Daguoye Columnar Basalt
大菓葉玄武岩
A wall of vertical hexagonal basalt columns beside the road on Xiyu Island. After rain, shallow water collects in front and reflects the cliff, making it Penghu's most accessible basalt sight.
Daguoye Columnar Basalt lies beside the road in Daguoye Village on Xiyu Island. The hexagonal columns were formed about 10 million years ago as lava cooled and contracted. They stand in neat rows, forming a spectacular cliff more than 100 meters wide and about 20 meters high, like a row of giant pipe organs. The site was once a quarry, and after mining stopped the cliff face was fully exposed. It is now Penghu's most accessible and popular basalt attraction, and you can park and walk right up to it. After summer rain, low ground in front of the cliff fills with water and the rock reflects in it, which is the best time for photos. At night, with no light pollution, it is good for photographing the starry sky together with the basalt. Penghu's columnar basalt is also most spectacular in the Penghu South Four Islands National Park and the Penghu Basalt Nature Reserve (including Tongpan Islet, Dinggou Islet, Jishan Islet, and others), which can be reached by boat. Admission is free. Getting there: about 10 minutes by car from the Penghu Cross-Sea Bridge toward Xiyu, next to Erkan Village. Note: the cliff faces carry a risk of falling rocks, so do not climb or stand too close. Summer midday sun is strong, so visit early in the morning or late in the afternoon.
Opening hours
All day
Nearby sights
- Erkan Historic Village
- Zhuwan Dayi Temple
- Xiyu West Fort
- Magong Guanyin Pavilion & Xiying Rainbow Bridge
- Duxing 10th Village
- Shuncheng Gate (Magong Old City Wall)
- Magong Tianhou Temple
- Central Street & Four-Eyed Well, Magong