Previous post —> Taiwan Cycling Day 1-7
We’ve taken a week to make our way down the west coast of Taiwan to the town of Fangliao. The second week is where the heavy climbing begins with some big mountains ahead. We have given ourselves two weeks to complete the East coast so we can take our time, ride some shorter (but more hilly) days and schedule a few rest days in.
Day 8: Sunday 29 June 2025. Fangliao to Daren.
Fangliao to Daren / 56.5km. Today is our first big day of climbing since we started cycling Taiwan 🇹🇼 The first 23km is pretty fast and flat heading along the highway, and we see our first glimpse of the ocean. We turn onto Highway 9 but due to the tunnels all bikes and scooters have to deviate onto the 9戊 road. There’s not much traffic but instead we get 457m of climbing and a ghastly headwind 🌬️ About halfway up we make a quick rest stop at 7-11 before continuing to the top where we can see views of the township plus the ocean in the distance. The descent into Daren is amazing – the road is windy and mostly free from traffic, and we arrive at our destination around lunchtime 🚲 Daren is a small town that basically extends to the end of the street. Our accommodation is a quiet home stay just off the main road and the owner has an amazing rock collection on display. There’s not much around for dinner so we drop by a small street side place for a quick feed before planning another day of climbing tomorrow ⛰️
Day 9: Monday 30 June 2025. Daren to Taimali.
Daren to Taimali / 40km. We wake to the sound of rain and thunder this morning ⛈️ Fortunately it only lasts until mid-morning, although we do get caught in it for about 10 minutes shortly after checking out of our accommodation. We are given a packed Chinese breakfast before setting off to tackle two steep hills along the coastal road ⛰️ It’s extremely humid today and we get yet another headwind but the nice coastal views of ocean make up for the suffering. The ocean is so blue it reminds us of Esperance, a small town on the south coast of Western Australia which has some of the most beautiful beaches 🌊 The hills seem tougher than yesterday, probably because they are long and straight rather than the windy ones like yesterday. One little hack we have is to freeze all our water bottles before departing each morning, with two in the bike cage and a spare in our jersey pocket, which also acts as a cooler 💧 We eventually make it to Taimali and have a rest stop before getting some lunch at a local Vietnamese place, where we also go for dinner 🍽️ Our hotel has some great views of the mountains and ocean, and we are lucky enough to have our room upgraded for our stay tonight. We have a shorter day planned tomorrow and finally a rest day coming up!
Day 10: Tuesday 1 July 2025. Taimali to Taitung.
Taimali to Taitung / 25km. A much cruisier day today compared to the previous two 🚲 We still had one hill to climb but it’s only 95m of elevation before hitting the downhills and flats. The views are pretty spectacular descending the highway, with the mountains on one side and clear blue sea on the other 🌊 Because we don’t have far to go we decide to deviate from the main highway and take some side roads which is a nice break from the traffic and heat. We make it into the city of Taitung around lunchtime and make a stop for some food and drink before checking into our hotel for the next two nights 🏨 Dinner is a cheap and cheerful dumpling and noodle place which is busy from the moment we get there with the constant arrival of food delivery drivers picking up orders. Afterwards we spot a cute dessert food truck and get one of the best bingsu desserts we’ve had all trip – no crazy toppings, just a really nice watermelon coconut shaved ice with a little goose to finish 🪿 Taitung is a bigger town so we are looking forward to exploring the area on our rest day tomorrow.
Day 11: Wednesday 2 July 2025. Taitung.
Taitung / Rest Day. Finally, a rest day! It’s our first day off from cycling since we started nearly two weeks ago and we’ve worked hard for this one. The weather is so hot and humid so we make a late start and drop by a few places for lunch: the local cafe, bakery and a vegetarian buffet 🍱 We search for a nice indoor place with air conditioning, like a shopping mall, but there is none so we head back to the hotel and plan to head out in the evening when it cools down ☀️ Later we head to a vegan place for dinner called Vegine before taking a stroll to Taitung Seashore Park, which has a nice park and viewing platform to see the ocean and mountains ⛰️ We also visit Tiehua Music Village which is a nice area to wander with entertainment, market stalls and food outlets, followed by a dessert shop for another one of those epic shaved ice bowls. We’re back on the bikes tomorrow to continue our way up the east coast 🚲
Day 12: Thursday 3 July 2025. Taitung to Guanshan.
Taitung to Guanshan / 47km. Even after a day of rest we’re feeling pretty tired and opt for an extra hour of sleep before setting off this morning ☀️ It’s a constant uphill today but our legs actually feel pretty refreshed and the hills don’t feel so bad. The start of our route is actually an old train track that has been repurposed into a cycle way 🚂 We then take a mixture of Highway 9 and side roads, with a break at the 22km mark at a Family Mart. It’s actually a fairly cruisy ride into Guanshan and we make a lunch stop at another Family Mart before checking into our accommodation for the evening 🏨 The homestay is run by a local woman who grows her own fruit and tea. She picks a mango for us fresh from her tree gives us a pot of iced plum vinegar tea that she has made herself, which is very refreshing and tastes like kombucha 🫖 We head out for dinner at a small vegetarian shop and discover a local night market on the way back where we decide to pick up second dinner and dessert. One thing we love about Taiwan is that there’s always a food market no matter which town you’re in!
Day 13: Friday 4 July 2025. Guanshan to Yuli.
Guanshan to Yuli / 47km. Today is another fairly cruisy day, except that we both are both feeling a bit run down. It starts with a bit of climbing followed by mostly downhill and flats the rest of the way ⛰️ We’re still in awe every time we see the mountains surrounding us, which is pretty much all the time. The route starts on a cycle way, which is then blocked off so we take a mixture if highways and side roads. We pass by a strange tourist attraction in Fuli which features giant gorilla sculptures made of straw so we stop off to have a look 🦍 We then see a cycle way with less than 10km to go but that is also blocked off due to road works, so we have to bushbash our way back into the highway 🚲 We arrive in Yuli and grab some lunch before attempting to check into our homestay, however it’s a bit of an ordeal as we don’t have a local number to call the host. Instead we have to communicate with them via the booking app as there is no one on site and it’s about two hours before someone shows up to check us in ☎️ Later we make our way to the local night market which is filled with lots of the same stalls from last night’s market in Guanshan, but there doesn’t seem to be any vegetarian food on offer 🥬 So after much back and forthing we end up at a nearby vegan restaurant for some of the nicest dumpling soup and a lovely conversation with the Malaysian owner. We’re hoping to feel a bit better tomorrow with a slightly longer ride and potential rain this weekend ☔️
Day 14: Saturday 5 July 2025. Yuli to Hualien.
Yuli to Fenglin / 55km then train to Hualien. Unfortunately we have both woken up sick with a cold 🤧 The original plan was to stay in Fenglin tonight then cycle to Hualien tomorrow however, with us being sick and the potential rain and typhoon forecast in the coming days, we decide to cycle to Fenglin then catch the train to Hualien where we will stay for two nights 🚂 The ride itself is actually pretty good. There are a few hills but the wind isn’t too bad and the downhills give us a nice breather. We arrive in Fenglin by lunchtime and this time purchase the correct tickets for ourselves and bikes, which you can do from the machine using card 💳 We have used cash a lot more on this trip than in Korea so it’s nice when we can use our card to save having to use the cash. The train ride to Hualien is a breeze and our carriage has quite a few people with bicycles 🚲 We make a quick stop at 7-11 for lunch before checking into our hotel which has a great area in the lobby that has free drinks and snacks to enjoy. Dinner is at a busy vegan place and followed by another one of those epic shaved ice dessert places 🍨
eat bike fly 
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