Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
4
Hsiangte Temple
A2
6
Swallow Grotto
B2
Activities, Courses & Tours
9
Wenshan Hot Springs
A2
Sleeping
10
Holiu
B2
11
Lüshui
A2
History
Although humans inhabited the park as long as 3000 years ago, the ancestors of today's
Taroko tribe (recognised in 2004) began to settle along the Liwu River in the 17th cen-
tury. The Taroko were known for their hunting and weaving skills, the use of facial tat-
toos, and ritual headhunting.
The Taroko lived in isolation until 1874 when the Qing began to build a road from
Suao to Hualien to help open the area to Chinese settlers. In 1896 the Japanese marched
in looking to exploit the forestry and mineral resources. After an 18-year bloody
struggle, they finally forced the outnumbered and out-weaponed Taroko to submit, and
most villages were relocated to the foothills or plains of Hualien.
The Japanese cut roads and widened existing trails (using Taroko labour) to form the
'Old Hehuan Mountain Rd' from the base of the gorge to Wushe in Nantou County. The
road facilitated control over mountain aborigines and the extraction of the area's natural
resources. It also spurred the first wave of tourism in the area, with hiking becoming a
popular activity by the mid-1930s.
In the 1950s the KMT extended the road west as part of the first cross-island highway.
Many of the road workers later settled in the area, often marrying Taroko women and be-
coming farmers. Plum Garden is one of the most well known of these settlements.
