A Round of A-Claws for Lobster Bay.

Gorgeous Scenery on this Walk.

Hong Kong is a wonderful place for hiking and two of the most beautiful areas to hike in are Sai Kung and Clearwater Bay. Unfortunately, these two areas are very far from where I live and don't have great public transport. Nonetheless, yesterday I decided to go walking in Clearwater Bay Country Park. To get there I took the MTR to Diamond Hill and exited through Exit C to the bus station, where I boarded the number 91 bus. This bus goes all the way to Clearwater Bay Beach, though I was only taking it as far as Tai Au Mun.

When I got off at Tai Au Mun, I continued straight down Clearwater Bay Road towards Tai Hang Tun Kite Flying Area. There were some incredibly colourful flowering bushes near the roundabout where I got off the bus. The walk to the kite flying area took about twenty minutes and wasn't too exciting as it's just along a paved road.

Beautiful flowering bushes at the start of the hike.

Road to the trailhead.

About the only area with a view on the walk to the start of the trail.

I was planning to do the Lung Ha Wan Country Trail. Lung Ha Wan in English is Lobster Bay. The Lung Ha Wan Country Trail is a circular route and most people walk it in a clockwise direction, but I decided to do it anticlockwise. That meant I would start with a steep climb up to the top of Tai Leng Tung Hill, then a long flat stretch, then a very long gradual descent.

Before starting the trail, I decided to take a wander around the gorgeous kite flying area. I have been here before several times on school trips with around ninety children. It's a beautiful open area with a cafe, barbecue pits, picnic areas, a visitor center and great views. The kids always loved having lots of space to run around and play. Mind you, it was a lot quieter without them.

From the viewing point here you can see several small islands, such as Steep Island and the South and North Nine Pin Islands. There is also a very pleasant tree walk which I have been on during one of the school trips, but did not do this time.

Pavilion and trigonometric marker at the kite flying area.

Viewpoint at the kite flying area.

Looking over Sharp Island and the Nine Pins.

People flying their kites. Many end up tangled in the trees as it's so windy.

Pavilion in the kite flying area.

Barbecue site in kite flying area.

The sharp peak in the distance is High Junk Peak. I've heard its a very tough climb.

After looking around this area, I walked to the starting point of my trail. It began with stairs, stairs and more stairs. I took it slowly. I can't say I am great at getting up or down endless stairs.

Sign for the Lung Ha Wan Country Trail.

Map of the trail.

Stairs, stairs, stairs.

Stairs, stairs, stairs.

Me climbing the initial steps.

However, the views back over Clearwater Bay were spectacular enough to keep me distracted from the pain of climbing. From here you look down over the kite flying area, the Clearwater Bay Country Club and across the beaches of Clearwater Bay.

Scenic path.

Markers on the trail.

Overlooking the Clearwater Bay Country Club.

Overlooking the kite flying area and Clearwater Bay Country Club.

Looking towards Clearwater Bay Beach.

Fellow hikers.

White berries.

I was also distracted by the beautiful flowering bushes all around me. Their large white flowers with a yellow centre are known as fried egg plants and they are very common in Hong Kong.

Fried egg plant.

Fried egg plant.

Fried egg plant.

I think I was climbing for around thirty minutes before I finally arrived at a flat area. What a relief! There was still a bit of climbing left, but I had largely made it. I enjoyed more views before going all the way up to the trigonometrical marker on top of Tai Leng Tung Hill. Tai Leng Tung is 291 metres high, covered with interestingly shaped rocks and has fantastic views. On the day I visited it was also incredibly windy and cold. I didn't mind the cold, as I was hot from all the climbing. I tried to take a selfie but my hair kept blowing into my eyes and mouth and it was difficult to know what I was doing.

Beautiful scenery everywhere.

Trigonometrical marker at the top of the hill.

Trigonometrical marker at the top of the hill.

A good spot for a photo.

A good spot for a photo.

Looking at the trail straight ahead.

Rocky View.

It was a bit windy at the top.

I stood on top of this hill for a while enjoying the views, then continued on for about another fifty metres to a second viewpoint, which also had spectacular views. This time, I think, I was looking towards Sheung Sze Wan Beach and beyond. It was quite breathtaking. I had never heard of Sheung Sze Beach but apparently it is popular with kayakers. It's possible to kayak to some of the nearby little islands from there.

Looking towards Sheung Sze Wan from the second view point.

Closer view of Sheung Sze Wan from the second view point.

And even closer view from the second view point.

Sheung Sze Wan Bay.

These buildings caught my attention. Not sure what they are. One may be a school.

Looking ahead at the second viewpoint.

Rocky View at the Second View Point.

There were lots of little islands scattered around the coastline. One of them is known as Green Egg Island as it has a raised green centre like an egg yolk surrounded by white. With that and the fried egg flowers, I'm beginning to think Hong Kongers are a bit egg obsessed. Either that or they get very hungry while hiking.

So many little islands off the coast.

The island closest to the shore is Green Egg Island.

Green Egg Island.

All the way down the hill I had unobstructed coastal views making this a very enjoyable but slow walk. I had to keep reminding myself to look at my feet rather than the views, as the steps are very uneven and it's very easy to trip or fall.

Starting the descent.

The path.

The path.

Looking over Sharp Island and the Nine Pins.

Beautiful path shaded by a tree.

Selfie with well-behaved hair.

Looking back at the stairs down.

Soon I could see an equestrian centre in front of me with a large open area in which to exercise the horses.

Horse in the equestrian centre.

When I reached the bottom of the hill, I was finally in Lobster Bay. I knew I needed to walk past the toilet to get on the road that would take me back to public transport, but first I walked through the picnic site and onto a small rocky beach behind the equestrian centre. It was a very pleasant, peaceful place. I saw signs pointing to another kite flying area, but did not follow them.

Signs for Lung Ha Wan.

Lung Ha Wan Kite Flying Area.

Path down to the beach behind the equestrian centre.

The rocky beach.

Selfie on the beach. Green Egg Island is behind me.

Rocky shoreline.

I then went back to the road. There were more rocky beaches and lovely coastal views.

Rocky Beach.

I saw a sign for an ancient rock carving. Nine of these have been discovered in Hong Kong so far. They are normally located near the sea or rivers. Archaeologists think they were created to appease the sea gods. They are believed to be around three thousand years old, as they show similarities to the kinds of geometrical or simple animal designs found on bronze age pottery from this period. I went down lots of stairs to take a look at it. It's quite worn, but it is possible to make out several swirling geometric shapes on it. This is the third ancient rock carving I have seen here, but apparently it is the most controversial one, as some archaeologists think the shapes on it are due to erosion rather than human carving.

Sign for the rock carving.

Stairs down to the rock carving.

The rock carving.

Patterns on the ancient stone.

Beautiful rocky coastline opposite the rock carving.

The climb back up the stairs from the rock carving let me know my legs were definitely getting tired. It's necessary to be careful on this stretch of road as not all of it has pavements and there are several blind bends and quite a bit of traffic on it.

At one point I saw several amazing looking birds with very long tails. I tried to photograph them, but a passing car scared them and they all flew away.

The walk on this road was starting to feel a bit endless and I was beginning to wonder if I was going the right way. Then suddenly, to my great joy, I saw the bright colourful flowering bush from the start of my walk and I was back at the roundabout. I took a 103M minibus to Tseung Kwan O, as it arrived before the bus. Then I boarded the MTR for the long trek home.

The walk back felt endless

Lobster Bay had been great and certainly deserved its round of a-claws. Haha!