Trails 步道

This past Saturday we just went on a short hike to a birding area around here. The weather was warm, in the high 80s and as you can see there was a clear view. The first photos is of a peaceful lotus pond 荷花池 there, reflections in the sunlight. The second photo is of what are probably the remains of a car crash 60 or more years ago 六十多年以前車禍的殘骸.

I have always enjoyed hiking on trails. Probably it was the exploration of it 好奇心. Sometimes one never quite knows where they are going. These types of trails are more fun to go on near cities where it’s hard to get really lost than out in the wilderness. I still prefer trail signs and to know where I am going in real wilderness 曠野 where getting lost may mean days of wandering. I can still remember thinking I was going gradually going downhill on a mountain range, when I came upon a 10,000 foot marker 海拔一萬尺的招牌 and realized we were actually hiking upward.

We really enjoy hiking in Taiwan. It has some nice trails all over the island and surprisingly few wild animals 野獸 ready to rip apart unwary hikers. The mountains in the center of the island, such as 玉山 and 阿里山 or farther north such as 合歡山 are green and have quite a bit of biodiversity as elevation increases.