Hutoushan Trail Introduction
Hutoushan (Tiger Head Mountain) is located in the northwest of Ruysui. It is a prominent ridge extending eastward from Danda Mountain, with an elevation of 1,747 meters. At the summit, there is a huge rock resembling a tiger perched atop a mountain, hence the name. An access road leads to the site, and from the height, the view is expansive, capturing the landscape of the Central Mountain Range and the Coastal Mountain Range's valley in one glance. Hutoushan is situated at the southernmost end of the Coastal Mountain Range, and the surrounding rock layers belong to the Liji Formation. Therefore, Hutoushan is an exotic rock block encased within the Liji mixed formation, composed of diabase. In recent years, due to the near absence of hunters entering this area for wild game, the pathways in the mountains have become completely overgrown and neglected, significantly increasing the difficulty of reaching the peak. According to local elders from Ruysui, during the Japanese occupation, the Japanese feared that the spirit of the "tiger" at Hutoushan would cause mischief (due to the feng shui aura of Hutoushan) and consequently incited the Taiwanese to rise up against them. To pacify the spirit, they specifically chained the tiger's neck with thick iron chains to suppress its energy and prevent trouble. Based on recent validations by climbers, it is now known that there are two mountain peaks that have been chained: the larger one being Dahuotoushan (with an elevation of 1,745 meters) and the smaller one, Xiaohuotoushan (Jiangbunanshan, with an elevation of over 600 meters).
