I had the great pleasure of heading up to Baguashan [八卦山] this morning to check out the Tung Blossoms on the Wolongpo [臥龍坡步道] and Tengshan Trails [藤山步道].  These trails are two of several scenic areas visitors can flock to for the 2009 Hakka Tung Blossom Festival [2009客家桐花祭].  There were several booths as well as a stage set up in front of Fengtian Temple [鳳天宮] for the event.  I arrived before any of the vendors, so there was nothing distracting me from starting my walk down the Wolongpo Trail [臥龍坡步道].

There were only a handful of people on the trail, but that would soon change.

At the bottom of the trail is a parking lot and the entrance for the Tengshan Trail.  This trail was much more popular than the previous one.  Being a lovely Saturday morning, many families were enjoying the trail.

The trail has a platform to view the Changhua Plain and the Taiwan High Speed Rail:

Since this trail has no steps, it is also popular with cyclists [I’ve been here before]:

That’s Fengtian Temple in the background:

The trail brought me back up to where I started.  A sign at Fengming Pond [鳳鳴池] stated that this pond is used by local farmers to collect rainwater for irrigation.  It also boasts a handful of endemic species of plants and frogs.  That of course didn’t stop anyone from throwing tires or bottles of Whisby in.

Here’s a map of the area.  It’s easily accessible from Changhua City or Nantou City via County Road 139: