Daylilies on Ciske Mountain - A Dot in the Ocean - CycleBlaze

Daylilies on Ciske Mountain

Two cyclists on minimalist bikes pull up outside the 7-Eleven where I’m enjoying a breakfast of an iced latte and a croissant. Both bikes are fixed gear machines. The chain rings look pretty big. 

It’s doubtful that they’ll be riding over the 23.

The sun's out and it’s hot already when the taxi comes to the hotel door at just before 9 o’clock and with me in the back seat we set off north. After ten minutes the driver makes a right and there’s a sign once we’re over the 197 that says something about 12km. My guess is that’s how far it is up to Ciske Mountain.

It’s a narrow road, single track, and there are a few cars in front and behind; a mini convoy of tourists out on a day trip. The incline is steep, the road snakes around the sides of the slopes: Could I have ridden it all and got back to the train station for the 2.45PM? is what goes through my mind during the whole journey. Probably not - some sections of road would have me pushing. It’d be a great ride, one best done outside weekends when they’d be fewer vehicles.

The taxi stops on a rough parking area where rolling fields of the orange daylilies are in bloom. We get out and I take a few photos, although the sun isn’t out so I wait for it to reappear, which is does after 10 minutes. Being quite high, the temperature is more comfortable.

The driver goes further up the road and there’s a warehouse-like building but around the back is an old house, a single storey one about 100 years old. The roof is covered in the orange blooms, as it the courtyard, the colourful crop getting dried in the sunshine. In adjacent fields workers are making their way through the waist-high flowers, picking off the heads and placing them in bags and baskets. Although it’s a popular tourist site, it is still a business.

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The sun seems to have gone for good. Grey clouds blanket the higher slopes, so even though it’s not yet 11.00 AM, and I’ve agreed to a four-hour booking, I tell the driver we can make our way back to Yuli. It’s about a 30-minute drive.

Once I’ve wheeled my bike out of the roomy reception area, I wonder what to do. There are a few hours to kill: not enough to venture far. Initially I ride around the back streets, then pop to the very same 7-Eleven I was in earlier, this time for a light salad lunch. After visiting the train station to see where the baggage office is – and giving up in frustration – I find a bike path.

I recall spotting it the previous night, the thing illuminated with large signs, as I cycled into town along Highway 9. It’s a nicely designed one, wide and smooth.

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The clouds that had blocked the sun up on the mountain have dropped low and become menacing. Rain drops start hitting the concrete. A few minutes in a shelter convinces me things aren’t too bad and I set off south, but droplets dot my arms and my mirror shows serious storm clouds behind me. I make a dash for the train station.

Lightening flashes across the sky. The rain drastically reduces visibility. It’s not the weather anyone would want to be caught out in.

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Yuli's station is undergoing serious construction work and a makeshift waiting area is right beside the baggage office, where my bike gets sorted out for its separate journey home. Rain pounds on the metal roof and puddles form on the dusty concrete floor as the clock ticks down to when it’s time to board the delayed 2.45.

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I put NT$10 into the coin phone to let Debbie know I'll be at Chungli's station just around 9.15PM. Maybe the Graham Greene novel will get read, or perhaps I'll just look out the window and think about my next trip.

Today's ride: 1 km (1 miles)
Total: 170 km (106 miles)

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Scott AndersonHey, Graham. Rachael and I will be coming back to Taiwan this winter for another loop of the island. We’ll be there for about 6 weeks this time, arriving about a week before Christmas and flying home in late January. I might trouble you with a few questions when it gets closer, but for now I’m curious about holidays and festivals in this time period. I know that New Year’s Day is a national holiday, and wonder how much we should plan around that. Are we likely to have trouble finding stores open? Should we plan on being in a larger place?

Also, is there any information about smaller, local festivals? On our first visit we stumbled by accident on what I assume was a Matsu festival in Lukang. It was a real highlight of the trip. If we knew of other smaller celebrations like this we might plan our itinerary around them.

Hope you and Debbie are well,
Scott
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5 years ago
Graham FinchTo Scott AndersonHi, Scott

Things are fab here, thanks.

Yes - New Year's day is a holiday, and perhaps because it fall on a Tuesday - it will be formed into a four-day weekend. If so, places could be busier and hotel room prices - and availability - might be an issue. Shopping won't be a problem. In fact it'll likely be business as usual apart from banks and post offices.

I think you get a 30-day free visa upon arrival. Will you be here longer than that? Yo may want to check that out.

It's hard to know about festivals like the one you experienced. I've often come across processions like that and it seems they 're just organised by local temples.

What's your route?
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5 years ago
Scott AndersonTo Graham FinchWe’re planning on staying 6 weeks, arriving mid-December and flying home at the end of January. I think that US visitors are good for 90 days without a visa, so we should be fine on duration.

Still puzzling through the itinerary, but in general we’ll bike counterclockwise this time, beginning in Taipei, ending in Hualien and taking the train back. Expected stops include: Wuling, Jiaoxi/Yilan/Luodong; around the top to Tamsui, Hsinchu, Taichung, Sun Moon Lake, Alishan, Chiayi, Tainan, Pingtung, Hengchun, Kenting, Manzhou, Dawu, Taitung, East Rift Valley, Hualien.
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5 years ago