Hiking in Hong Kong? Who Knew?

Did I think I would ever go hiking in Hong Kong? Nope. After all, HK isn't really a city known for the great outdoors. At least when you think of Hong Kong, you don't think "Ya...would love to do some bonding with nature there." In fact, that is probably the last thing that comes to your mind when you think of HK. None of the people I had talked to about the hike had even heard of The Dragon's Back before. Moreover, hiking in HK seemed like a really far-fetched and dangerous activity to them. Nothing encapsulates this idea more than when in response to my plans to go hiking with D, my dad said, "Be careful out there and if you get mobbed, just give the robbers all your money and run away. Do NOT fight with them." What the heck?!? That certainly freaked me out big time. In my head, I imagined that we would be the only two people in the mountains that were in the middle of nowhere and could get robbed or even murdered at any time when in reality, nothing was further from the truth. However, not knowing that at the time, I was a bit nervous after that very serious warning I had gotten from my dear ol' papa. So needless to say, I was very relieved when a crap load of people got off at the same stop we did. In fact, there were a multitude of people on the hiking trail and it was quite a tourist destination. So if you ever find that you want to get out of the city when you're in Hong Kong, I suggest going for a hike at The Dragon's Back.

Wikipedia: The Dragon's Back (Traditional Chinese: 龍脊) is a ridge in southeastern Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong, between Wan Cham Shanand Shek O Peak. It lies within the Shek O Country Park. In 2004 the Dragon's Back Trail was selected by TIMEasia as the best urban hiking trail.

It was very easy to get to. Take MTR to Shau Kei Wan station on the Island line. Get on the bus to To Tei Wan. Apparently, we went the opposite way on this hike, but I actually preferred it this way. There was definitely a lot more hiking on the way up, but the way down was a breeze. It was actually quite amazing to be so close to the city and yet seem so far away. 

The view on the way up looked promising already.

This is usually the view I see on a hike, the view of D's back, if I even see him at all, meaning he hasn't already disappeared into the distance with those long strides of his. 

However, this time, yours truly made it to the top first. Yay! Ok, ok so we weren't at the very top yet, but I was proud of myself anyhow. D claims that it was because he was stuck behind some very slow climbers. Whatever, don't try to take away my shining moment!

From whence we came.

To our destination. Gotta love those Chinglish names. Always good for a laugh.

Getting close to the top!

Let's try to get a 360 degree shot of this view!

We made it! Good job!

Enjoying the fresh air in the mountains. Well...probably as fresh as it can get anyway.

Time for that self-portrait shot. Proof that we were here! 

As we walked a bit further from the peak, we spotted some some men setting up their equipment for some  paragliding. 

Deciding that it would be an awesome sight to behold, D and I sat ourselves down and waited for them to jump. We left without ever seeing that happen, but luckily for us, as these men took their sweet, sweet time preparing some Chinese man walked up to them with his equipment, introduced himself as Wayne, an avid paraglider (thanks D for remembering what his name was), answered any questions they had, set up his own paragliding equipment and jumped off the mountain without a moment's hesitation. After that pretty cool spectacle, we waited around for these guys to following in his footsteps, but they continued to drag their feet so we moseyed along our way. Click here to watch a video of Wayne showing those men how it's done!

One last shot of the view from the top before heading back down.

Along with the rest of the people who got tired of waiting for the other men to jump. (Just had to get a shot in using the dramatic setting on my camera.)

We made it to the end!

 All in all, it was a really nice day trip out of the city and it was the first time I'd ever hiked in Hong Kong. If you are in Hong Kong and ever get sick of all the noise, traffic, being squished like a sardine amongst a sea of people, all the fantastic shopping and the amazingly good food, try going out to Shek O for a nice hike on the Dragon's Back. You won't regret it!

Tips by Mel: 

1.The hike was relatively easy so no need for any kind of special hiking gear. D and I wore our Crocs and did just fine.

2.Don't forget to wear sunscreen, and bring a hat. There isn't much shade at the top.

3.Some people brought some food and had a picnic at the top, which I think was a good idea.

4.There were some port-o-potties at the end of the hike, but trust me, you do not want to use those if you can help it.

Thank you for reading and please leave a comment for me. =D

Mel

P.S. If you're ever in Hong Kong with a group of friends or a few family members and want to rent a decent place at a decent price, check out my next post where I review the three bedroom apartment we stayed at.