The kick-off trip of LittlePo Adventures has been completed. It was a big success. Every day was full of activities. The trip had a fine balance between active sports, cultural events, and gourmet experiences. Below is the summary of the daily itinerary. To check out the expedition photos, please visit the album of Taiwan Rock Climbing and Cultural Experience 2010 on the facebook page of LittlePo Adventures.

Day 1 (8/16) - Climbing at Long Dong
Day 2 (8/17) - Climbing at Long Dong; Keelung night market tour
Day 3 (8/18) - Climbing at Long Dong; Staying at an old mining town, Jinguashi
Day 4 (8/19) - Touring and hiking in Jinguashi and Jiufen; Body surfing and swimming at Waiao; Bathing in Beitou hotspring
Day 5 (8/20) - Taipei day tour, including Danshui, Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, President Hall, MRT underground market, Taipei 101, Maokong etc
Day 6 (8/21) - Climbing at Long Dong
Day 7 (8/22) - Climbing at Long Dong
Day 8 (8/23) - Taroko National Park
Day 9 (8/24) - Taroko National Park; Shifen Waterfalls; Pingxi sky lantern
Day 10 (8/25) - Climbing at Long Dong; Shilin night market
Day 11 (8/26) - Climbing at Long Dong; Chinese martial art movie
Day 12 (8/27) - Chinese cooking classroom; Karaoke TV; Longshan Temple; Guangzhou and Huaxi nightmarkets
Day 13 (8/28) - Farmers market; National Palace Museum; Yong Kuang St mango ice; Chinese ghost story movie
Day 14 (8/29) - Yehliu Geopark; Yangmingshan National Park
Day 15 (8/30) - Karaoke; Gym climbing session

Related Article: Package of Dirtbag Taiwan;

Below is the package LittlePo Adventures prepares for Dirtbag Taiwan - Long Dong Climbing and Cultural Experience. Two NOLS instructors will teach institutional climbing skills; both beginner and intermediate climbers can learn new skills and sharpen their existing techniques. Four Day Excursions introduce Taiwan to you from different angles: A city tour, a mountain tour, a cultural tour, and a seashore tour. Many evening activities and side hikes will allow you to have a more intimate and authentic Taiwan experience!

Day Excursions

Taipei Day Tour

Taipei, with its special geographic location and unique historical position, cannot be defined with simple words. Taipei is international, vibrant, and friendly; its energy and diversity attracts millions of visitors and still often brings residents pleasant surprises. During the Taipei Day Tour, we will take advantage of the convenient public transportation to visit a few Taipei landmarks, explore its cultural and historical stories, taste authentic Chinese cuisine and gourmet Taiwanese snacks, and sip Kung-fu tea underneath the stars.

http://taipeitravel.net/

Yangmingshan National Park

Yangmingshan is one of the eight national parks in Taiwan; it is located at the northern edge of the Taipei basin. It is probably best known of its flower season, and therefore it attracts the most tourists in springtime. During May to August, it is the best time to view the butterflies and Datunshan is one of the well known places to see some of the 168 different species of butterflies in northern Taiwan (ref. wikipedia). Other places worth visiting include Menghuanhu, Qixingshan, Qingtiengang etc. Yangmingshan is also one of the best places to see the night view of Taipei city. A bath in a hot spring can be easily incorporated to this day tour.

http://www.ymsnp.gov.tw/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yangmingshan

National Palace Museum

If you come to Taiwan, you cannot miss National Palace Museum. It has a permanent collection of over 600 thousand pieces of Ancient Chinese artifacts and artworks. It is said that only 1% of the collection is displayed at a given time, and it takes one more than 40 years to possibly see all the items. Visiting National Palace Museum gives one a glance of over 5000 years of Chinese history. During Dirtbag Taiwan, we will also be able to visit the feature exhibition: Tibet, Treasures from the Roof of the World.

http://www.npm.gov.tw/
http://tb.ishow.gmg.tw/

Northern Shore Geological Tour

Taiwan is a so-called ecological and geological classroom. There are more than 250 peaks which are more than 3,000 meters (~10,000 feet) high. Its climate and a variety of terrains make the island home to abundant animal and plant life. Along the northern shore, unique landscape and geological features caused by active sea and wind erosion are abundant. We will visit and study many formations, including Tofu rocks and the famous soon-to-be-history Queen’s Head in Yehliu Geological Park. A stroll in an old mining town featured in the movie Bei Qing Cheng Shi can be incorporated in this day tour. Bei Qing Cheng Shi (A City of Sadness) won the Golden Lion Award of Venice Film Festival in 1989.

http://www.northguan-nsa.gov.tw/
http://www.ylgeopark.org.tw/

Short Activities

Short activities are usually two or three hours in duration. Types of short activities include evening events and side hikes. An evening can be one of the followings: Pingxi Sky Lantern, Jilong Miaokou, Beitou hotsprings, KTV etc. A side hike is usually a hand-picked hike in Taipei County; for example, the historical Caoling trail, Bitoujiang trail, Longdongjia trail etc.

http://www.taiwan.net.tw/
http://www.forest.gov.tw/
http://eng.taiwan.net.tw/m1.aspx?sNo=0002040
http://sport.tpc.edu.tw/people/mountain/index.asp

Rock Climbing Progression

Session I:
Introduction to gear and basic climbing knots. Climbing movement overview. Proper belay techniques. Climb on top ropes.

Session II:
More knots. Anchor cleaning. Rappelling. Sling craft and easy anchors. Advanced climbing movements. Introduction to types of holds.

Session III:
Belay a leader. Lead theory. Gear in depth. Gear placement. Anchor building. Route following and cleaning.

Session IV:
Anchor building. Sport leading versus traditional leading. Mock leads.

Session V:
Lead climb. Multi-pitching. Self Rescue.

Photo Credit: Matt Robertson

Follow LittlePo Adventures on facebook
Follow LittlePo Adventures on Twitter