Ilan's secret natural wonder: Yuemeikang Waterfall

Before long, the unmistakable sound of rushing water is heard in the gorge below, and the path has soon dropped to the stream's edge, where spying some deep, clear pools, we give into temptation and have a quick dip in the icy, refreshing waters.

The way to go is obviously up from here, but a landslide, which has brought several trees and a mass of dead wood down across the stream, makes the going tricky at first, but once through the obstruction, the trail, although narrow, is clear, crossing the stream before lying along its steep opposite bank, with fixed ropes to hold onto during the crumbliest bits.

Presently, the gorge ahead closes in like pincers, a small cascade issuing from the dark cleft above and falling into a deep, round pool of inviting, crystal-clear water. Squeezed between the sheer rock face which now rises on the left, and a drop into the stream below, the roped trail climbs over the rock beside the little waterfall, and enters the narrow, dark cleft beyond. It's a thrilling moment as the atmosphere changes instantly, becoming wilder and more rugged as the walls of the narrow gorge blot out the sun.

The stream is quite high today and the only way upstream is to wade. A minute further and the waterfall appears ahead, although half hidden behind a rocky bluff that sticks out in front. Ropes scale several steep banks to the left of the stream as the water plunges over small falls, and then, suddenly we're around the rocky bluff that so effectively hides the waterfall, and it's finally revealed in all its glory.

Plunging clear of the cliff in a wide curtain of snow-white water, maybe fifty meters high, the waterfall is a fantastic sight, especially as the late morning sun shines into the canyon, turning the falling water into a snow-white curtain.

Bowled over by the beauty of the scene, we finally begin to understand why the waterfall is so little-known, and why no one seems willing to describe the route. The crowds at Wufengchi Waterfall, not so far away from this spot, is warning enough of the harm that can befall magical places when 'discovered' by the masses. Thank goodness that fate hasn't befallen this marvelous, secret place, and long may it remain one of Taiwan's hidden wonders!

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