Even though this mountain trail is near the prime tourist sites in Toucheng, it isn't very well known. Nor is it particularly beautiful or dramatic. However, this ordinariness is the trail's main charm. Because the trail isn't very popular, it feels more natural than the major tourist trails. It's an extremely convenient way to get into the mountains for a taste of typical Yilan rainforest. It is a short walk from Waiao beach and Wushigang, two of the most popular tourist spots in Yilan. So it's possible to take a walk in the mountains, then go back to the beach and take a dip in the ocean to cool off afterward. There is also an air conditioned coffee shop in the beach visitors center where you can rest and cool off after your hike.
The trail theoretically runs for about two and a half kilometers, but the final kilometer has been paved and made into a rough concrete road which is completely devoid of charm. So the trail is now only about 1.6 kilometers long. Round trip takes about 1 hour 45 minutes. The trail is pretty basic - mostly just a dirt path. In some places you have to climb up or down slippery mossy stones. Given the condition of the trail, you should definitely wear appropriate trekking shoes. You will probably also want to avoid coming here after a heavy rain, as I imagine that it gets very muddy.
As you start to ascend, you will have a superb view of the ocean. Because the mountains are right next to the sea, you can get a fantastic close-up panorama of the ocean, rocky beaches, and 
Guishan Island from here. After you get to the top of the first mountain and start going inland, you find yourself in a very quiet subtropical rainforest. The trail runs next to a stream, which is very pretty in spots. Unfortunately some selfish people living downhill have run water pipes through the forest to get free spring water from the source, and these pipes mar the scenery for much of the way.
At the top the trail exits the forest and you find yourself out in the open. If you like you can keep going and walk down the concrete road, but there isn't much to see. The only reason to go forward is to visit a little shrine which dates from the Japanese colonial period, which is located just beyond the forest. Also, the concrete road runs next to a stream which has places where you can bathe in summer. It's a good place to soak in the cold mountain water on a hot afternoon.
The entrance to the trail is easy to find. Directly across the street from the large yellow visitor's center at Waiao beach, north of Toucheng town, is a little road which passes under the railroad tracks. After you go under the tracks you will see two temples. The big temple is called Jietian Gong 接天宮. There is a big brown map of the Shikong trail on the right side of the temple, and 
signs in Chinese point the way to the trail head. You can park next to the temples and start walking north next to the tracks, or you can just walk over from the beach. The path along the train tracks which leads to the trail head doesn't look too promising - it becomes very narrow and you will wonder if you've made a mistake. Don't worry - this is the way to get to the trail. When you see a train platform on the other side of the tracks, you will notice some concrete stairs leading upward on your left. A white arrow with red characters marks the trail entrance. Just go up here and keep walking.
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 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.
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 is a low key surfing beach. It isn't a gorgeous beach, and the waves are higher than just about anywhere else in Yilan, so it's not the place to go if you just want to sit on the sand or splash around in the ocean. But if you surf or bodyboard, you will want to give this beach a try.
Honeymoon Bay is fairly big, but most of the coast here consists of big rocks. Only the south edge of the bay has sand, and that's where the surfers are. Above the beach are a few tents where you can rent boards. The guys there also offer lessons for kooks. There aren't any showers or other facilities, However, there is a fantastic view of Guishan Island, which seems very close when you're this far north. And on the other side, mountains loom close behind the bay, so there's a beautiful natural backdrop in both directions. Unfortunately, the town of Daxi which surrounds the bay is basically a concrete eyesore.
The town has done a remarkable job in failing to
capitalize on its surfing beach. If you walk up the 
sea wall to the town, there are a few places that offer cheap accomodations and food for the surfers, and a couple of littls shops selling surf gear. But there isn't much to draw surfers over to the town. Overall this is still a remarkably low key surf spot that still has quite a few rough edges.
Probably the best thing about Honeymoon Bay is the train station right across the street form the beach. To get here from Taipei, just take a train to Daxi. (Make sure you go to the right Daxi, or else you'll end up in Taoyuan.) Because of the nearby train station, you can easily get here on the weekend for a day at the beach without dealing with the usual traffic jams.
Honeymoon Bay is also close to one fantastic mountain hiking trail (Taoyuan Valley) and not very far from 
another (Caoling), so you can climb a mountain in the morning and then cool off in the ocean in the afternoon.
The big quesiton is - if you want to go surfing in Yilan, should you go to Honeymoon Bay or Waiao? The environment at Waiao is much nicer, and there are complete facilities there. However, there will probably be twenty times as many people over there. This is the beach for people who don't want to share their wave.
The big disadvantage of Honeymoon Bay is the danger. There are some rocks hidden in the sand, and if you hit one you're toast. I know a guy who hit a rock here while surfing and ended up limping around Taipei covered with casts, so the danger is real. But I'm sure that for a certain kind of person, the danger adds to the allure.
The easiest way to get here is to take the train to Daxi and walk across the street. Otherwise you take the Number 2 Road north from Toucheng. The beach isn't marked, and it isn't even obvious from the main road how to get down there. The path to the beach is next to the temple on the south edge of the bay - just south of the school. There is a little path down to the beach just to the right of the temple. If you're driving a car, you should park at the entrance of the path and walk down. If you have a scooter, bicycle, or 4 wheel drive vehicle, you can continue down the trail and park right above the beach. Alternatively, you can park in the little parking lot behind the temple, walk past the temple restrooms, and then get on the path that goes down to the beach.
If you can't find the path (it's easy to miss) you can just park anywhere in Daxi and walk south along the seawall until you get to the beach. (Those weird black insects scuttling across the seawall are called sea cockroaches - 海蟑螂).
Even though this mountain trail is near the prime tourist sites in Toucheng, it isn't very well known. Nor is it particularly beautiful or dramatic. However, this ordinariness is the trail's main charm. Because the trail isn't very popular, it feels more natural than the major tourist trails. It's an extremely convenient way to get into the mountains for a taste of typical Yilan rainforest. It is a short walk from Waiao beach and Wushigang, two of the most popular tourist spots in Yilan. So it's possible to take a walk in the mountains, then go back to the beach and take a dip in the ocean to cool off afterward. There is also an air conditioned coffee shop in the beach visitors center where you can rest and cool off after your hike.
Guishan Island from here. After you get to the top of the first mountain and start going inland, you find yourself in a very quiet subtropical rainforest. The trail runs next to a stream, which is very pretty in spots. Unfortunately some selfish people living downhill have run water pipes through the forest to get free spring water from the source, and these pipes mar the scenery for much of the way.
signs in Chinese point the way to the trail head. You can park next to the temples and start walking north next to the tracks, or you can just walk over from the beach. The path along the train tracks which leads to the trail head doesn't look too promising - it becomes very narrow and you will wonder if you've made a mistake. Don't worry - this is the way to get to the trail. When you see a train platform on the other side of the tracks, you will notice some concrete stairs leading upward on your left. A white arrow with red characters marks the trail entrance. Just go up here and keep walking.
