--- title: "Things to Know Before Hiking to Jiaming Lake" description: "A complete guide to hiking Jiaming Lake: entry permits, route planning, physical demands, extreme weather precautions, and first-hand gear and itinerary tips." canonical_url: "https://blog.markkulab.net/en/post/jiaming-lake" author: "Mark Ku" author_url: "https://blog.markkulab.net/en/author/mark-ku" site: "Mark Ku's Tech Notes" date_published: "2020-03-29 15:01:35 +0800" category: "Travel" tags: ["嘉明湖", "hiking", "mountain", "travel", "taiwan"] language: "en" license: "CC BY 4.0" license_url: "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" attribution: "when reusing or quoting, credit the author and link back to the original" --- # Things to Know Before Hiking to Jiaming Lake ## Things to Know Before Hiking to Jiaming Lake ## Preface Everyone made it back safely from Jiaming Lake — with a bonus 100-peak, Mt. Sanzha. On the same day we witnessed sunrise, a blizzard (ice pellets), howling winds from every direction, thick fog, and freezing temperatures. After waiting half an hour in the cold, Jiaming Lake finally revealed itself for a modest 30 seconds. Three days of hiking, and the lake only emerged from the mist after we waited 30 minutes in the wind. ![Hiker in blue jacket and red hat on a misty lake shore](https://blog.markkulab.net/content/markku/posts/jiaming-lake/images/jiaming-lake.webp) The full view of Jiaming Lake ![Jiaming Lake partially visible through mist, surrounded by rocky hills](https://blog.markkulab.net/content/markku/posts/jiaming-lake/images/jiaming-lake1.webp) ![Hikers at a misty Jiaming Lake trail signpost](https://blog.markkulab.net/content/markku/posts/jiaming-lake/images/jiaming-lake2.webp) ![Wet gloved hand, orange backpack, and rocky trail](https://blog.markkulab.net/content/markku/posts/jiaming-lake/images/jiaming-lake3.jpg) Ice pellets started falling! ![Hikers holding a banner on a wooden platform near Jiaming Lake](https://blog.markkulab.net/content/markku/posts/jiaming-lake/images/jiaming-lake4.jpg) Coming down the mountain — the obligatory trail marker photo ![Golden sun setting behind dark mountain peaks and valleys](https://blog.markkulab.net/content/markku/posts/jiaming-lake/images/jiaming-lake5.jpg) Beautiful sunrise, right? ## Key Things to Know Before You Go 1. **Road restrictions on the way to the police checkpoint.** The access road to the police substation where you register your mountain entry pass passes through several construction-related checkpoints. The window for driving through is limited each day — miss it and you could wait 3–5 hours before being let through. 2. **Booking the mountain huts correctly.** - Day 1: Xiangyang Hut (向陽山屋) - Day 2: Jiaming Lake Refuge Hut (嘉明湖避難山屋) Do not book the wrong huts — the extra distance could put you and your team in serious danger. 3. **Distance and physical demands.** Over three days, you'll be carrying roughly 10 kg of gear. We pre-ordered meals but still kept 3–5 days of emergency rations on us. The difficulty level is medium-high. The route is steep in both directions with relentless climbs and descents — it is absolutely not suitable for unfit or unprepared beginners. Note: You can hire a mountain porter to carry your heavy pack, but keep your rain gear and light snacks on you. - Day 1: Police checkpoint → Xiangyang Hut — 5.6 km, 542 m elevation gain (depart ~13:00) - Day 2: Xiangyang Hut → Jiaming Lake Refuge Hut — 5.8 km (depart 03:00), 675 m elevation gain - Day 2 (light pack): Refuge Hut → Mt. Sanzha → Jiaming Lake → Refuge Hut — 10.3 km, 869 m elevation gain - Day 3: Refuge Hut → Police checkpoint — 11.4 km (depart 04:00) - Total: approximately 33 km With a heavy pack, the cumulative physical toll is substantial. 4. **Unpredictable extreme weather.** One moment it's sunny; the next, strong winds push in a cloud layer, unleashing heavy snow (ice pellets), gale-force gusts, and dense fog. Stay together as a group — never stray. On our summit attempt, two members from different teams couldn't continue and waited at a spot for their groups to return. The fog rolled in suddenly and when the groups came back, those people were gone. In heavy fog and wind, a team may not know whether to search or retreat to the refuge hut. Please do not separate from the group — it is extremely dangerous. If someone doesn't show up or the weather deteriorates rapidly, follow the crowd and retreat immediately. Don't wait around hoping things will improve. 5. **How much gear to bring.** This depends on the individual. I used about 90% of everything I brought. In the mountains, extreme weather can hit at any time — extra gear is not just added weight, it's your safety margin. 6. **Cell service and internet.** Signal is essentially gone once you get close to Xiangyang Hut. 7. **Water.** - Xiangyang Hut: drinking water and washing water available - Jiaming Lake Refuge Hut: drinking water only 8. **Bring your own utensils.** The meal service does not provide bowls or chopsticks. 9. **Good restaurants in Guanshan for the post-hike celebration dinner.** Red Roof Flavor Restaurant (紅瓦屋風味餐廳) — indigenous cuisine. A table runs about NT$3,000. Distinctive and quite good. ## Final Thoughts A friend's words worth passing on: > Jiaming Lake is not a city park, > and Xiangyang Mountain is not a city hill. > The mountain scenery is a reward unlike any other, > but the risks are real. > Prepare well before you go. P.S. Here is my gear checklist: [Link](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/12dCvXPsIpmhQUgTzwp8gNfT0kM7ZzM1ePkp0t6JULJQ/htmlview?fbclid=IwAR2wRLYxs105oSDzt5aVc1sWCReR1mSOl8HyoXhIFQ_K56tHlDO6Pfry_6Q) --- ## About this article and its author Originally published on [Mark Ku's Tech Notes](https://blog.markkulab.net/en/post/jiaming-lake) License: [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) — when reusing or quoting, credit the author and link back to the original ### About the author **[Mark Ku](https://blog.markkulab.net/en/author/mark-ku)** — Software Solution Provider - 10+ years senior software engineer, now an AI Builder - Focused on large-platform architecture — North-American e-commerce, AI SaaS subscription billing - Combining AI Agents and automation to build evolvable product foundations ### Free tools built by the author All of these are free to use: - [Free PDF Sign Tool](https://blog.markkulab.net/en/tools/pdf-sign): Online PDF sign tool — draw, type, or upload a signature, then drag, resize, and download. 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