Hakka Snapshots A Field Chronicle Along Provincial Highway No. 3

Author & Photographer: Peng Chi-yuan
Publication Date: First Edition, November 2018
This work, entitled Hakka．Hip-Siòng (Snapshots), combines aerial photography and field documentation to captures the natural landscapes, cultural heritage, and human stories by bird viewing Taiwan’s Provincial Highway Route 3, also known as the Hakka Romantic Route 3. Through the author’s lens traverses this historic corridor, the journey also reveals the hardships and resilience of early settlers during periods of ethnic tension and frontier defense.
From Dongshi in Taichung to Longtan in Taoyuan, this stretch of the Highway follows what was once the Tuniu Frontier Line (土牛溝, Tuniu Ditch), the Aiyong (隘勇, Militia) Post Line, and the Ancient Transport Route. The Hakka communities along this region developed diverse industries and sophisticated techniques, intertwined with large-scale trade and exchange. In contrast to the stable rice-growing plains, these upland areas—though fraught with danger—were seen as lands of opportunity, reflecting the pioneering spirit that shaped both the geography and the character of Hakka society.