At five in the morning, when the darkness is still thick among the trunks of the giant red cypress trees, dozens of people gather along the tracks of the narrow-gauge railway in Alishan to wait for the dawn train. It is not a metaphor: the train that climbs towards the peak of Zhushan is a daily appointment that the Taiwanese consider almost a ritual, and the walking path that runs alongside it is one of the most concrete and silent routes one can take in Taiwan.
The Alishan station is located in the village of Zhongzheng, in Chiayi County, at an altitude of about 2,200 meters. The railway that serves it, the Alishan Forest Railway, was built during the Japanese colonial period starting in 1906 and completed in 1912, with the original purpose of transporting valuable timber from the mountain forests to the coast. Today, the 762-millimeter gauge tracks — a narrow standard that gives the trains a toy-like appearance — instead carry visitors through one of the densest conifer forests in Taiwan.
The Path Next to the Tracks
The main pedestrian path that develops around the Alishan station largely follows the railway track, sliding between Taiwanese red cypress trees — the Chamaecyparis formosensis — some of which are over a thousand years old and reach considerable heights, with trunks that would require more than one person to embrace. The walker finds themselves moving in what is locally called a cloud forest: the morning fog accumulates beneath the canopy of the trees, suspended a few meters above the ground, and light filters unevenly, creating areas of dense shadow interspersed with bright patches.
The path is well marked and mostly paved with wooden planks or stone slabs, making it accessible even without technical equipment. The total length of the marked trails in the forest area exceeds twenty kilometers overall, but the most frequented sections — those leading to the Zhushan viewpoint and the Alishan pond — can be completed in two or three hours of leisurely walking. Along the way, there are informational panels in traditional Chinese and English that illustrate the tree species present and the history of the railway.
The Dawn over the Sea of Clouds
The most sought-after moment for those visiting Alishan is the dawn viewed from the Zhushan viewpoint, accessible both on foot and by the small forest train. When weather conditions are favorable — typically in the autumn and winter months, between October and February — the sun rises over an ocean of low clouds that fill the valleys below, while the highest peaks emerge like islands. The spectacle lasts only a few minutes in its most intense form, the time when the light shifts from orange to white.
Those who choose to reach Zhushan on foot from the Alishan station walk a steep path of about two kilometers, with a moderate elevation gain. It is advisable to leave at least an hour before the calculated dawn for that day — local weather apps indicate the precise time — and to bring an extra warm layer, because even in summer, the temperature at dawn can drop to around ten degrees Celsius at that altitude.
The railway and the millenary cypress trees
Walking along the tracks, you encounter some of the oldest plants in the forest, identified by numbered signs. The oldest red cypress trees in the Alishan area are protected as natural heritage and cannot be touched or approached beyond a certain distance. The reddish, fibrous bark of these trees, visible up close, has a texture that vaguely resembles aged leather. The resinous smell that pervades the path in the morning hours is one of the most immediate elements of the experience.
The Alishan forest railway is considered one of the three great mountain railways in Asia and has suffered significant damage due to typhoons and earthquakes over the years, with restoration work affecting various sections of the track. The ticket for the train that goes up to Zhushan for the sunrise costs approximately around 150 New Taiwan dollars for the one-way trip, but the price may vary and it is advisable to check at the station at the time of the visit.
Practical tips for visiting Alishan
To reach the Alishan station, you generally start from the city of Chiayi, from where direct buses depart that take about two and a half hours along winding mountain roads. Alternatively, there is the forest railway that departs from Chiayi station, but the travel times are longer and services should be checked in advance as some routes have been subject to interruptions. Entry to the Alishan forest area requires a separate ticket from the train stop.
The best time to visit is between October and February, when the likelihood of encountering the sea of clouds is higher and temperatures are cool but not freezing. On weekends and during Taiwanese national holidays, the area becomes quite crowded: arriving the night before and staying overnight in one of the village hotels allows you to enjoy the trails in the early morning hours, before the tour buses drop off the day's visitors.
