> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.taiwanquest.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Huandao Day 5 - URL: https://www.taiwanquest.com/huandao-yilan-to-keelung/ - Published: 2024-01-12T15:19:56.000Z - Updated: 2025-11-16T06:32:54.000Z - Description: Yilan to Keelung, the north-east corner of Taiwan… - Author: Zhen-Kang | Distance | 110 km | | ---------------------- | ------- | | Ride time (with stops) | 4 hours | | Giant cranes scaled | 1 | **My day started with starfruit juice and scallion pancakes.** Yilan County’s famous for its scallions. I can confirm they’re almost confusingly flavorsome, and quite juicy: ![A take-out cup on a table, and a hand holding a paper bag that contains a partially-eaten scallion pancake.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/yilan-scallion-pancake.jpg) Starfruit juice and a scallion pancake. ![Six people sitting around a public hot-spring. Half of them have their legs in the hot water.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/jiaosi-public-hot-spring.jpg) Near the scallion cafe, on the main street of Jiaosi Township, was this free public hot-spring. The water was comfortable—around 35ºC. ![A bustling four-land road with shops and two-to-eight-story buildings on either side. It’s a sunny day.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/jiaosi-main-street.jpg) Here’s the main street. Jiaosi is one of Taiwan’s most famous hot-spring towns. ![Five people sit around a public hot-spring, with their legs in the water. Beyond the hot-spring is a leafy green park.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/jiosi-hot-spring-41-degrees.jpg) A few blocks away, this free hot-spring in a public park was 41.5ºC. ![A Japanese-style wooden building with paper lanterns hanging out the front, set in a leafy green park.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/paid-hot-spring-in-jiosi.jpg) There was a pay-for-entry hot-spring in the same area, costing NT$160 (NZ$8) per person. ![A rundown single-story brick building with moss-covered tiled roof. It’s surrounded by dense green foliage.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/historic-house-in-jiosi.jpg) This historic brick house was off to one side. ![A single-story brick building that appears well-maintained, with lanterns hanging from the front eaves and a traditional-style bicycle parked out the front.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/historic-brick-house-front.jpg) The front of the same building looked much less forgotten. ![Lanyang Museum, an unconventional glass-and-tile building that appears to be sinking into a lake. Because of its partially-sunken appearance, it’s hard to estimate the size of the building. It appears to be a few stories tall at the highest point.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/lanyang-museum-yilan-taiwan-1.jpg) A few kilometers north, I stopped to take a photo of Lanyang Museum (蘭陽博物館) in Toucheng Township. Opened in 2010, it’s shaped like a local cuesta—a hill that’s steep on one side, with a gentle slope on the other. Lead architect Kris Yao also designed one of my favorite buildings in Kaohsiung, [China Steel Corporation Headquarters](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China%5FSteel%5FCorporation%5FHeadquarters). ![Santiao Chiao Lighthouse, a white lighthouse on immacuately-maintained grounds. Single-story while buildings, and a Taiwan flag, line the sides of the lighthouse grounds. There are two-dozen tourists wandering around. It looks like a warm, sunny day.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/santiao-chiao-lighthouse-taiwan.jpg) Thirty minutes up the coast, I reached Taiwan’s eastern-most point, at its eastern-most lighthouse: Santiao Chiao Lighthouse (Cape Santiago Lighthouse; 三貂角燈塔). ![View of Turtle Island, off the coast of Taiwan. The silhouette of the island looks roughly like the shape of a turtle.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/turtle-island-taiwan.jpg) Looking south, I could see Turtle Island (龜山島). ![A view along a green bush-covered coastline. A wide road with car and truck traffic sweeps around a bend in the distance.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/taiwan-north-east-coastal-road.jpg) Looking west, I could see the road that would take me to Keelung. ![Nighttime view of a canal in central Keelung City, Taiwan.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/yilan-canal.jpg) It was 13ºC when I arrived in Keelung—a port city of 360,000, where it rains 50% of the days. I checked in to my hotel using a touchscreen powered by, according to the manager, “very clever AI”. The same manager then offered me a choice of four McDonald’s items for breakfast tomorrow. I chose the plain bagel. He said I could collect my plain bagel from reception between 8am and 10am. ![A small truck driving past pedestrians, with political flags and banners on the back.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/kmt-campaign-truck-in-keelung.jpg) On a walk through the city, I saw some last-minute campaigning for tomorrow’s election. Like in New Zealand, everyone gets to vote for their preferred party plus their preferred local representative. But unlike in New Zealand, they also get a third vote: for president. I’ll be watching [TaiwanPlus’ live election coverage (in English) from 4pm tomorrow](https://www.taiwanplus.com/taiwanplustv). ![The entrance to a lively-looking, crowded night market in Keelung City. In the foreground, a stall is selling some kind of friend food. There are lanterns hanging above the street.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/keelung-night-market.jpg) I bought dinner at this night market. When I ordered some sweet potato balls with pepper, a nearby grandpa complimented me on my Chinese skills (despite me saying “pepper” in English). I said to him in Chinese (sincerely and factually), “I think I speak bad Chinese”. He replied in Chinese: “I think you speak good Chinese! Hahahaha!” ![The lower few floors of a skyscraper reflected in a canal. The exterior walls of these lower floors are covered in illuminated signage for building tenants such as McDonalds, Muji, and ABC Mart. To the right of the building is a two-story-tall political billboard with a man and woman on it.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/keelung-signage-reflected-in-canal.jpg) The tallest building in Keelung, Lih-Rong An Imperial Crown Building (元邦皇冠商業大樓), is dominated by advertising on its lower floors. On the right, a billboard promotes Lai Ching-Te, the current vice-president who is now running for president. ![Night-time view of lights reflecting in Keelung Harbor. The letters K-E-E-L-U-N-G, each approximately one-story-tall, are illuminated on the far side of the harbor.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/keelung-harbor-at-night.jpg) I followed the canal to Keelung Harbor. ![Looking up at a Keelung Tower, a structure that closely resembles a large harbor crane. It is surrounded by shorter buildings.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/keelung-tower-at-night.jpg) Then walked a few blocks inland to [Keelung Tower (基隆塔)](https://axbarchitecture.com/projects/keelung-tower/)—a skywalk that pays homage to the shipping cranes of the harbor. ![Two elevators inset in an industrial-style concrete wall. The left elevator only stops at the first floor and the roof. The right elevator also stops at the fourth floor.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/keelung-tower-elevators.jpg) I scaled it by elevator. The skywalk’s 58 meters high, roughly equivalent to an 18-story building. ![Panoramic view of Keelung City at night. A glass balustrade is visible in the foreground.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/night-view-from-keelung-tower.jpg) From the top, a view of Keelung City. ![A nighttime view looking down on Keelung Tower from a few meters further up the hill. The city is visible in the distance.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/night-view-of-keelung-tower.jpg) And here, a view of Keelung Tower. It’s 86 meters long, leading to a temple on a hillside above the city. ![An arched entrance to a bomb shelter. A rusted metal door is locked, but the interior of the shelter can be seen over the top of the door. The walls are covered in green moss.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/keelung-bomb-shelter.jpg) At the base of the tower is the historic Triangle Plaza Bomb Shelter (三角廣場防空洞). It was closed when I visited… ![A sign that says ‘Watch Out for Snakes, Bees, and Insects’.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/5e/e3/5ee3f160-68a0-49ef-af6f-ec70abc1d13e/content/images/2024/01/keelung-bomb-shelter-warning-sign.jpg) …Which was probably a good thing. --- ### Day 5 soundtrack 1. **On with Kara Swisher** ([Podcast](https://podcasts.voxmedia.com/show/on-with-kara-swisher)) 2. **The Summer Set – Legendary** ([Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/album/legendary/1444175443)) ([Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/album/0e9KCPvGyBlMcnqa5zskmb)) 3. **Lights Follow – Lights Follow** ([Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/album/lights-follow/1233888743)) ([Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/album/7iCmGYVbnQYuNjn5u42KxT)) 4. **Radiohead – The Bends** ([Apple Music](https://music.apple.com/us/album/the-bends/1097862703)) ([Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/album/35UJLpClj5EDrhpNIi4DFg)) --- ### Dashcam timelapse [youtu.be/wq8kJjjV\_Mo](https://youtu.be/wq8kJjjV%5FMo) ---