Sakuma Samata

The Guanyuan Police Post is located above Guanyuan on the Central Cross-Island Highway, about 2,580 meters above sea level. When the Taroko War broke out, the army sent by the Government-General in Taiwan attacked the Turuku tribe from the east side of Hehuanshan. Guanyuan was the first stop, and when the then Governor of Taiwan, Sakuma Samata, heard that the Turuku tribe had fought here, he named the place after the ancient battleground during the Japanese Sengoku Period, “Sekigahara” (Guanyuan in Chinese character). As a result, the route of Hehuan Traversing Historic Trail was changed in the middle of the Japanese occupation, and the police post was called Guanyuan in honor of the Governor.

In the post-war period, the Central Cross-Island Highway was opened, passing through the small hamlet below Guanyuan Police Post, also known as Guanyuan. The hamlet has a lodge, Hehuan police station, and Guanyuan gas station.

When the Taroko War broke out in 1914, the then Governor of Taiwan, Sakuma Samata, wanted to use a strong military and police force to defeat the Turuku tribe along the Liwu River. Therefore, Nantou Minister, Ishibashi Tooru, personally led the road excavation team, and opened the road from Puli to Tianxiang. After the war, the road continued to be opened from Puli to Taroko Gorge entrance, which was the original path of the Hehuan Traversing Historic Trail. Later, due to the collective migration of tribes and the steep slope of the original route, the route was modified and completed in 1935.

In the post-war period, the Central Cross-Island Highway was opened and replaced the Hehuan Traversing Historic Trail. Coupled with the erosion from typhoons, there are only a few complete road sections that can be walked on today.

The Hehuan Police Post is located above the Provincial Highway 14, between Dayuling and Xiaofengkou, at an altitude of 2,782 meters. When the Taroko War broke out in 1914, the then Governor of Taiwan, Sakuma Samata, wanted to use a strong military and police force to defeat the Turuku tribe along the Liwu River. Therefore, Nantou Minister, Ishibashi Tooru, personally led the road excavation team, and opened the road from Puli to Tianxiang. After the war, the road continued to be opened from Puli to Taroko Gorge entrance, which was the original path of the Hehuan Traversing Historic Trail. Later, due to the collective migration of tribes and the steep slope of the original route, the route was modified and completed in 1935. This route was a popular hiking trail at that time.