More Visiting With Friends

On Friday Jason and Andrew took me and my son out to the falls where the drowning occurred the other day, south of Hsinshe in the hills of Taichung county. We followed 88 from Fengyuan, a beautiful ride along the ridges above Taichung, which finally enters Hsinshe from the north, then rode through the town, past the prison, and south out of the town through its famed mushroom farms.

When we reached the top of the ridge, the views over the hills, farms, and west coast plain were breathtaking.

Taichung and Tanzi seen from the northeast.

A roadside shrine.

Once you cross over the ridge, the views across the farming area in and around Hsinshe and Dongshih are spectacular.

Zipping past a row of closed shops.

Down through the land of betel nut groves we went...

We parked our motorcycles above the stream. Here a power shovel is hard at work excavating a new road. The stream periodically re-arranges things in the area -- like roads, hillsides, and massive boulders.

An osprey greeted us as we entered the area.

My son looking heroic.

The swimming hole.

We explored the stream...

...which was full of organisms ancient...

...and modern.

Jason invites my son to jump in.

Ancestor and descendent, side by side.

Jason takes the plunge.

My son and Andrew.

My son and Andrew explore.

The sign warns about the dangerous undertow. Right. The real danger comes from jumping in without being able to swim.

A difficult balancing act.

Jason takes a flying leap.

A good shot of the stream on the way home. The amazing thing is that you can stand in the swimming hole and see, on all four sides of you, rocks sloped in four different directions, giving an obvious clue to the colossal power that shaped these mountains -- still rising, as the 9/21 earthquake showed.

A footbridge, long gone to rot, crosses in front of the innumerable strata that form the mountains of central Taiwan...

[Taiwan] [Taichung]