Heping river 和平溪 to Mohen hot springs 莫很溫泉
A 50 km, 3 day hike along the Heping stream 和平溪 on the border of Hualian 花蓮 and Ilan 宜蘭 counties in eastern Taiwan in a fourth attempt to reach the Mohen hot springs geysers 莫很噴泉, this time by tracing up Heping stream 和平溪 over the Tomb Sweeping holidays.
On 4/3 we travel down to Luodong 羅東 ahead of the tomb sweeping holidays 清明節, rent a car and drive to the public camp site, Nanao Farms 南澳農場 to be able to get an early start the next day.
The following morning, Thursday 4/4, after breakfast in Nanao, we drive the remaining half of the trip down the east coast to Heping 和平 village where we turn inland on Heping forest road 和平林道 (or Dazhuoshui forest road 大濁水林道) along the south side of the Heping River 和平溪 (or Dazhuoshui river 大濁水溪) which marks the border between Hualien and Yilan 宜蘭 counties. Passing beyond all the cement quarrying industry of Taiwan Cement we arrive at the Dongbu Power Plant Bihai Branch 東部發電廠 碧海機組. We drive down to the river on sandy packed truck tracks to find a good place to park and pack up for our hike.
The Nanxi Dam 南溪壩, another 10 odd kilometers further in on the Heping forest road 和平林道, at an altitude of 545 meters, on the Heping South River 和平南溪 creates the Nanxi reservoir 南溪壩水庫 with a capacity of 635,000 m3 supplying water to the turbines at Bihai 碧海水力發電廠 after dropping 445 meters. Surveying for the dam began in 1996. Construction started in 2001 and the dam began operation in December of 2011 after project costs of NT$16.5 billion (US$ 569 million). An intake valve connects the dam at 545 meters altitude with a 6,549 meter long headrace tunnel to Bihai Power Plant 碧海水力發電廠 at an altitude of 100 meters where a vertical Pelton turbine generates 61.2 MW of power. The plant generates 237 GWh annually. 18 hours of daily water capture and storage generate enough electricity to supply six hours of peak load in the region.
The Heping North river 和平北溪, Heping South river 和平南溪 Feng stream 楓溪 combined drain a 561 km2 watershed through the 48.2 km long river system originating from headwaters at Nanhuda mountain 南湖大山 at an elevation of 3,740 m in the central mountain range 中央山脈 flowing across Nanao township of Yilan county 宜蘭縣南澳鄉 and Xiulin township of Hualien counties 花蓮縣秀林鄉 before disgorging into the Pacific ocean on the island's east coast The Heping river system 和平溪水系 is administered by the First River Management Office 第一河川局 of the Water Resources Agency 水利署 under the Ministry of Economic Affairs 經濟部. The bureau operates Xinengbu 希能埔 (xī néng bù) river water level measuring station, Station number 站號 2500H005 on the Heping River 和平溪 in Heping Village 和平村.
Mohen hot springs 莫很溫泉. Mohen sometimes appears named as Mohen geysers 莫很噴泉, or Maobian 茂邊 hot springs. Water temperature is 99C with a pH of 8.2. Located at (TWD97TM2) 310134, 2703858 (24.430872, 121.603544) or CGS: 310367,2703059 (121°36’12.60, 24°25’50.40) at 589 m elevation. 莫很 Mohen Hot Springs at the CGS site
Taiwan is a 36,000 square kilometer subtropical island. Steep mountains over 1,000 meters in elevation cover 32% of the island; hills and terraces between 100 meters and 1,000 meters make up 31%; while alluvial plains below 100 meters, where most human activity is concentrated, cover the remaining 37%. The northeast monsoon prevails from October through March. Typhoons and thunderstorms bring in abundant rainfall from May through September. The mountains are dominated by fractured, and deeply weathered metamorphic and sedimentary rock. Intense rainfall and flow of flood water causes severe erosion which is compounded by earthquakes which undermine the stability of the slopes. The rivers of the island are short and steep, becoming torrential during heavy storms. About 78 % of annual precipitation falls from May through October, with most water delivered by storms and typhoons. Average annual rainfall is 2,515 millimeters or 90.5 billion cubic meters. Average annual runoff is 66.8 billion cubic meters, of which only 23 % or about 15.4 billion cubic meters, are available for the use during the dry period from October through April. Annual pumped groundwater is estimated at 7.1 billion cubic meters.
We saw and heard deer every day, including many young. Barking deer 台灣山羌 (táiwān shān qiāng) Formosan Reeve's Muntjac are the size of s medium dog, about 50 cm tall with a short tail 10 cm tail. The young we saw were more reddish brown and the larger adults much darker. The males have short antlers. They eat herbs, blossoms, succulent shoots, fungi, berries and grasses. They are called barking deer for their distinctive and somewhat unsettling bark. We heard them calling through the nights and their tracks along with tracks of their young making their way to the water's edge were everywhere.
