Another ancient tree has replaced the "Alishan sacred tree" as "tree king" of the Alishan Forest Recreation Area, nine years after the original's demise.
The "Alishan Sacred Tree," was in the past one of the nation's most famous tourist attractions, but the venerable 3,000-year-old tree collapsed on July 1, 1997 following heavy rainstorms.
Nowadays, tourists can only imagine the tree's past glory by viewing its trunk, which is on display at its original site.
Location
Lee Wen-hua (李文華), president of the Alishan Community Development Association in Chiayi, said that the new "tree king" is located by the New Central Cross-Island Expressway which links Alishan and Hsinyi Township (信義) in Nantou County.
Lee said that tourists could get out of their cars at the 88.9-km point of the expressway and walk for a few minutes to get to the site of the new "tree king," called the Lulin Sacred Tree (
Approximately 2,700 years old, the Lulin Sacred Tree is 43m high with a trunk circumference of 20m.
Second largest
It is the second-largest sacred tree in the country, after the 2,500-year-old Taan Creek Sacred Tree located in Taichung County, which has a trunk circumference of 26m.
Lee noted that the giant Lulin Sacred Tree looks like a large stone wall covered with green moss.
Due to its location at the lower part of a steep precipice and some distance from the main road, it failed to draw the attention of many tourists in the past.
Forestry authorities have only recently constructed a wooden walkway and viewing platform revealing the tree's beauty to more people.
“China is preparing to invade Taiwan,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an exclusive interview with British media channel Sky News for a special report titled, “Is Taiwan ready for a Chinese invasion?” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement. The 25-minute-long special report by Helen Ann-Smith released yesterday saw Sky News travel to Penghu, Taoyuan and Taipei to discuss the possibility of a Chinese invasion and how Taiwan is preparing for an attack. The film observed emergency response drills, interviewed baseball fans at the Taipei Dome on their views of US President
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
The National Museum of Taiwan Literature is next month to hold an exhibition in Osaka, Japan, showcasing the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature. The exhibition, which is to run from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city’s Central Public Hall, is part of the “We Taiwan” at Expo 2025 series, highlighting Taiwan’s cultural ties with the international community, National Museum of Taiwan Literature director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳) said. Folklore and literature, among Taiwan’s richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in the global dialogue, Chen said. Taiwan’s folklore would be immediately apparent at the entrance of the
ECONOMIC BENEFITS: The imports from Belize would replace those from Honduras, whose shrimp exports have dropped 67 percent since cutting ties in 2023 Maintaining ties with Taiwan has economic benefits, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials said yesterday, citing the approval of frozen whiteleg shrimp imports from Belize by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an example. The FDA on Wednesday approved the tariff-free imports from Belize after the whiteleg shrimp passed the Systematic Inspection of Imported Food, which would continue to boost mutual trade, the ministry said. Taiwan’s annual consumption of whiteleg shrimps stands at 30,000 tonnes, far exceeding domestic production, the ministry said. Taiwan used to fill the gap by importing shrimps from Honduras, but purchases slumped after Tegucigalpa severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan
RSS