Location: Miaoli County/Taichung
Distance: 82km Elevation Gain: 820m
In our #071 post, we focused on a traverse from Hsinchu to Miaoli. In this post, we continue south from Miaoli to Taichung in the same vein. We offer another inter-county traverse as an alternative route through the low-level mountains of the west as a means to avoid the more densely populated and polluted west coast.
Cycling through the hinterland has several advantages apart from the one above. This is an excellent opportunity to visit remote historic and tourist sights, of which we have included three in particular.
In compliance with other posts for those dependent on public transport, we start the ride from the main train station in central Miaoli. A few kilometers heading southeast will get you to the Houlang River. After crossing the bridge, you get on County Road No. 119A. This is not the most direct route, but there’s a lot less traffic. After about 10km, you cross the river a second time to get on County Road No. 119.
This is really nice riding heading due south on a small country road in the foothills of the central mountains. After 25 km, the first major town you’ll come to is Sanyi Township, famous for its wood sculpture industry. From here, the rider gets onto local road Miao 49. Following this road, which is narrow and winding into the hills, takes the rider to the first of two historic sites.
After 30 km, you reach Shenghsing Train Station, a buzzing little tourist town and designated as a historic site, this is a good place to pick up supplies. You now have a steep downhill for a few km to reach the second historic site of Longteng Bridge: a must-photo opportunity for anyone in the area. The bridge was built in 1906, but suffered major damage in an earthquake in 1935. Read more about both of the above here: Sheng Hsing Station and Remains of Longteng Bridge
To continue south, you cross the Taan River and get onto Provincial Highway No. 13. On a gradual downhill 45 km into the ride, you’ll come to Houli train station. This is a fairly substantial town on the main line rail. In recent years, it has become a major tourist attraction because of the Hou-Feng Bike Way.
This is an excellent bit of cycling infrastructure with an old railway tunnel and bridge repurposed for cyclists. Unfortunately, you most likely won’t see anyone cycling during the weekend, just locals on an assortment of E-bikes.
The Bike Way connects to Provincial Highway No. 3, and this is the best way to cross the Tachia River to Shigang District. From here, get onto the Han River Bikeway, which runs for over 20km on a gentle downhill to the flats or suburban Taichung.
We ended the ride on this occasion at Wufeng District in the south of Taichung. There aren’t many accommodation options here; a few kilometers south to Caotun is better. There are, however, two particular points of interest in Wufeng that are well worth visiting. The first is the Wufeng Lin Family Residence.
And the 9/21 Earthquake Museum. An excellent article about the museum here.
Here is the GPS info: