A Guide to Guanyin Mountain Hiking Trail – Taiwan Mountain
Guanyin Mountain, or Guanyinshan, is an extinct volcano mountain standing 616 meters above Taipei City. A well-known hiking route among locals, Guanyin Mountain awards hikers and nature lovers with breathtaking panoramic view of Danshui River and Taipei skyline after their climb. This is a day hike trail you definitely should not miss. Just like I mentioned, Guanyin Mountain is relatively foreigner-friendly and well mapped out. They even have a detailed English website. Still, how to arrive via public transportation is not pointed out on the English website, and it may be a little confusing for foreigners.
This article is about how to get to Guanyin Mountain, and other useful information.
＊ If you’d like to read the travel diary, go to: Taiwan Guanyin Mountain
How to Get to Guanyin Mountain ( Taiwan Mountain)?
First you’ll need to take the orange line (中和新蘆線) of Taipei Metro to its final stop Luzhou station. Exit via exit 3, and take the bus Orange 20 (橘20) to again its final stop Guanyin Mountain Tourist Center (觀音山遊客中心). The bus ride will take approximately 22 minutes. Voila, you’re here! The timetable is not included on the English website, so to check, go to the official Chinese website. It takes about 20 to 30 minutes for the bus to arrive at the metro from its departure time listed on the timetable. The red marks mean that the bus reaches Tourist Center stop, and others only reach LingYun Temple stop. The hiking trails can be reached from both stops. The Six Trails There are six trails in total, all listed out on the website. But by bus, two of them are the most convenient.
If You’re at the Visitor Center:
If your bus does arrive at the visitor center, go grab a bilingual map inside. Even though the trails are so well maintained you don’t really need one, it’s a good souvenir anyway. There is also a lavatory, and you can fill up your water bottle for free. Do note that the center only operates from 9 am to 5 pm. This is the trail Michael, Allen and I took. You start at the Fenguidouhu Trail (楓櫃斗湖步道) right beside the visitor center, and soon enough the trail will intersect with the Yinghanling Trail (Tough Man Peak Trail). Then you can find your way to Tough Man Peak. This path is about 1411 meters (4629 feet) and a round trip should take you about 80 minutes. The trail entrance is quite easy to navigate. You will see a wooden pavement across the parking lot, and that’s it!
If You’re at the Lingyun Temple:
If your bus only stops at the Lingyun Temple, or if you choose to stop here, you can enjoy the entire Yinghanling Trail. Lavatories are provided at the starting point of the trail. The trail is right beside Lingyun Temple. It is 1563 meters (5127 feet) long and a round trip should take you about 2 hours. After You Reached the Peak You can of course choose to take a round trip, or you can take another trail, and head for the Bali Ferry Pier. From the pier you would be able to take the ferry to Danshui. If you choose to do so, take the Niuliaopu Trail when you leave the peak. The trail is about 907 meters long (2975 feet) and would take you 50 minutes to reach the end. After that, turn left and walk along the riverside bike trail for about 20 minutes to arrive at the pier.
