RTT Event – Sunset Hike up Elephant Mountain

Reach to Teach events are a great way for all of our teachers to meet and greet each other, as well as meeting the recruiters that they are working with. If you have just arrived in Taiwan this is a great way to make new friends. Been here for a while? Then come and enjoy a fun event. 

We like to mix up what the events are as we know that everyone has different ideas of fun, we have done shrimp fishing, KTV, and cycling events (amongst others). This month’s event was spent hiking one of the Four Beasts in the Four Beast mountain range of Taipei Taiwan. We decided to pick our time wisely so that we would catch the sunset.

We were blessed with a very clear and warm day, perfect for hiking in Taiwan, and even more perfect for seeing the cityscape change colour and light up as night comes. We all met as a group at XiangShan (Elephant Mountain) MRT stop and made our way through a picturesque park, passing traditional puppet shows, the elderly playing pai chou and children running and giggling to get to the base of the mountain.

We opted for Elephant Mountain, [bctt tweet=”one of the four beasts that you can tackle, others include Lion, Leopard and Tiger.”] All are named specifically based on their shape, for example, elephant mountain is a mound with a long extension coming from it, essentially like an elephant’s trunk.

Now, we started at the base and the sun already looked like it was getting low, so I think we panicked and almost ran to the top. The hike itself takes only around 20-30 minutes to the top, it is a fairly easy hike that is lined with stone steps. Once you get to the top there are three giant boulders to sit on and absorb Taipei in all of its beauty.

It turns out we didn’t need to rush, the sun was still way up by the time we reached the top and it was giving off a very warm and cosy glow as it was setting.

Below is a photo essay of our time heading up the mountain, relaxing on the viewing boulders, a little of nature and the sunset and then finally a meal at a delicious dumpling restaurant to finish.

A teacher stops for some shots of nature.

More picture moments as we hike up through the wilderness.

   The sun is just peeking out through a recently fallen tree, likely caused by the latest typhoon.

Smiles and sweat! It is a short but steep hike up. We made it up on the rocks, a highly cultivated location at sundown.

Reach to Teach teacher and staff enjoy some selfies on top of a rock.

You can see how busy it is at sundown, we were lucky to get up on the rocks. The sun sets and we enjoy the views.

We were joined by a little friend, who took on three adults, and won!

Sunset across Taipei

As the sun goes down it starts to paint the sky.

Last little view before it falls below the mountains.

Night view of Taipei, the light make it sparkle.

Taipei 101 in all its glory.

Now we make the MRT journey to find food.

The hiking team, enjoying some well-deserved dumplings.

Stay tuned for more events from Reach To Teach, if you would like to come to one of our events then you are welcome to do so, just follow our Facebook page for event updates. Be sure to subscribe to our event page for the most up to date information.