Taiwan Surf Reports and Surfing | msw taiwan
WhenPortuguesesailorsstumbleduponTaiwanin1547,theynameditIlhaFormosameaningBeautifulIsland.Taiwanisonly160km(100mi)fromthemainlandwherethegovernmentofthePeoplesRepublicofChina(PRC)haveruledsincewinningthecivilwaragainsttheRepublicofChina(ROC)in1949.TheROCgovernmentwithdrewtoTaiwanandcontinuetodisputethepoliticalrightsofthePRCandmaintainsomesovereigntyoverTaiwanandthe90smallislandsofPenghu(Pescadores).Despitetheconfusingsituation,surfinginTaiwanhasalonghistoryandsurfarrivesfromagenerous225ºsw...
When Portuguese sailors stumbled upon Taiwan in 1547, they named it Ilha Formosa meaning Beautiful Island. Taiwan is only 160km (100mi) from the mainland where the government of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) have ruled since winning the civil war against the Republic of China (ROC) in 1949. The ROC government withdrew to Taiwan and continue to dispute the political rights of the PRC and maintain some sovereignty over Taiwan and the 90 small islands of Penghu (Pescadores). Despite the confusing situation, surfing in Taiwan has a long history and surf arrives from a generous 225º swell window hitting all sides of the island. US soldiers were the first to ride the north coast beach of Jin Shan in 1965 and local pioneers like Mao Guh and his brothers ignored the Taoist suspicions of the sea and government ban on access to the ocean, to take up surfing. Mao Guh opened the original and still popular Jeffs Surf Shop near Honeymoon Bay and with the lifting of Martial Law in 1987, su...