fish ponds.
If you just do the dedicated bicycle path along the river, the whole route will take less than half an hour. But this path is just the starting point for investigating the surrounding little country roads and rice paddies. You can spend as much time as you want cycling around the area.
Even though almost no one ever swims here, this is probably the best swimming beach in north Taiwan.
The beach extends all the way along the coast of Yilan township, from the Yunyu River on the north to the Lanyang River on the south. The beach stretches a total of about 13 kilometers. For most of the way it is completely undeveloped. The beach has extremely fine gray sand. Because the sand is dark, it heats up in summer, so bring a towel and flip flops. The beach is usually pretty clean - because it faces the open Pacific, there isn't much garbage floating in, and the typhoons scour the beach clean a few times a year. There are some concrete seawalls to keep the beach from eroding in several places, but most of the way it's still natural.
The coastal road runs parallel to the beach the entire way. There is a large earthen embankment between the road and the beach. I'm not sure if this was built for military defense or as a barrier against storm surges and tsunamis. Along the embankment is a wonderful bike trail which runs the length of the beach.
The amazing thing about this beach is that almost no one swims here. Compared to the famous beach at Waiao, which has a strong current, this beach is much safer. The water near the shore is quite shallow, there isn't a noticeable undertow in the places I've been swimming, and the waves are small.
Even so, most Taiwanese are have an irrational terror of the ocean and would never dream of swimming here. Taiwanese tourists who come near the ocean always put one foot in and scream like the water is killing them - they expect to be grabbed by a giant squid, mauled by a shark, and shocked by electric eels within seconds of entering the water.
There are a couple of places where tourists go to walk on the beach. But for most of the length of this beach, there is only the occasional old guy fishing. In most places the beach is completely deserted, even on weekends. The fact that there is an almost infinite empty perfect beach in north Taiwnan, just an hour drive from Taipei, is truly amazing. If you forget your swim suit, just find and isolated spot and go swimming in your underwear ... or less.
In any Western country this beach would be prime real estate and packed full of people. It's great that Taiwanese people are terrified of the ocean, because this means that any foreigner who comes here will have a 13 kilometer long private beach.
Since the famous surfing beach at Waiao has become so crowded with kooks, the real surfers have started looking for new surfing spots. Recently I've noticed surfers on this beach at two spots north of the town of Dafu 大福. When the surf is decent, this beach seems to be as good for surfing as Waiao. And this beach is so long, surfers haven't even begun to explore most of it. I'm sure that the best surfing spots have yet to be discovered.
To get to this beach, just go to the coastal road in Jiaoxi township. Every so often you will notice a narrow paved road or walking trail which will take you up from the coastal road, over the tsunami barrier, across the bike path, and down to the beach. If you poke around it isn't hard to find a way to get down to the beach.
There is one spot with a parking lot and running water to wash off. This is the Zhuangwei Coastal Park 壯圍海濱公園. To get there, head down the coastal road until you reach Zhuangbin Road Section 4 壯濱路四段. You will come to a large temple called Kaizhang Shengwang Temple 開漳聖王廟. To the left of the temple is a little road which leads up to a parking lot.
This park area has a great boardwalk which is perfect for walking above the beach and enjoying the view, complete with covered places to sit. This is a good place to get a view of Guishan Island
.
If you like you can go down to the beach here and swim. Afterwards you can wash off at the taps near the parking lot. Unfortunately, these aren't showers - they're meant for people to wash their feet after walking on the beach. (Surely no one would be crazy enough to swim in the ocean!) But you can bend over and splash water around to wash off after a swim.
This bike path passes through the Wendi wetlands, one of the most famous bird watching spots in northern Taiwan. This area consists mosty of rice paddies, so it's also a chance to get a feeling for life in rural Taiwan.
For most of the way, the bike path goes along the top of a series of flood embankments. The path is well maintained and it's a smooth ride and completely flat most of the way. The entire route takes about one hour round trip.
If you visit in late autumn or winter, although the paddies are dry and filled with mud and brown stubble, you will have the chance to observe flocks of migratory birds in the dry paddies. The birds differ according to the time of year, as they pass through the area at different times during their migrations. Depending on when you go, you might see large numbers of egrets, cranes, herons, ducks, geese, and many 
other migratory water fowl. Sometimes a few endangered black spoonbills spend the winter here.
Another good time to visit is when the rice is highest right before the harvest, such as in early June. Rice is a beautiful crop, and it provides the perfect backdrop for a bike ride. A number of little rest spots have been constructed along the bike path. These places are good for bird watching or just gazing at the rice paddies.
The best starting point for the ride is next to the bridge at the intersection of Dawen Road 大塭路and Wendi Road 塭底路, which is near the coast road. To get there, take the Number 9 Road (the main street of Jiaoxi) to the Jiaoxi Post Office. Turn onto the little street that runs next to the post office. This street soon dead ends. Turn right at the dead end. Then immediately turn left again (next to the shop selling steamed buns) and crosss over the railroad tracks. This is Dawen Road. Drive
down this road until you are almost at the coast. You will see a metal statue of a giant shrimp on your right. (This area used to have a lot of shrimp farms.) Cross over the bridge. The beginning of the bike path is on your right. If you have trouble finding it this place, just tell people you're looking for the giant shrimp.
Ride your bike on the left side of the river, heading upstream. You want to stay on the left bank of the river. At one point you will have to cross over to the right bank for a short distance, but get back onto the left bank as soon as possible. You will go under several overpasses and cross a couple of small roads. This stretch of bike path mostly runs on top of the flood embankment, looking down on rice paddies to your left and river on your right. After half an hour or so you will come to the Number 9 Road. This is a very busy road with a concrete median in the middle, and marks the end of the path. Turn around and head back to the giant shrimp.
On the return leg, after riding for awhile you can eventually cross over to other bank. The path soon goes down and you are riding next to the flood wall. This stretch of the path takes you past a sleepy village. People visiting from Taipei will think they've entered a time machine. This town feels like nothing much has changed in the last couple of decades, and it gives a feeling of small town life in rural Taiwan. There are a few old red brick farmhouses along the way, so you can get a taste of the traditional rural architecture. If you're thirsty, a couple of old fashioned country stores sell bottled drinks. Eventually the path will take you back up onto the embankment for the final part of the return ride.
When you get back to Jiaoxi you might want to stop and try the steamed buns at the shop next to the railroad tracks. The times when the buns come out of the steamer are posted on the wall. Local people will line up patiently for a long time to buy some of these famous buns, and consider them one of the best snacks in Jiaoxi.
Although not very long, this is an excellent urban cycling path. This path takes about an hour round trip if you don't stop. The surface is smooth and almost completely flat for most of the way, so it's a very easy ride. If you don't have a bike, the path is also a pleasant place for a walk in good weather.
The bike path starts at the parking lot where the Road Number 9 (the main road between Jiaoxi and Yilan City) crosses the river into Yilan City. Head west (upstream). This park path is reserved for bicycles and pedestrians. At first you pass through well landscaped urban park along the flood plain. On a nice day this would be a great place for a picnic. Eventually the path goes up onto the flood embankment, so you're down looking at river on one side and the city on the other.
The path follows the river out toward the western suburbs of the 
city. Eventually the landscape becomes agricultural, and you're looking down at the river and farms with different local crops - guavas, taros, bamboo shoots, and bananas. Finally the bike path just comes to a sudden dead end, and you turn around and head back.
Not too far from the dead end, there are some stone steps going up a hill. On the other side of the hill is Yuanshan Park. There isn't anything special about the park itself (athough they have public restrooms if you need them). However, above the park is an interesting historical curiosity.
Climb the stairs to the hill that looms above the park. At the top are the remains of an old Shinto shrine built during the Japanese colonial era. After the Japanese left, the KMT rebuilt the shrine in Minnan style to look like a Taiwanese ancestral temple and used it as a martyr's shrine to fallen Chinese soldiers. Recently the shrine has been beautifully restored to the post-war condition. During the restoration, fragrant hinoki wood was used for the interior, so the little shrine room has an intoxicating natural odor like cedar 
incense. The two modern additions to the sides of the shrine are a mini-museum with which introduce the area and also explain the history of Shinto shrines in Taiwan.
Behind the shrine is a path to an excavated prehistoric site. Altough the site has been preserved, it is not open to the public.
This is an excellent urban cycling path - well built and maintained, and flat the entire way so it's an easy ride. The bike path runs along the top of the flood levy on the south bank of the Lanyang River. On one side you have a view of the Luoyang suburbs (mostly rice paddies and farm houses), and on the other side is the flood plain beside the river. Because the typhoons wash down rich topsoil from the mountains every year, the fertile flood plain is farmed after typhoon season ends. If you ride from fall to spring, you can watch the farmers tending their crops.
Qingzhou Bridge 清洲橋, you can get on the Annong River Bike Path 安農溪自行車道, which you can ride as far as Sanxing 三星,which is popular with Taiwanese tourists. Near the mouth of the Lanyang River, you can cross over to the north side and get on the Coastal Bike Path (see my post), which I highly recommend. Or, near the mouth of the Lanyang River you can turn right and follow the little local roads south to get on the short southern Coastal Bike Path, or else the Dongshan River Bike Path 冬山河自行車道 which runs through Dongshan River Park next to the Center for Traditional Performing Arts. You can also easily get to several smaller bike paths from here, or else explore the surrounding neighborhoods.
