Taipingshan Forest Station

Taipingshan Forest Station (太平山林場) was one of the three major government-operated forest areas in Taiwan during the Japanese colonial period, alongside Alishan and Basianshan. Located in Datong Township, Yilan County, in the mountainous northeast of Taiwan, it encompassed approximately 26,000 hectares of dense old-growth forest rich in valuable species including Taiwan cypress (hinoki), camphor, and cryptomeria.

Forest resources in the Taipingshan area were first discovered in 1906 when Japanese police conducting indigenous affairs patrols spotted magnificent ancient trees along the banks of the Lanyang River. However, due to the presence of indigenous Atayal communities, detailed surveying was not possible until after the colonial government's pacification campaigns. In October 1914, the Taiwan Governor-General's Office dispatched forestry engineers to conduct comprehensive surveys, confirming the area contained exceptional timber reserves. The following year, the site was formally designated "Taipingshan" and operations were transferred from the Alishan work station to direct management by the Forestry Bureau.

During the Japanese colonial period (1915–1945), Taipingshan produced approximately 990,000 cubic meters of timber, with an average annual output of 37,109 cubic meters — second only to Alishan among government forestry operations in Taiwan. Early timber harvesting relied on manual labor, wooden horse trails, and wooden slides, but the station progressively modernized its infrastructure. Construction of a forest railway connecting the mountain operations to the lowland town of Luodong began in 1921. By completion, the railway network totaled 68.01 kilometers, with 31.15 km of mountain lines and 36.40 km of lowland lines. In 1925 Taipingshan first adopted the aerial cableway (索道) system designed by the Japanese engineer Hotta (堀田蘇彌太), which transported timber via overhead steel cables directly to railway loading points. This innovation dramatically increased efficiency and was subsequently adopted across Taiwan's forestry operations.

During the wartime period, Taipingshan's timber output was vital for Japan's military and industrial needs. Lumber was used for construction of military facilities, ships, and infrastructure throughout the empire. The colonial government intensified logging operations to meet wartime demand for strategic materials. The forest railway and cableway systems were worked intensively; the cableways averaged about 20 runs a day in the Japanese period (the recorded peak of 83 runs a day was reached only after the war).

After Japan's surrender in 1945, the Republic of China government continued forestry operations at Taipingshan, actually increasing average annual production to 39,956 cubic meters. However, environmental awareness gradually led to the curtailment of logging. The Luodong forest railway ceased operations in 1979 after typhoon damage, and all rail and cable systems were halted by 1981. Logging operations officially ended in 1982, and the area was redeveloped as Taipingshan National Forest Recreation Area, which opened to the public in 1989. Today, the site preserves remnants of its forestry heritage including the restored Bong Bong Train (蹦蹦車) running on a short section of the original forest railway, a Japanese-era steam-powered logging winch, and the historic Jianqing Trail (見晴懷古步道) that follows the route of an old timber transport track through ancient cypress forests.