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APGN 2010 - Fair Share For A Green Future

Green Travel

 

Discover Taiwan with the Asia Pacific Greens - APGN Group Tours - Sign Up Today!

Need to make sure you get the most of your trip to Taiwan? Make use of the guided tours that are being offered by the Asia Pacific Green Network Preparatory Committee.   

The tours are designed to meet different needs and also offer flexibility in terms of the amount of time you have available. Anyone who is interested is welcome to join any of tours. Apply before you lose an opportunity to see and understand Taiwan, and also an opportunity to make more friends.   

Want to join a tour? Here is what you need to know:

  1. For registering on a tour send an email to apgn2010@gmail.com and make sure you include your full name, contact information (i.e., email address and phone number) and the 'Tour Code'(which you will find below). Once we receive this information, one of the Committee members will get in touch with you to confirm your registration and provide further details.
  2. The charges for the tour will depend on the number of days and the place that you will be visiting. The cost of each tour will be borne by the participant.
  3. Please note that there is a deadline for registration for each of the tours, which is provided below.
  4. The tours will be organized between 3rd May to 5th May 2010

The various tour options are explained in further detail below.

One-Day Tours

Tour code - A: Visiting LoSheng Sanatorium and a Hike of Chengtian

Schedule and highlights of the day

  1. Meet at the Taipei Railway Station between 07:00am to 07:30am
  2. Day starts with a bus ride to LoSheng Sanatorium, where you will learn about the human rights issues of resident Leprosy Hansen's Disease) patients.
  3. After lunch and drinks, we will hike the Chengtian Road to visit the Chengtian Temple and you will get to learn more about Buddhist culture.
  4. The hike will also include a viewing of the Tung tree blossoms at the Tung Tree Blossom Park.
  5. The hike will end at the mountain top which has a scenic view of the Taipei basin.
  6. Return to Taipei Main Station by MRT between 6:00pm  to 7:00pm.

Fee (Per Person): NT 1,350 dollars

Deadline for Registration: 20th April 2010

Maximum No. of Participants: 20 (Trip may be called off if there are not enough registered participants)

Additional Notes: This trip requires at least 2 to 3 hours of suburban mountain hiking (approximately 9 km in total)

Tour code - B: Cycling Along the North-Eastern Coast, Canoeing, and Learning about the Impact of Taiwan’s 4th Nuclear Power Plant on the Local Environment 

Schedule and highlights of the day

  1. Meet at the Taipei Railway Station and depart for Fulong Station by train at 7:30am
  2. Walk across the Gongliao Old Bridge and visit Gongliao Old Street
  3. Practice canoeing under the Gongliao Bridge, followed by a scenic canoe ride along the Shuangxi River
  4. Break for lunch and drinks
  5. Cycle through a deserted railway tunnel
  6. Learn about the impact of Taiwan’s 4th Nuclear Power Plant on the local environment
  7. Return to Taipei by train at 6:11pm 

Fee (Per Person): NT 2,052 dollars

Deadline for Registration: 20th April 2010

Maximum No. of Participants: 20 (Trip may be called off if there are not enough registered participants)

Additional Notes: Professional coaches will instruct and accompany you for the canoeing portion of the trip  

Two-Day Tours

Tour Code - C: Unveiling the Cryptic Sites of Yangmingshan National Park and Visit to the Danshui Organic and Recreational Agriculture 

Schedule and highlights of the tour

Day One

  1. Take the MRT to Jiantan Station (DanShui Red Line)
  2. Take a bus to the Erziping tourist service center
  3. Go hiking along the mountain footpath, up to the main peak in Datun Mountain
  4. Visit Xiangtian Mountain and Xiangtian Pond, which is a crater in Yangmingshan known for its bounteous fauna and flora
  5. Take a bus to DanShui where we will have a group dinner
  6. Lodging will be provided in DanShui at Hotel GegaLees

Day Two

  1. Breakfast at the hotel
  2. Visit Beixin Organic and Recreational Farm where you will receive a guided tour of the farm, an organic and healthy lunch and a forum on the farm’s core values which will teach you about growing wholesome and organic fruits
  3. End the evening with dinner, with a beautiful sunset view at Danshui 
  4. Return to the Taipei Main Station by MRT

Fee (per person): 1) NTD5,443 for a single-bed room, or 2) NTD4,283 for a double-bedded room, or 3) NTD3,933 for a four-bed room

Deadline for Registration: 10th April 2010

Additional Notes: A tour guide will accompany the group through the entire tour 

 

Tour Code - D: Tour the Central coast to understand environmental issues and community building

Schedule and highlights of the tour

Day One : Lukang ancient city and Changhua sea coast

  1. Travel from Taipei Train Station to Changhua Train Station, from where we will take the tourist bus.
  2. A brief history of Lukang, including a visit to Longsan temple and Lugang Mazu
  3. Group lunch that will include local Lukang delicacies
  4. A visit to the Changua sea coast where you will get a chance to understand and experience the local ecology. The Chanhua sea coast is an ecological haven with a rich and diverse ecology. The Coast is a popular ecological travel destination as it houses several rare birds, fish, shrimp, shellfish, algae, plankton, Tai white dolphin, bats, among other species. However, this beautiful Coastal land is slowly being destroyed by the invasion of non-eco friendly projects. Examples of projects that are impacting this Coastal land include the East Coast highway and the toxic vehicle emissions, the DaCheng industry, the MaiLiau industry and the building of coal-based power plants.  These projects are not only affecting the people who live on this coast but all the other living organisms that depend on the Coast for survival.
  1. Check in at Tao-Mi Eco-village (Jia Yuan Resort) for the night
  2. Dinner and star-gazing

Day Two: Puli Community Building and Ecologic Village Guided Tour, Nantou county

  1. Breakfast at Tao-Mi Eco-village

  2. Spend the morning exploring Puli Tao-Mi village-Yan’s  beautiful pasture and forest paths, along with tea at the pasture
  3. Lunch at Riverbank Vegetarian Restaurant
  4. Visit Ai-lan's traditional spring-fed washing pool and the Guang-liau paper factory
  5. Group dinner, before heading back to Taipei

Fee (per person): 1) NT 5,000 dollars for a double-bed room, or 2) NT 4,600 dollars for a four-bed room    

Three-Day Tours

Tour Code -E:  Travel the Eastern Coast of Taiwan and Visit Taroko National Park

This tour leads you deep into the Taroko National Park to experience spectacular precipices and gorges. The Park is known for its beautiful trails and human and natural diversity.  The Park, lying across the 3 administrative areas of Hualien County, Taichung County, and Nantou County, embraces river valleys and other peripheral mountains. The park covers about 92 thousand hectares of diverse terrain, comprising of the Hehuan Mountain Range, Qilai Mounatian Range, Nanhu and Jhongyangjian Mountains, CingShui Cliffs, the Liwu River Basin, and Sanjhan River Basin.

Lianhua Pond, previously called the Tian Pond, used to be the habitat of Suwashalu –an ethnic group of the Taroko Tribe.  The dereliction of the farms in Lianhua Pond restored it to its natural environment, becoming a wildlife paradise.  It takes two hours to walk through this four-kilometer footpath from Jiumei Drawbridge to Lianhua Pond. The abundance of natural resources makes it one of the best trails for bird and butterfly-watching and where rhesus monkeys can be encountered most frequently.

Schedule and highlights of the tour

Day One: The Eastern Railway, the Seashore scenery, Taroko National Park, Taosai Trail

  1. Depart from Taipei Railway Station on 07:18am train to Hualien
  2. Take the tour bus to Taroko Gorge
  3. Hike the Taosai Trail and enjoy the sight of Jhongsiao, Ren’ai, and Taosai Suspension Bridges and the amazing alluvial fan in Jiming Mountain (Note: An alluvial fan is a fan formed when a fast flowing stream flattens, slows, and spreads typically at the exit of a canyon onto a flatter plain.)

Day Two: Taroko National Park, Aboriginal Tribe, Geologic and Topographic Features of Taosai River

  1. Breakfast at the camp and clean up the camping area
  2. Meet members of the aboriginal tribes, and have lunch
  3. Observe the geologic and topographic features of Taosai River (stream terrace) and go hiking up the gorge.
  4. Have dinner, and camp beside the river for the night

Day Three 

  1. Breakfast at the camp and clear out the camp area

  2. Walk back to Jiumei Drawbridge, and hike along Lianhua Pond footpath

  3. Return to Taipei Railway Station from Hualien by train at 8:55pm

Fee (Per Person): NTD 6,083 (includes tent, sleeping bag, water bag, camp light, alpine cooker, and alpine gas tank)

Deadline for Registration: 10th April 2010

Additional Notes: The common-use equipment and food will be carried by the tour organizers/staff during the duration of this tour.  

Tour Code - F: Alpine Bird-Watching in Spring (Taiwan Endemic Birds and Alpine Flora)

Most of the endemic birds in Taiwan inhabit high mountains. Going bloom and bird watching there in spring not only enriches one's knowledge of such birds but also takes you into the majestic forests, for which many Taiwanese have great pride.

Daxue Mountain (Anma Mountain) Forest Recreation Area, is a spectacular and pristine area, located at an altitude of over 2000 meters in Heping Township, Taichung County.  With the difference of altitude ranging from subtropical, temperate, to frigid zones, allows the forests to display a semblance of diversity.  The vicissitude of meteoric phenomena is also in concord with time and place. What is more, Anma Mountain is the best place for bird-watching.  Birds such as Taiwan Sibia, Taiwan Yuhina, Steere’s Liocichala, Green Baked Tit, Taiwan Barwing, and Collared Bush Rubin are all colorful creatures with euphonious sounds.  Many of them even belong to Taiwan endemism.

As for Hehuan Mountain Range, flora such as Taiwan Alpine Rhododendron, Digoxin, and Taiwan Lily bloom in April and May.  In Wu Mountain, the highest point of highways in South-Eastern Asia (an altitude of 3275 meters), birds such as Formosan Alpine accentor and Orange Parrotbill are sprightly alive.  After taking a rest at Hehuan Village, you will encounter birds, including Yellow-Bellied Bush Warbler, Vinaceous Rosefinch, Taiwan Laughing Babbler, Collared Bush Rubin, and Taiwan Firecrest, chirping and hopping around.

Schedule and highlights of the tour

Day One

  1. Gather in Taipei Railway Station at 7:30am
  2. Learn about middle-altitude birds in the hills north of Da’an River
  3. Go bloom and bird watching along the mountains
  4. Stay at a mountain resort

Day Two

  1. Sightseeing, tree-watching, and bird-watching Tian Pond
  2. Visit the Qingjing Farm, which is a pleasant green meadow with views of blossoming spring flowers and grazing sheep. It is a popular tourist destination, sporting shops that sell all sorts of mountain vegetables and fruit, including pickled vegetables, the Beigua North Melon, bamboo shoots and sheep’s' dairy products.
  3. Lodge at Qingjing Farm Guest House

Day Three

  1. Bird-watching, bloom-watching, and mountain climbing Hehuan Mountain
  2. Go picnicking in the mountain
  3. Return to Taipei at approximately 20:00 by bus.

Fee (Per person): NT 7,800 dollars

Deadline for Registration: 10th April 2010

Maximum Number of Participants: 15