Hike up 3000KM in Pingtung, Taiwan and complete the BeiDaWuShan Hike.
Beidawushan (北大武山) is one of the peaks in the 100 peaks of Taiwan list, known as Baiyue ( 臺灣百岳). At 3092 meters high, it is one of the tallest mountains in the South of Taiwan and offers rare and incredible views throughout the hike. For reference, the tallest peak in Taiwan is Jade Mountain, Yushan, at 3952m.
Location: Pingtung County, an hours drive from Kaohsiung
We chose to do a 2-day hike, summiting and making it all the way back down on the 2nd day. There is a lodge close to the start of the hike where you can rest on the first day. If you choose to do a 3 day hike, you can rest there after summiting and hike the rest of the path down the 3rd day.
A climbing permit from Taiwu Police Station is needed, and printed out, before entering from the old Trailhead.
OUR STATS
Total hike time: 2 days, 1 night
Total distance: 23km
Total elevation: 3092m
Total cost: 5060NTD (HSR, car rental, lodging, porter)
Other spend: 6000NTD (for a set of basic hiking gear not including shoes)
The hike is brutal. It is not an easy one, especially after a typhoon destroyed the original trail path so that the new trailhead starts 2.5km further and is mostly a steep incline. You’ll really feel this when you’re on your final stretch back.
Our Path
New Trailhead -> Old Trailhead -> Sunset Peak -> Kaigu Inn -> 1000-year old Cedar Tree -> Water Source -> Sunrise Peak -> Shrine -> 3092km Peak
New Trailhead -> Old Trailhead
(2.5km, 400m incline, 1 hour)
This was a difficult warm-up. It was my first time doing a serious hike and I definitely underestimated the difficulty. We were able to get to the Old Trailhead relatively quickly, but I was sweating and very out of breath. The incline was steep and the path full of rocks. While most of it was within the forest, it would fluctuate between warm sun and fog.
Old Trailhead -> Kaigu Lodge
(4.2km, 2000m elevation, 3.5 hours)
We made it to the Old Trailhead where we took our first snack break and used the bathrooms, the only ones on the hike besides Kaigu Inn, if you don’t go now you’ll find colorful little shovels along the hike which you can use to scoop your poop! How thoughtful of Taiwan (see photos).
We then checked ourselves in to the check-in point. This is where you show your permits and lodging booking before continuing the hike.
The next stop was Kaigu Inn, and there’s one rest stop on the way. For most of the hike you’re just trekking upwards to make it to the inn. We saw a few wildlife, but the rest was a simple hike up to the lodge.
Kaigu Inn and Sunset Peak
Kaigu Inn is the cabin you can stay at 1/4 way up the hike. It’s around 4-5 hours in from the start of the New Trailhead. The building has been around since the 1940’s having gone through Japanese occupation. First built as a station to oversee nearby construction projects, it then became a shelter for hikers in the 40’s. After Japan left Taiwan, it was torn down and turned into a school, and now a cabin to shelter hikers.
Kaigu Inn has running water with multiple sinks surrounding the cabin and by the bathrooms. Inside you’ll find floor mats and sleeping bags for rent, and a first aid box. There is no light after dark, so you’ll need your own headlamps and flashlights to get around. If you book food, they serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Right next to the cabin is an area for camping if you decided to bring your own gear.
If you’re a light sleeper, I would highly recommend ear plugs, eye-masks, and bringing your own sleeping mat and pillow to use with the bag for a more comfortable rest.
Breakfast: Steamed buns (pork or black sesame), Congee
Lunch: Congee
Dinner: A buffet of chicken, fish, beef, vegetables, eggs, and porridge.
Drinks: Hot ginger and black sugar tea.
You’ll need to bring your own utensils!
Sunset Viewpoint
A short 10-15 minute walk from Kaigu Inn is a tall clearing where you can watch the sunrise, sunset, or star-gaze. The viewpoint can get cold, so bring your jackets or blankets if you decide to go for sunset or after dark.
Day 2: Night hike, sunrise, and summit
We had packed our bags the night before so we would try to cause as little disturbance as possible in the morning. We woke up at 1am, put on our hiking gear, rolled up our sleeping bags, and grabbed breakfast before heading out.
It is pitch-black so do not forget your headlamps and extra batteries. It’s always better to be safe. Go slow as there’s a lot of climbing, and plenty of roots that could trip you along the way.
Abandoned Japanese Shrine
In the 1940’s during Japan occupation of Taiwan, they used the mountain as a site for building religious buildings. Despite protests from the local residents because Beidawu is considered a sacred mountain, they built a temple and shrine on the peak. After the shrine was struck by lightning a few times it was moved further down where we now see the remains.
Closer to the peak we come across another clearing where you’ll see incredible trees. Here we started seeing more birds as well.
Beidawushan Summit
Finally, we reached the summit. I had pretty much given up by the shrine, but had come all the way so pushed myself to make it to the peak. 3092 meters high, and 11km of a hike. We made it. We stopped shortly to finish off our snacks and take a short rest before the brutal descent back to the cabin. Because of the fog, there wasn’t much to see at the peak besides the signboard.
Coming back down and return to Taipei
This was rough. We were already exhausted from the full day of hiking up to the summit, coming back down was not any easier. A lot of crawling and climbing to get back to the cabin where we rested briefly, had lunch, and continued back down. We wanted to get back before 5pm before it got dark, and so we could catch our 7:45pm HSR back to Taipei. We made it just in time with shaky legs.
As a beginner hiker (this was my first big hike) I would say this is a 4.5/5 difficulty, I definitely should have trained before it by going on a few more hikes, getting used to carrying heavier bags, and improving my endurance overall. However, I was able to do it by taking 2 – 3 hours longer, an overall of 20 hours.
What we brought on the hike
I’ve linked to a couple products below, while most of my purchases were made at Decathalon, you can find equivalent on Shopee. Decathalon is a good starting place where you don’t have to spend too much, but you’ll probably want to slowly upgrade.
I spent around 6000NTD ($200 USD) to pick up the basics minus hiking shoes. My current hiking shoes are Goodyear and cost around 2000NTD when I bought them 4 years ago.
- 2-days of clothes
- Wind-breaker
- Down Jacket
- Heattech
- Sports bra
- Shirt/Vest
- Compression Socks
- Hiking Socks
- Hat
- Beanie
- Camping Gear
- 20-40l Camping Bag
- Camping pillow
- Sleeping mat if you need it
- Sitting mat
- Climbing gloves for ropes
- Water-bag
- Small towel
- Cup
- Bowl
- Eating Utensils (fork, chopsticks, spoon)
- Snacks for 2-days of hiking (protein bars, nuts)
- Electrolyte Tabs / Salt-candy
- Basic first-aid (bandaids, alcohol wipes)
- Others
Follow me on Instagram and Youtube as I’ll be posting more about my hikes and adventures in Taiwan. Leave a comment if you’ve been on this hike or have an interesting hike to share!
Leave a Reply