Ring in the New Year with a Mountain Hike: Yangmingshan Hosts First Ascent of Qixing Mountain on New Year’s Day

 

The Yangmingshan National Park Headquarters is encouraging the public to embrace hiking and connect with nature by organizing a special event for the first ascent of Qixing Mountain on New Year’s Day. The “102nd New Year’s Day First Ascent of Qixing Mountain and Environmental Education Facility Unveiling Ceremony” began at 7:30 a.m. with a flag-raising ceremony and the unveiling event at the plaza in front of the Yangmingshan Visitor Center, followed by the climb up Qixing Mountain. The route starts from the Visitor Center, passes the Qixing Park junction, ascends to the main peak of Qixing Mountain, and ends at the Xiaoyoukeng Visitor Service Station. The entire hike is approximately 4.5 kilometers, and all hiking enthusiasts are welcome to join. On the day, participants who register on-site at the Visitor Center for the flag-raising ceremony can receive a souvenir (while supplies last), and those who join the hike and attend the ecological interpretation session can log 4 hours of environmental education credit. Additionally, free ginger soup will be provided downstairs at the Xiaoyoukeng Visitor Service Station to help hikers warm up.

The Yangmingshan National Park Headquarters stated that in previous years, hikers on the New Year’s Day mountain climbing event would greet each other with “Happy New Year” and “New Year Greetings,” creating an atmosphere of enthusiasm, health, confidence, and vitality—offering a new sense of hope much like in the Kingdom of Bhutan in the Himalayas. This helps enhance everyone’s happiness index. To promote the Yangmingshan National Park Mobile Guide App, hikers who reach the summit of Qixing Mountain on New Year’s Day can access the “Commemorative Photo” feature under the “Other Functions” menu on the bottom right of the app’s homepage, take a photo at the main peak of Qixing Mountain, and upload it to the Yangmingshan National Park Facebook fan page. They can then collect a special gift at the Visitor Center, Xiaoyoukeng Visitor Service Station, or Lengshuikeng Visitor Service Station.

On the day of the First Ascent of Qixing Mountain event, participants can take buses 260, Red 5, or 230 to the Yangmingshan Bus Terminal, then transfer to shuttle bus 108 to the Visitor Center, or take buses 111, 109, or 681 and get off at the Yangmingshan Second Parking Lot, or take minibuses 小9 or 小8 and get off at the Visitor Center stop, then walk to the Visitor Center plaza to gather. For the return trip, hikers can take shuttle bus 108 or a shuttle service from Xiaoyoukeng back to the Yangmingshan Bus Terminal, and then transfer to other buses to reach MRT Jiantan Station. Mountain weather is highly changeable, and temperatures at the Qixing Mountain summit have historically approached 0°C on New Year’s Day. Please prepare warm clothing and rain gear before heading up the mountain. For more details, please call 02-2861-6341 ext. 800 or 801.

 

 

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