2024 Hualien Earthquake

On 3 April 2024 at 7:58 AM, a 7.4 magnitude earthquake hit Hualien, killing 18 people and injuring over 1,000. Five people died directly from rockfalls. It was the strongest earthquake since 1999. Taroko Gorge experienced major landslides and rockfalls, blocking the roads and trails and causing damage everywhere. Over six hundred people were stranded inside Taroko Park for several days before the road could be cleared.

Typhoon Gaemi (2024) and Typhoon Kong-Rey (2024)

Typhoons Gaemi and Kong-Rey were both category 4 Typhoons that hit the east coast near Hualien in 2024, also bringing torrential rains that washed away debris, but also creating more landslides in the area. During Typhoon Kong-Rey, Hualien received over 1200mm (4 feet) of rain in one day.

Liwu River Landslide Barrier Lake (2025)

On October 17th, 2025, a landslide lake formed after a landfall blocked the Liwu River near Swallow Grotto. Although the lake was stable, and the Liwu River was still able to flow through tunnels out of the canyon, it still posed a danger to those downstream, and over 100 people were evacuated. After a lake had formed, local crews used backhoes to dig a hole in the dam, which later washed out the dam on October 29th, 2025.

View of the landslide lake before the water level started to rise.

You can see how far the water level rose after the landslide dam formed.

The new lake did not spill over the dam, but flowed out of the nearby road tunnels and back down into the gorge.

The temporary landslide lake was beautiful, though. This is not an AI image.

Diagram of how the Liwu River flowed around the dam and through the Jinheng Tunnel.

Current Situation in Taroko Gorge and Taroko National Park

Taroko Gorge 2026 Update:

Taroko National Park 2026 Update: Due to recent earthquakes, the road through Taroko Gorge up to Hehuanshan is open if you have your own vehicle, but only five times a day. You need to leave the park by 5:30 PM. The main road has been repaved, but there are parts of the road that are just dirt or covered in potholes. Currently, the Taroko National Park visitor’s center and Tianxiang trails are open. But there are a few spots along the side of the road in Taroko Gorge where you can take photos. Again, all trails and everything else except Tianxiang and the visitor center are closed. The Swallow Grotto road and Eternal Spring road are also blocked off.
Even the Qingshui Cliff lookout is closed, and there is nowhere to park there.
There is a lot of rock moving and reconstruction to do; it could take another 10 years for Taroko to fully reopen.
For recent announcements, check out the Taroko National Park Website here. 

However, you can check out a list of other things you can do and see in Hualien besides Taroko Gorge here. 

See above for the road opening schedule between Taroko and Hehuanshan, which was posted at the Taroko National Park visitor’s center.

Drove Footage:

360 Degree Panoramas

You can see a 360-degree panorama of Swallow Grotto above or here.

You can also see a 360-degree panorama above Jinheng Park here.

Our Journey:

We visited Taroko Gorge late in 2024 and then again in 2026 to see what it was like after the recent earthquakes, floods, and landslides. Originally, we planned on stopping at the Qingshui Cliffs on the way down from Yilan, but the whole parking lot is closed off due to a recent landslide. There is nowhere to park along the side of the road. Also, the whole area is covered in excavators and heavy equipment. Therefore, Qingshui Cliffs is effectively closed for now (both north and south parking areas).

On the drive down, I did notice a lot of the mountain faces were bare like this one. Due to the recent earthquake and subsequent Typhoons, many mountains have turned color from green to grey due to so many landslides.

This was our first view as we crossed the Liwu River. The sign said:
Warning
The section between the Taroko Arch Gate and Tianxiang in Taroko National Park has been severely damaged by recent earthquakes and typhoons.
At present, the trails and scenic spots are closed. The risk of rockfalls, mudslides, and along Provincial Highway 8 remains high. If entry is necessary, please carefully assess the risks and ensure your safety.

Taroko National Park Visitor’s Center 太魯閣游客中心

When we visited, the road to Taroko Gorge was still closed. The only place that was open was the visitor’s center here.

In front of the visitor’s center is a sign with other fun places to visit around Taroko Gorge. Check out our blog with a list of other places to visit in Hualien besides Taroko Gorge here.

The Visitor’s Center was actually pretty great. I had never been inside before because usually I just drive straight into Taroko Gorge. There is a huge 3D map of the gorge here and really good exhibits about the geology, history, and ecology of the park.

There are lots of exhibits here and a large children’s play area, so you can spend a lot of time here.

We also noticed in 2026 that there was a new trail behind the visitor’s center that had been expanded with a new lookout point above.

Shakadang Trail  砂卡礑步道

At 4 PM, the road finally opened, and we lined up to pass through the tunnel to the Shakadang Trail.

Warning
The section between the Taroko Arch Gate and Tianxiang in Taroko National Park has been severely damaged by recent earthquakes and typhoons.
At present, the trails and scenic spots are closed. The risk of rockfalls, mudslides, and along Provincial Highway 8 remains high. If entry is necessary, please carefully assess the risks and ensure your safety.

From the bridge, you can see that the Shakadang trail is covered in a landslide just past the first rock enclave.

Also, you can see that one lion got its head chopped off, and the fence here was damaged.

Driving further down the road, we noticed lots of small landslides like this and lots of potholes in the road.

There are also lots of sections of white cliffs here from recent rockfalls. As you can see from our blogs on previous trips, the walls of the gorge used to be a darker gray color.

In 2024, parts of the road were dirt, and only one lane of traffic could pass at a time. However, since 2026, the main road has been repaved.

There was a huge new rockfall behind the Liwu River Dam when we visited in 2026.

However, the dam was no longer damming any water due to the huge amount of landslide fill in the riverbed.

Buluowan Recreation Area 布洛灣遊悠區

This is the road up to Buluowan. It is almost unrecognizable. A landslide completely covered the road. I did not attempt to drive up this makeshift dirt road. This road is still closed to the public as of 2026.

Another view of the rockslides near Buluowan.

Shanyue Suspension Bridge (山月吊橋)

From our car, we could see that Shanyue Suspension Bridge (山月吊橋) was still standing, but the bridge is off-limits due to damage.

View of Zhuilu Suspension Bridge and Shanyue Suspension Bridge, both of which are still closed to the public.

Zhuilu Old Trail 錐麓古道

Zhuilu Old Trail is closed indefinitely.

Here you can see that during a recent typhoon, the water level reached up to the road and deposited some debris.

As you can see from my drone shot above, the suspension bridge along the Zhuilu trail here was broken. It may take many years to repair it.

Swallow Grotto 燕子口

As of 2026, Swallow Grotto is totally closed off to the public.

Swallow Grotto is officially closed. In 2024, you could see that much of the area was still covered with debris, and Jinheng Park was heavily damaged.

Another view of the area.

Another view looking toward Swallow Grotto.

Part of the road inside Swallow Grotto is totally full of debris.

View of the waterfall across from Swallow Grotto.

I also discovered this waterfall that only appears when it rains really hard.

Another view of the temporary underground waterfall.

Another view of a recent rockfall area along the wall.

Grand view of the gorge with lots of new rockfall areas.

View from near Jinheng Park after the floods in 2026.

This part of the gorge was especially damaged in 2024. You can see the driftwood and sand that got washed up from the river on the side of the road.

However, the road was repaved and cleaned up in 2026.

The Liwu River above Swallow Grotto was filled with debris and was flat after the landslide lake occurred.

Another view upriver after the landslide lake subsided.

Looking up at the sky from Taroko Gorge.

The destruction inside the gorge has made it beautiful, but at a very high cost.

You can see lots more rubble along the roadway here.

View from below the Zhuilu Trail.

Tunnel of Nine Turns 九曲洞

Even though the Tunnel of Nine Turns looks intact, it is still closed to the public while checks and repairs are made as of 2026.

You can still catch a small glimpse of the Tunnel of Nine Turns from the road.

Liufang Lookout (​流芳橋觀景台)

Liufang Lookout has seen better days. The wooden platform here was badly damaged.

The old bridge here got torn in half. The last time I visited in 2023, the whole bridge was still intact.

Not far from the lookout, there is a giant landslide, making the whole path a dirt road. We did not venture any further.

Another view of the gorge from near the lookout.

View of the other side of the river near Liufang Lookout in 2026.

View of the gorge close to sunset.

Eternal Spring (Changchun) Shrine Trail 長春祠步道

The Eternal Spring trail is closed. Recently, it also got washed by floodwaters. You can also see potholes on the road here from falling boulders.

The road is still drivable to the parking lot, but not beyond that. Parts of the road have been washed out and debris is still visible.

The old guardrail along the parking lot here has been washed away.

Only small sections of the guardrail remain.

Another view of the conditions.

I tried to drive out from the Eternal Spring, but there were too many rockfalls and I had to back out. You can see the road is covered in potholes from falling boulders here too. Many sections of the road are like this. If you drive on the road, take it slow because there are potholes everywhere, as well as boulders and sections of dirt roads.

As of 2026, the Eternal Spring was completely closed off to the public.

View of the Liwu River bend in front of the Eternal Spring Shrine.

You can still get a view of the Eternal Spring from the road here.

Campground 露營區

The campground is totally closed off. Don’t even think about camping here.

Tianxiang 天祥

After you get to Tianxiang, the road is no longer under hourly controls.

Tianxiang is fully intact and open to visitors. However, Baiyang Waterfall is closed (probably forever).

More Photos

If you want to see more photos of this trip, check out our blog post here.

Don’t forget there are plenty of other places to check out in Hualien besides Taroko; check out our blog with a list of other places to visit in Hualien besides Taroko Gorge here.
If you are interested, you can also check out our blog to see what Taroko looked like before the earthquake here.

You can also check out our full guide to Taiwan here.