At Last: Back on the Bike + links

I haven't done a mountain ride in over two months, but today my friend Merican Teachr and I cut through the haze to climb up to Guguan. Pics below the Daily Links, click on READ MORE...
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Daily Links:

• FP annexes Taiwan to China. *sigh*
• Chinese fossil fakery. Amazing.
• Sunflower Power stalls trade pact. It's nice to see the mention, but when you look at the bottom, you realize why it is largely pro-government propaganda platitudes: her trip was with MOFA. It was good of the paper to put a public notice of that. Note that the Ma government is conveniently blaming the Sunflowers. In reality, his party couldn't force its own people to vote for that failure of a treaty. The Sunflowers make convenient whipping boys, but they aren't the whole issue. 
• China's hacker army assaults Taiwan
• Josh Ellis: Neidong Forest Park
• US Commission backs arms sales to Taiwan
• Did gangbangers beat up protesters?
• The invisible candidate in Taiwan's elections
• The Economist on the Nov 29 elections
• Ketalagan Media on Start Ups in Taiwan
• Lien Chan apologizes after ethnic chauvinist screed. O no, wait, not for that.
• KMT head of Taiwan Medical Association under fire after accusing Ko Wen-je of killing patients to harvest their organs. The accusation is absurd and the abuse deserved, but one thing the episode makes clear is how the KMT continues to keep a grip on society by installing its lackeys in key positions in social organizations like the Taiwan Medical Association. Cleaning Taiwan of this Leninist, authoritarian party will require more than just a change of parties, but a rooting out of this kind of influence at every level of society.
• Taiwan faces another periodic drought. These will only worsen over time.

Even though the climb up to Guguan is easy, ya still gotta have a nutritious breakfast. This traditional breakfast place is in Dongshih.

Merican Teachr finds a biking buddy

A group of tourists studies a local temple outside Dongshih.

The road up to Guguan follows the Dajia River all the way. It offers an easy grade, a steady tailwind on the climb, and pleasant scenery.

Only the pillars of this old suspension bridge remain.

On Saturdays the road is packed.

But we also had many stretches with no one but ourselves on the road.

In Hoping locals were buying veggies and other goods from a truck.

A local worker puts together an aluminum frame for the porch of the store.

The area is heavily farmed.

Taiwan is currently in a drought, as this dam seems to attest.

At this altitude, the spiders form colonies.

Merican Teachr checks out the river.

We took a break at a rest stop, where I snapped this carnivore having a snack.

Gravel trucks shake, rattle, and roll along the river.

Approaching Guguan.

After lunch, we stopped by the visitor center.

Guguan town was packed.

Heading back, I was feeling great.

On the way back, we stopped in the little aboriginal community of Lileng, marked by the Lileng Bridge in the distance there.

There's a little waterfall not visible in the image on the left bank. Merican Teachr was wondering if it were possible to hike there. But later we stopped at the police station in Hoping town for water, and they said there's no path to it.

Lileng turned out to be pleasantly bucolic. We rode around the little hamlet for a while, asked about the Bed and Breakfast, which was defunct, though it still offered camping (two campgrounds in town).

After the hard ride, we ran down the bike path to grab a mango shaved ice treat. Even on a super crowded Saturday, the bike path trash people were out.

What a wonderful day. So great to be on the bike in the mountains again.
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