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TAITUNG

Nature | Travel | Life

Discover Paradise on Earth Over the Other Side of the Mountains & Ridges

翻山越嶺,發現桃花源

discover-paradise

With luggage on our backs, treading on ancient paths, visualising the lives that came before us.
背起行囊踏上古道,想像從前的生活樣貌。(照/葉少雲)

In a time when there were no cars or trains to speak of, ambitious travelers relied on their own two feet to car ry them over rugged mountain tracks and treacherous river crossings toward the distant lands they dreamt of.

It is said that the earliest inhabitants of Taiwan came over on foot during the Ice Ages. They made their way through the rigorous Central Mountain Ranges and arrived at the south-eastern end of the island. Perhaps it was the luscious mountainous forests and the rolling waves of the Pacific Ocean that made them fall in love with this land on which they have since settled.

在沒有汽車、火車可代步的年代,人們只能靠著自己的雙腳移動,翻山越嶺,渡過險溪,到達遠方的夢土。

傳說中,台灣最早的先民是在冰河期步行遷移過 來的,翻越重重山脈後輾轉到島嶼的東南方,或許是 愛上這裡的山和海,他們就這樣生活下來。

Marching to the Ends of the Earth

These earliest inhabitants must have traveled innumerable distances to reach Taitung. Perhaps they did not expect the bountiful forest and ocean. Perhaps they fell in love with this life accompanied by the mountains and ocean.

The earliest traces of human life in Taiwan can be found in the caves of Changbin. There, littered across the cave f loors, are markers of daily life. Primitive hooks, traces of campfires, and discarded fish bones reveal the activities these early humans would have engaged in. After casting their lines into the sea, they would delve into the nearby forests, armed with simple stone knives, to forage wild fruits, vegetables, and firewood. After a day’s work, they would return to the safety of the caves to light fires and nourish themselves from their haul.

The cave dwellers of Changbin lived a simple hunter-gatherer life some 20,000 years ago, but they did not build a permanent settlement. Where would they have gone after that? Perhaps life in the caves of Changbin was not so easy. Maybe they simply wandered off, looking for a change of scenery.

走到世界的盡頭

先人們千里跋涉走到台東,等待著他們的,是一大片綠林和海洋。 他們或許是最早來到島上的人,在長濱巨大的海蝕洞裡生活一段時間後,留下了生活中使用的日常器物,從骨魚鈎、火堆痕跡和魚骨,猜想他們撿拾乾燥的柴薪,釣到魚後,就生火烤魚來吃,他們也可能進入山林,以簡單的石刀割下野菜,帶回 洞穴裡吃生菜沙拉,說不定,還會從樹上摘下一些水果當做飯後甜點。

2萬年前的長濱人過著簡單的採集和狩獵生活,後來他們去了哪裡?也許是生活 不易換個地方生活,也或許只是想搬到別的地方看看不一樣的風景。

Looking Back to the Past

During the winter dry season, the Dawu River f low shrinks down to a mere trickle, exposing its rocky riverbed. At this time, it is possible to drive a small truck on the downstream riverbed to travel upstream. The journey on wheels over the riverbed is not a particularly smooth one. Hold on tight and brace yourself for the jolting turbulent ride. After about half an hour into this journey, you will come across a suspension bridge hanging over the river. This, in fact, marks the easternmost end of the Jinshuiying Historic Trail. Ancient day travelers would arrive here from the West and continue eastward on the riverbed towards the coast. They would eventually follow the coastline northward to reach Taitung. On foot, this journey would have taken them two or three days.

This ancient historic trail was originally used by the indigenous people to cover the southern end of the island’s central mountain ranges. Later, it became a route of no small importance to early Han settlers, for whom it served as a busy transit line between their bases in Western Taiwan and their settlements in Taitung.

discover-paradise

The earliest prehistoric humans in Taiwan lived in the caves of Changbin.
台灣最早的史前人類就住在長濱的洞穴裡。.
(照/交通部觀光局東部海岸國家風景區管理處 )

回首來時路

台東有數條古道,是過去人們徒步遷徏的路線,其中兩條從西部到台東 的路線都在台東南方的南迴地區。

浸水營古道原本是原住民在中央山脈南端東西移動的路徑,後來成為早 期西部漢人到台東最重要的路線之一,交通往來相當頻繁。古道東端出入口 隱藏在大武溪上游河床,每到冬季枯水期,大武溪河床裸露,溪水只剩絹絹 細流,此時甚至可以開著小卡車下到河床,往上游開去,車行在布滿礫石的 河床間自然是相當顛簸,震得人昏頭轉向,說話時還要小心別咬了舌。

從西部走浸水營古道至大武溪河床,離台東就不遠了,舉家遷移到台東 的移民,當時應該對未來充滿期待吧!

discover-paradise

Did ancient settlers once pause to soak in the scenery of the Jinshuiying Historic Trail like this?
先人是否也曾這樣凝望遠方,走向台東。(照/來趣遊玩 FB )

discover-paradise

Alangyi Historic Trail is a very popular hiking path. There is a limit on the number of hikers allowed on the Alangyi Historic Trail each day. Those wishing to hike it must register and make a reservation well in advance.
阿朗壹古道是很熱門的古道路線,一定要提報名預約。(照/葉少雲)

Alangyi Historic Trail, at the southern end of Taitung, is a not her important a ncient pat h connecting the East and West of Taiwan. Many of the earliest inhabitants of the southern Taitung arrived by way of the Alangyi path.

After the emergence of highway roads and railways, these ancient historic trails were rendered obsolete and, for the most part, fell out of use. However, thanks to the efforts of nature-loving mountaineers, they have had a resurgence as popular tourism and leisure sites. Those who would love to hike the footpaths the ancestors threaded through, come to Taitung to find a whole new world with a brand new attitude!

Walking along these historic trails, can you sense all the struggles of the ancient settlers who came to Taitung with bags over their shoulders and cattle in tow?

更南端的阿朗壹古道也是過去溝通台灣東西兩端的重要古道,南迴地區最早的住民,許多都是走阿朗 壹古道來到台東定居生活。

公路和鐵路出現後,古道荒廢,不過在熱愛山林 的登山客努力下,這兩條古道再度熱門起來,甚至還 有套裝旅遊行程,熱愛古道健行的旅人,一起來體會 過去人們徒步到台東尋找新天地的心情吧!