Taroko National Park
The Taroko Gorge is composed mainly metomorphic rocks, such as marble,gneiss, "schist",etc. The name, Taroko, means the "magnificent and splendid" in the language of Truku, the aboriginal tribe who resides in the area.
The most phenomenal aspect of the park is the amazing relief. In a single afternoon you can travel from rugged coastal cliffs through a maze of subtropical forested canyons to high elevation subalpine coniferous forests.
In about 60 kilometers the landscape rises from sea level to some of the tallest peaks in Taiwan at over 3400 meters. That's steep!
The force behind the steep valleys and narrow canyons is a relatively fast rate of uplift combined with ample water. Over the last 70 million years, these two forces collaborated to form the world's deepest marble canyon. The slot canyons here are remarkable with narrows sections a thousand feet high and only a dozen yards apart, reminiscent of the Virgin River in Zion National Park in Utah, USA. Ignore the fact that Zion is in the desert, and made of sandstone and Taroko is subtropical and comprised of marble, and these two gorges have a lot in common.
The Truku people are an Indigenous Taiwanese tribe. Taroko is also the name of the area of Taiwan where the Truku tribe resides. The Executive Yuan, Republic of China has officially recognized the Truku since January 15, 2004. The Truku are the 12th aboriginal tribe in Taiwan to receive this recognition. Previously, the Truku and the related Seediq people were classified in the Atayal group.
