New life on Kaohsiung’s old cemetery slopes

Shuanghu Forest Park offers butterfly-filled gardens, sunset strolls and historic tombs preserved amid a landscape transformed

• By Tyler Cottenie / Contributing reporter

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Just 10 years ago, the site of Shuanghu Forest Park (雙湖森林公園) was a blight on the Kaohsiung landscape. Motorists on the nearby freeway were treated to a view of a weedy hill covered in scattered graves, with a few corrugated steel buildings thrown in for good measure. Things got worse before they got better.

It was decided to turn this public land into a park, but in order for that to happen, all the human remains had to be moved and the existing mess of weeds and patchy tree growth had to be landscaped. After nearly 30,000 burials were relocated to a nearby columbarium, the whole area was razed clean and the new park laid out. Old photos from 2018 show what looks like a desert landscape of bare earth, the unsightly chrysalis of the beautifully landscaped park that is still emerging today.

Thousands of trees were planted, and detention ponds were created, both for flood protection and to create a water ecosystem. Last year, as part of a major upgrade, nectar-producing plants were added to encourage butterflies to settle here, and even more trees were planted. Frogs, dragonflies and several butterfly species now call this place home, and there is more and more shade among the maturing trees.

A tomb that held the remains of thousands of Japanese after World War II.

Photo by Tyler Cottenie

Lastly, the entire slope leading up to the adjacent Kaohsiung Green Park, formerly the site of a golf course, has been transformed. Where a mishmash of tombs once lay, terraced pathways now run along the length of the hill, adorned with rows of trees, including Taiwanese golden rain trees, currently displaying their gorgeous pink fall color.

WALK, RUN, CLIMB

There are a few benches scattered throughout, but the park is, above all, a place for walking or jogging. If you want a large open space where you can sit down for a picnic or to let children run around, take a walk through Shuanghu Forest Park first and then hike up the hill along one of three trails to Kaohsiung Green Park for its open, grassy spaces.

A view of the park from the Sunset Walkway.

Photo by Tyler Cottenie

Dingjin 1st Lane runs right through the length of the park from south to north and is its main transportation artery. It was recently widened and paved with asphalt, so it is also a nice lane for walking, especially thanks to the ample shade from the trees on either side.

Alongside Dingjin 1st Lane itself, there are five smaller parking lots, with spaces for cars and/or scooters. Right across from the first parking lot at the south end is the site of the Islamic burial section in the old cemetery. This was the last section to be cleared out, as the remains could not be cremated and moved to a columbarium, but had to await the opening of a new cemetery in far-away Shanlin District (杉林區) before they could be moved. Nowadays, the area is newly landscaped and there is no hint of its former function.

Wherever you start your walk in the park, check out one of the signs in these parking lots if you need a quick overview of the park’s layout. The “Sunset Walkway” is not a single trail but the interconnected walkways on the terraces going up the hill to Kaohsiung Green Park. These provide the best view of the surrounding city by far and are west-facing so they are a perfect spot to end your day around sunset. The “Green Hiking Trails” are newly built connectors providing access to Kaohsiung Green Park above.

A tomb that held the remains of thousands of Japanese after World War II.

Photo by Tyler Cottenie

The “Ecological Walkway” takes visitors around the new detention ponds that several egrets have already decided to call home, and among nectar-rich plants that have attracted numerous species of butterflies. The newly planted trees still have some filling out to do, but this area is already far more beautiful and ecologically diverse than 10 years ago. One final item worth noting on the sign is the “pavilion.”

It would be a grave mistake to visit the park without taking a walk over to this spot. Perched conspicuously up on a hill behind one of the detention ponds in the shade of two enormous banyan trees, this “pavilion” is actually a tomb dating back to 1938, and one of only three that was spared during the dismantling of the former cemetery.

THE TOMBS

Landscaping and tree planting has completely transformed an old cemetery into a beautiful new park.

Photo by Tyler Cottenie

Surrounded by a low, ornamented concrete wall, with a central staircase flanked by three pairs of stone lanterns, the tomb is distinctively Japanese in its style, and is likely one of the best-preserved examples still remaining in Taiwan.

It is visually stunning in its symmetry, beautifully framed by the banyans and provides an excellent view of the surrounding cityscape from the top, next to the tall stone monument. It was preserved not only for its aesthetic value but also for its historical significance.

Originally the tomb of Japanese businessman and longtime Kaohsiung (Takao) resident Sugimoto Otokichi, it later became the repository for the remains of approximately 3,000 Japanese. After World War II, Japanese graves scattered throughout the country were subject to abandonment and vandalism, so three locations were selected and the remains of Japanese from the colonial era were relocated to these locations.

Beautiful Taiwan golden rain trees like this line the hill in Shuanghu Forest Park.

Photo by Tyler Cottenie

The Sugimoto family, in keeping with Otokichi’s reputation as a man of justice, allowed his spacious tomb to become the designated repository for southern Taiwan. Over 50 years later, the remains were moved to a columbarium along with those in the rest of the cemetery, but the tomb’s structure was preserved.

Two other tombs of identical style were also preserved from the old cemetery and are easily accessible near the main road. One is right next to the second roadside parking lot from the south and belonged to Taiwanese businessman and local credit union co-founder Huang Ching-yun (黃慶雲). Much smaller in scale but equally well preserved, this tomb represents the inclination of some Taiwanese to adopt the customs and aesthetics of their colonizers.

The final tomb is directly east of the nearby incinerator’s smokestack, at a bend in the road. Slightly larger in scale, this one belonged to Japanese businessman Otsubo Yoichi and is notable for having been moved here from another location during the Japanese era.

GETTING THERE

Using public transit, take Bus Red 33 from the Aozihdi MRT stop, get off at the Benguan Rd. (Funeral Interment Management Office) stop, and walk north along the freeway to Dingjin 1st Lane, which takes you to the park’s south entrance. Alternatively, you can take Bus Green 2 from the Cultural Center or near any light rail stop on Dashun Road counterclockwise up to Minzu Road. Get off at the Jixian Park stop and walk south on Dafeng St. to the park’s north entrance. By scooter or car, approach from Benguan Road and then turn to follow the east side of the freeway to Dingjin 1st Lane to enter the park, or continue further north to a large parking lot and then walk up to the park entrance.

However, the easiest way may be to visit as a side trip from Kaohsiung Green Park, and it is recommended to combine these two into one excursion. Look for the marked trails down from Holes 13, 14 and 17.

Shuanghu Forest Park is open 24 hours a day but has no toilet facilities. The adjacent Kaohsiung Green Park has plenty, but the opening hours are 5am to 6pm in winter.