The Alishan Museum, a wooden red-colored building, is nestled within the Alishan Forest Recreation Area. This museum is a must-visit for those seeking a deeper understanding of Alishan, and it also offers a place for visitors to take a break.
The museum’s Pioneering Tools section showcases equipment from Alishan’s early development, including early logging machinery models, planning models of the Alishan Forest Recreation Area, and crosscut saws from the United States, England, and Japan. These artifacts provide a glimpse into the region’s pioneering history.
In the Folklore section, visitors can admire a miniature ‘Wu Feng Temple’ and intricate models of houses, gathering places, and warehouses. This section also displays a variety of daily life utensils such as bows, guns, pipes, rice pounding sticks, harmonicas, and vintage telephones, offering a window into the past.
The Flora and Fauna Specimen section is a treasure trove for nature enthusiasts. It features taxidermy specimens and ecological backgrounds of alpine animals like Taiwan’s wild goats, boars, sambar deer, clouded leopards, and mountain cats. Additionally, it houses preserved specimens of various birds, snakes, amphibians, butterflies, insects, alpine rodents, and bats, along with wax leaf specimens of alpine plants from Alishan.
Furthermore, the museum boasts a comprehensive collection of specimens, models, and charts related to Alishan’s geology, soil, and tree species. Here, one can find the five main tree species of Alishan: iron fir, red cypress, Taiwan cypress, Taiwan hemlock, and Lantao fir, all displayed for visitors to see.The museum is open all year round from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM.
The types of soil along the Alishan Railway line, as well as rocks and fossils such as sea urchins and bivalve shells unearthed in Alishan, are also all available.
