My interest thoroughly aroused, I boarded a bus to --indian (there was no MRT in those days) at the first available opportunity and followed the vague lines drawn on the sketch map in the book, in an attempt to find this curiosity that sounded so fascinating on paper. For directions along the way, I thrust the characters for ‘Silver Stream Cave’ in my trusty book at any locals I could find.

And yes, when I finally stood inside Silver Stream Cave looking out through the veil of falling water, I found my translation of the hieroglyphics in the book weren’t so far out. Silver Stream Cave is the most unusual and arresting natural/cultural curiosity in the immediate vicinity of Taipei City.

It’s not the most beautiful spot close to the metropolis: the bare, unpainted concrete and shiny bathroom tiles used to build the temple into the face of the sheer cliff put it firmly in the category of functional rather than aesthetically pleasing structures, but it’s a site that’s unique in the Taipei area, if not in all Taiwan.

With the MRT providing a head start, Silver Stream Cave is an easy and fairly quick escape from the city. Leave --indian station and take bus 647 or 650 from the bus stop outside to the final stop. Now, follow the road (Provincial Route 9) ahead, beside a small river for about 15 minutes and at the sharp hairpin bend to the right, follow a narrow lane straight ahead (still beside the stream) for another kilometer or so.

Finally, a signpost on the right points up the first of almost 500 steps, climbing the thickly wooded hillside beside the cascading stream. The scenery is already lovely, despite the proximity of the city, and it’s not long before the waterfall and the little temple behind come into view.

A final push up a steep flight of stairs and a door (usually kept open during daylight hours) gives access to the temple — a series of cramped chambers with the natural rock of the cleft for a back wall. Emerging from the last chamber of the little temple, a path climbs along the long natural overhang in the sheer cliff, passing behind the waterfall and finishing at a small natural cave with a large statue of Lu Dong Bing, one of the Eight Immortals (八仙) of Chinese legend.

Lu Dong Bing is worshipped at nearby Chinan Temple (指南宮), one of Taipei’s biggest and most popular temples, which commands a magnificent position high in the hills above Muzha. The temple is reachable by a fine walk over the hills from Silver Stream Cave. A path veers to the right just below the cave and climbs stiffly to the top of the falls, where it rejoins the stream.

Keep to the right bank of the stream at a fast-approaching junction, and the path, now just a dirt trail, climbs (steeply in places) through the jungle to the top of the ridge in about an hour. It’s a surprisingly wild and secluded walk, and it’s unusual to see more than a couple of other hikers, even on weekends.

Continue straight down the far side of the ridge, however, and civilization returns all too soon. The trail, now paved once more (watch out for the slippery covering of algae!) emerges onto a road in Muzha’s famous Maokong area, opposite the upper station of Taipei’s magnificent Gondola, which provides a scenically beautiful and relaxing coda to the trip.

Alternatively, a spot of tea drinking would make a perfect end to the walk; there are plenty of tea houses (most commanding magnificent views over Taipei city far below). Simply head right for a few minutes along the road.

One final alternative, for true hikers with energy still to burn, is to follow the so-called Tea Leaf Old Trail down the hillside and up the far side to Chinan Temple opposite. The weekend crowds that gather here are likely to come as a shock after the seclusion of the trail above Silver Stream Cave, but a visit to this magnificent temple is a fine addition to this extremely varied walk, before a speedy return to the city by either gondola or bus.