Off the Beaten Track: Bridges to history: Datieliao Old Trail

One of the many advantages of Taiwan’s relatively new-found sense of identity has been the gradual rediscovery and clearing of the nation’s countless old trails that, before the roads were built, were the only way to get between certain villages and settlements.

The best-known — and longest — is Batongguan Ancient Trail (八通關古道), which crosses the Central Mountain Range, passing the shoulder of Jade Mountain (玉山) en route. Since the reclaiming of old routes took off with a vengeance at the end of the 1990s, possibly hundreds of long-forgotten paths of all lengths can once more be followed, and many offer the chance to enjoy not only the countryside, but also examine traces left behind by farmers, miners and villagers, for whom some of these routes were an essential mode of communication around a century ago.

THE BLACKSMITHS TRAIL

Northern Taiwan seems especially rich in these historic trails — there are over 20 in the mountains of Yangmingshan National Park (陽明山國家公園) alone. Further west in Taoyuan, Dasi Township (大溪鎮) is an especially rewarding place to head for a walk back in time. The town boasts no less than nine old routes, of which the longest and most interesting is Datieliao Old Trail (打鐵寮古道) — the Blacksmith’s Trail.

Apparently named after the settlement that once lay on its route, rather than for its hiking blacksmiths, Datieliao makes a fine hike through some lovely and (for Taiwan) relatively gentle countryside, but it also has a smattering of historical remains, including a quaint old stone bridge and a pair of weathered stone plaques.

The old trail itself is a fairly easy-going walk, but it can be turned into a more exciting hike by adding on an extension taking in nearby White Rock Mountain (白石山), a shapely knife-edge ridge of rock, which commands spectacular views of rural Taoyuan from its summit in clear weather.

Datieliao Old Trail today starts three kilometers outside Dasi, in the tiny settlement of Sanceng (三層). At the trailhead is a small car park, from where a track descends to cross a stream by the first of several bridges on the route. Nearby, a large, rounded tablet of rock stands on a pedestal beside the path, carved with the names of the people who donated money towards the cost of building the original bridge, many decades ago.

A minute or two later, the path crosses a small tributary stream by a tiny humpbacked bridge, then climbs high above it on a stretch of path surfaced in old, time-worn cobblestones. It’s a bit late in the year now for tung blossoms, but in April and early May the trees of the forest bordering the trail on both sides turn white under a spectacular display of delicate blossoms, which fall to the ground and carpet the dirt path.

At one point, an open patch of dirt to the left of the trail is the site of a small shop, and it’s not hard to imagine villagers stopping here for a cup of tea and a chat before tackling the hike over the ridge, which looms immediately afterwards.

A long staircase of stone-flagged steps zigzags uphill to an abandoned military post, a reminder that the once heavily-guarded Cihhu (慈湖), one of Chiang Kai-shek’s many holiday homes, lies at the foot of this wooded hillside.

The next stretch of the trail, beside a bubbling brook, is a particularly idyllic walk. Shortly after passing another old stone plaque beside the trail and a tiny, rustic Earth God (土地公) shrine, there’s a fork. For the craggy cliffs of White Rock Mountain, keep straight ahead, beside the stream.