Jhuilu Old Trail: A spectacular new viewpoint on Taroko Gorge

Every few meters, small signs warn of all manner of risks to be faced on the trail, from unstable ground and slippery rocks to poisonous bees and snakes, and a sign at the beginning of the trail states that the path is of 'a high level of difficulty' and is, in parts 'potentially very dangerous.'

Those not warned off by these scare tactics will, however soon discover the trail is remarkably well made, if a tad monotonous, and the five hundred meters of vertical gain (a good bit more than climbing to the top of Taipei 101) is achieved remarkably painlessly.

It helps having a few spots of interest on the way, of course: a rather innocuous-looking suspension bridge that actually spans a narrow but gaping chasm with a drop of around a hundred meters beneath your feet, and the site of the old settlement of Badagang (巴達崗), which in Japanese times boasted a clinic, school and several hotels for travelers passing through on foot! No one does this hike to enjoy the remains of old villages or suspension bridges however, so on we go up the trail until, an hour to ninety minutes after leaving the road, it flattens out, the view opens up, the surroundings become rockier, and the cliff trail draws close.

Passing through a short tunnel, the path narrows, the ground on the left begins to fall away steeply, and finally, beside another sign warning hikers of the 'dangers' of continuing, the great cliff (and part of the path cut into its prodigious face) appears ahead.

For the next five hundred meters the path is squeezed between the vertical face of the cliff above, and a huge, sheer drop below. It's an airy, exposed and thrilling ledge with astounding views over the central section of Taroko Gorge and the high mountains beyond, invisible from the road, half a kilometer below.

It's a mesmerizing spectacle and it takes over twenty minutes to reach the far end, where the trail dives back into the trees and a small shaded area of flat ground, the site of an old Japanese police post and our lunch spot today. Ahead, Jhuilu Old Trail continues for another seven rough kilometers before descending back into the gorge at Zimu Bridge.

On our visit in mid May, this section of the trail had yet to be reopened (rumors say it will open later in the year), but we're quite happy to retrace our steps to Swallows Grotto, enjoy a shorter day's walk, and, above all, experience those amazing views all over again.

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