Hong Kong’s best hikes: climbing Ma On Shan peak – all you need to know
It’s a steep haul to the top of one of Hong Kong’s most distinctive peaks, but the views on the way up, and from the top, are worth it, and you’ll feel a world away from the skyscrapers below
Soaring above the new town that bears its name, Ma On Shan – Horse Saddle Mountain – is among Hong Kong’s most distinctive and highest peaks. While it is also near the expanding Sai Kung town, it makes for outstanding hiking through majestic landscapes that in places seem remote from urban areas.
Reaching the top is somewhat challenging, but the rewards are panoramic views from the most splendid summit in Hong Kong. Even if you pass by the main peak, there’s much to enjoy. A word of warning: it’s best to undertake this hike only in fine weather and during the daytime, and take plenty to drink if it’s hot.
Though there are several ways to climb the 702-metre Ma On Shan, one of the best follows stage 4 of the MacLehose Trail, starting at Kei Ling Ha on the road from Ma On Shan town to Sai Kung. At first, there’s a path curving gently uphill through dense woodland.
The trail joins a narrow road, passing a campsite and reaching the crest of a hillside where shrubs are colonising formerly open ground, largely obscuring formerly expansive views over Port Shelter and islands. The road dips towards the village of Wong Chuk Yeung, which is hidden away amidst the trees, and the MacLehose Trail bears off to the left.
Till now, hiking into the hills has been a cinch, with nothing to challenge even dedicated couch potatoes. But this all changes after a junction in the woods.
