Hiking From Central to Stanley, Hong Kong

A popular impression of Hong Kong is the glitzy, sky-scraping buildings, crowded streets and colourful overhead signs blaring out their messages.

But there’s more. A lot more.

Hong Kong boasts some spectacular scenery, some of which is just a 10 minute taxi ride from Central.

Most of Hong Kong is very mountainous. The city on Hong Kong Island is built partly on the side of a mountain and partly on reclaimed land, which makes it an engineering masterpiece in itself.

But take a taxi to Park View and then walk the Wilson trail towards Stanley and you’ll find yourself in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by mountains and valleys, with a view (on a clear day) of many of the outlying islands that make up the territory.

And pretty spectacular it is too.

There are good clear trails to follow, many of them concreted (which I’m not so keen on). And where the hillsides are really steep they’ve built steps.

You can walk from Park View to Stanley, a trek of between 90 Minutes and 2 and a half hours, depending on your level of fitness.

About half way along you get a choice of turning left and walking down past Tai Tam reservoir (an easy route) or staying with the trail and climbing up the Thousand Steps to the top of Stanley Mound.

If you’re up for the Thousand Steps, you’ll pass places where you look down on Repulse Bay at one point and the Stanley peninsular a bit later on. It’s a bit like being in an aircraft.

But the Thousand Steps is a tough climb, be warned!

In the video in this article I showed the trail coming down from Stanley Mound to Stanley itself. It’s about half way through, and there’s a picture of it below.

A good Sunday outing is to make this walk to Stanley, have lunch there, maybe browse the market or chill out on one of the beaches, and then catch a bus or a cab back to Central.

If you’re walking, though, do remember to take lots of water, particularly in the summer.

I’ve seen people in serious trouble because they’ve made the walk without taking water. One couple was in such a state that I gave them my water on the basis that I was younger and fitter, and so better able to cope with the heat and the exercise.

But I was not impressed. To undertake a walk in the mountains on a hot day without water is not clever.

Here are some pictures. Click on the thumbnail to get a bigger version and then click again on that version to get a decent sized image:

If you’re up for it I do recommend this (or one) of the walks in Hong Kong. So many people come here and leave with the impression that Hong Kong is all shopping and partying.

It is, but it’s also a heck of a lot more. See some of the tours to Hong Kong here.

Cheers.

Tagged as: hong kong island