Qitou Visitor Center Introduction
The Qitou Visitor Center located next to Qitou Harbor provides travel information and retail services. From here, tickets can be purchased to various islands in the Donghai Second System, such as Yuanbei Island, Pengpeng Beach, Jishan Island, and Dinggou Island. In Qitou Village, visitors can also learn about the traditional fishing method known as "Baodun" in Penghu. A "Dun" refers to a stone pile built from rocks in the intertidal zone, also known as a "fish house," which typically uses local slate to form the structure, allowing fishermen to catch fish using the tides. During high tide, benthic fish swim into the Dun, and when the tide recedes, fishermen dismantle the stone structures and use nets to catch the fish inside. Traditional Baodun fishing grounds in Penghu are mainly located in the intertidal zone on the northern side of Baisha Township, with larger Dun groups found in Chikan and Qitou, covering a vast area. There are over 300 Duns in the entire reef area of Qitou. Each Dun varies in size and shape, constructed with different numbers of stones stacked together. The process usually begins in the spring when the Sargassum seaweed grows, attracting small groupers to gather near the offshore stone Duns for feeding. By June, the groupers migrate to deeper waters, and the Duns become useless, prompting fishermen to dismantle them in a process called "San Dun." The following spring, fishermen will rebuild the stone Duns, a process known as "Jian Dun." Major catches include species like hawksbill grouper, flute fish, and Malabar grouper.
