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Updated Thursday, December 4, 2008 10:49 am TWN, By Richard Saunders, Special to The China Post



	Green Dragon Waterfall pours over a sandstone rock face into a large pool of deep green water. (By Richard Saunders, Special to The China Post) More Photos (2)

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Small is beautiful at Meishan Grand Canyon1

Having made it (hopefully dry-shod) across the first stream, a few meters in front, a second, larger tributary cascades down from the hills above over the Green Dragon Waterfall (青龍瀑布), the first of four waterfalls in the canyon, plunging into a large and attractive pool of clear green water at the bottom, from where it spills out over a sheer cliff of rock in another, much larger waterfall, fanning out impressively over the rock as it plunges towards the fast-moving waters of the Clearwater River, which were responsible for carving the canyon.

Only glimpses of the impressive defile cut through the sandstone by the river can be viewed from the track at the top, but fixed ropes mark several places where it’s possible to clamber down the bare rock face of the gorge to the bank of the river below, and get a better idea of the scale of the gorge. Alternatively, ford the stream as it leaves the pool below Green Dragon Waterfall (with great care – there’s a big drop on the right!), and it’s possible to climb down the steep sloping rock face beyond into the great gorge, for views of the most impressive and narrowest stretch of the gorge downstream, between which sweep the waters of the river, deep and turbulent.

The remaining waterfalls of Meishan Grand Canyon lie on the tributary stream that plunges down from the mountains high above. Just to the left of Green Dragon Waterfall, a dirt trail climbs the jungle-covered mountainside, soon degenerating into an exhilarating scramble, with fixed ropes to ease the hot climb up several steep, rocky pitches. After a fifteen-minute uphill climb, the narrow, overgrown trail descends to cross the stream and then follows it up to reach the small but pretty Stone Well Waterfall (石井瀑布), and the larger, more impressive Rainbow Falls (彩虹瀑布).

It’s unfortunate that this lovely slice of scenery got saddled with the wholly inappropriate name "grand canyon," and visitors expecting anything grand or massive will be sorely disappointed, but go with lower expectations and push the unpleasant but compulsory admission charge to the back of your mind, and even in a part of Taiwan with almost limitless beautiful places to explore, Meishan Grand Canyon makes a very worthwhile and fun half-day trip.

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