An Electric Huan Dao, Part 3
Our Taiwan Cycling Adventure, Day By Day
This is the third of a three part series outlining our electric bicycle ride circling Taiwan (huan dao). Part 1 covers the Karmic Koben e-bikes and e-bike touring. Part 2 looks at planning out your own Taiwan tour and cycling around the island in general. This post will give a day by day account of our tour with links to Strava, an interactive map, and our Relive.
STAGE 1 — 60.6 miles; 4,522 ft elevation gain; 5:31:06 moving time
We kicked off our tour from the apartment we were staying at near Taipei Main Station heading toward Yilan County. Of course, this meant we were in the heart of the city and had to navigate the chaotic streets right off the bat (read Part 2 to see what that’s like). Once we got on to Highway 9, lightening traffic gave way to heavier rain. There are two main climbs, the second of which peaks at the county line. Clouds and fog limited visibility making the 18 turn descent mildly treacherous, but we took it at an easy pace to stay safe. Once under the fog line, there was one particular viewpoint that showed the expanse of Yilan where I wish I would’ve stopped to take a picture. We ended up getting to Luodong and found a hotel near the train station. We explored a popular nightmarket nearby for dinner.
STAGE 2–71.0 miles; 7,663 ft elevation gain; 6:01:03 moving time
Stage 2 took us from Luodong, through Su’ao, along the cliffs and through the notorious tunnels to Hualien. There were three major climbs, but little flat except for the beginning and end. Definitely stop at the viewpoints to take in the scenery. It looks like you’re riding precariously along the middle of a wall of rock that dives straight into the ocean. Clouds still kept temperatures cool, but it wasn’t nearly as wet as Stage 1. Our guide and his wife arranged our hotel since they live in Hualien and took us out to dinner at a famous dumpling restaurant.
STAGE 3–80.3 miles; 2,886 ft elevation gain; 5:45:19 moving time
With the first two mountain stages out of the way, we were looking forward to a flat day. We headed south from Hualien, staying on Highway 9 inland. Highway 11 along the coast is another option, but is less populated meaning fewer potential resting spots. We stopped by some of our guide’s friends and family houses and got treated to some special teas, fresh steamed peanuts, pomelos (which we ended up carrying on our bikes), and other local delicacies. We also stopped by a Tropic of Cancer monument (one of nine in the world and one of three in Taiwan). We hopped on a bike path for a bit that took us over an old train bridge that actually spanned two tectonic plates. We made it as far as Guanshan. The first hotel we tried was booked but we found a B&B not too far away. It didn’t actually serve breakfast, but the manager’s family grew bananas which she shared with us, so maybe Bed & Bananas?
STAGE 4–95.1 miles; 6,498 ft elevation gain; 6:40:18 moving time
Stage 4 took us through Taitung along the southeast coast and back over the mountains to the west side. Along the roads in Taitung County, we enjoyed a deliciously sweet and messy custard apple (shi jia). We wanted to try some right away, so they pulled some chilled ones out of the fridge for us. There was one main climb, but it was a steep one — maybe one reason why the tourism material recommends going the other way. On the descent, we reached the end of Highway 9 which spans 475 km. We made it as far as Fangliao, finding a shared room but no one else was in the apartment that night.
STAGE 5–41.0 miles; 1,109 ft elevation gain; 3:31:35 moving time
Stage 5 was a slow and easy day for us. Our guide had arranged meeting a few of his classmates in Pingtung and Kaohsiung. We totaled only 41 miles that were pancake flat, but this also brought us back to more urban settings. In Pingtung, we stopped for lunch and shaved ice before spinning our way over to Kaohsiung where our hotel was arranged for us and we were treated to an incredible Japanese dinner.
STAGE 6–89.5 miles; 2,715 ft elevation gain; 7:35:56 moving time
Stage 6 took us north along Highway 1 from Kaohsiung through Tainan. The worst thing about this route is the sheer number of stoplights that break up your momentum. The headwind didn’t help either. Once we got north of Tainan, it was a little more free-flowing, but we still didn’t get quite as far as we had hoped, finishing up the day in Dounan. We also stopped at our second Tropic of Cancer marker. It took our guide a while to scramble for a hotel as well, asking random people throughout the town. Using Google Maps would’ve expedited the process — it was dark by the time we got settled.
STAGE 7–92.9 miles; 4,540 ft elevation gain; 7:16:30 moving time
On Stage 7 our guide decided to abandon, hopping on a train at Wuri at the southern edge of Taichung. We worked our way over to Highway 3 to get closer to the mountains and further away from the city. We took in some serene views of the Li-Yu-T’an Reservoir and rode through the cobblestone (ok, maybe it was brick) streets of Dahu Township. We cut over on Highway 6 to head in to Miaoli to find a hotel, which was one of the coolest segments of our ride. Highway 6 basically parallels Expressway 72, so there are only a few cars to share the road with. It cuts cleanly through the valley with a couple short tunnels making for a fun, quiet ride.
STAGE 8–80.5 miles; 5,241 ft elevation gain; 6:27:36 moving time
Stage 8 took us back to where we started a little over a week ago. We got out of Miaoli and took Highway 126 back inland to Highway 3, expressly to avoid going through Hsinchu. We rode along the Ming-te Reservoir which was running low at the time, but has some cute bridges cutting across certain sections. It was always undulating and got more and more congested as we inched closer to Taipei. We crossed the Tamsui River in the scooter lane although I think we were supposed to take a dedicated bike lane. Oops. We jumped on the bike path at the end of the bridge, wrestling our bikes through a couple bollards, probably upsetting the scooters behind us. We quickly made it back where our parents and kids were waiting and finished off with a slow pedal back to the apartment.
