As soon as the little lambs at Sunflower Lake Farm make an appearance, the sound of “so cute!” fills the air. The farm is located on the hills of Jinshan, nestled against the mountains and overlooking the sea, covering an area of six hectares. It has two camping areas, is close to Yangmingshan National Park, offers fresh air and clean water, and grows a variety of vegetables. Visitors can enjoy barbecues and hot pot here.

The owner, Qiu Hongpeng, used to work at a construction company in the city. After retiring, he moved to Jinshan with his wife and children to enjoy a rural lifestyle. Dad takes care of building the campsite, Mom warmly welcomes visitors, and their surfing-loving son, Ama, became an ecology teacher. He raises fireflies himself, leads kids on nighttime nature walks, searches for small fish and shrimp in streams, and keeps three little sheep. Father and son built a wooden sheep pen together to make it easy for children to feed the sheep.

“When you come to our farm for a barbecue, you don’t need to bring anything—the wooden tables come with built-in grills that are very convenient and won’t burn your hands. For camping, you only need to bring a tent for sleeping. The campsite has canopy covers, so you don’t have to worry about rain, and the bathroom facilities are also modern.” Although Taiwan Tourist Shuttle doesn’t go directly to Sunflower Lake Farm, Ama will provide free shuttle service down the mountain for groups of seven or more. A barbecue set for ten people starts from NT$1,500, with all utensils included, as well as beef sirloin, pork chops, saury, hot pot ingredients, drinks, and more—great value for money.

North Coast Travel INDEX

★ Crown North Coast Line／www.crownnsa

.com.tw

★ Yun Garden／No. 18, Xishih Lake, Xihu Li, Jinshan District, New Taipei City／02-24985900

★ Old San Francisco Governor’s Hot Spring／No. 196, Minsheng Road, Jinshan District, New Taipei City／02-24082628／www.warmspring.com.tw

★ Sunflower Lake Sightseeing Farm／No. 2-17, Lianghu Li, Jinshan District, New Taipei City／02-24986322／www.lakesunflower.com.tw

★ Tube Factory／No. 91, Haixing Road, Jinshan District, New Taipei City／0932395165／www.facebook.com/tube.tw

★ Yuanzhang Glass Science and Technology Museum／No. 33, Wuxun Street, Keelung City／02-24323335／www.tech-glassapp.com

★ Sea’s Bumpy Hot Pot Culture Museum／No. 74, Wuxun Street, Keelung City／02-24331345

／www.hzw.com.tw