A Different Side of Hong Kong

Hong Kong has so many sides other than the famous skyline of Central, Hong Kong Island....and whenever we can, we go out and explore the hiking side.  I am more fortunate than my hard-working husband to have time to explore, and am thoroughly enjoying an every other week hiking group of women from the American Women's Association (who are from all over the world....there is even another Canadian who is often in the group!)

Yesterday we went to Lantau Island and did Stages 5 & 6 of the Lantau Trail. Hong Kong has five long hiking trails, beautifully marked and scattered over all of the country.  The Lantau trail is a 70 km total route that circles part of the island, and is broken down into 12 stages - each stage starts and ends at accessible points for people.  Lantau Island is the largest island in HK (even larger than the one we live on), is home to the airport and the Big Buddha which you have seen in past blog posts, and is mainly open green hills with numerous Buddhist and Taoist monasteries and nunneries scattered in the hills.

Enjoy these pictures.....the weather was foggy (as many of the most recent days have been) so sometime I will return with Jeff on a clear day and get pictures of the view, and then show them to you.  Welcome to Lantau Trail, Stages 5 & 6!

Our first peak...Kwun Yam Shan
434 m

One our way up.... 

Still on our way up...

My new friend....these cows are wild on the island

On Ling Wui Shan peak
490 km

Finally on our way down....

One of the many monasteries
and nunneries in the hills

Lantau Island has so many trails
that we often stopped and made
good use of the signs!

This beautiful property is Lung Tsai Ng Yuen, a private
villa built by a Buddhist businessman exiled from
Shanghai many years ago - it is empty now
but still beautiful!

Does a lunch spot
get any better than this?

Memorial to ancestors along the
path (if you make it bigger
you will see pictures of them on the
centre front section)

We ended in Tai O, a fishing
village on stilts

 What a wonderful way to spend a few hours!  Hope you enjoyed the trip, too.

We will see what adventures happen next in Hong Kong....one never knows!

Love you all,

Linda