- Length
- 15.8 kmSource and notes below
- Route shape
- One way
- Surface
- Surface not stated
- Traffic
- Path with road sections
- Level
- Moderate
- Riding time
- About 1 h 10 min at an easy 14 km/h, not counting stops Estimate ride time
- Families
- Not a family ride
- Climbing
- Not measuredNo official figure, so none given
- Start
- HSR Changhua Station
The map loads here. Official map
Line: national cycling portal (MOTC), with its road types. Base map: National Land Surveying and Mapping Center. The official line covers the whole bikeway network here, including branches, so it is longer than the ride described on this page.
Rest stops and stations along the official line
Rest stops
- 田中車站(兩鐵轉運站) (toilets, accessible toilet, drinking water, food and drink)
- 源泉故事屋 (toilets, drinking water, map board, repairs, information desk, bike rental)
- 二水車站 (toilets, accessible toilet)
- 田中森林公園停車場 (toilets, accessible toilet)
- 源泉派出所 (toilets, drinking water)
- 高鐵彰化站 (toilets, accessible toilet, drinking water, food and drink, first-aid kit)
Train stations that take bikes
- 田中 · bike train times
- 二水 · bike train times
- 源泉 · bike train times
Listed by the national cycling portal (MOTC). Services and hours can change: treat these as a guide, not a guarantee.
About the lengthLength of the national cycling portal's official multi-route 參山多元路線(卦山三鐵), which starts at HSR Changhua Station. Several figures exist. The portal recommends a 5.2 km section for seniors and families, from Ershui Water Park (二八水水公園) to Babao Canal Park (八堡圳公園). The Tourism Administration's 2013 guide gives the Ershui Bikeway as 5.5 km (Ershui Station, Yuanquan Station, Lin Xiansheng Temple, Babao canal flood gate). The portal's separate 二水自行車道 entry is 3.0 km, starting at County Road 152 and Shuisen Road. These overlap and are not added together.
Why these labels
Traffic and path type: Portal road types for the multi-route: about 14 km mixed traffic, about 4.2 km slow lanes on roads and 0.85 km shared walk/bike path (Cycle.tw's sum of the portal's stretches; the drawn line includes some parallel pairs). Near Ershui the line is mostly mixed traffic with the short shared path. The portal's separate 3.0 km Ershui Bikeway line is coded entirely as mixed traffic. Expect road riding, including County Road 152.
Families: The portal suggests the 5.2 km Ershui section for seniors and families, but its own road-type data shows that area is mostly mixed traffic, not a separated path. Older children who ride confidently on quiet roads may manage the short Ershui section with an adult; it is not a car-free ride.
The Gua Shan Three Rails multi-route is one of the national cycling portal's official 多元路線, 41st in its popularity order. It links HSR Changhua Station with the farming towns of Tianzhong and Ershui at the southern foot of the Bagua plateau.
The Ershui Bikeway section runs right beside the Jiji Branch Line, so you ride next to the trains. The Tourism Administration lists old train displays, the Babao canal, Lin Xiansheng Temple, Yuanquan Station and Longzaitoushan along the way, with fields and seasonal flowers. Its 2013 guide notes that the Babao canal, dug in the early Qing period, diverts Zhuoshui River water to irrigate the Changhua Plain, and that Lin Xiansheng Temple honours a man who helped build it.
The portal's two-day tour A11 starts at Ershui Station, rides the Ershui Bikeway to the Babao canal (4.5 km) and continues to the Jiji green tunnel, so this route also works as the first leg of a longer ride into Nantou.
Who it suits
Suits riders who arrive by HSR or train and want a flat country ride beside the railway and historic irrigation works. Not for riders who want a car-free path.
The route
A ride plan, in order
- Start at HSR Changhua Station and follow the portal's line south and east through Tianzhong toward Ershui.
- Or start at Ershui Station, where the Tourism Administration's 2013 guide notes two old locomotives on display.
- Ride beside the Jiji Branch Line past Yuanquan Station to Lin Xiansheng Temple and the Babao canal intake (portal tour A11: 4.5 km from Ershui Station).
- Return to Ershui Station, or continue east to Jiji as tour A11 does.
Getting there without a car
- HSR: the portal puts the start at the junction of 高鐵二路 and 高鐵東六路, about 150 m from HSR Changhua Station. HSR carries only packed bikes.
- TRA: Ershui and Tianzhong stations are on TRA's bike station list. For the short Ershui section, the portal says to walk about 300 m west from Ershui Station along 光聖巷 to the level crossing at 光進路.
- Bus: the portal says the Taiwan Tourist Shuttle 6710A (跑水求財線) from Yuanquan accepts folding bikes.
Bringing your own bike: HSR takes only packed bikes (wheels off in a soft bag, or a hard case, within 150 cm per side and 220 cm total for free carriage). A bike fully packed in a proper bike bag (longest side 150 cm, 220 cm in total) can go on any TRA train. An unbagged bike can only use bike-service trains (兩鐵) between stations on TRA's bike station list, with a bike ticket and a limited quota per train; check the quota on the TRA site before you go.
Renting a bike
The portal lists Yuanquan Story House (源泉故事屋) as a supply point with bike rental. The portal also maps public bike stations around Tianzhong and Shetou and lists HSR Changhua Station among tour A11's rental stations, but does not name the operator, and YouBike's service area list does not include Changhua County. The 2013 Tourism guide mentioned rental shops by Ershui Station; that is too old to rely on. Hours and prices: not verified.
- Yuanquan Story House 源泉故事屋
Rental · Repair · Changhua: Ershui, Yuanquan
Listed by the national cycling portal as a supply point with toilets, water, a map, repairs, an information desk and bike rental (自行車租賃). Address, hours and prices not published there.
Confirm hours, rates and availability directly with the provider. Cycle.tw does not take bookings.
Toilets, water and food
Portal supply points: HSR Changhua Station (toilets, water, food, first aid), Tianzhong Station bike transfer station (toilets, water, food), Ershui Station (toilets), Yuanquan Story House (toilets, water, map, repairs, information, bike rental), Yuanquan police station (toilets, water). On the 5.2 km family section the portal counts four supply points, at most about 3 km apart.
Safety and conditions
- Most of the route is on roads shared with traffic. Keep right and use lights.
- Take care at railway level crossings near Ershui; the portal's directions use the crossing at 光進路.
- Summer heat: carry water and plan morning rides.
- Check the Central Weather Administration forecast before you go. Heavy rain, typhoons and earthquakes close paths, river parks and roads, sometimes for weeks.
- Wear a properly fitted bike helmet, whatever the law says for your bike.
When to go
The 2013 Tourism guide mentions seasonal coreopsis and sunflower blooms; the dates are not given. Avoid midday summer heat.
Nearby and related
Emergency: 110 police, 119 fire and ambulance. From a mobile phone, 112 also reaches emergency services.
Sources
- Gua Shan Three Rails multi-route 15.8 km from HSR Changhua (Taiwan Bike portal)
- 二水自行車道 3.0 km from County Road 152/Shuisen Rd, all mixed traffic (Taiwan Bike portal)
- Tour A11: Ershui Station to Babao canal 4.5 km via Ershui Bikeway, then Jiji green tunnel (Taiwan Bike portal)
- Ershui Bikeway runs beside the Jiji Branch Line (Taiwan Tourism Administration)
- Jiji line page: town bikeway passes Mingxin Academy, military park, Wuchang Temple, 13-hole kiln, County... (Taiwan Tourism Administration)
- Ershui Bikeway 5.5 km (Taiwan Tourism Administration)
- TRA bike (兩鐵) station list: includes Dajia, Qingshui, Shalu, Houli, Tianzhong, Ershui, Dounan, Chiayi,... (Taiwan Railway Corporation)
- HSR carries only packed bikes (Taiwan High Speed Rail)
- YouBike operates in 14 areas (YouBike Co., Ltd.)
Checked November 2026 Next review due February 2027.
Printed from https://cycle.tw/routes/gua-shan-three-rails-ershui/