Tag: Yang-Ming Shan Mountains

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‘陽明山東西大縱走活動’ ‘Yang-ming Shan East-West Vertical Traverse’ 2019!

Catherine Lee

Or as I prefer, the ‘West-East’ Vertical Traverse! This is THE mountain challenge for all those looking for a day out from Taipei – a 10-hour hike over the 10 mountains in the Yang-ming Shan range that lie just above Taipei City. It’s 25 km, almost 1,700 m of ascent and about 45,000 steps in total. And totally worth it! This is my account of my trip last Saturday, October 26. Spring or autumn is the best time to do this hike, because summer is too hot (and it rains nearly every afternoon) and winter is too wet. You need … Continue reading ‘陽明山東西大縱走活動’ ‘Yang-ming Shan East-West Vertical Traverse’ 2019!

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Chilling up on Yang-Ming-Shan 陽明山: 🐍 Taiwan Habu / Brown Spotted Pit Viper / 龜殼花蛇!🐍 Or is it?

Catherine Lee

It’s high summer in Taiwan, exhaustively hot and humid, and the best outdoor place to escape the heat is up in the mountains, where there’s a breeze and some shade. So, up to Yang-ming-shan National Park 陽明山 (the mountains above Taipei) we all go ~ there’s a range of 10 mountains up there to choose from, and endless trails and places to walk, meet, chill, relax and enjoy the breeze. And today on Mian-tian-shan 面天山 (Mt Mian-tian: 977 m) there was a s.n.a.k.e.😨 🐍🐍 😨 Snakes are common in Taiwan, but they usually move very fast, and, well, nobody hangs … Continue reading Chilling up on Yang-Ming-Shan 陽明山: 🐍 Taiwan Habu / Brown Spotted Pit Viper / 龜殼花蛇!🐍 Or is it?

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‘陽明山東西大縱走活動’ ‘Yang-Ming Shan East-West Vertical Traverse’ 2018!

Catherine Lee

Can’t quite believe it.  10 mountains.  10 hours of walking.  1 day.  25 km.  53, 437 steps.  Highest point: 1,120 m.  The WHOLE Yang-Ming Shan traverse.  Up and down, and down and up all day long.  Steep steep steep, but dry.  No mud.  A little sun. Perfect! All 10 mountain markers…. Yang-Ming Shan is the range of mountains above Taipei City.  I’ve been up there many times and done the whole ‘traverse’ in sections before.  This time last year, I did it all over 2 days (see that report here).  This is the first time ever I’ve done the whole … Continue reading ‘陽明山東西大縱走活動’ ‘Yang-Ming Shan East-West Vertical Traverse’ 2018!

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YIPPEE, SNOW!

Catherine Lee

Yes, finally, at long last, after 10 days of non-stop rain and more rain, and getting colder by the hour, today the rain has finally stopped, people’s moods have lifted, the skies have sort of cleared and in the far distance on Yang-Ming Shan Mountains 陽明山, just above Taipei City, there is SNOW!  YIPPEE!  The grey snow-laden sky is kinda merged with the white snow, but hey, check it out.  Ha ha, it’s there, honest. And just in case you’re still not sure what you’re supposed to be looking at – check out the arrows below! There’s no snow down … Continue reading YIPPEE, SNOW!

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The Cattle of YangMingShan 陽明山, Taipei

Catherine Lee

Yes, at last, I’ve found them!  The cattle of YangMingShan are smelt long before they are seen ~ the smell of ‘cow’ is everywhere in Qingtiangang especially on the grasslands, and there’s cowpats and muddy trails and hoof-prints all over.  But often the cattle themselves are nowhere to be found.  I’ve been up there twice recently and not a cow in sight.  But yesterday, there they all were, taking it easy – with the egrets perched on their backs, chewing the cud, yes! YangMingShan is the mountain range on the northern side of Taipei City, highest point 1,120m above sea … Continue reading The Cattle of YangMingShan 陽明山, Taipei

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Yang-Ming Shan Mountains 陽明山 ~ before the storm….

Catherine Lee

It’s summer, well and truly summer!  Schools finished yesterday, the last day of June ~ so the summer holidays have officially started ~ and everyone is making the most of it! Summer weather in Taipei this past week has meant fine and sunny weather every morning, up to the mid-30’s in temps, then soon after lunch, it clouds over and a storm comes rolling in, sometimes just torrential rain, sometimes with thunder and lightning too.  So today everyone was up early to the Yang-Ming Shan Mountains, just above Taipei, and back down again by early afternoon.  By 8:00 am I … Continue reading Yang-Ming Shan Mountains 陽明山 ~ before the storm….

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‘陽明山東西大縱走活動’ ‘Yang-Ming Shan East-West Vertical Traverse’ 2017!

Catherine Lee

It’s Dragon Boat Festival weekend, so we have 2 extra days off – yippee!  So far I’ve spent 2 days up on the Yang-Ming Shan Mountains above Taipei doing the East-West Traverse (Chinese version is here), a 25 km route, which I did in 2 halves – it takes in 10 peaks in total. Each of the 10 peaks has a marker post with a Chinese character on the top, and using a pencil, you make like a brass rubbing in a special book. Together the characters spell out the phrase ‘陽明山東西大縱走活動’ meaning ‘Yang-Ming Shan East-West Vertical Traverse Activity’.  So there … Continue reading ‘陽明山東西大縱走活動’ ‘Yang-Ming Shan East-West Vertical Traverse’ 2017!

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Chinese New Year 2016

Catherine Lee

A sombre, sober and subdued Lunar New Year for all of Taiwan. It started with the deadly 6.4 earthquake early on Saturday February 6 in southern Taiwan, which led to the collapse of a number of high-rise buildings in Tainan, including the 17-storey Weiguan Jinlong apartment complex, where over 100 were killed. Electricity and water outages made the New Year even worse for many, and as High-Speed Rail services were cancelled in southern Taiwan, many people were forced to change their travel plans. TV and Newspaper reports kept us all focused on the emerging nightmare…. Tragedy after tragedy – as … Continue reading Chinese New Year 2016

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Snow?! YES!

Catherine Lee

Unbelievable.  Incredible.  Amazing. There is snow on the Yang-Ming-Shan mountains!  Not just on the tops, but all over.  A light dusting. Very light.  But it’s snow all the same! And it’s visible from all over this area. And just visible in my photos, taken this morning. We’re having the coldest temps in Taipei for over 40 years.  4ºC.  Currently my phone is telling me it’s 3ºC, so maybe it’ll get even lower overnight. It’s cold cold cold, very very cold.  Most people, including me, have no heating in their houses.  This is a sub-tropical country, and summer heat is our … Continue reading Snow?! YES!