Running Through the Misty Clouds to explore ancient “Trees that Touch the Moon”
Located in the rugged mountains of Northeastern Taiwan, the Taiwania Ultra Trail is one of the island’s most legendary trail running events. The course takes place on a restricted-access forest path, granting runners a rare opportunity to immerse themselves in Taiwan’s most precious old-growth forests.
The Taiwania Ultra Trail Course
The race reaches elevations between 3,658 and 6,712 feet, a perfect climate zone for ancient giant trees.
A definitive highlight of the race is the journey into the Qilan Divine Tree Garden, the largest grove of giant trees in Asia and home to Taiwan’s best-preserved original cypress forests. Here, more than 50 red and yellow cypresses stand as sentinels of time; many are thousands of years old and named after historical figures who lived when the trees first germinated, such as the Confucius Divine Tree. Running among them is truly a journey into the deep past.
Photo provided by Chinese Taipei Association of Ultrarunners (CTAU)
Another awe-inspiring moment occurs when runners reach the famous “Three Sisters of Taiwania (Taiwania cryptomerioides).” Native to Taiwan and related to California’s redwoods, Taiwania is in the cypress family and is Asia’s tallest species. It’s a “living fossil” with an evolutionary history dating back 150 million years to the Jurassic period.
The race takes runners to an impeccable site of three towering Taiwanias standing side-by-side, with the tallest reaching approximately 230 feet. They soar so high above the canopy that the indigenous Atayal people call them “The Trees that Touch the Moon” (Oh-no-ne-da). Their immense scale was famously documented by National Geographic in 2017 and so unique that the race is named after these giant trees.
Green in Every Sense
Photo provided by CTAU
The 2026 Taiwania Ultra Trail will be held on June 6. Don’t wait! Book your flights with China Airlines and start planning your Taiwan run-cation.
About the author
Shuhan Chen, a venture capitalist from Taiwan, has been doing endurance activities since 2011. He has completed numerous marathons, ultramarathons and Ironman triathlons. Shuhan will become a six-star finisher after completing the 2026 TCS London Marathon.
