Guanyin Cactus Dunes Introduction
The popular spot that has gone viral on social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook is the Caoshan Sand Dunes, a unique landscape known as the "coastal desert" that stretches 8.1 kilometers, and is the widest and most intact along Taiwan's coast. At sunset, rows of wind turbines stand still, the sandy shore meets the sea in a line, and the rolling dunes are interspersed with footprints in the winding sand patterns, creating a serene and desolate beauty that attracts many photographers and influencers. The movie "Secret" and the TV drama "Police Umbrella" have been filmed here. Following National Route 61, visitors can enjoy a journey from north to south through the four major ecological highlights of Taoyuan: Qùcūgōng Wetland, Caoshan Sand Dunes, Guanshin Coral Reef, and Xinshi Stone Weir. Known as the "Taiwanese Sahara Desert," the Caoshan Sand Dunes were formed by the strong northeast monsoon and the accumulation of wind-blown sand from the south. The dune cluster begins at the mouth of the Laojiexikou River in Dayuan District and extends south to the mouth of Dajuexi River in Guanyin District, oriented northeast to southwest, with the northern section about 400 meters wide, widening to 600 meters in the south, totaling an area of 4 square kilometers over thousands of years. The dunes can reach heights of up to 15 meters, and climbing the ridge involves a bit of effort, but the expansive view is a well-deserved reward. The Taiwan Environmental Information Association has selected Caoshan Sand Dunes Coast as one of the "Nine Coastal Lines Worth Protecting" in Taiwan (with another selected site in Taoyuan being Guanshin Coral Reef), making it a rare coastline in northern Taiwan that has not been damaged by human activities. The Caoshan Sand Dunes host coral reef ecosystems and rich coastal forest ecosystems, including salt-tolerant and wind-resistant plants such as beach morning glory, Casuarina equisetifolia, Melia azedarach, Cuscuta, castor bean, and ornamental flowers, which help to block wind-blown sand and prevent coastal retreat, adding a green landscape to the dune's shores.
