Hehuanshan

Hehuanshan is the high mountain area at the top of the Cross-Island Highway, above the gorge itself — a plateau at 3,000-3,400 metres with several peaks accessible by walking from the road. The main summit, Hehuanshan North Peak (3,422 m), requires a permit (free, applied for online) but the walk from the road takes only about an hour. The views on clear days encompass the Central Range to the south and the Pacific coast to the east; in winter the area is covered with snow.

The high road (Route 14A) connecting the Taroko Gorge side with the Wuling Farm on the western side of the range is one of the highest paved roads in Asia outside Nepal and Tibet. The drive is extraordinary in good weather: the road follows the ridgeline, with the Central Mountain Range visible on both sides. A night at Wuling Farm (on the western approach) combines hiking, bird-watching, and the full traverse of the range. The road requires good weather; it closes in winter storms and typhoon season.

things to do sight
A story
Hehuanshan is one of the few places in Taiwan where it snows reliably, and the first significant snowfall of winter reliably causes traffic jams stretching for 20 kilometres as lowlanders drive up to see snow for what may be the first or only time in their lives. The Taiwan forestry service has partially addressed this by limiting access during snow events, but the phenomenon — urban residents encountering frozen precipitation with extreme enthusiasm — remains one of the stranger seasonal rituals of Taiwanese public life.