Alishan Forest Railway, Taiwan

There are some truly gorgeous sceneries in Taiwan and this one is no exception. Just look at the blossiming trees and a pretty old train running by a tiny river (?).


TW-212072

The Alishan Forest Railway is an 86 km network of 762 mm (narrow gauge) railways running up to and throughout the popular mountain resort of Alishan in Chiayi County, Taiwan.

The narrow gauge lines were originally constructed by the Japanese Colonial Government in 1912 to facilitate the logging of cypress and Taiwania wood, however today the line caters mostly to tourists. Passenger carriages were first added to the trains in 1918. The first motive power was a Shay locomotive purchased second hand from the Kiso Forest Railway in Japan. Eventually the railway acquired 20 Shay locomotives.

Unlike the national rail system administered by the Taiwan Railway Administration, the Alishan railway is managed by the Forestry Bureau. The system is currently operated using diesel locomotives, although there are occasional special public runs using the old steam powered Shay locomotives.



Such a nice, clear cancellation on the card! The stamp is from a set of 4 flower stamps issued in 2009.