January in Taiwan is the perfect season to take your camera out of its box. With our short winter comes an explosion of colors: seas of flowers along the riverside, tree leaves turning red and yellow in eco parks, and mountains dusted with snow. I find the best way to reach these colorful corners of Taiwan is by cycling and sometimes hiking. I’m usually back in the Philippines during Chinese New Year, so I always miss the peak of the color-changing season along the riverside, but I’m happy with my timing this year!
Setup
- Camera and Lens: Sony A6000, 18-105 F4
- Backpack: Decathlon 22L Roll-top MH500 Light
- Bicycle: Enviliv Advanced Pro AXS
- Cycling Jersey: Liv Flara Mid-thermal Long Sleeve (I’m brand loyal, so my entire kit is from Giant/Liv—from helmet to jersey, padded pants, and gloves)
This doesn’t have to be your setup, but I’ve realized that to compensate for my aging body, I need to ensure I’m equipped to stay comfortable during long rides and in harsh weather. My younger self would have powered through this with a Giant Escape 3 and a camera sling bag, but just imagining that now, I can already hear the cracks and grunts coming from every part of my body. That’s an exaggeration, of course, but you get what I mean.
Cycling Route: Xindian Riverside 新店溪 and Dahan Riverside 大漢溪
January 12 — We were blessed with perfect weather: a sunny day with blue skies and 10°C temperatures.
First Destination: Yuemei Wetland Ecological Park 月眉人工濕地生態公園
Right outside Xindian Station is a huge Bitan sign. Behind it lies the riverside where we started our journey. If you’re coming from Xindian, take note of these bridges to cross along the route to reach the eco park:
- Sunshine Bridge 陽光橋 – Cross to Sunshine Sports Park. This takes you to the other side of the river to head south.
- Crescent Bridge 新月橋 – Cross to Crescent Rental Station. This takes you to the riverside that leads to Yingge instead of Sanxia.
- Zhongzhuang Suspension Bridge 中庄吊橋 – Cross to Dakekanddizhi Park. Walk your bike to the other side of the bridge, then ride to Yuemei Wetland Ecological Park.
Bonus! After some photo ops, you can return the same way or bike an extra 3km southward to reach Daxi Bridge—another beautiful bridge worth walking across.
- Daxi Bridge 大溪橋 – Cross to 大溪橋頭汽機車停車場. Across the parking lot is the cycling route that will take you back to Zhongzhuang Suspension Bridge.
Second Destination: Guting Riverside Park 台北市古亭河濱公園
Follow the same route to Crescent Bridge, remember to cross it, and ride up to Yongfu Bridge. Cross it to reach Gongguan Waterfront Plaza 公館水岸廣場. We made a side trip to Guting Riverside Park to see the time-limited sea of flowers and take some more photos.
From here, it’s less than 10km back to Xindian. But if you’re nowhere near Xindian, Gongguan is the nearest MRT station to take you home. Remember the rules for taking bicycles on the MRT!
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That’s it for now! Stay tuned for more adventures and tips on balancing work and travel!
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