Fenglin Community [Travel in Taiwan 171202 (Maple Series): Golden Leaves]

There's a joy in every maple chasing activity.  From Taipei to Alishan, everyone tries their best to see the leaves at their peak conditions.  While Fushoushan Farm and Aowanda are the top favorites every year,  there will be always secret spots that are waiting to be discovered.   Often neglected because no one has ever heard of them,  the foliage at these places remain beautiful until they disappear in the middle of winter.

 An arrow in the shape of a leaf pointing to the direction of more yellow maple leaves.  Just follow the direction to see the other areas with a maple forest.

The luomujie blog through its Maple Series have found one.   Named after its maple forest,  Fenglin Community had always been knocking at the hearts of maple chasers in Central Taiwan.  Those living in Taichung and Nantou will be delighted to know, that they could always see yellow maple leaves from November to mid-December.

Acer serrulatum cv. 'Goldstemmed'. They turn from green to yellow during autumn.  When shined under the rays of the sun, the leaves sparkle like gold.  There are lots of them in Fenglin Community!  A private farm that is open to visitors,  I was the only one who went here by riding a bus from Puli Zhong Zhan Station.   Most visitors arrive via a tour bus or with their private car. They will roam around for 1 hour and then leave immediately to go to Cingjing Farm.

Mirror selfie after boarding the bus at Puli Zhong Zhan Station.  I was one of the first passengers so most of the seats were empty.

Nantou County Police Bureau Renai Branch Nanfeng Police Station

Golden maple trees with light green leaves.  They are just starting to turn yellow.

Slowly turning into a real forest.  Fenglin Community has more mosquitoes than the humans who come here every day.  Prospective visitors must wear long sleeves and a pair of pants to protect themselves from insect bites.  There were also a few farmers during my visit and they were busy cutting the trees.  On what is the purpose of the maple forest and its agricultural value to the people living  here remains a mystery to me.

Taking pictures was my primary purpose of visiting this place, and I found the bridge to be the best place to record memories of my trip.  The trees were so tall and their leaves were at its peak of being yellow in color.   Walk further away and look at Fenglin Community as a whole and you will be surprised that a yellowish hue has been added to the green color of the mountains.  The treetops of the maple forest were visible with the sound of the river helping to create a refreshing scene.

red maple

red maple

red maple with a background of golden maple trees

There were also red maples planted on the riverside.  But they were mostly green during my visit.  Maybe the first week of December is too early to see them.   Or they could be too shy to appear because they know that on this spot in Nantou, the real star of the show here is not them, but the maple forest that is glistening with its golden leaves.

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Fenglin Community (楓林社區)

address: 546南投縣仁愛鄉南豐村

[Google Map]

How to go here: 

1.  THSR/TRA Taichung Station →  ride tripool taxi to Fenglin Community

Suggested tripool taxi itinerary on visiting Fenglin Community and Cingjing Farm on the same day. Start your adventure in Cingjing Farm from the Qingjing Grassland, and then explore the whole park while walking downhill. Get out of the farm near Cingjing Guest House and wait for your tripool taxi, which will take you to directly to Taichung HSR Station. If you want to follow this itinerary, then you have to make 3 separate bookings in the tripool  web app: https://www.tripool.app/?utm_source=luomuji for each pick-up point - drop-off point pair.  Up to a maximum of 8 passengers can be book in one ride

Pick-up point	Drop-off point	Distance	Travel time	Estimated tripool taxi fare (NTD)			Suggested pick-up period at the pick-up point
				# of passengers
				1 or 2	4	8
Taichung HSR Station	楓林社區	64.7 kms	51 mins	860	946	1,435	7:30 am - 8:00 am
楓林社區	Qingqing Grassland	22.7 kms	42 mins	618	679	1,169	10:30 am - 11:00 am
Cingjing Guest House	Taichung HSR Station	83.9 kms	1 hr 24 mins	1,302	1,432	1,922	5:00 pm - 5:30 pm

If you can't write Chinese, then copy and paste the Chinese characters for Fenglin Community (楓林社區) with the help of the button below.

2.  THSR Taichung Station →  TRA Xinwuri Station → TRA Taichung Station → ride bus Taiwan Tour Bus Sun Moon Lake route at Gancheng Station → Get off the bus at Puli Station → Transfer to any of Bus 6658,6659,6660,6660A,6661,6661A,6663 → Alight the vehicle at Fenglin Kou (楓林口) stop [Google Map] → walk to Fenglin Community

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