2022年3月4日 車坪寮保甲路 - 五指山 - 友納山 - 五指山古道 Hiking along historical trails over Mt. Wuzhi-shan

車坪寮古道静かな石門脇の谷間、Tranquil valley by Shimen gate of Chepingliao trail

日本の1895年台湾接収後間もない時期は、台湾平地の漢人による抗日活動があった。そのうち台北付近では、簡大獅が率いる抗日分子は追われて陽明山近くに立てこもり抵抗する。今回歩いた古道のうち、車坪寮保甲路は1898年に日本憲兵隊と二度にわたり激戦があったという場所である。過去に近くを歩いているが、草に埋もれた古道はつい最近藍天隊によって、はじめて簡単に訪れることができるようになった。

今回の山行は、南部山行から戻り台北の天気も良くなった日を選んで行った。ルートは、北側萬里から入り、車坪寮保甲路を登って五指山へ上がり、大きな台湾軍人墓地公園を横切り、友納山を往復、下山はかなり前に歩いた五指山古道をへて烘內へと下った。晴天下のこの時期の台北近郊低山は、とても快適だ。展望も十分に得られ、充実した山歩きを楽しんだ。

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Crossing Mt. Wuzhi-shan range from north to south

In the early years of Japanese reign just after its takeover of Taiwan in 1895 its regime faced resistance from Han people (漢人). One of the anti-Japanese resistance groups was led by Jian Dashi (簡大獅) and was active around northern Taiwan. He surrendered once in 1899 but successfully escaped to Zhangzhou of China (中國漳州) where his ancestors came from and he made visit in the past. He was later captured by Ching police and extradited back to Taiwan in the next year. He was then sentenced to death and executed. There are several spots of fights between the resistance groups and the Japanese force around the present day Yangmingshan area. I talked about the history because one of the historical trails we traced was one of such spots of fight. Chepingliao baojia trail (車坪寮保甲路), that is.

Wuzhi-shan old trail

This obscure trail was choked with thick vegetation until very recently. Lantian-dui (藍天隊) of volunteer hikers came in and cleared the trail in late February. It gave us a chance to appreciate this nice trail again. The trail was once an important passage for the local people before the current road system was established. Baojia trails are a kind of patrol paths for security of a local community unit called Biaojia in China. This rural self defense system was brought over to Taiwan by immigrants. The system was further exploited under the Japanese regime to secure social orders in rural communities of Taiwan. The trails were built and used not only for patrol but for daily passage of local people too.

Showing five fingers at Mt. Wuzhi-shan

We went up via Chepingliao trail to Mt. Wuzhi-shan (五指山, meaning five-finger mountain) where a very large military cemetery occupies a large part of the mountain. It drew a public attention when a tomb of the late president Li Denghui (李登輝) was placed there last year. We walked through the cemetery to connect to a ridge trail to Mt. Youna-shan (友納山). Stepping our foot on the summit, we returned to a junction and went along Wuzhishan old trail (五指山古道), a well-maintained hiking route, down to Hongnei (烘內) to complete our hike.

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The head of Chepingliao trail is located by Lingquan-si temple (靈泉寺). The temple stands at an inner most location of the valley of Masu-xi river (瑪鋉溪) in Wanli (萬里) district. In a distance wise it is not that far, but there is no public transportation going over a pass of the mountain directly from Taipei. You have to get to Wanli town first and then take a bus from there. F922 line of New-Taipei community buses (新巴士) goes along the valley and stops at Lingquan-si, which leaves the bus stop of Wanli district office at 9:30. This determined the start time of our hike. We met at the bus stop of Wanli before 9:30. I myself took a #953 bus from Taipei, which reached there at 8:30

A single fisher at the beach

I had a plenty time before our meet-up time. I have been to Wanli a few times but never gotten out to its seaside. I walked through alleys of town houses and reached the beach. I got down to its long sand beach. At this time of a year, nobody but one fisher was throwing his fishing rod. He looked like a local resident. Yeliu peninsula (野柳半島) sticks out into a calm ocean on the far side of the bay. After an easy stroll I returned to the bus stop to find other members were there waiting for our F922 bus.

Yeliu Peninsula across the bay

F922 bus comes to Wanli district office stop on time

The F922 bus comes on time. A few local passengers get aboard and six of us follow. The bus is supposed to primarily serve local people and we respect it. Local passengers get off en route. As the bus gains height along the valley, a scene of Mt. Huangzui-shan and Mt. Dajian-shan comes into our sight. A twenty-minute ride takes us to Lingquan-si. The temple occupies a large patch of the hillside with a few monastery buildings and dormitories. The gate is closed as it is not open for public. While we are wondering how to proceed, a nun comes close to the gate and greets us. She gives each of us a string of charm. 

A view from the bus window

Front gate of Lingquan-si temple

Take the right road up

At 10:00 we set off for our hike. A road diverges just next to the temple. According a description and a map of Lantian-tui's clearing work, this road should lead to the trail head. Usually they leaves markers and direction signs on their clearing work, but we see none of them. We compare the map and the geography to find out the trail. There is a scant track leading up and we follow it. It leads to just by the temple. There happens to be a few nuns. They tell us that they have no idea about the trail, but point out that a path goes up a little to a water tank. We follow it and finally find a trail after a few trials of search at 10:30.

Take this path up to a water tamk

Moss covered stone steps show up

While we still see no direction signs nor markers, the beaten vegetation and remaining yet green severed grasses suggest this is it. As we go up a little a long stretch of stone steps shows up, confirming that we are on the right track. A few rubber water tubes go along the trail. A water stream comes closer and we see "Shimen (石門)", naturally formed stone gate at 10:58. The valley gets wider beyond that point. Calm and clear water flows through the creek where tall cedar trees tranquilly surround the place. Green moss adds its beauty. This is indeed a obscure spot where very few people visit and untouched nature still exists.

Stone gate

Cross a creak to enter cedar forest

This spot is supposed to be a place where the resistance group and the authority of the time fiercely exchanged fire twice more than a century ago. We find no remnants of the battle at all. It is now just a peaceful valley. After a short rest we continue our way on the left bank of the creek and come to a stone-walled house at 11:18. Obviously nobody lives here but a new shinny pot by the house suggests that somebody comes here. We follow the trail for another ten minutes to find a junction with a new set of direction signs being posted. After I was back to Taipei from this hike, I learned that the Lantian-tui would came again to affix signs and markers, so you will find it easier to follow the Chepingliao trail if you go now.

Stone wall house

First direction sign on the Chepingliao old trail

Moss covered stream bed in cedar forest

We take a left trail at the junction and go further up. It goes along a small stream in a dense and tall cedar forest. The stream bed is covered all with green moss, which creates a primordial feeling of the place. The rail leaves the stream behind and goes a steep uphill for a while to another junction. This is just by Wanxi road (萬汐產道) and the old trail ends here. We take a left trail and go up on another steep section to Mt. Wuzhi-shan summit (elevation 681 meters), where we reach 11:50. This is not a summit in a normal sense of the word, but a stone marker is placed so regarded as a summit. A pavilion stands by it and stone table and stools are around. We have a long break for lunch.

A marker shows up

The trail gets steeper

Going up the final steep stretch below the summit

The summit of Wuzhi-shan

Walking through the cemetery

A lunch under blue sky is very nice. We leave the summit at 12:27 and follow Zhongyi road (忠義路) of the cemetery. It goes up a little and comes to an administration building of the cemetery. We originally intend to pay a visit to the tomb of the late president only to find that it is not open for public. We go though the rest of the large cemetery and come to the ridge trail at 13:07. This rail is now in good shape as it is called Jieliao trek route (界寮縱走路線) and well maintained. When I first travelled this trail several years ago, it was in thick vegetation and with full of thorny plants, which gave me a hard time to pass through.

The ridge trail opens at a far corner of the cemetery

Passing by a junction, which we will return shortly, we follow an easy trail between thin trees. At some spots the north side of the ridge affords nice panoramas. We reach the summit of Mt. Yona-shan (elev. 624m) at 13:20. Vegetation around the summit looks having recently been cut out clean, enabling a wide and nice view. Beyond the valley below  a long range of peaks like Mt. Dajian-shan, Mt. Huangzui-shan and Mt. Chishiliu-shan (赤石六山) stands like a wall. Far beyond Daping plateau (大坪台地) shows a town of Jinshan (金山). We even can make out its coastal line.

At the summit of Youna-shan

A vista from the summit

The junction to a viewing deck

We walk back the trail we have just come and get to the junction where we take a left trail. We soon come to a viewing deck with a small hut on it. This place was in thick vegetation on my last visit. Now it is free of surrounding trees. To my happy surprise Jilong (基隆) and Jilong-yu island (基隆嶼) are identifiable from the deck. Now it is truly worth being called a viewing deck. We have a rest there. It is obviously maintained by some people as water buckets and other facilities are placed around. 

A deck with a roof

A vista towards north, Jilong and Jilong-yu island are visible

Stone paved trail

The trail down from the deck, which we leave a little before 14:00, is in good shape too. Some sections are covered with stone plates and steps while planks are placed as steps at other sections. We reach the bottom of the trail in about 10 minutes and take the paved Qixi farming road (七汐農道) further down. At a junction we take left and come to the head of Wuzhishan old trail at 14:22.

The head of Wuzhi-shan trail

Chunky rock steps

Compared with my last visit almost ten years ago, the trail keeps its moss covered stone steps while its signage has been updated. The spot of land slide at that time has been recovered. You will not notice now it was filled with debris of the land slide. It passes by a well-known restaurant and come to its end where a swimming  pool is formed by blocking a stream. We go down to the pool side and have a final break at 15:11.

The trail's brdige

A junction to Mt. Xin-shan (新山) right

The pool and Mt. Xin-shan behind

The last leg of our hike is to walk down on Xiwan road (汐萬路). We leave the pool at 15:20 and come to Kezilin tea house (柯子林茶莊). Except an occasional traffic, it is OK to walk on the paved road. It passes a new construction site of an apparently factory building after passing an intersection of Menghu road (夢湖路). An abandoned recreational building occupied the land before. So that building was demolished and a new building is now under construction. We reach a bus stop of Hongnei at 15:48. A #587 bus comes in about ten minutes, which we take to Xike train station (汐科火車站).

Walking on Xiwan road near Kezilin

#587 bus bound for Xizhi station (汐止站)

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New trails keep coming up in the northern Taiwan mountains. which attract my attention. I have been to almost all mountain peaks in the northern Taiwan, but these new trails are very welcome. Though leading to same peaks, they bring new insights to the geography and historical background of the area, which are very interesting.

We walked 11.7 kilometers for about 6 hours. The total ascent was 436 meters while descent 734m. The route physical index is 19.