Updated 2020

If you have read any of my posts, you’ve probably picked up on the fact that I really like hiking and being outdoors. One of my favorite things about Taiwan is the abundance of outdoor activities, which you can do year round — well, you can do them year round as long as you can handle the intense summer heat/humidity!

There are so many fun places to explore around Taipei and I often go on hikes that take me to interesting areas.

Instead of writing a post explaining a recent hike, I thought it would be much more interesting to show you some pictures from a hike I just did last weekend. The pictures below are for a really nice hike that goes from Xindian to Maokong (see my earlier post on riding the Maokong Gondola).

Maokong is a beautiful mountainous area by the zoo that has really pretty tea plantations. I really like hiking in this area because there are a lot of interesting things to see along the way — and of course because it’s good exercise.

Here is the start of the Ergeshan hiking trail, which is here on Google Maps.

Unlike where I’m from, almost all the trails I’ve been on in Taiwan have man made steps. They are needed due to the heavy vegetation.

And more steep steps.

 Looking back down from where I just hiked up.

Awesome mountain views.

This trail has some interesting things along the way, like the wind chimes here.

Another wind chime.

And now for some tea. The tea plantations look awesome.

More tea.

Random temple in the mountain. Seems strange for a foreigner, but there are random temples all over the place.

Some graves along the way. Seems a little strange to a foreigners, but again not a big deal to a Taiwanese person. You can read more about why people are on the side of mountains here.

View of the 101, which you can see from all over Taipei and New Taipei City.

Maokong Gondola in the distance.

This was just one hike of many that are easily accessible in the Taipei area. I’ve done many of them and love to go exploring different places.