Xitou Nature Education Area Introduction
At Xitou, this natural classroom, you can observe the bamboo sea, enjoy a forest bath, and cleanse your mind of dust, fully immersing yourself in the wonderful baptism of phytoncides! During the late Qing Dynasty, Xitou was a mountain village known as the "source of streams." In 1970, it was planned as a forest recreational area, located at the foot of Phoenix Mountain in Lugu Township. It is one of the seven experimental forests of the College of Agriculture and Forestry at National Taiwan University and a renowned summer retreat in Taiwan, surrounded by mountains on three sides, with fresh air that has a natural sweetness to it! The park is densely planted with precious tree species such as Taiwan cedar, Taiwan cypress, Hinoki cypress, and ginkgo, offering a lush forest and cool climate, making it suitable for forest bathing, bird watching, hiking, and educational observation activities. Legend has it that there is a "sacred red cypress" tree in the park that is over three thousand years old, growing around a giant rock. Although some of its branches are hollow and decayed, the sacred tree remains standing majestically. Next to the sacred tree's trail is a grove of Taiwan cedar. A unique forest aerial walkway allows you to observe the forest canopy ecology from above! The bamboo forest area of Mengtzung, with its thousands of acres of bamboo sea, offers a serene and beautiful landscape, perfect for walking and resting. There is also a ginkgo grove, known as "Gong Sun Shu" (公孫樹), with about a hundred trees over eighty years old, making it one of the most significant ginkgo groves in Taiwan! In the tranquil Mengtzung bamboo forest, there is a building decorated with bamboo, called the Bamboo Cottage. Once a residence for Chiang Kai-shek, it is now locked and not open to the public. However, its elegant and comfortable architectural style is unforgettable!
