草嶺古道桃源谷 (福隆)

Weather: early morning 16degC, mid day on peak, 30degC. Early morning a bit cold, first part of 草嶺古道 has shade, but not shade from 涼亭 to 桃源谷. Shade on the way down. Need to bring sunscreen, got sunburned (a bit on back of hand, and exposed skin). Winds were decently strong, very pleasant for such a hot day
Transportation: train at 南港 was packed, stood for 1.5 hrs there and was very tiring. Train back at 大溪車站 was basically empty. You can also start from 貢寮 (the station just before), but i think the path is slightly further than from 福隆. (2020 trains there from taipei main: 4128 @ 5:26, 4138 @ 6:18, 自強272 @ 7:27, 4148 @ 7:34, 4152 @ 7:52, 4154 @ 8:15) (2020 trains back from 大溪: 4189 @ 16:29, 4199 @ 16:50, 4211 @ 18:29, 4221 @ 19:26, 4235 @ 20:37)
Fauna/Wildlife: 芒草季 is Nov-Jan. There were about 15-20 水牛 on the path, some are quite close. A lot of birds too and dogs on the trail.
Gear: Med kit, change of clothes and jackets, headlamp, food & water, wallet, hat, sunglasses, multitool, chopsticks & spoon fork, umbrella, battery & cable, deodorant, fan, eyedrop, gorillapod tripod, XT-2 camera with two lenses (70-300 + 1.4x TC & 18-55), camera battery, camera straps, neck pillow for long train ride, wet wipes and tissues, sunscreen
Food: 韓國雜菜, 三角飯糰 x2, 7-11三明治, two packs of dehydrated 義美 mushrooms, 1 bag dehydrated 愛文芒果, 葡萄果凍 x2, liquid IV x1, had coffee on the way there, 3L bladder, 580ml FIN x2
Thoughts: Quite an easy trail, but quite long. A decent amount of stairs, but nothing crazy. Need a couple of liters of water if it’s quite sunny. If the weather’s nice, there are many great places to take a nap or rest on the grass. The ocean and mountain views are great. Can bring dog treats in the future