Taiwan has been becoming one of the coolest and interesting places that visitors should visit, at least once in their life. Besides other crowded, bustling destinations such as Tapei 101 tower, Sun Moon lake, National Palace Museum, Jiufen old town, etc. The geological park – Yehliu is a great place for those who are in love with natural beauty.
Yehliu – What Does It Mean?
There are so many legends about this name. In Spain, it is called “Punto Diablos” which means the “devil’s nose”. Another explanation is, in the early days, local residents made their living at sea, and they relied on rice suppliers from mainland to offer rice to them. During the conveyance, some local people would use the sharp bamboo tube to stick the rucksack and leave a hole on it. Thus, the rice could slip out, and be picked up by them. As a result, merchants often mentioned “the rice was stolen by the savages”. Whereas, “steal” and “savage” are pronounced similarly to Yeh (savage) and Liu (steal) in Taiwanese.
So How to Get There?
Because of the long distance between the Yehliu and the heart of city, as the park located in the Wanli Town, the northern pole of Taiwan, there are several ways to get there:
- By The Long Distance Bus: From Taipei West Bus Station – Terminal A, located at Taipei Main Station, purchase a ticket to Yehliu Geopark at KuoKuang window. The bus will drop you on the main road right outside the park entrance, after about 90-minute journey.
- By Shuttle Bus: The bus will take you from Ximen to Yehliu, followed by the Ying Yang Sea, 13-Layer Remains, Golden Waterfall, Jiufen, and Shifen Old Streets, the bus leave at 9 am and returns at 5:45 pm.
- By North Coast Shuttle Bus: Take the North Coast Shuttle Bus all day with unlimited rides from either MRT Tamsui Station, or Keelung Railway Station.
You can also use Google Maps to find the best way from your location to the park. The application is quite advanced and up-to-dated which will show you the most advantage paths. Then you just need to follow what’s showed on the screen.
The Areas of Yehliu Geopark
As mentioned, Yehliu draws travelers’ attention by its spectacular landscapes. Those are results of sea erosion on soft rock layers over years, leaving immensely shapes of rocks for today.
The 1st area
This is a place which has a number of rocks in shapes of ginger and mushroom interlacing one another. You can walk around these rocks to take pictures of them, or get to know more about how these appealing rocks from the local tour guide. Moreover, this place also have rocks in ice cream or candle shapes, which would definitely captivate you at a very first glance!
At this area, there are fossils of the sea urchin on the ground. I just felt it quite interesting and so new to know.
The 2nd area
When visiting this place, you will come across the stone mushrooms, ginger root that I have mentioned in the first part. The most attractive thing there is the Queen’s Head stone, which is about 4,000 years old. It is one of the famous rocks and the most visited geological park. Also, it is the symbol of Wanli District. In order to take pictures with this rock, you have to get in a long line.
However, one sad thing is that the Queen’s Head cliffs are not just eroded by waves, but also damaged by the impact of human over time. At present, the narrow part around the neck of the ledge is only about 138 cm. Besides, other special rocks in shape of a Dragon Head, Fairy’s shoes, and Elephant stone are caused by the erosion of waves too.
The 3rd area
This place is located adjacent to the cliff, below are the fierce waves. Because of such rugged terrain, the geological rocks there also have quite rare shapes such as Pearl rock, Marine Bird rock, Honeycomb rock, etc. In addition to the rare and beautiful geological framework, this is also the main ecological reserve area of Yehliu Geopark.
In addition to walking around Yehliu park, you will also find a statue of Mr. Lin Tianzhen – a symbol of humanity. The statue to remind people of the action that Mr. Lin tried to save a student who was drowning in the sea when he accidentally fell while visiting Lin’s Geological Park in March 1946. Unfortunately, neither he nor the student can return forever. The park management has built this statue in memory of his humane actions.
When is The Best Time to Visit Yehliu Park?
The park opens from 8 am to 5 pm, and the ideal time to visit Yehliu is before 9 am. After that, the place is quite crowded with tourists. It will be difficult for you to get “only nature” photos. Hence, please remember to take advantage of the early arrival.
Things You Should Know When Traveling to Yehliu Geopark
If you go to Taiwan the first time with the intention of visiting Yehliu, for the sake of convenience, you should book a tour to avoid being lost and wasting time. The tour will combine destinations near each other to make it easier for your schedule. Additionally, the tour guide can help you to better understand the history as well as the detailed characteristics of destinations.
Yehliu Geopark entrance fee is 80NT$ for an adult. The fare is half for student or children from 6 to 12 year olds, and free for under 6. There is also a 20% discount for a group of 30 people.
Please also put in mind to check the weather at the park when planning your trip. It was kinda cold with heavy wind and rain on the day I visited. Those could affect your experience if you face the same situation. Bring a coat!
To protect the natural environment and to bring the fresh air experience for tourists coming there, Yehliu Geopark requires visitors not to smoke, do not litter indiscriminately, do not touch the rock artifacts, no climbing, or biking in the park, as well no breaking trees, no fishing. Please note these signs! Because nature has given us such a wonderful gift to admire, so please be a responsible tourist.
To ensure the safety for visitors because of strong winds, and strong waves, in the Yehliu geological park, they have red boundaries to warn people not to cross this warning line. You should note to keep yourself and your loved ones safe!
The park’s visitor management center is full of services including dining, free travel information, guides, baby stroller rentals, baby rooms, souvenir shops, and more other utility services for travelers. In case you need anything, please contact them.
Contributor
Having itchy feet at a very young age is a motivation for me to escape from a hustle and bustle life, go to more lands to learn more new things, meet more strangers and share these wonderful experiences to more people who have the same hobby.
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