MacLehose Trail

Running from Pak Tam Chung in the East to Tuen Mun in the West, the MacLehose Trail is a 100 km hiking route crossing the New Territories in Hong Kong. It covers some of Hong Kong's highest peaks, and has everything from challenging hikes to picturesque scenery.
  
Named after Murray MacLehose, Hong Kong's longest serving governor (1971 - 82), it is subdivided into 10 sections of varying length and difficulty. My girlfriend and I hiked the 13,5 km second stage, but in the opposite direction from Pak Tam Au to Long Ke. We thus hiked east towards the coast of the New Territories, situated on the Sai Kung peninsula, before turning south as we crossed pristine uplands, bays and peninsulas around Tai Long Wan (Big Wave Bay). Being Wednesday, the beaches were deserted - only a shark threat and a strong undercurrent deterred us from swimming. Instead we opted for lazing on the beach and enjoying a brought lunch, although the few restaurants there provide fine dining opportunities.

Getting out to the East coast of Hong Kong takes some time. Three stops east of Kowloon Tong on the Kwun Tong line, we took a 45 minute bus ride to Pak Tam Au. Hiking a big loop around the coast back towards Sai Kung, we grabbed a minibus the final 4 km into town, and then a bus back towards civilization.


Since we were feeling adventurous, we took a detour and headed up the Sheung Luk river. Some 3 miles up the river lies a dam at the top of a picturesque cliff, but the real fun was a really deep pool allowing for a 30 foot cliff jump. Adrenaline for free, although it was reassuring that we were not the only ones who had found the place. Once summer comes around, I am definitely going back - climbing Sharp Peak (the highest point to the left on the photo above), an outdoor barbecue and renting surf boards are still on my to do list!