Lotus Pond Introduction
Lianhua Pond is the only natural alpine lake within the Taroko National Park area, located on the opposite side of the Central Cross-Island Highway's hairpin turn at the end of Chaodun Mountain Ridge. It can be accessed by heading north along the cliffs of the Towshe Valley, at an elevation of 1,180 meters, with an outer diameter of over 500 meters. During the Japanese colonial period, the Taroko indigenous people referred to it as "Tiantan," as the lake was filled with lotus flowers at that time, which later led to its renaming as Lianhua Pond. Subsequently, due to veterans releasing feed fish into the pond, the lotus flowers gradually withered; combined with significant water leakage, it often remained merely a puddle. As the aging veterans moved away over time, the farmland around Lianhua Pond gradually fell into disuse and began to restore its natural state. Lianhua Pond has hence become a rich ecological paradise, where various species of birds, butterflies, and fish meet, and wildlife frequently visits.
