Yilan Shengmu Hiking Trail，Stunning Matcha-Colored Mountain Scenery。
Yilan Shengmu Hiking Trail is a not-so-easy Jiaoxi hiking spot with matcha-colored mountain scenery, so it’s called Matcha Mountain, and you can make a detour to Wufengqi Waterfall on the way back down. Although it’s a bit tiring to climb more than 900 meters, the trails are obvious, so it’s suitable for practicing physical fitness, and it’s a good idea to plan a day trip for a round-trip journey of about five to six hours.
Table of Contents
Pilgrimage to Our Lady of the Flag（五峰旗聖母朝聖地）
If you’re driving to the Our Lady of Mercy Hiking Trail (Mt. Matcha), you’ll need to park at the Wufengqi parking lot at the bottom of the mountain, which is about 800 meters away from the first location of the Our Lady of Mercy Pilgrimage Site, which is a bit of a distance, and there are some nice hotels near the parking lot.
At the beginning of the trip, I passed by the sand dam of Dezikou Creek, and I was so impressed that I saw an old man swimming in the sand dam in the morning and in the afternoon on my way back to the city.
Walking on the gently ascending tarmac road, you will soon reach the Our Lady of the Five Peaks pilgrimage site.
Be careful not to make a lot of noise when you come here, this is not a sightseeing spot.
This circular building is the Catholic Church.
It’s not far from Reef Creek, and you can see the downtown area of Reef Creek between the valleys, as well as the ocean.
Go around to the back of the Catholic Church, come and go quietly. Visitors to this area respect the principle of quietness. (Signs are posted.)
The uphill climb just after leaving has a great view – overlooking the Pilgrimage Site of Our Lady, with the Reef Creek Plain in the distance.
To Tongtianqiao（往通天橋）
After the Virgin Mary Pilgrimage site, I went to the Tongtian Bridge. I thought I could reach the bridge as quickly as the Virgin Mary Pilgrimage site, but I was wrong, I remembered that I had to walk for 4~5 kilometers before reaching the Tongtian Bridge.
Although it was a long way, there were two things to be happy about: 1. the road was asphalt with a gentle incline, and 2. there was almost no sunshine… However, the scenery was roughly the same as in the previous photo and this one.
When you see the pillars of Our Lady’s trail, you will come to the Bridge to Heaven.
Tongtianqiao is a short bridge of a few meters, and there is also a refuge center with toilets. It is recommended to take a rest for a while, and then it’s time for the more tiring uphill climb.
Shengmu Hiking Trail（聖母登山步道）
After the footbridge, you will enter the forested area, where there are many small waterfalls as shown in the photo, and the cool water of the stream is very refreshing.
From the original asphalt road to stone stairs, there is no flat ground all the way up, so you have to adjust your breathing ~ and be careful of the slippery dirt on the stone stairs! This is the longest part of the trail in my opinion…. I think this is the longest part of the trail… Every descender will tell you that we’re almost there, but I know it’s still a long way to go.
Shengmu mountain top （聖母峰）
When we walked out of the forest and saw the sky, it really meant that we were almost at Our Lady of the Mount (we were in the fog when we arrived…). I couldn’t see the sky anymore).
The hill on the left is Our Lady’s Peak, and on the right hand side of the clearing, you can reach Our Lady’s Lodge and Triangle Lun Mountain! Many photos of Matcha Mountain on the internet were taken from that angle, I couldn’t take a photo with Matcha, there were too many people… (I went to climb it on Friday)
I didn’t bother to wait in line, and I’m glad I got a few shots of the mountains before the fog came in.
Originally, I wanted to take a picture of the blue sky and white cloud mountain view ~ but it’s not bad to be in the middle of the clouds and fog ~ I arrived at about 12:30 pm, and the fog will be even bigger if I’m late, so if you want to have a good weather, you have to go up the mountain earlier.
A few minutes after I took this picture, the whole mountain was hidden in the fog, and I couldn’t see anything anymore, and the crowded photo spot was gone in no time.
Originally, I planned to go further to Mt. Delun, but due to the fog, I couldn’t see any scenery, and my feet didn’t want to move…. So I decided to go back to the mountain with my friends.
Wufengqi waterfall（五峰旗瀑布）
On the way back, shortly after passing the Pilgrimage Site of Our Lady of Wufengqi, on the left hand side, you can see a signboard indicating the turnoff to Wufengqi Waterfall, and there will be the first, second, and third tiers of the viewing platform (the first tier had been closed because of the falling rocks at that time).
You will reach the second level of the waterfall soon after the instruction, there is a small pavilion in front of the waterfall.
The second level was high enough to have a waterfall breeze, and the walk all the way down from the Notre Dame Lodge gave my knees a little rest.
At the end of the trail, the Five Peaks Flag Falls Trail picks up where the parking lot left off, so you can walk down the trail without worrying.
The third tier of waterfalls tucked away amongst the trees is the smallest, and the clear stream flows gently alongside the trail, so I snapped the last few photos of the day and prepared for the drive home!
On the way back and forth, resting, taking photos, and eating lunch took about six hours, the road is not short, it is recommended to go up the mountain early to be safer, I have a friend who often climbed in about 3 hours or so to complete the round trip, catching the six hours is considered to be very abundant ~ ~.
Google Map:
Park at the Five Peaks Flag Parking Lot and head to Our Lady of the Mount.
Taiwan car rental
（high speed railway station pick up the car）
