河堤步道  “River Bikeway”

Riding to the River Bikeway
 via a new pedestrian bridge

Physical exercise, preferably outdoors, is an important ritual in my life.  We are very fortunate in the Upper Valley to have very convenient access to outdoor recreational trails and other facilities and I had assumed that this would not be the case living in Taipei.  I have therefore been very pleasantly surprised to discover the Taipei River Bikeway.  The River Bikeway is an enterprise spearheaded by the Taiwan government that encompasses more than 150 miles of bike paths and park (with more being added every year) that circumnavigate the city.  The paths primarily run along Taipei’s several rivers and are dotted with bike rental facilities, nature paths, tennis courts, and other recreational facilities.  The scale of the park and investment involved is enormous and seems very foreign to me given the relative lack of this type of government investment in the US.  I look forward to learning more about the genesis of the River Bikeway, and in the meantime I just plan to enjoy it.

A section of the River Bikeway

Climbing wall and slide along the Bikeway

Another Climbing Wall