Yuanzuishan: Taipei's Alpine Ridge Hike

One of five ridge hikes accessible from Taipei, Yuanzuishan's altitude gives it a defining characteristic from the others and makes it an instant favorite. The 4-6 hour hike is tucked inside the Snow Mountain Range outside Taichung, resting between 2,000 to 3,000 meters above sea level. So, climbers are rewarded with the smell of pine trees and cooler mountain weather as opposed to the dense undergrowth and humidity of jungle trekking. Rhododendron bushes also line the path, making it a beautiful hike for early springtime.

This super fun climb shares all of the same defining characteristics as other more accessible knife-edge ridge hikes: ropes, rock scrambles, repels and stunning views of surrounding mountains. I would say gloves are optional depending on how callused your hands already are. I finally had to put mine on during the descent down from the ridge. However, sun protection is a must as much of this hike completely exposed.

Long lines on weekends mean that climbers can get stuck in uninterrupted sun for hours. My partner and I made great time, passing other groups and hikers, but the lines for the ropes down caught us and added at least an hour to our trek, which was spent sitting between the rocks and chatting with others about trekking bucket lists and favorite trails.

One would think that this hike's lack of public transport and distance from the city would make it less popular, but sadly this is not the case. Try to avoid Saturday and Sunday if possible unless you don't mind scenarios like the one described in the previous paragraph. Also avoid rainy, windy weather. There are better ways to die than by slipping on a wet rock from the top of this ridge.

There you have it. The elevation, evergreen flora and beautiful views of the Snow Mountain Range firmly place Yuanzuishan in the list of must-do day hikes from Taipei. Like Wuliaojian and HuanDiDian, it's also a great full-body workout that can be used to train for longer, more challenging high-mountain climbs.

Wuliaojian: Mountaineering in Taipei

The two main attractions of this hike are a narrow knife ridge and the almost vertical 100 ft. rappel down it. I was terrified and said so… “That’s why we do this,” promptly replied the random hiker next to me. He’s right. This is one of Taipei’s most difficult, thrilling and popular day hikes. Emphasis on difficult as it was a strenuous five hour, full body workout, but it was fun!

The hike starts off with a quick, challenging ascent. It’s a proper climb using ropes, rocks and the occasional tree root. We loved it. It was a proper challenge that used every muscle we had without the monotonous feel of stairs. After about an hour of this, you reach the top of the ridge. On your way up, there’s a good view of Sanxia and possibly a little green snake or two.



Keep climbing. After reaching the top, the path goes up, down and then up again with lots of rope and little 30 ft. rappels. Eventually you’ll reach the first section of the knife ridge, which offers an awesome 360 degree view of Sanxia on one side and a beautiful valley on the other. Don’t stop. You’re almost to the big rappel.

Soon, you’ll reach the #5 trail marker. Here you can head up and over another ridge leading to the big rappel or cut around and go the easy way down. Do the rappel! It’s a terrifying highlight of the hike and more than likely you’ll surprise yourself. Plus, I don’t actually know where that other little side trail goes. I’m just assuming it’s an easy way down because other blogs/books mentioned there was a way to cut around the rappel.

Going into this, I thought the rappel was only 60 ft… not 100, and we’d already been doing smaller rappels, so it felt like the hike had been building up to this “do or die” moment. Luckily, there are two different rappelling options for getting off the ridge. One of which is supposed to be a bit easier than the other. The “easier” one is ever so slightly shorter and broken into three sections, whereas, the difficult one is a little longer with no breaks.  

Our group split up, with two taking the “easy” route and two going down the hard way. Everyone had fun and made it down, but it’s worth mentioning that the “difficult” route ruined the arms on one of our members. He had trouble gripping and couldn’t completely close his hand for the rest of the hike, almost falling. Not something you want to deal with in the middle of the most ropy hike you’ve ever seen.



At the bottom of the rappel, there’s an optional crag hikers can climb. It’s the most difficult rock to scale on this hike, but it’s short and offers a good view at the top. Only one of our members monkeyed his way up it and was very proud of himself. If feeling tired, it’s a good idea to skip it as you need to save energy for getting off the mountain.

After climbing or “not climbing” the crag, get back on the trail and keep descending down the mountain. There are a few more “small” (not 100 ft, but substantial) rappels and climbs, but eventually you’ll make it to the #6 trail marker. Here, hikers can choose to keep monkeying around in the woods with ropes by continuing on to Wuliaojian peak or they can choose to make a break for it and head for the exit.



Running out of water and arm strength, we bolted and followed signs for the trail entrance. We were finally free of the ropes, but ironically this is when everyone started slipping, sliding and falling on the FLAT rocks. I have no idea how we did this nor do I understand why we want to go back, but this is definitely our new favorite day hike in the Taipei area.

Getting Around

The trail head is only an half hour taxi from our apartment door 😃, making this the easiest hiking commute we’ve ever had. For the less fortunate, head to Dingpu MRT Station and from there grab a $300 NTD taxi to the trail head. Be sure to get the taxi’s number and arrange for him or her to pick you up after the hike. Supposedly, there is a bus that goes out that way, but I read that it’s unreliable and inconsistent.

Next to the trail entrance, there’s a little store where you can stock up on water (if doing the whole hike: two liters per person) and gloves (MUST HAVE THESE) if you didn’t remember to bring any. You will also have to contend with mosquitoes, so if you forgot to bring repellent maybe grab a beer as well and chug it real quick to make yourself less appetizing. This should be common sense, but if it’s raining or windy save this hike for a different day. The ridge and big rappels are completely exposed, so too much sun can also be a huge problem.