If you were to approach Taiwan by plane from the south and fly the length of the island, you would see majestic peaks piercing the white clouds along the entire way, extending all the way to the ocean at the northern tip.
Mountains are the most prominent geographic feature in Taiwan, with as much as 70% of its territory covered by highlands. There are 269 peaks taller than 3,000 meters above sea level, including Yushan (Mt. Jade), Northeast Asia’s highest mountain at 3,952 meters.
Besides having an abundance of mountain forests, Taiwan is very compact. For example, in Eastern Taiwan you can take a boat out to sea and within half an hour see cetaceans swimming in deep ocean waters, while that same evening you can spend the night deep in the mountains of Taroko National Park. While many Taiwanese take this geography for granted, in the eyes of many foreigners it is exceptional.
Taiwan is the way it is because it is geologically young. The island was created by land being uplifted by the collision of the Eurasian and Philippine Sea tectonic plates. The topography is complex, high and steep, and this, combined with Taiwan’s location straddling tropical and subtropical climate zones, has given it remarkable biodiversity.
Many foreign travelers to Taiwan find its mountain scenery uniquely impressive. Czech mountain runner Mike Lo, who has lived in Taiwan for many years, loves the mountains so much that he serves as a long-term volunteer at Shei-Pa National Park. “The mountains of Taiwan are really wild!” Lo explains: “In Europe, it’s very easy to go into forests, but in the mountains of Taiwan that’s very difficult unless there’s a trail.”
Thus Taiwan’s mountain forests are a very distinctive part of the island’s character, even more so than other representative tourism resources such as the local cuisine, tea, night markets, Taipei 101, and temples. In particular, with nearby countries having comparable tourist attractions—such as the food in Hong Kong, the night markets in Thailand, and temples everywhere—it is the mountains that really make Taiwan stand out.
Yang Chih-ming, known in hiking circles as “Yang Da” (“Big Yang”), uses the mountains to introduce Taiwan to foreigners.