"Yu (玉)" is Mandarin for jade. "Shan (山, one of the few easily recognizable characters)" is mountain. Yushan is otherwise known as Jade Mountain. Taiwan sits on the convergence of 2 tectonic plates making it a very rugged island nation and, while quite small, somehow manages to squeeze in nearly 300 peaks over 3000 meters in elevation. Yushan Main Peak (there are 5 total: Main, North, East, West, and Front) is Taiwan's highest at 3,952 meters (12,966'). After tackling the mountain of bureaucracy necessary to secure an ascent permit I was able to summit Yushan last Tuesday in conditions that are best described as crap. After sweating my tchotchkes off in Taipei I never would have thought it possible to be so miserably cold anywhere in Taiwan even if it were 4 kilometers high. A minor
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