Exploring Kaohsiung's Hou Shan Yan Natural Cave

There’s little light inside (the sun never shines into its depths), but in the twilight we make out large areas of smooth flowstone (a geological phenomena similar to stalactites and stalagmites, forming on the walls of caverns) coating the sides of the cavity. It’s a weirdly impressive curiosity, and a very atmospheric one, although there’s no evidence of any curvy protuberances that could have inspired the place’s alternative name!

At the end of the crevice, about 150 meters long, the gorge widens a little, and steps lead down again. We emerge back into the light and the outside world, blinking, and rejoin the outward path behind the temple with the iron roof.

Back at the scooters, we face an hour’s ride back to Kaohsiung to return our machines to the rental shop there. Hou Shan Yan Natural Cave wasn’t part of our intended route, and with little else in the area that cries out to be seen, we’d have never come here by design, but while traveling through the area, it’s certainly worth making a bit of time to see this curious natural wonder, hidden in an area of otherwise uncharacteristically dull Taiwanese landscape.

GETTING THERE:

Hou Shan Yan Natural Cave is just a few kilometers from the Tianliao exit (370 km) of national freeway three, but a good map will prove useful, as the cave isn’t well signposted. Leave the freeway and join route 28, heading west.

In less than a kilometer, turn left onto local route 37 and follow this for about three kilometers. The cave is signposted (as “Shimuru” 石母乳) on the right. Look for the big car park beside the road.

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