Hot Springs Bathing in an Indigenous Community

The Atayal community located in Datong Township’s Yingshi Village is named Knbung, meaning “place of abundance.” Qehung Kumay, general manager of the Bong Bong Community Association, explains that when his tribal ancestors came to the Pengpeng River Basin, they discovered that the area was rich in resources, including honeybees flitting through the air and Taiwan shoveljaw carp swimming in the river, so when they settled here they called it Knbung to describe its plentiful natural endowments.

Using local materials to fashion a personal bathing pool is one of the pleasures of wild hot springs.

Abundant hot springs

However, besides nurturing many forms of life, the Pengpeng River Basin is also a place of geothermal activity.

Given their close proximity, many community residents grew up bathing in the Pengpeng Hot Springs. Community association chairman Tencen Hayung says with a smile: “I have been washing up there since I was small.” Clearly, the hot springs are an integral part of the lives of the people of Knbung.

From the Yingshi branch of Siji Elementary School, it takes only about 15 minutes on foot to reach Pengpeng Hot Springs. These can be considered “entry-level” wild hot springs that even novices can try, with a large area of hot spring outflows. One simply has to choose the right time of year to visit, avoiding the weeks following heavy rains to allow the main river to recede somewhat. The small tributaries and groundwater beside the main river are heated by geothermal energy, and every small pool on either side of the river valley has the potential for hot springs ­bathing. Tencen notes that simply by piling up stones from the river­bed one can craft one’s own personal hot spring pool.

This bamboo building with a warming fire is used by the Bong Bong Community Association to teach visitors about Atayal indigenous culture.

Experiencing indigenous lifestyles

When visiting Knbung, besides enjoying the hot springs one can also take part in the activities arranged by the Bong Bong Community Association. Qehung Kumay tells us: “Our aim is to create an ecotourism experience and help everyone learn about the mountains and river, as well as to immerse visitors in our culture.”

In a bamboo building with a warming fire, Qehung Kumay melodiously sings “Ima lalu su?” in a song of welcome for guests. It means “What’s your name?” and is similar in intent to the English expression “Nice to meet you.” Meanwhile, among the Atayal themselves, when elders ask younger people “Ima lalu su?” it is their way of confirming whether or not they are Atayal. Atayal names consist of the child’s name followed by the father’s name. When an Atayal person hears a fellow tribesperson’s name, they know immediately which family they were born into and which river valley they come from.

The fire-warmed building in Knbung is a product of the community’s collective wisdom, and was built by young people under the guidance of elders. Every day, community members come to build a fire here to keep the structure dry and so to deter borer insects and prevent mildew. Fire is also an important symbol of community life, as Tencen Hayung explains: In the past people lived in relatively scattered dwellings over a wide area of land. If early in the morning there was smoke from a fire rising up from a home, this indicated that this family was tranquilly eating its morning meal. Fire was not only essential to survival, it was also a signal to show that all was well.

After getting a basic understanding of the local Atayal community, visitors can personally prepare the kind of meal that indigenous hunters have traditionally taken along on their hunts. Pork with maqaw (mountain litsea), salted fish, vegetables, and glutinous rice are wrapped up in shell ginger leaves to recreate the “take-away meal” lovingly prepared by families before their hunters head into the mountains. With this wrapped food in hand, visitors can follow Atayal guides and go river tracing to experience the natural pleasures of the Pengpeng Hot Springs, or explore the mysterious Hn-kiyan Trail, a path that was built to facilitate policing in the era of Japanese rule.

Tencen Hayung built a guest cabin with his own hands where he invites everyone to enjoy a stay surrounded by nature.

The travel itineraries proposed by the Bong Bong Community Association provide in-depth experiences with Atayal culture.

Stay overnight in a hunter’s home

Besides his role as chairman of the community association, Tencen Hayung is a highly experienced hunter. Moreover, on his family’s land, he has personally built a guest cabin in which every piece of furniture was made with his own hands. The whole building is suffused with the fragrance of raw wood, while through the large picture windows one can see the verdant mountains surrounding the cabin and the gurgling Pengpeng River in the distance. It really does enable one to stay in the heart of nature.

This little cabin hidden in the mountain forest has thus far hosted guests from as far away as Korea, the UK, and the US. Tencen says with a laugh that visitors who stay here are often reluctant to fall asleep, so they sit around the campfire chatting and gazing at the stars all night long until finally going to bed at sunrise.

Our indigenous peoples’ harmonious coexistence with nature, enjoyment of the beauty of the mountain forests, measured used of resources and conservation of the land are all summarized in Qehung Kumay’s reminder to visitors that even as they experience the pleasures of the hot springs, they must also remember to protect the environment. His dream that Knbung can become a natural amusement park where everyone can have fun is gradually becoming a reality.

The Pengpeng Hot Springs have a stable flow of hot water and are easily accessible, so netizens have dubbed them the most user-friendly wild hot springs in Taiwan.