Datong Ecotourism 05: Beyond the Trail, the Songluo Tribe Has Stories

"The Songluo Trail is a nationally renowned trail in Yilan, with green shade beneath the forest, distant mountain mist, and babbling streams crisscrossing along the way. It is gentle and easy to walk the whole way, a place that both adults and children can enjoy. However, what most visitors may not know is that this trail was once part of the living area of the Songluo tribe. Both sides of the trail were once cultivated into terraced fields, grazed by hundreds of water buffalo, and even hide stone slab ruins cherished in the memories of the tribe. If you want to discover more stories, why not follow the indigenous people of the Songluo tribe and take a different kind of journey along the Songluo Trail!"

In recent years, under the guidance of the "Council of Indigenous Peoples -- Datong Township Lanyang River Ecotourism Industry Cluster Support Program," the Songluo tribe has gradually developed an increasingly complete itinerary, from a morning tribal tour and a midday specialty meal, to an afternoon stroll along the Songluo Trail, and finally ending the day with a bead-stringing experience. Through both cultural and natural dimensions, visitors can gain a deeper understanding of Songluo.

The Compact and Neatly Laid-Out Songluo Tribe
Following in the footsteps of village chief Badu, visitors walk while listening to tribal stories: the people of the Songluo tribe originally lived in the mountains of Nan'ao, and were relocated here during the Japanese colonial period. At that time, they planted rice on both sides of what is now Songluo Middle Lane, and the highest point at the bottom of the tribe, reached by climbing the steps, was precisely the police station where Japanese police monitored whether the tribespeople were diligently working. It was not until after the retrocession that in the 62nd year of the Republic of China (1973), a severe landslide and mudslide struck. The houses originally located at the foot of the mountain were destroyed, not only cutting off the irrigation canal, but the rice paddies were also abandoned due to the large and small stones scattered by the floodwaters. The Nationalist Government then rebuilt single-story houses on both sides of Middle Lane, which became the appearance of the tribe today.

After the tribal tour, the specialty dishes prepared by the tribal mothers were brought to the table one after another, including deeply flavored barrel-roasted chicken, wild vegetable tempura fried with fresh fireweed, and salt-and-pepper fried stream fish full of savory aroma, among other signature dishes. After the meal, there was also a dessert of runner bean paste wrapped in dough kneaded with prickly ash powder. The abundant meal added plenty of energy for the afternoon trail journey!

Hidden on Both Sides of the Trail: Scenes of Terraced Fields and Water Buffalo from Days Gone By
In the afternoon, Paul, who is responsible for leading the trail tour and is also a professional coach skilled in river tracing and rock climbing, will take visitors deep into the streams during summer. Which large rock is his private rappelling spot? Where do the stream fish gather? Paul knows it all like the back of his hand. In autumn and winter, he takes a strolling approach, introducing along the way such forest plants commonly used by indigenous people as crepe myrtle, yellow rattan, begonia, and helicia. The most special part is that before the trail was paved, Paul's parents once lived beside the trail, at a house where stone slab ruins still remain -- this was precisely where Paul's older brother and sister were born and grew up. As you explore along the way, several open patches are also scattered along the trail, places where tribespeople once stationed in the mountains grazed water buffalo and opened up dry rice terraces.

What was originally just a place full of natural greenery has been given a completely new cultural perspective through the sharing of local tribespeople. After finishing the two-kilometer round-trip trail walk and returning to the tribe, Sister Yulan, who once studied crafts at the Atayal Life Museum, leads the bead-stringing experience. Each glass bead is unique in shape, and the process of stringing them by hand has a rather calming effect, making it very suitable for settling one's thoughts after a full day's itinerary.

Still not sure where to go in Yilan? Why not contact the tribal liaison and plan a Songluo mini-trip that combines cultural history and natural ecology!

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Village chief Badu, who leads the tribal tour

The spiritual fortress of the Songluo tribe

Overlooking the Songluo tribe from the highest point

The retaining wall built during the Japanese colonial period

Tribal member Chen He-Panna, responsible for making scallion pancakes and steamed buns

↑ Specialty dishes prepared together by the tribal women

Salt-and-pepper fried stream shrimp

Fireweed wild vegetable tempura

Runner bean paste buns

Barrel-roasted chicken

Helicia fruit left over after being eaten by Formosan macaques