Yehliu Geopark - New Taipei, Taiwan
The day began with heavy rain as I walked from my accommodation to the bus stop. Since most of today’s activities were outdoors, I hoped the rain would stop—and luckily, it did just after I arrived at the Yehliu bus stop.
At Yehliu Geopark (野柳地質公園), I saw many tour buses and a fairly crowded entrance, but the automatic ticket machines wasn’t occupied so I got my ticket fast. The park was smaller than I expected but packed with unique rock formations and fossils. The narrow paths were crowded with tour groups, so I took a break on a bench near a viewpoint, waiting for the crowd to clear out.
There was a long line to take a photo with the famous Queen’s Head rock, but I skipped it—waiting over 30 minutes didn’t appeal to me. I continued toward the lighthouse at the back of the park. The uphill path had fewer people, and I passed formations like Tofu Rock and Bee Hive Rock along the way. The lighthouse view wasn’t very impressive, so I moved on to the trail’s end, where I relaxed by an observation deck—partially closed for maintenance—and listened to the waves before I turned back.
Afterward, I took a bus to Jinshan, wandered through the old street, browsed some shops, and had lunch at a well-known congee restaurant. I ordered the pricey crab congee, which was tasty but messy and time-consuming to eat. I only wanted to try it as crab was a local delicacy.
Route Overview
Distance: 5.87 km out & back (Yehliu)
Total elevation gain: 174 m
Duration: 1 hr 42 min (with breaks 2 hr 9 min)
Difficulty: Easy
Cost Breakdown
Bus: Taipei Station → Yehliu Bus Stop — NT$99
Bus: Yehliu Bus Stop → Jinshan — NT$15
Entrance Fee: Yehliu Geopark— NT$240
Food: NT$420
