Hiking Shoushan National Nature Park: Tips & Recommendations
If you love hiking, being in nature, wildlife, exercise, and gorgeous views, then visiting Shoushan National Nature Park is a must! This nature park is easy to get to from anywhere in Kaohsiung City and offers an incredible experience. If you are like me and the site of wild monkeys gets you excited, you’ll love this nature park. Shoushan National Nature Park has many trail networks and for the most part they were well maintained and somewhat easy.
I highly recommend adding Shoushan National Nature Park to your Kaohsiung itinerary. In this post, you can find information on the nature park, learn about the wildlife, and I’ve included tips and recommendations to help better prepare you for a hike at Shoushan National Nature Park.
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Getting to Shoushan National Nature Park is really easy, especially if staying near one of Kaohsiung’s subway stations. You don’t need to rent a car to get here, you can rely entirely on public transportation.
Kaohsiung has great public transportation. There is a KMRT Red Line, KMRT Orange Line, and the Light Rail. There is a clockwise and counterclockwise Light Rail that circles the city, making it very convenient.
We stayed near Formosa Boulevard, R10 and took the Orange Line toward Hamasen. From Hamasen Station, we took the Green Light Rail to Gushan Station.
From Gushan Station, you can walk to one of the main park entrances. At this trail entrance there is a newly placed public parking space with bathrooms.
You can also get off at the Museum of Fine Arts Station and take Qnghai Road to Mingde Road.
Either station will take you directly to a hiking trail.
About Shoushan National Nature Park
If you look at a map of Kaohsiung City, Shoushan National Nature Park is located west of the city. It’s the big green space between the city and the sea. The park is located in Kaohsiung’s Gushan District.
Shoushan National Nature Park is a lard nature park that consists of limestone formations and lush forests.
Most visitors will come to the park to hike, sightsee, and even mountain bike. The majority of the trails are nicely maintained but some trails do require appropriate gear to successfully and safely hike, I’ll get more into that later on.
The main reason for my visit to Shoushan National Nature Park was to see the wildlife, primarily the rock macaques.
Trail Information
Honestly, there is not a whole lot of trail information or info in general on Shoushan National Nature Park and the hiking trails here.
One of the best resources to look at trails within the park is AllTrails. On AllTrails there 10 different trails listed within the park all different lengths and experience levels.
If you are like me and only wanting to visit Shoushan National Nature Park for a half day and see the Taiwan Macaques I recommend the moderate Monkey Mountain Trail.
According to AllTrails, Monkey Mountain is a moderate trail, totaling just about 5 km. If you plan for a full day hike, the full loop is a 10.5 km long trail.
If following the maps posted throughout the park, stay on the main trail for an easier hike. Many of the trails that branch off the main one appear to be shortcuts on the map but they are more intense trails that are smaller, more overgrown, and challenging. Do yourself a favor and stick to the main trails.
If following the Monkey Mountain Trail, the trail is a mix of concrete, loose gravel, and boardwalk. For the most part the trail was really well maintained.
Many of the pavilions labeled on the map actually are rest stations, equipped with water, shelter, shade, and even workout and stretching equipment.
Wildlife
The wildlife of Shoushan National Nature Park is the main driving factor for my visit here, primarily to see wild Formosan Rock Macaques otherwise known as Taiwanese Macaques.
There is a reason that locals call this park “Monkey Mountain.” Not even 5 minutes into our hike we spotted trees full of these energetic monkeys. When we visited (August) many of the adult macaques had babies.
We spotted monkeys at the very beginning of our hike to the very end, they were everywhere.
Although fun to witness in the wild, keep in mind that these monkeys are in fact, wild. Although cute, they can be aggressive and unpredictable.
Give them their space, don’t feed them, and respect their boundaries.
How we Spent a Day Here
While staying in Kaohsiung City, we were near Formosa Boulevard Station. On our second day we visited Shoushan National Nature Park in the morning.
From Formosa Boulevard Station, we took the KMRT Orange Line to Hamasen Subway Station. Here we jumped on the Hamasen Light Rail stop and accidentally took the light rail to the Gushan District Office stop instead of Gushan Station.
We ended up walking from Gushan District Office station to the new parking area, but I recommend just getting off at Gushan Station.
From here, we found a nature park map and decided on hiking the Monkey Mountain Trail, I’m not sure if that is the official name but it is highlighted Yellow on the maps. I believe this started near the North Shoushan Trail Entrance near the Qianguang Temple.
5 minutes in we spotted a bunch of Taiwanese macaques, many with babies. They were on the road, up in the trees, and even walking up and down stairs.
We followed the path toward Monkey Rock and stopped at a few of the rest stations along the trail.
We were worried because we finished our water about half way through the hike but were thankful that the rest stations had water and tea, so you can fill your bottles here.
We followed the trail clockwise and ended at the Longquan Temple entrance.
I actually recommend going in a clockwise direction. Although the other direction seemed to be more popular, it seemed to have had more stairs and steeper hills to climb.
Near the Longquan Temple entrance, there are shops that sell hiking gear, snacks, and beverages.
Tips & Recommendations
- Bring water and appropriate clothes with. The hiking here is not difficult, but the elements can be harsh. Mainly the heat and humidity.
- There are rest stations along portions of the trail. Thankfully, when we went (August), the rest stations were equipped with water and even hot tea, free of charge.
- Beware of the wild monkeys. They are cute and entertaining but can be aggressive and unpredictable. Simply give them space.
- Share the trails. Shoushan National Nature Park is a popular attraction for both locals and visitors. Plus monkeys might walk on the trail as well.
- Bring a hand towel or some type of towel or cloth to wipe sweat or clean hands.
- Of course, snacks are recommended, especially if you are planning on hiking the majority of the day. Just beware that monkeys are known to steal food and can be aggressive over it.
Conclusion
If you are looking for things to do in Kaohsiung City, I highly recommend starting your morning at Shoushan National Nature Park. This nature park is the perfect place to spend a relaxing morning, whether it be for exercise or spotting wildlife, Shoushan National Nature Park is a unique experience and is accessible from anywhere in Kaohsiung City. We had a great time here and were glad to have shared the trails with other friendly hikers and even monkeys. This was one of my favorite places to visit in Kaohsiung and I hope to visit one day again.
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