Travel Diary: Taiwan

by Ivy Kung

LW resident

I visited Taiwan, also called “Formosa,” from March to April this year.

I lived in Jiaoxi Township, Yilan County, Taiwan, a scenic spot famous for its natural hot springs. One of the eye-catching ancient mountainous areas I visited was called the “Horse Paving Trail” and is now called the “Jiaoxi Historical Trail.” It is a section of Danlan Ancient Trail South Road in Yilan County. It is the transportation from Tamsui Office (Taipei) to Kavalan (Yilan).

The road was formed during the Xianfeng and Tongzhi years of the Qing Dynasty with immigrants to reclaim the inland of Pinglin, along the Xindian River and Jingmei River to Shenkeng, after crossing Shiding and Pinglin, to Shipai, Toucheng to Jiaoxi and Beiyi. There are many overlapping sections of the highway, also known as “Beiyi Ancient Road.” Roads were built during the Japanese colonial period, and the ancient roads were abandoned. Only the section from Shipai to Jiaoxi well-preserved. It was restored by the Jiaoxi Township Office and named “Horse Paving Ancient Road.”

The Pao Ma Ancient Road has been named many times, and each name represents a period of history—the earliest was a path for transporting timber. The track was laid with round logs, smeared with black oil to reduce resistance, and wooden horses were used to carry the timber, hence the name “Wooden Horse Road.” The ancestors walked with blue threads, and wooden horses weighing thousands. Now on the gentle and wide gravel road, hikers walk briskly and enjoy the clear streams of the mountains, unprecedented lightness and affinity.