I’ve long known (through photos in various travel books of my native Britain) of the extraordinary natural formations of Fingal’s Cave and the Giant’s Causeway in Scotland and Northern Island respectively.

Both places are famous examples of a weird, but completely natural volcanic process, as lava spewing from the Earth cooled rapidly, contracting and cracking as it cools into the many thousands of breathtaking basalt columns (many of them perfectly hexagonal) seen at those two places today. Both are such extraordinary places that it’s no surprise that they were once thought them to be the work of giants, super-strong Scottish heroes, or perhaps even the Devil.

Formations such as these are uncommon, but famous examples can also be found in the States (one, the Devil’s Tower in Wyoming even placed a central role in the move “Close Encounters of the Third Kind”), and in places as far-flung as Iceland, Mexico, New Zealand and South Korea.

Far less well-known are the many similar sites scattered around the Penghu (澎湖) archipelago in Taiwan. Some of the archipelago’s most impressive column sites, such as Jishan Island (雞善嶼) and Bird Island, are remote and uninhabited and can only be reached by hiring your own boat, but several fine examples are within the range of the casual visitor on Penghu for just a weekend or so.

The easiest to reach (and most famous) basalt formation on Penghu is the strange natural arch known as the Whale Cave (鯨魚洞) on --iaomen Isle, a short and easy detour off the solitary highway which links the five main islands at the center of the archipelago, although the columns here are rather crude, and more square than hexagonal.

For some much more refined natural basalt sculpture, motor southwards a few kilometers further to the village of Neian (內垵). Neian Recreational Area nearby lies on the coast, and boasts one of the best areas of basalt cliffs on Penghu reachable by two (or four) wheels.

After coming this far (and it’s a long, monotonous drive here from Magong (馬公), the main town on Penghu), take a short detour along local route 5 nearby to pass Mount Niusin (牛心山), a stumpy little dome of a hill crowned with an elaborate flourish of basalt columns that look almost as though they were stacked there by hand, an appearance which perhaps explains its alternative name, Devil’s Mountain.

To get a look at the best of Penghu’s amazing geological landscapes, however, you’ll have to take to the waters and explore the outlying islands of the archipelago, which can become a time-consuming and rather expensive activity if you have to charter a private boat. Luckily, some of the best basalt scenery to be found in Penghu can be seen by taking one of the daily tourist boats from the harbor at Magong out to the so-called South Sea Islands. Pacific island retreats these windswept, rather barren, grassy islands are definitely not, but they have some jaw-dropping scenery.

The main stop on the long (8 hour-plus) boat trip is the beautiful island of Chimei (七美) where basalt column-seekers will want to pay a visit to the impressive Big Stone Lion (巨石獅), a cliff face bristling with fine hexagonal columns. The most impressive sight of the day, however has to be after landing on tiny, Tongpan Island (桶盤嶼), where a surfaced path, leading to the right from the small docking area shortly passes along the foot of a twenty meter-high cliff of perfectly shaped, vertical basalt columns.

Eons of weathering in this harsh, exposed environment have softened the edges of the pillars a little, and you’ll be hard put to find the neat hexagon shapes that can be seen at the Devil’s Causeway in Northern Ireland, but the wind, rain and salt water have worked their own magic on the cliffs here, eroding deep cracks into the columns, so that in places they look as if they’ll topple as soon as the next typhoon sweeps past.

GETTING THERE:

Regular daily flights leave from Taipei Songshan Airport for Magong, the main town on Penghu, from where tourist boats leave daily (weather permitting) for day trips to the South Sea Islands, which usually include stops on Chimei and Tongpan Islands. Note, however, that most tourist services (including boat trips) are suspended during the winter months.