Xiangde temple

I had half an hour before a bus arrived to take me back to Hualien, and Tianfeng pagoda beckoned on the other side of a bridge. Xiangde temple belonged to the Lin Ji Zong Buddhist sect and was only built in the 1960s because of the construction of the Central Cross-Island Highway. Later, the white Guanyin statue was added.

A trail to a waterfall

I reached Tianxiang within Taroko National Park, and headed out of the tiny village towards the Baiyang Trail. In spite of being in a mountainous region, the trail was flat and only a little over two kilometres one way. The challenge was its eight unlit tunnels, one in particular that was difficult unless you had a flashlight.