Amazing Rock Formation at Yehliu Geopark

On my fourth day in Taipei, I have half-day free time to explore the city. So, along with Vinayak my colleague from Acer India, we asked recommendation from our local colleague. As we like places with natural view, so our colleague recommended us to go to Jiufen or Yehliu Geopark. Both are quite far from Taipei downtown but they offer stunning natural view. Since Jiufen is further from the city then we won’t make it to go back before sundown, we decided to go to Yehliu Geopark in Xinbei.

First thing to do is to find how to get there. If we were going from downtown, it would be easier to take MRT or join a tour bus. But we were in our headquarter office in New Taipei City that is quite far from downtown so it would be more efficient if we go straight to Yehliu by…. taxi. We called a taxi and found that only few taxi drivers would drive that far. The driver charged us flat fee 1000 New Taiwan Dollar (NTD) for one way trip. Gulp. Yes, it was THAT far and remote.

We headed southeast toward away from city and watched how the scenery changed from office complex to residential area. Many campaign posters and billboards everywhere as they were having major election. It looked very different with the downtown as we didn’t see many campaign posters there.

So what’s so special in Yehliu that made us want to go there? Yehliu is noted for its peculiar rocks. We can see naturally-formed rocks in very odd shapes at the beach. Witnessing the rocks formation yourself, you might be imagining that you were in different part of the world or other planet in the universe. I was imagining myself to be on Mars or Moon surface.

The unique rocks formation is outcome from natural erosion for centuries. The end product consists of various forms of rocks e.g. honeycomb, candlestick, mushroom, etc. These rocks are preserved on their actual places along the beach line so visitors have to walk a bit far from the entrance.

Since Yehliu is very popular for tourists visiting Taiwan, so it’s almost impossible to take picture without capturing other people within the frame. And if you wish to take picture or selfie with popular rock formation like the Queen’s Head, there’s a long queue for that.

I went there in November it was quite windy and raining sometimes. Yehliu beach is not a place for you looking for regular beach activities like swimming, snorkeling etc. as it dangerous to do so with its strong waves and rock under your feet. If you’re into nature, beach or geological thingy, so Yehliu must be a place for you to visit.

Yehliu Geopark
No.167-1, Kangton Rd.,Yeh Liu Village,
Wanli District, Xinbei

How to get there from Taipei:

1. Taipei to Yehliu – Kuo-Kuang Bus (no.1815) / 1 hour 20 minutes / NTD 96
2. Yehliu to Taipei – Kuo-Kuang Bus (no.1815) / 1 hour 20 minutes / NTD 96
3. Other routes: FAQ Yehliu Geopark official website