A Tomb of Deprived Karma and Exploring Northern Danlan (Tamsui-Kavalan) Historical Trail

 'FROM FAR FORMOSA' (GEO.L.MACKAY,D.D.)

Edited by the Rev. J.A.MacDonald 1895

Hsiaojingua Peak 小金瓜露頭 

Teapot Mt and Keelung Mt @Shumeiping historical trail 樹梅坪古道

Location (cave) where first gold was discovered 

 @Hsiaojingua Peak 小金瓜露頭

Ruins of an old Gold-Mine-Office, Diaoshan old trail 舊礦場事務所遺址, 貂山古道 

@Shumeiping historical trail 樹梅坪古道

We explored a section of  Northern Danlan 淡蘭北路 (Known Northern Official Route 官道) in car and hike. Our route marked in yellow dots.

Ruifang 瑞芳 - Jiufen 九份 - Shumeiping historical trail 樹梅坪古道 - Diaoshan historical trail 貂山古道 - Dacukeng historical trail 大粗坑古道 - Mudan 牡丹 -   Shuangxi 雙溪 - Shifen 十分 - Nuannuan 暖暖 - Xizhi 汐止 - Taipei 台北

 双扇蕨 The Coupled Dipteris  (Dipteris conjugata Reinw) Logo of Tamsui-Kavalan is a rare fern, but often found in the mountains of Northern Taiwan, especially along the Tamsui-Kavalan Trails. The plant can be traced back to 200 million years ago during the Jurassic period. Coupled Dipteris is the inspiration for the logo of the Tamsui-Kavalan Trails to represent the rich natural landscape and long history of the trails.

It is said to be found at Liujiaokeng (料角坑) Old Trails - hikers should be on the lookout when enter the trail.

Source - National Museum of History

Taiwan Thousand Miles Trail Association (TMI Trail, 台灣千里步道協會)

The idea of a cultural route originated from Camino de Santiago (The Way of Saint James) in 1993. It subsequently inspired the concept of cultural heritage preservation, which expanded with long-distance cultural trails, spreading its influence across nations and regions around the world. The island of Taiwan, which the Portuguese called Formosa, began to appear on the world stage in the Age of Discovery. In 1626, the Spaniards arrived in northern Taiwan and came into contact with Taiwanese aborigines. From a cultural route standpoint, Taiwan is an important stronghold located on the international sea route. Since 2014, the Thousand Miles Trail Association Taiwan (TMI Trail), following the global trend of cultural routes, has been developing the first long-distance cultural route of Taiwan, the Tamsui-Kavalan Historical and Cultural Trails.

Tamsui-Kavalan Historical and Cultural Trails is an extensive network with a long history located across Taipei Basin and Yilan Plain. The regions had once been inhabited by Taiwanese aborigines, the Dutch, the Spaniards, the Japanese, and the Han Chinese. The mountain routes span across four counties and cities, straddling the central mountains of northern Taiwan, predominately over hilly terrain. This is the first major Taiwanese road network in history to connect the inland to the Taiwan Strait and further to the Western Pacific Ocean. In the early years, they were routes for Taiwanese aborigines to communicate with each other, and for the Han Chinese to open up land and to use for commercial trade. Temples of the Village Deity, known as the Earth God, are often seen along the trails today, bearing witness to the devout faith of our ancestors. As history moved forward, official, commercial, and public trails emerged to serve the needs of rulers, conquerors, and governments. Today, road construction, along with advanced technology, has accelerated the migration of people in rural areas. Ancient trails are gradually falling into decay, while the functions and the industries of the villages are in urgent need of a transition. Connecting the route network is not only a path to reconnect memories of the old towns, but also to create a new relationship between nature and culture through ecotourism and cultural tourism.

Four years ago, TMI Trail and other non-governmental organizations (NGO) have begun to organize a series of related trail surveys, lectures, village tours, and exhibitions. They also combined such activities with the celebration of Taiwan Trail Day and the birthday of the Village Deity. The grass roots initiatives by TMI Trail helped raise public awareness of the reconstruction of the Tamsui-Kavalan Historical and Cultural Trails across the island. At the same time, TMI Trail also worked with the government. Through initiatives together with NGOs, the association created a partnership platform for New Taipei City, Taipei City, Keelung City, Yilan County, and the central government, and gradually carried out the project to reconstruct the Tamsui-Kavalan Historical and Cultural Trails long-distance trail system. A coordination meeting was held every three months to discuss issues such as trail selection, identification system, authorities and responsibilities, reconstruction methods, and division of labor.

In 2018, the Tamsui-Kavalan Historical and Cultural Trails will be promoted as a demonstration national greenway under the joint efforts of the private and public sectors. By 2020, a system of a total of eight themed national greenways is planned to be completed. The other national greenways will also portray the unique historical and cultural heritage of their individual regions. This cultural routes network will allow hikers around the world to see Taiwan’s rich ethnic heritage and beautiful natural landscapes. 

Source - Text copied from Taiwan Thousand Miles Trail Association.

Sentimental Reminder How Life Could Have Been 200 Years Ago

The Tamsui-Kavalan Historical and Cultural Trails (now dubbed the “Danlan Old Trail” system) were the main arteries connecting the Tamsui sub-prefecture (the Taipei basin) and Kavalan (Yilan) during the Qing dynasty more than 200 years ago. A northern official route, a central people’s route and a southern tea route were carved through the mountains because of the large resettlement of people toward Yilan’s Lanyang Plain. 

It is a section of northern official route we explored, specifically first @Shumeiping historical trail 樹梅坪古道 and next @Diaoshan old trail 貂山古道.

Spectacular view lays in front, from right to left – 

‘Teapot without handles/ears Mountain’ 無耳茶壺山

Keelung Mountain 雞籠山/ Big Belly Beauty Mountain 大肚美人山. 

The Chinese means Bamboo chicken hutch (jee-long) and is the reputed origin of the modern-day name of Keelung City 基隆. Colloquially ‘Big Belly Beauty’ as it looks like a pregnant woman laying on her back 

Keelung Islet 基隆嶼 Jīlóngyǔ - a volcanic island surrounded by cliffs. 

Primarily used as a military training base in the past, closed in 2015 

for island cleaning, reopened in 2018 for public visits.

Diaoshan Old Trail 貂山古道

With limited time in hand and keeping in mind the afternoon thundershowers forecast, we took the car to the next, had quick lunch and ready to explore as much as we could. 

The construction of the Diaoshan Ancient Road originated from the discovery of gold dust in the streams during 1898 (the 31st year of the Meiji period). It was a light mining trolley track for transportation and also the only way Mudan villagers took to work or trade between Ruifang, Jiufen and Shuangxi.

Mudan 牡丹 (station officially opened in 1922) is a litte town three stops past Ruifang. Its old name Wudan 武丹 is still used in some places including Wudan Mountain 武丹山 , one of the three locations (apart from Jinguqshi and Jiufen) where their epithermal deposits contain the richest mineral resources in Taiwan. 

Get our bearings on grassy trails

Plants seen grown a lot along the trails (left-right, top-bottom):
Cluster fig tree / Indian fig tree聚果榕

Alocasia odora/*Evil tigress witch taro 姑婆芋*

Dysosma八角蓮 (currently under endangered plant in Taiwan）

Malabar melastom/Indian rhododendron / Wild Peony 野牡丹

*two blog posts have been done on the Taiwanese 'Evil witch taro'. 'Gu Po Yu' HERE and 'Our life is as vulnerable as water stuck in the leaf of taro' HERE.

Interesting and useful finding - Wild Ramie

Green ramie/Rhea/Wild ramie (Taiwan)青苧麻/野苧麻 is believed to have originated in the Malay Peninsula. Its fiber is not strong enough to be used for fabric production, in Taiwan the leaf is mainly used for dye – fabric or food (such as grass rice cake 草仔粿 used instead of mugwort). It is also known eaten as food in some indigenous community.

I recently joined a ‘Ramie Harvesting’ tour in Nan’ao 南澳, which I will leave for another post. But eagerly witnessing the fibre differences in the original ramie and wild, I took a branch and did what I learned to ‘scrap and strip’ the bark and INDEED the fiber wore and broke as I pulled. 

Wild indigo/Anil大菁 is used for the well-known Hakka blue dye 客家藍染. 

Northern Taiwan indigo growth is shown in the first photo of ‘FROM FAR FOMOSA’

A Tomb of Deprived Karma 無緣之墓

There are four possibilities for the tomb and all related to Japanese mining operations during colonial period. The most popular belief seems to be about a Japanese mining technician who left his fiancé behind when he was sent to Taiwan for a two-year contract. Having not heard from him from that day, after twists and turns, she came looking for him only to be informed that he had passed away from illness. Broken hearted and decided to build a tomb in memory of him in proximity of his working office

Ruins Of An Old Gold-Mine-Office 舊礦場事務所遺址

The stoned wall caught my attention right away!

About 200 meters from the tomb and just before a signage to Mudan Railway Station牡丹車站, which officially opened in 1922 and today provides a service for those prefer to travel by train, is a ruin of an old-gold-mine office.

It is hard not to be taken aback by the sad state of this once prosperous community built with mining operational offices, warehouse, and a hospital providing medical cares to workers and nearby villagers. Its glory and beauty buried behind overgrown bushes and native plants - including Taiwanese native fig trees 百香果!

The tombstone, the ruin and how people want to remember them -  the dreams, sweat and put-behind stories is a sentimental reminder to the importance of this old trail in Northern Taiwan's mining history. 

Hsiaojingua Gold-Vein Walkway 小金瓜露頭 (Hsiaojingua lou'tou) 

(as a name of a locale - after consulting a bilingual Taiwan historian - is his suggestion). 'Hsiaojingua Peak' is otherwise on a signage or marker of a map at this old trail. 露頭 lou'tou literal means (rock) sticking out of (ground) -  Outcrop. 

 ‘Hippo head' rock formation

 Big and small holes - tainted markers of gold dreams

 SO fun there, we spent a good hour exploring, relaxing, 

and contemplating!

 The tunnel/cave first gold was discovered

Mineral deposits. Probably green copper, blue sodalite, 

red/brown iron oxide, yellow/brown sulfur.

Now no more than 4 meters long, one and half adult's width, 
the tunnel has been blocked to 

deter unsolicited interests or illegal operations.

Hsiaojingua lou’tou was the first place where gold was discovered in Jiufen. The distant view of the face of this rock formation is a hippo head. Its gold vein stretches north-south, about 30 meters from north to south, and 20 meters from east to west. The center is composed of silicified sandstone and shale.

In the nineteenth year of Guangxu (1893), a pumpkin-shape mountain of gold veins was discovered, followed by discovery of another pumpkin-shaped in the next year 1894. Gold diggers at the time gave name to the first discovery location Hsiaojingua "Little Gold Gourd’ and the latter the main and original Jinguashi ‘’Gold Gourd Stone’. The two discoveries  opened  the golden years of Jiufen and Jinguashi. In 1895 Taiwan became Japan's first overseas colony.

The deformed shape of Hsiaojingua from the original pumpkin to hippo head is the result of descades’ open-cut mining.

Something worth mentioning before taking off the old trails and heading back to Taipei - 'Screw-pine' leaf 林投葉. It is found on the coastal line of Danlan historical trails, its long leaf has thorns on three angles making it good border security. Quoted from HERE. Here Jeff grimaces as he yanks on a screw pine. Jeff explained that the Qing soldiers planted screw pine around their defensive works. It has pointed leaves, making it annoying to move through, and breaks when tugged strongly, making it impossible for attacking troops to pull themselves up the hill by using it. Jeff observed that if you see large quantities of screw pine on the slopes, you're probably looking at an old Qing defense work.

The bottom of the photo just above is a description from 'FROM FAR FORMOSA' 1895. The top is President Tsai in Palau with a local woman making screw-pine basket. Screw-pine weaving (mats or baskets) is also common in Taiwan, in Amis food tradition, is also one of the common leaves used for their Alifonfon (meaning family's bentō /meal container. traditionally filled with rice).

"Sister Lintou" 林投姐 the ghost that appeared amidst the lintou trees after sundown - Classic Taiwan/Tainan Ghost Story. 

Read HERE. 

A little more hiking in late afternoon and braving through the forecasted thundershower, we headed home through charming small historical town Shuangxi 雙溪 and Shifen 十分. 

 雙溪蔡冰 Shuangxi Tsuabing (Taiwanese Hokkien name for shaved ice) - friend insisted 'Must Try'. Signature peanut-combo is delicious. Soft and crunchy large peanuts perfect summer snack.

Shuangxi painted by historians and writers was a lively, thriving coal mining town with stores, theaters, and drinking pub around the time when Canadian missionary George Leslie Mackay arrived in Taiwan in 1871 to the 1950s. By writer Lin Heng-dao (林衡道) as a “Venice in the mountains” because of the converging Pinglin and Mudan rivers and its natural charm and rich historical past.

Snapshots taken from a moving car - water colour painting landscape!

Note - Atayal's weaving ramie 'red ramie' - photo taken @Nan'ao. Yilan