Enchanted forest of Tengjhih

Short of organizing an often-strenuous backpacking expedition into the wilds, there’s no better way to experience the remote, untouched expanses of the island’s interior such as this than paying a visit to one of the 18 National Forest Nature Reserves dotted around the island.

A visit to any one gives an unsurpassed introduction to the wilderness of Taiwan. Of the 13 I’ve got around to visiting so far, my favorite is probably at Tengjhih, set deep in the mountains of Kaohsiung County not far from the town of Liuguei (六龜).

We have the Japanese to thank for initially opening up remote areas such as this to easy access, either to carry out logging of the area or to keep the local aboriginal population under control. With the return of Taiwan to the Chinese however, some of the tracks piercing deep into Taiwan’s interior were left to be slowly reclaimed by nature and today exist only as lines on maps. Others, however, were kept open as logging continued, or to provide access for Taiwan Forestry Bureau personnel stationed deep in the forest on the lookout for illegal logging or forest fires.

It wasn’t until two decades or so ago that the leisure potential of these beautiful places was realized and these reachable slices of Taiwan’s wild center were opened up to tourists. Tengjhih first opened its gates to the general public in 1983, although access was restricted by the need to apply for a mountain permit until the rules were relaxed in 1997.

With those pesky permits no longer needed, the numbers of day trippers heading for the mountains increased hugely, so much so that the existing infrastructure in many forest parks couldn’t cope with the increased pressure. Severe damage was caused at the most popular places by countless tramping feet, picnicking groups and curious explorers. Tengjhih was especially seriously affected, and was closed while the present wooden boardwalks and erosion-resistant trails were built; the smart new facilities of Tengjhih Forest Park reopened in 2002.

Getting to Tenjhih is almost as much an attraction as the park itself. The surfaced 19 kilometer-long road up to the park leaves national route 27 4 kilometers north of Liuguei, and immediately begins the long climb into the mountains.

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