A Day in Town: Houlong, Sanwan, Toufen, Zhunan (Miaoli County)

During the week of 3/09 - 3/13, I completed my twenty-fifth trip under "A Day in Town," my multi-year backpacking plan to spend a day in each of the approximately 350 townships in Taiwan. My destination this time was Miaoli County, which borders Hsinchu County and Hsinchu City to the north, Taichung City to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the west. Due to the Xueshan Range, Miaoli County is a very mountainous region and has little flat land. The county administers 18 townships, of which I had visited four during my last trip here a year ago, so this time I visited another four townships: Houlong, Sanwan, Toufen, and Zhunan.

I spent my first day in Houlong, a coastal township occupying the central section of Miaoli's 50-kilometer-long coastline and home to Miaoli HSR Station. I began by taking a train to Houlong Station, which is located in the old city center on the west side, in contrast to the fast-growing area on the east side, where Miaoli HSR Station is located. From Houlong Station, I explored eastward. One and a half hours later, I arrived at Cihan Temple, a historic Matsu temple built in Xishe, which literally means "west tribe" - a traditional neighborhood of the indigenous Toacas people. I continued across the bridge over the Houlong River, and spotted a sign indicating "Nanshe", which literally means "south tribe", another traditional habitat of the Toacas people.

I hiked along the Houlong River towards its estuary, and reached Tongxing Old Street, the remains of a once-prosperous seaport and the commercial center of the entire Houlong Township. There, one building even displayed two giant rocks at its entrance, boasting that the Jiaqing Emperor of the Qing Dynasty and other high-ranking officials once rested on the rocks during their journey to Taiwan in the 18th century. As I neared the estuary, I turned south to walk along the coastline. Half an hour later, I arrived at Guogang Shell Fossils, a sedimentary rock with many shellfish fossils dating from between 1,030,000 and 460,000 years ago. Here, I turned around and returned to Houlong Station to catch a train, transferring to a bus in Zhunan to Sanwan, where my hostel was located. Along the way, I visited 12 of 23 villages administered by Houlong Township.

On the second day, I visited Sanwan, a tranquil township with over 99% of its population being of Hakka descent, the highest in Taiwan. Making this day even more special, I met two young friends: Malin from Germany and Orlando from the UK; they had both been out of their home countries for months, trekking over many countries in Asia. We hit it off and decided to travel together from Sanwan to Miaoli City, where Orlando's next lodging was located. It was a rainy day but we set off without hesitation. About one and a half hours into our hiking, we reached a tea oil factory, and were warmly received by its owner, Mr. Chen.

Half an hour later, we entered Zaogiao, a township bordering Sanwan to the north. Having grabbed a quick bite at a convenience store, we continued southward. Malin traveled with a heavy bag - a camping tent inside, and Orlando was so considerate that he offered to swap his light bag with hers. Another two hours later, we entered Miaoli City, which borders Touwu Township to the east and serves as the seat of Miaoli County. We traveled our last mile together riding Youbike to Miaoli Train Station, where Orlando checked into his hostel, Malin took a southbound train to Sanyi Township to check into her hostel, while I returned to my hostel by taking a northbound train to Zhunan, followed by a bus transfer back to Sanwan. Along the way, we walked through four of the eight villages administered by Sanwan Township, two villages of Zaogiao Township, and two villages of Touwu Township before reaching Miaoli City.

I spent my third day in Toufen, a county-administered city surrounded by Zhunan Township, Zaogiao Township, Sanwan Township, and Baoshan Township (Hsinchu County) in the west, south, east, and north respectively. With a population of over 100,000, Toufen is the most populous township in Miaoli County. I began by riding a Youbike to Sanhu, a village of Toufen bordering Sanwan Township. From there, I hiked over a well-maintained trail amidst hills to reach Douhuan Village, where the Han Chinese first settled before migrating further inland in the 18th century.

About three hours later, I reached the downtown area. It was the commercial center of Toufen and all of Miaoli County in the old days. Passing its old buildings and porticos reminded me of the Porticoes of Bologna that I visited in Italy last year. I walked around several historical neighborhoods, and ended my day in Toufen at Yongzheng Temple. A Matsu temple built in 1853, Yongzheng Temple is the religious center of Toufen and is attended mostly by worshippers of Hakka descent. Interestingly, just over two kilometers away is another Matsu temple, Zhunan Cihyu Temple, which was first built in 1685 and is now attended mostly by worshippers of Minnan descent; in the background is the tale of Minnan-Hakka conflicts that were prevalent nationwide in the 18th and 19th centuries. On this day, I walked over 18 of the 33 villages administered by Toufen City.

On the fourth day, I visited Zhunan, which, alongside Houlong, Tongxiao, and Yuanli, are the four coastal, Minnan-majority townships in the otherwise Hakka-dominat Miaoli County. With the smallest area and the second largest population, Zhunan has the highest population density among the 18 townships of Miaoli County. I started by taking a bus to Zhunan Station, where I walked around and was attracted by the view in which an old building stood next to a store of NET, a renowned fashion chain in Taiwan. Half an hour later, I took a northbound train to Qiding Station, and spotted amusingly a dog lying relaxingly as soon as I exited. Only a five-minute walk away was the famous two railway tunnels, of which one was damaged by American bombers during World War II, in which Taiwan was part of the Empire of Japan.

After lunch, I switched to Youbike and explored southward along the coastline. One hour later, I arrived at Longfeng Fishery Port, a local tourist attraction. The coastal bike route was well established, through which I reached the township boundary between Zhunan and Houlong. In my return journey, I passed by a wetlands park called Guanyidu, which literally means "public charity ferry", testifying to a service sponsored by the local administration in the old days to ferry passengers, free of charge, crossing Zhonggang River, the natural border of Zhunan and Houlong Townships. An hour later, I ended my itinerary of the day in Zhunan Station. Along the way, I made my way to 15 of the 25 villages administered by Zhunan Township.

Concluding my day in Zhunan Township, I also completed my backpacking trip in Miaoli this time. My hostel was located in a convenient and quiet neighborhood of Sanwan Township, only a 3-minute walk to the bus stop, where I took the bus to my destinations every day. In addition, it provided B&B service, so I enjoyed free buns and coffee every morning before setting out. Furthermore, my encounters at the hostel with Malin and Orlando made this trip exceptional to me. The ideal of "Like-minded backpackers, young and old, meet and hike for a day together" had never come to my mind before, but it happened naturally after the three of us checked into the same hostel. In my words, it was "German, British, and Taiwanese friendships formed in the tranquil township of Sanwan, Miaoli County."  What an unbelievable moment and journey shared!