Showing posts with label sai wan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sai wan. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Stream trek: Sheung Luk stream 雙鹿石澗 (Double deer)

Appreciation:
 I'll say 8.5/10 because I think Wong Lung Hang is nicer. 


Why it's worth it: 


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Duration: 
Bus stop to stream: 45 minutes. 2.8k
Stream: 3 hours, ~3k
Hike to bus stop: 1 hour, ~3k
Total: ~5 hours (Do account for 30 minutes shuttle from Sai Kung which is not frequent)


Garmin GPS route: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/201383534 


Difficulty: 
10/10. Some parts of the climbs can't bypassed and are not recommended if you are afraid of heights or out of shape.

Cel phone coverage: Rare coverage on stream. Somecoverage on trail coming back.

Water needs: 2 liters.

Transportation: 

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Get to the Diamond Hill MTR station.'s bus terminus, or  Choi Hung MTR exit C2. Bus 92 will get you to Sai Kung any day. It is about 1/3 the price of 96R but it is slightly longer (50 minutes instead of 35). On Sundays and holidays, you have the option of taking 96R. Check the PTES schedule for details (http://hketransport.gov.hk).

Once in Saikung, you can either wait to get to the bus terminus or get out one stop before, at the Police Station. Might be good if you intend to beat the hikers crowd to the 29R village bus which has limited seating (28) and frequency. You will want to get to Chan Man street.

On the left, that's the signpost for the 29R, right by the McDonald's (it looks handmade). The bus itself is a little bit larger than a regular mini-bus (pic on the right). If you miss the bus, take a cab and ask them for the Sai Wan Pavilion.
Sai Wan Pavilion - 西灣亭

After about a 20-25 minutes ride, the 29R will drop you off at the Sai Wan Pavilion, right by our trail head. Just follow the trail.

About halfway to Sai Wan, you'll climb a bunch of steps and get to a map point. Go straight.

Arriving at the Sai Wan village. Just go straight through.

At the crossroad, just before the beach, head left. You'll get over a little hill, to another beach

At the end of the beach, there's a stream and a bridge crosses it at a distance. Walk towards the bridge and go past it on the left-hand side. Go through the bushes and you'll see a clearing with mesh fences forming some sort of a pen. Go around it on the right, keep walking parallel to the stream. Eventually, the view will open up to the stream and the mountain.

Map of the stream with references, via HK Adventurers
(1) You will first go by a punch of deep pools. Pass on the left. When it is hot, these are packed with people.

(2) Refered to as "the wall", Thousand Silk Falls (千絲瀑). Looks harder than it really is. Climb on the right. 



(3) Ming Yau Falls (鳴幽瀑), 30ft tall. Path to bypass is on the right.

We're bypassing the falls, ending up on top.

(4) The 100ft tall Chong Yau Falls (藏幽瀑). Climb on the left. Not very difficult  but it is definitely more work than your regular hiking.

(5) You'll arrive to this gorge with no option but to boulder your way through on the left-hand side. It is a bit tricky.

Black Deer Pool Falls, 45 feet tall. Bypass on the right.

(6) Reindeer Pool (順鹿潭). Climb on the left. Be careful, tricky climb as well.

(7) 60ft-tall Well Bottom Pool(井底潭) Falls which should be bypassed on the right-hand side.

(8) Ben Cho Falls (奔槽瀑). Climb on the left.

Then right after, you reach the exit point. The path on the right is not really obvious but just be on the lookout after the Ben Cho Falls  

You will reach the main trail. Head left. Continue all the way to  Pak Tam road where you can catch the bus back to Sai Kung. A mostly downhill 3k.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Sai Kung: Tai Lon Sai Wan

(Updated 2021-MAR-25)
Duration: 
4 hours (about 8k) to the Sha Tau pier. 5 hours (about 9.5k) to the bus stop on Pak Tam road.

Difficulty: 
6/10. To Ham Tin Wan, easy and mostly downhill. A bit of incline afterwards over a longer distance

Cel phone coverage: ?.

Water needs: 1.5 liter.

Appreciation: 10/10. The beach views are incredible, you'd think you're in Hawaii.

Map & Details: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/297642121 (to Ham Tin beach only)

Exercise Area: No

Transportation: Better go on a Sunday as the other days make transportation harder. From Diamond Hill MTR station, take KMB 92 to the Sai Kung Bus Terminus (50min). Then, in front of the McDonald's on  Chan Man street, take the special 29R mini-bus which will bring you to the Sai Wan Road Pavilion (25min).

Why it's worth it: 



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Get to the Diamond Hill MTR station.'s bus terminus. Bus 92 will get you to Sai Kung any day. It is about 1/3 the price of 96R but it is slightly longer (50 minutes instead of 35). On Sundays and holidays, you have the option of taking 96R. Check the PTES schedule for details (http://hketransport.gov.hk).
Once in Saikung, you can either wait to get to the bus terminus or get out one stop before, at the Police Station. Might be good if you intend to beat the hikers crowd to the 29R village bus which has limited seating (28) and frequency. You will want to get to Chan Man street.

On the left, that's the signpost for the 29R, right by the McDonald's (it looks handmade). The bus itself is a little bit larger than a regular mini-bus (pic on the right). If you miss the bus, take a cab and ask them for the Sai Wan Pavilion.
Sai Wan Pavilion - 西灣亭


After about a 20-25 minutes ride, the 29R will drop you off at the Sai Wan Pavilion, right by our trail head. Just follow the trail.

The full map of the trek. It's clickable (all the images are) to get the full-size version for printing. The double-dots route is the optional stream-trek.
About halfway to Sai Wan, you'll climb a bunch of steps and get to a map point. Go straight.

Arriving at the Sai Wan village. Just go straight through.

At the crossroad, just before the beach, head left. You'll get over a little hill, to another beach.

On the Sai Wan beach, keep left an follow the stream if you want to do the stream-trek portion. Otherwise, keep going straight, cross the small stream and climb up the path towards right. It's about a 40 minutes walk to the next beach, great vistas but no shades along the way (hat and water are "de rigueur").

Ham Tin Wan. Take a break , enjoy some food and refreshments. You can rent all sorts of beach gear at the store. If you are too tired to keep walking, you can talk to the store manager and book a boat back for $110 per person. I personally think it's better to keep going and take the boat at the Sha Tau Pier which is cheaper ($20) and will have you go by a fishing village.

Once you are done soaking the sun at the beach, just zip through the store to the back and head left at the crossroad, following the path made of pavers.


Right you exit the village, there will be a 90 degree turn. Keep on the path and head left. From that point on, it's pretty much just about following the path which climbs for a good extra hour. Nice and shaded though and not too steep.

You'll get to those stairs at Maclehose milestone M042 (you see it on the left on the picture). Take them and you'll get to the Chek Keng pier.
There are speedboats to take you to Wong Shek pier. $150 to charter one. Wait a few minutes for other hikers to join and make it cheaper (usually $20)

Bus Terminus at Wonh Shek Pier. 96R will get you to the Diamond Hill MTR station.





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Please, don't litter!

Hiking is about communion with nature. So please pickup after yourself. There's no excuse to leave plastic bags, water bottles or any rubbish on or around the trails; if you managed to bring it, you can manage to bring it back!