One of the top destinations to visit in Taiwan is Taroko Gorge in Taroko National Park. The gorge runs between steep mountains, up to 3000m high, with a small river running through it. While doing our research, we realized the easiest way for us to get to and around the park would be by car. We pre-booked a rental car from nearby Hualien and were looking forward to the freedom of having our own transportation in the park. 

Renting a Car

Our trip to Taroko started in Jiufen where our guesthouse host was kind enough to give us a ride to the train station. I’d caught a cold and was feeling pretty rough the night before. I took a covid test, which was negative and was starting to come around by the time we left. The weather was cloudy and cool and there was rain in the forecast, but it had been the same the day before and we weren’t too worried about it. Once we were in Hualien it was a short walk to the car rental store and we had some time to have lunch and pick up a few last minute items. Our car rental agent was a very nice guy with decent English and plenty of enthusiasm. There are western car rental companies in Taiwan, but, after a lot of research, we went with a cheaper local company called Good Cars. Once all the details were sorted, we were in our car and on our way. I had driven overseas once before, when Marieke and I were in Spain, and was excited to get behind the wheel in another country. Thankfully, Taiwan’s driving laws are very similar to Canada’s, including driving on the right side. We’d rented a very practical 4 door hatchback which had plenty of room for us and our bags and a phone mount on the dash for navigation, but not much power. 

Safety First on a Winding Road

We reached the park entrance and headed up the narrow road through the gorge. There is no entrance fee for the park, but we stopped at the visitors center to get some information and decide what we wanted to see. We continued up the road along the gorge and sometimes through tunnels running through the walls. The road was windy and only one lane in some places, so we had to keep looking ahead, using the roadside mirrors to see around corners. We proceeded with caution, avoiding the numerous buses that were heading out of the park. It was a little tense but a fun drive and the scenery was spectacular. 

We stopped to do a hike called Swallow Grotto which turned out to be more of a “stroll” along the side of the gorge. The views were incredible, despite the clouds covering the mountain tops, and the sides of the gorge are full of holes in the rock where swallows nest. Because rocks falling from the sides of the gorge are common, you can borrow helmets from a park office. Thankfully, they weren’t needed. After the hike/stroll, we headed to our campground to set up our tents. Camping is free in the park and the campground was very nice. It had tent platforms, nighttime lighting and nice, clean bathrooms. After setting up, we did another nearby short trail called Lushui, which was a nice hike, but the views weren’t great due to the increasing clouds. When we were finished, we drove further into the park to a 7-11 to pick up the next morning’s breakfast and had dinner at a nearby restaurant. 

Camping in the Rain

That night turned out to be not ideal for camping. The weather was unseasonably cold for Taiwan, which our warm weather sleeping bags weren’t meant for, and it rained most of the night. In the morning we waited for the rain to let up before heading to the car to warm up. We’d booked a hike called the Zhuilu Old Road for the morning. It was cloudy and still raining, but we decided to go ahead since we’d already paid for the booking and we wanted to make the most of our visit. The cold night didn’t do my cold any good, but I figured the exercise would help. 

Hiking in the Rain

The trail took us up the side of a mountain to a narrow cliff edge overlooking the gorge. There are railings along the mountainside to help avoid the sheer drop off the cliff and you need to be mindful as you make your way along. It definitely isn’t for anyone who has a fear of heights, but the view must be incredible. I assume it’s an incredible view since it was almost completely covered by clouds with a few brief glimpses of the other side. The whole hike took us about 3 ½ hours and we enjoyed it despite the weather. 

Afterwards, we headed back to our campground to pack up our tents. We decided to head back to Hualien a day early rather than have another cold, wet night of camping. Luckily, we could add the extra night to the hotel we’d booked for the following night. We drove a bit further into the park to see some more scenery before heading back to Hualien. Parking turned out to be an adventure as our hotel didn’t have anywhere to park and we couldn’t figure out how to pay for on street parking. We learned that, like everything else in Taiwan, street parking payment is handled at 7-11, but instead we found a paid parking lot just around the corner from our hotel. After checking in, we went to the nearby Giant Bike store, where we’d reserved bikes for our 3 day cycling trip to Taitung, to confirm our booking and find out what we’d need to bring. 

Exploring the Coast

We took advantage of the car again the following day and drove up the coast to see some amazing coastal cliffs and a nice beach. The weather had improved a bit, but it’d been a few days since we’d seen the sun. After dropping off the car, Steph, Cheryl and I borrowed some bikes from our hotel and went for a ride along the shore. Marieke had unfortunately caught my cold and decided to relax in our hotel room. The biking lanes in Hualien are great and we found some interesting metal sculptures on the waterfront. 

Later, we went to a department store to get helmets, luggage straps and a phone holder for the bike trip. That evening we went back to Giant, dropped off our bags to be shipped to Taitung and picked up our bikes. The hotel staff were nice enough to let us store our bikes in the lobby for the night and even roped them off. In the morning, we’d ride out on our 3 day trip along the east coast.