1000km Round-trip of Taiwan YouTuber Kenta will be taking on the challenge of circumnavigating Taiwan, starting in Taipei and covering a total of 1000km over 9 days in this 13th installment of his Discover Ride series, in which he will discover the charms of the region through bicycle travel!
We will ask Sam, a local resident and experienced bicycle tour guide whom we met on our previous 3-day/2-night bicycle trip to Taiwan, to guide us and help us enjoy the trip 120%!
DAY 2 Hsinchu City - Lugang
After passing through the city center of Hsinchu, we headed south along the seaside cycling road. The second day of the trip was packed with fun and excitement, including a flamboyant Kannon temple, the No. 1 cake in Kenta's history, and an encounter with a surprise Japanese rider, all of which were a world away from those in Japan.
Distance traveled: 100km
To ensure a smooth start to the bike trip, we rode into Taiwan the day before, ready to assemble and pack our bikes. From the starting point at Songshan Station in Taipei City, we rode 100km through Taipei City on low-traffic roads, including a riverside cycling route, to the finishing point of the first day, Hsinchu.
Distance traveled: 100km
After passing through the city center of Hsinchu, we headed south along the seaside cycling road. The second day of the trip was packed with fun and excitement, including a flamboyant Kannon temple, the No. 1 cake in Kenta's history, and an encounter with a surprise Japanese rider, all of which were a world away from those in Japan.
Distance traveled: 160km
Today, on the third day, we traveled 150km, the longest distance on the itinerary, and we were determined to reach the goal by sunset, so we picked up our cruising speed with a tailwind and headed for Tainan in one go. Even as we speed up, of course, we still need to eat well. We had done our homework on lunch and cafes along the way. With this greedy itinerary, will we be able to reach our lodgings before nightfall?
Distance traveled: 111km
On the fourth day, we headed further south with a tailwind.
In Kaohsiung, Taiwan's third largest city, we stopped at a popular and fashionable area and spent the day doing a lot of sightseeing.
As we traveled further south from Kaohsiung, the scenery gradually changed to a more rural setting.
Distance traveled: 76km
Finally, the trip is turning around. Riding along National Highway 1, we headed for the southernmost tip of Taiwan via Hengchun, a town where a biker-friend of mine runs a cafe. The itinerary was planned to be relatively short, so we thought it would be a piece of cake, but Sam had bike trouble, so my friend joined us on our ride to help out.
Distance traveled: 135km
The trip was now approaching the second half, and we changed direction and headed north on the east side. As our support rider Sam had said, this sixth day of the trip would be the most difficult, with the highest elevation gain of the nine days and a distance of 135km. The tailwind that had allowed us to ride at high cruising speeds was replaced by a headwind, making us realize the weight of our bodies and luggage.
Distance traveled: 111km
The end of the trip is almost in sight on the seventh day. We avoid the headwinds that block our way and take a route inland to the mountainous region. The day was a perfect combination of "scenery," "food," and "bath," the three most important elements of a trip: the rural landscape that made Sam fall in love with bicycles, the famous rice produced in Chishang, which is second to none in Japan, and a hot spring bath to end the day.
Distance traveled: 180km
There are finally only two days left on our trip. We traversed Hualien, the largest county in Taiwan in terms of area, as we headed north. Once in Hualien, we boarded the train and enjoyed Taiwanese station lunches and the scenery from the train window.
Distance traveled: 92km
The 1000km trip that has circled Taiwan for 9 days is finally coming to an end. On the final day, we enjoyed a Chinese lunch in Fulong, which we had visited on our May trip, and then went for a parade run along a cycling route in Taipei City to close out the nine-day trip.
ROUTE
Starting from Taipei Station, travel south. After reaching the southernmost point through Taichung and Kaohsiung, head north through Taitung to Hualien. From Hualien, take the train to Yilan, then ride again, tracing the coastline to the Old Caoling Tunnel in New Taipei City in the northeast. We'll ride inland and back to Taipei, passing through Fulong Station, for a total distance of 1000 km in nine days for a round trip.