The sea of clouds usually follows the sunrise when the weather is sunny and not too misty. The clouds will cover parts of the mountains and look as if the waves in the ocean. The best season for viewing sea of clouds is autumn. The Alisan Sea of Clouds is also known as one of the spectacular eight sceneries in Taiwan.

Watching the sunset at Alishan, you are standing on the land that is more than 2,000 meters above the sea level. The aerosphere allows more ultraviolet to penetrate through the thin cloud which adds more color to the sky. The blue sky is more exuberant than watching the sunset on the flat ground. In comparison with the sky, the sunset sometimes looks burgundy. Several famous spots for sunset viewing such as Chiyun Temple, Zushan, Alisan Train Station and Alisan Motel are usually full of tourists at the time of sunset.

The rich sources of woods in Alishan include plants of the four climates. As early as the year of 1899, the Japanese found the value of the forest; they started to chop off the trees in the area and sold them for the sake of money until Taiwanese government took back the power. Alisan became a national scenic area, and the flowers bloom in the spring, which attract numerous tourists each year. Because the plants create an ideal inhabitation for birds, Alisan is one of the top ten places for bird watching.

Shay Steam Train

In the Japan era between 1906 and 1915, the Alisan Forest Railway was built for logging. The system is a narrow gauge railroad; it is 762 meters. The Alisan Forest Railway is one of the three renowned forest railways. Another one is between India and Himalaya Mountains. The third one lies between Chile and Argentina. The old transportation system used the shay steam train. The last alive Shay steam in Taiwan is number 31, and there is daily passenger service. On January 1, 2005, the Shay train started to work again and serve the travelers in Alisan. The total length of the railroad is 71.4 kilometers. Many tourists come here to experience the triple loop around the mountain and multiple switchbacks.
 
Cherry Blossoms

In the spring time, Alishan has more visitors than other seasons of the year when the cherry trees are blooming. The cherry blossom usually blooms in March or April, but at this elevation, they bloom as early as January. The Alishan Cherry Blossom Festival draws hundreds of people from everywhere. Near the New Central Highway, there is also maple leaf festival between Alishan and Tongpu.

The effort in reserving the natural environment keeps fireflies in the Alishan area alive. The fireflies are said to be particularly copious in the area so fireflies-watching becomes a seasonal activities for tourists as well as residents.

(Source: www.bootsnall.com)

Other famous mountains in China:

Mount Taishan        Mount Huashan             Mount Huangshan 
Mount Lushan         Mount Putuoshan           Mount Wutaishan 
Mount Wuyishan     Mount Changbaishan