Hualien, Taiwan — The Portuguese called it Formosa, the beautiful isle and they weren’t kidding. Fifty percent of Taiwan is forested. There are six national parks and the most popular of all is Toroko in Eastern Taiwan.

If you only come to Taiwan and visit the cities like Taipei and Kaohsiung then you are doing a disservice to yourself. I can’t imagine what John Muir felt the first time he visited Yosemite, but after spending a few days hiking Toroko, I can understand some of it–this park is stunning.

Here are a few tips for traveling to Toroko:

Best time to visit: I’m here in January. Yes it’s cooler, but I avoided the larger crowds–especially the coaches full of tourists from mainland China.

Touring: A lot of touring companies and cab drivers will offer quick one day tours to Toroko –tell them no. To truly experience this place you must come here and explore it on your own. I took the train from Taipei to Hualien. It’s about a two to three hour journey. You’ll find plenty of hotel and restaurant options in Hualien. For booking hotels I usually use agoda.

http://www.agoda.com/

Getting to Toroko: The cheapest and most practical way to get to the park is to take The Taiwan Tourist Shuttle. A two day pass which I can use to hop on or off the bus cost me 400 NT or about $12.00 US dollars. Buses run to and from the park from early in the morning until late in the afternoon.

http://www.taiwantourbus.com.tw/About/

Hiking: There are a number of trails in the park ranging from easy to challenging. You can pick up a map at the Toroko Visitors Center. Bring water and good hiking boots. I wore a light jacket, but ended up taking it off after hiking the trail for a short while.