Crescent Moon Fort Park Introduction
The Songbailing area is situated at a high elevation, where the National Army had set up numerous artillery positions of various sizes for war defense purposes. However, most of these artillery positions have been idle for many years. The local township office applied to the Ministry of National Defense to repurpose the military air defense bunkers into tourist attractions, allowing visitors to experience a different leisure style. In the early days, the Ministry of National Defense built 11 military bases and command posts (including 27 bunkers and 3 buildings) in the Songbailing area to protect the strategic military site of the Zhuoshui River. As military use has ceased, the bunkers scattered among the tea gardens have become a unique local landscape. In order to transform the bunkers and align with local tourism development, they were restructured into a group of distinctive bunkers. The Shoutian Temple is the most important religious center in the area and also a key tourist resource. The temple worships the main deity Xuantian Shangdi, the god of the north, whose representative constellations are the Big Dipper and Polaris. The planned route includes seven points along the way, which are distributed closely to the Big Dipper, in harmony with the Shoutian Temple to connect with important local resources. Thus, the park was named the "Big Dipper Artillery Park." Each artillery position was reconfigured based on its attributes related to yin-yang, the Five Elements, zodiac signs, and colors. It involves landscaping, paving, rock arrangements, sculptures, and mosaics to transform the existing fortifications and incorporate colorful paintings that showcase the characteristics of each position. The seven bunkers near the Shoutian Temple, after planning, have now become a new landscape in the tea gardens. Since Xuantian Shangdi, worshipped at the temple, is the northern god, and the Big Dipper and Polaris are his representative constellations, the bunkers were designed in a way that resonates with the Big Dipper location. With the themes of the "Five Elements" and "Big Dipper," the exterior of the seven bunkers is presented in white, green, yellow, black, red, gray, and purple to highlight the characteristics of each position. They are named: "Yaoguang," "Kaiyang," "Yuheng," "Tianquan," "Tianxuan," "Tianji," and "Tianshu." Travel recommendations: Although the roads in this area are narrow, it is very suitable for cycling. Visitors can ride along the seven bunkers of different unique styles to experience the historical context of the bunkers. The first bunker prominently features the "Big Dipper Artillery Park" sign, with a black-and-white camouflage design. Inside, there are stalactite-like formations, which are said to have been designed to minimize the impact of artillery blasts on the interior. The other bunkers also share similar appearances, but their exterior landscape designs differ significantly, making it a major attraction for visitors.
