A government meteorologist based on Taiwan’s tallest mountain looks back on 30 years in a harsh yet beautiful environment.
Yushan, also known as Jade Mountain, rises to 3,952 meters, making it Taiwan’s highest peak. The Central Weather Administration (CWA), which falls under the umbrella of the Ministry of Transport and Communications, maintains a weather station on the mountain at an altitude of 3,858 meters, the highest such facility in northeast Asia. It is one of 24 CWA weather stations around the country and is designated as a class IV post, responsible for tasks including observing high-altitude weather, collecting and transmitting data, and maintaining and managing automatic weather stations within the area. Located in the alpine zone, the station is surrounded by terrain that is mostly rocky with sparse vegetation and scarcer oxygen.
Meteorological observer Hsieh Hsin-tien (謝新添) worked at the Yushan weather station for almost three decades and retired in 2024. Though he remembers questioning whether he could endure his first monthlong stint on the mountain, he came to realize that there were compensations such as meteor showers and sunrises seen above a sea of clouds. His shift on Yushan was followed by six weeks at the CWA office in Chiayi County, where he handled paperwork, attended training, purchased supplies and coordinated with helicopter crews for instrument deliveries. Most staff elect to take positions at different weather stations or offices throughout their careers, but Hsieh chose to continue working on Yushan throughout his career, calculating that the four months he spent there each year adds up to nearly 10 years lived up in the clouds. “The Yushan position began as a job, but my love of the place transformed it into something more,” he said. By staying on the peak, Hsieh became an observer of the mountain environment as a whole.
Measured Steps
CWA staff jokingly refer to the Yushan weather station as Taiwan’s highest government office. While on duty, Hsieh recorded meteorological data every three hours using instruments that included temperature and humidity sensors, a rain gauge, a solar radiation sensor and a barometer. The data was transmitted to the Alishan Weather Bureau via radio, then forwarded to CWA headquarters in Taipei City. In extreme weather Hsieh took hourly readings to enable the CWA to refine typhoon paths, give avalanche warnings and produce broad climate models.
For measurements like visibility, snow depth and cloud height, human observation was necessary, and in winter this often involved shoveling snow to keep paths clear and maintain access to equipment. One of Hsieh’s most vivid winter memories comes from a day when the instruments were buried by nearly 2 meters of snow. “It took me hours to dig out a thermometer,” he recalled, laughing even as he remembered the exhaustion. Staff members became proficient at repairing the delicate equipment, which often froze or malfunctioned in the high-altitude conditions.
The climb up to the station takes nine hours and all necessities have to be carried up by CWA employees, demanding stamina and careful planning. Supplies included food, vegetables, canned goods, batteries and clothing, as well as technical equipment and instruments. Water comes from rainwater or melted snow and is stored in 12 water tanks that each hold 1,000 litres of water. In earlier years, with limited fuel for electricity, Hsieh had to light candles, chop firewood for warmth and ration power carefully. Now the station runs mainly on solar power, with a fuel-powered generator for winter use. Transporting fuel can only be undertaken by human carriers, as safety concerns preclude helicopter delivery.
Guardian Figure
With ease of access and equipment, mountain trekking is more popular now than at any time in the past 30 years and Yushan, ranked as East Asia’s highest mountain and the 4th highest point on an island worldwide, is on most serious climbers’ agendas. The Paiyun climbers’ lodge, located at 3,402 meters, is just 2.4 kilometers from the main peak. Hsieh, at work on station, took on an unofficial role as a guardian of climbers passing the post on their way to the summit. As they paused to rest and ask questions, Hsieh offered information about weather conditions that made the difference between a safe summit and disaster and offered encouragement to those daunted by the challenge.
Hsieh recalled stormy nights when sudden shifts in the weather left climbers stranded near the station. Notified by police radio and later by mobile phone, he frequently stepped out into howling winds or knee-deep snow to guide exhausted hikers to safety. “You don’t think twice about it,” he said. “If someone’s in trouble, you do what you can. Up here, there is no one else.” He modestly noted the rescues are rarely dramatic in a cinematic sense, instead unfolding as a flashlight beam cutting through fog, a steady hand or a bowl of hot noodles offered to an exhausted trekker. However, such assistance is not to be taken lightly: At altitude, the line between life and death can be measured in minutes.
The decades of data collected at the station form part of Taiwan’s national meteorological record, contributing to forecasts that warn residents about typhoons and floods. The records also feed into international climate research, offering high-altitude statistics that help model long-term changes in weather patterns. Such consistent datasets are invaluable in flagging up climate change. For Hsieh, the mountain was both a workplace and a companion, a presence in his daily duties that shaped his routine and inner world. He recalled that silence dominated, broken by the occasional birdsong, the hiss of wind and the crunch of boots on frozen ground. At night, he saw meteors streak across the sky, and at dawn, the sea of clouds stretching endlessly below the station. He took up photography to capture the fleeting moods of the mountain, the sudden bloom of flowers, the golden edge of sunrise and storm clouds gathering, recording a world few ever get to see. “Up here, you live with the mountain and it teaches patience, humility and to measure life differently. You don’t rush, you just stay and the mountain stays with you.”
Write to KRAKIAS KAI at kwhuang@mofa.gov.tw