The bullet ridden train tunnels of Qiding, Miaoli
Exploring the coastline of Miaoli County up in northern Taiwan, we came across the small sleepy township of Qiding (pronounced “chee-ding”).
Noticing the mention of historical train tunnels nearby, we decided to check them out.
There’s big brown signs around so locating the tunnels isn’t that much of a challenge. If you’re coming in from the coast side, you’ll pass some greenery including this well maintained tomb:
Shortly after that you’re dumped into this little concrete area (complete with a “mini-me” temple), right next to the “modern” TRA train line,
To actually get to the bullet tunnels, you then need to head offroad for a bit, following what used to be the old train line before the current TRA one was built (I’m guessing that means the concrete area above is actually the site of the original Qiding train station):
If you’re heading to Qiding’s tunnels by bike like we were, you’re probably going to want to leave the road bike at home. Or I suppose you could just walk it, the offroad section till you get to the tunnels is only about a km in length.
The Qiding tunnels were built by the Japanese way back in 1928 with the first tunnel coming in at 130.78 meters and the second 67.48. Together these tunnels are the only two track twin tunnels that exist in Taiwan.
Due to the building of the current TRA train track the tunnels were retired in 1973, but it wasn’t until 2005 that the Miaoli government declared the tunnels a protected historical site.
That’s a shot of the longer tunnel above.
The gap of track (which is now a trail) between the two tunnels is a few hundred meters, with the second tunnel entrance also having a seating area like the first:
This inbetween area of the tunnels is of particular interest, as it’s where you can see the bullet holes left over from World War 2 on the inside entrance to the longer tunnel.
Standing at the foot of the tunnel in the dead silent leafy sunlight, it was hard to try and get a sense of the danger and imagine the battles these tunnels had seen.
The bulk of the machine gun damage is on the tunnel “gates”, which are made out of concrete and largely credited for the preservation of the tunnels today.
Oh and if you’re busting for a leak, inbetween the two tunnels is the place to go… although the toilet looks as old as the tunnels itself:
Moving on, the second tunnel is about half the size of the first:
And takes no time at all to get through.
At this point you’ve pretty much seen all of what the bullet ridden tunnels have to offer and have the option of simply doubling back, or looking for these stairs to the left (next to an old signal box?):
And heading up to Qiding Station and its viewing platform. That however, is an adventure for another day…
January 31st, 2013 at 8:01 am lemmiwinks(Quote)
You’re a dude, the world is your toilet!
January 31st, 2013 at 11:44 am Oz(Quote)
No doubt, but women and the outdoors? Psh yeah right!
We went through no less than nine public toilets the other day on one of Taipei’s riverside bike paths trying to find a “clean” one.
February 1st, 2013 at 7:53 am lemmiwinks(Quote)
She can’t have needed to go too badly then!
February 1st, 2013 at 12:48 pm Oz(Quote)
With the theatrics she was engaging in after each smelly toilet I thought the CNY fireworks had come early this year.
February 2nd, 2013 at 4:34 am TaiwanTeacher(Quote)
Look like a peaceful and interesting place to visit. Thanks for the post. I have a few questions..
WW2 battles in Taiwan??? I could picture a strafing run by an Allied fighter leaving the bullet marks, but that’s about it.
“Together these tunnels are the only two track twin tunnels that exist in Taiwan.” ??? Perhaps I am misunderstanding you, but there are plenty of two-track train tunnels along the East Coast of Taiwan, some are separated by only a very short distance.
As for refusing to urinate in the woods, is your GF a devout, citified Taiwan Princess, or what? Guess you never get to go camping in the wild with her, eh? Sheesh.
February 2nd, 2013 at 9:55 am Oz(Quote)
Apparently it was machine gun fire from the Japanese. Not sure of the circumstances.
Maybe there’s a distance cutoff? This information was taken directly from an information board at the site. They used the terminology “dual track” and stated these were the only such “twin tunnels” so close together in Taiwan.
February 2nd, 2013 at 10:42 am TaiwanTeacher(Quote)
Odd. Can’t figure what the Japs would be shooting at during that time period. Uncooperative draftees hiding in a tunnel, maybe???
Perhaps the dual-tunnel keyword phrase is “so close together” and they got out a measuring tape to check it.
HAPPY CNY SEASON TO YOU AND YOURS, OZ!
I’m off to sell tortillas and chorizo at ChiXingTan today!