Jiaming Lake

Jiaming Lake sits at three thousand three hundred and ten metres in an oval hollow on a high ridge, and its shape led to a long-held belief that a meteorite made it, though the accepted explanation now is glacial. The Bunun call it Cidanuman Buan, the mirror of the moon, and Taiwanese hikers call it the angel's tear. The standard route takes three days from Xiangyang, over open grassland ridges, with cabins on the way that must be booked months ahead.

What's there

• The lake - an oval alpine tarn at 3,310 metres, about 120 by 80 metres.
• The grassland ridges - open high country above the tree line on the approach.
• The cabins - Xiangyang and Jiaming huts, booked far in advance.
• The Formosan sambar - deer that come to the cabins and the lake, habituated to walkers.

When to go

October to April is the driest and clearest. Summer brings typhoons and afternoon storms. Snow can fall on the ridge in winter.

Good to know

Permits and cabin places are drawn by lottery and heavily oversubscribed; planning starts months ahead. It is three days at altitude and the ridge is exposed. The meteorite story is folklore, not geology.

Nearby

The Southern Cross-Island Highway runs below, and Taitung is southeast.

Key facts