"After a most spectacular descent from the top of the pass, the bus reached Tien-Hiang, a small settlement at the head of the Taroko Gorge. At this point I left the bus and finding a hostel run by a church organisation where I could stay, I decided to stop the night. The following morning after painting the picture above, I set off to walk the 12 miles through the gorge down to the coast. The gorge well lived upto its claim to be one of Asias most impressive. With its marble cliffs towering on either side to 8000' in places, I found it all quite breathtaking, and could not help but marvel at the engineering skills of the men who had built the road. In the course of my walk the road dropped about 1300 feet" - MH