Days In Hong Kong - Wilson Trail

Mention Hong Kong and most people will think of good food and shopping.

But did you know, it is also home to many beautiful hiking trails?

We were keen to see the quieter side of the country and decided to check out the Wilson Trail, a whopping 78km long trail which traverses eight of the Country Parks and is broken into 10 stages. (Only managed to complete the first stage which is 4.8km, in one afternoon!)

A word of advice to those interested in hitting stage 1 of the trail - do not underestimate it. We didn't think it would be painful cos hey, we climbed Mt Kinabalu so this should be easy peasy, right?

Not true.

We started with an ascend up 1000 steps and the rest of the undulating trail which consisted of a mix of ascends and descends, was long and challenging.

 

Stage 1 of the trail starts off at Stanley and finishes at Wong Nai Chung Gap

Only just the beginning!

Still cheery, but not for long

Couldn't help but sing Step By Step by NKOTB along the way

 

 Still climbing

 

I desperately needed a break

The terrain changed dramatically and this section of the hike reminded us of Mt K

 

 Deja vu

 And then it was downhill

With a beautiful view of the rolling hills

My camera battery died after this photo and I had to rely on the iPhone to capture the rest of the shots.

 

 After going downhill, it was uphill again.

 And downhill, then uphill. Can you spot the trail?

Tai Tam Reservoir

Combined with the unforgiving summer heat and a lack of canopy shelter, it was a tough hike.

But as with all treks, the beautiful scenery more than made up for it. Although it kills my knees, I enjoy hiking because it's peaceful and I like being surrounded by nature (not the mosquitoes though). It's just too bad that we don't have many options when it comes to hiking in Singapore.

If you have some time to spare in Hong Kong, do hit this part of the trail to experience its tranquility and beauty.