Above: the Mount Parker trail on Hong Kong Island.
Even though Hong Kong is well known as a big city with tall buildings, a large part of it is actually
the countryside. (They say that 75% is undeveloped.)
There are many country parks and trails great for walking (with no hiking equipment required), picnics, hiking,
and Hong Kong style BBQ. Here
are a few of them. You can often start after breakfast and be somewhere else for lunch.
Tai
Tam Reservoir
There is a paved trail that passes by the Tai Tam Reservoir located on Hong Kong Island.
You can start at near ParkView and it is a walk less than 2 hours. You can also start in Quarry Bay.
Shing
Mun Reservoir
There
is a paved trail that goes around the Shing Mun Reservoir located in the northwest part of the New Territories. You can reach the beginning of the trail
with a short mini-bus ride from the Tsuen Wan MTR station. Above left: a small forrest along the trail.
Outlying
Islands
There are a number of islands in Hong Kong collectively refered to as the
"outlying islands". They have plenty of trails and provide a reprieve
from the noise of the city.
Though Dragon's Back is located conveniently within 20 minutes of urban Hong Kong, the view is excellent.
Plover
Cove Reservoir
Built
a few decades ago before Hong Kong started buying water from China mainland, this
was one of the largest reservoir constructed to combat the droughts that caused
water rationing. Now it is just a nice place to get away from the crowds - well,
it could still get crowded there! Left: Plover
Cove Reservoir
Tai
Po Promenade Park
One
of the newer parks in the territory, this one has some of the amenities that the
locals like, including biking, and picturisque shrubs. It is one of the places
photographers turn into their personal studio for wedding couples. [
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