200 YEAR OLD, 200 KM DANLAN TRAIL TO BE RESTORED|200年淡蘭古道湮沒 義工隊徒手整建

Back in the Qing Dynasty, people took the Dan Lan Trail to travel between Tamshui and Yilan. The trail has been forgotten as people nowadays use the railway and road systems to travel back and forth between the two places. A group of volunteers is now trying to revive the 46-kilometer trail. The 200-year-old Dan Lan Trail was once the main road connecting Tamshui and Yilan. The trail that once carried rice, tea, and other goods in the Qing Dynasty was replaced after railways and freeways came along. ==TOUR GUIDE== It was a massive undertaking several hundred years ago. The Taiwan Thousand Miles Trail Association and its volunteers are now trying to revive the 46-kilometer ancient trail using local resources. ==HSU MING-CHIEN Deputy Director, Taiwan Thousand Miles Trail Association== If this is a trail offered to the general public, it will be renovated accordingly. If it is a trail dedicated to advanced hikers, its level of difficulty will be adjusted to challenging. We plan to bring the trail back to its original state, so those who aim to come here must be prepared. The Dan Lan Trail is split into three sections with a total distance of over 200 kilometers. Rice terraces, stone arch bridges, and other cultural assets can be found along the trail. The TTMTA hopes to turn it into a must-visit trail in Taiwan. ==HSU MING-CHIEN Deputy Director, Taiwan Thousand Miles Trail Association== Cultural landscapes such as rice terraces and stone cottages can be preserved as cultural assets in a linear way. The TTMTA thinks that the Dan Lan Trail has the potential similar to Japan's Kumano Kodo, which is registered as a UNESCO World Heritage site. They believe that once the renovation is complete, the Dan Lan Trail can attract tourists from home and abroad. Translated By LUKE CHIANG 已經有兩百年歷史的淡蘭古道，是清朝淡水廳往返噶瑪蘭廳之間的主要幹道，雖然早已被鐵、公路取代而沒落，但有民間團體積極成立起淡蘭義工隊，要仿效古人，用手工和就地取材的方式，重新為步道整建、修繕，預計今年可完成46公里的步道保養。 握著鐮刀除雜草，才能再向前邁進一步，這條已經有兩百年歷史的淡蘭古道，早已淹沒在雜草中，不過它卻是清代，往返淡水廳與噶瑪蘭廳，運送米糧、茶葉等貨物的重要交通幹道。 ==耆老導覽== 古早古早 好幾百年前 這樣建蓋可以說是很費功夫 淡蘭古道來被鐵、公路取代，而荒廢沒落。為了重現先民的生活軌跡，千里步道協會組織「淡蘭義工隊」，以就地取材的方式，希望今年完成46公里的古道修繕。 ==千里步道協會副執行長 徐銘謙== 比如說我這是大眾級的步道 所以我可能整建 非常的「好」 那中路的話可能挑戰級 那我的步道整建的就是 還是保持很原始 所以來的人自己 必須要有這種心理準備 淡蘭古道全長超過200公里分為北路官道、中路民道、南路商道三條路線，所以民間團體指出，古道沿途有梯田、石拱橋等重要文化資產，希望打造成為台灣人一生必走一次的步道。 ==千里步道協會副執行長 徐銘謙== 文化景觀像梯田 石頭老房子 這些東西都可以 變成是線型的文化資產保存 位於日本關西的熊野古道，是聯合國世界遺產，更是高人氣觀光勝地。民間團體認為，台灣的淡蘭古道，條件不會輸給熊野古道，若未來完成重建，也有機會帶動山鎮的社區經濟，具有國際觀光潛力。 記者 黃怡菁 陳立峰 綜合報導