Taichung senior hikes Beiling Mountain
The elderly man reportedly set out from Taichung by train at noon the day before yesterday to visit Tainan. With ample experience hiking alone, he searched on Google and found that Beiling Mountain in Yujing had a hiking trail. Convinced he could reach the summit in just 40 minutes, he confidently rented a scooter near Tainan Railway Station and drove for over an hour to get to Yujing.
The elderly man began his hike around 12:00 p.m. the day before yesterday.
However, due to overgrown vegetation in the mountain area, what should have been a 40-minute hike ended up taking over four hours. By around 5:00 p.m., the man still hadn’t found the summit marker. Not having brought any hiking gear or food, and not wanting to worry his family, he called home to explain the situation and let them know he was safe. He initially planned to spend the night on the mountain and descend the next day, but his family, alarmed, had already called the police to start a search.
Stranded without food in the mountains
After receiving the report, the Tainan City Fire Bureau dispatched 36 officers and volunteers, including the Yujing Fire Station team, the Special Search Team, the Yujing Volunteer Firefighters Squadron, the Yujing Volunteer Mountain Rescue Team, and others, to search for the elderly man in the Beiling Mountain area. They called out his name while combing the area. The rescue team searched for about two hours before finally locating the man around 10:00 p.m. He was stable, uninjured, and only suffering from mild hypothermia. After providing him with food and warmth, they contacted his family to pick him up.
Liao Dingjun, captain of the Yujing Fire Station, stated that the Beiling Mountain hiking trail has not been maintained for years, with overgrown vegetation making it easy to get lost without a local guide. Just six months ago, a young man from Kaohsiung also got lost on Beiling Mountain while using Google to plan his hike, though he was eventually able to descend safely.
Two-hour search leads to rescue
Liao Dingjun urged hikers that if they are not locals, they should avoid climbing lesser-known trails alone.