Nantou Wild River Hot Springs - Elite Hot Springs Introduction
Today, we traveled along National Freeway No. 6 to Nantou to explore wild hot springs. After leaving Puli and heading towards Wushe, we turned onto Taiwan Route 14乙 towards Lushan. Along the way, we saw signs for Chunyang Hot Spring. Descending into the river valley, we noticed the path that had trapped visitors during the last heavy rain and the construction of a red steel bridge. Local residents informed us that the hot spring had been buried, but some minor springs were flowing from the rock face nearby, alongside a pool excavated by heavy machinery that was not very clean. We decided to return and continued driving past the fork leading to Lushan Hot Spring. After passing the sign for Xibao Village, just as we entered the Elites Village, there was a small sign on the right. Following the narrow cement road down, which could only accommodate one small vehicle, we passed by a residence in indigenous style. There was a red sign indicating that this community is a Type A controlled area, requiring permission for entry. The road conditions were poor, and non-high-clearance vehicles might have difficulty. We encountered a construction truck coming up, but luckily it reversed to a bend in order to allow us to pass, and we continued down to the Lover's Suspension Bridge. We parked at the fork next to the Lover's Suspension Bridge, where there was a small area that seemed to be undergoing renovations for a scenic spot. Upon searching online later, I discovered that parking fees were once charged here. However, since we came on a non-holiday, there was no one collecting fees, but we did see construction vehicles occasionally passing through. It turned out we didn’t necessarily have to park in that area; some people online had parked higher up along the road. After parking, we walked upstream to the rock face beside the Lover's Suspension Bridge and found two pools surrounded by stones; one pool had higher water temperature, and the other could mix in water from the river to adjust the temperature. The hot spring water was abundant, and with the beautiful surrounding scenery, my classmates started soaking in the pools while I dipped my feet. I was puzzled why everyone thought the Elites Hot Spring had disappeared; later, I found out online that there used to be more pools here along the stream. It seems that the main pool of the Elites Hot Spring may have been buried. Nevertheless, having access to such a picturesque wild hot spring pool was already satisfying for us. I also found that some people had recently visited the Elites Hot Spring, but they soaked in a pool approximately six hundred meters higher up, so we may explore that area next time.
