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LIONS NATURE EDUCATION CENTRE Map

2792 2234; Pak Kong; www.hknature.net/lnec/eng/; admission free; 9.30am-5pm Wed-Mon; 92

Ideal for children, this 34-hectare attraction, located 2km northwest of Hebe Haven and just off Hiram’s Hwy, is Hong Kong’s first nature education centre and comprises everything from an arboretum, a medicinal plants garden and an insect-arium to a mineral and rocks corner and a shell house. We love the Dragonfly Pond, which attracts up to a quarter of the more than 100 dragonfly species found in Hong Kong.

You can reach the centre on bus 92 from Diamond Hill MTR and Choi Hung, bus 96R on Sunday and holidays from Diamond Hill to Wong Shek Pier, and green minibus 1A from Choi Hung.

Pak Tam Chung

Pak Tam Chung ( Map) is the start of the MacLehose Trail (Click here).

SAI KUNG COUNTRY PARK VISITOR CENTRE Map

2792 7365; Tai Mong Tsai Rd; 9.30am-4.30pm Wed-Mon; 94

While you’re in Pak Tam Chung, visit the Sai Kung Country Park Visitor Centre, which is to the south of the village, just by the road from Sai Kung. It has excellent maps, photographs and displays of the area’s geology, fauna and flora, as well as its traditional villages and Hoi Ha Wan Marine Park.

SHEUNG YIU FOLK MUSEUM Map

2792 6365; Pak Tam Chung Nature Trail; admission free; 9am-4pm Wed-Mon; 94

This museum is a leisurely 20-minute walk from Pak Tam Chung south along the 1km-long Pak Tam Chung Nature Trail. The museum is part of a restored Hakka village typical of those found here in the 19th century. The village was founded about 150 years ago by the Wong clan, which built a kiln to make bricks. In the whitewashed dwellings, pigpens and cattle sheds – all surrounded by a high wall and watchtower to guard against raids by pirates – are farm implements, objects of daily use, furnishings and Hakka clothing.

Hoi Ha, Wong Shek, Chek Keng & Tai Long

There are several rewarding hikes at the northern end of the Sai Kung Peninsula starting in the little coves such as Hoi Ha, Wong Shek and Chek Keng, but note that the logistics of these hikes can be a bit tricky. Be sure to take along a copy of the Sai Kung & Clearwater Bay Countryside Series map or Universal Publications’ Tseung Kwan O, Sai Kung, Clearwater Bay (Click here).

HOI HA WAN MARINE PARK Map

hotline 1823; Hoi Ha; green minibus 7

A rewarding 6km walk in the area starts from the village of Hoi Ha (literally ‘Under the Sea’) on the coast of Hoi Ha Bay, now part of the Hoi Ha Wan Marine Park, a 260-hectare protected area blocked off by concrete booms from the Tolo Channel and closed to fishing vessels. It’s one of the few places in Hong Kong waters where coral still grows in abundance and is a favourite with divers. You can visit anytime, but 1½-hour tours of the marine park are available in English at 10.30am and 2.15pm on Saturday, Sunday and public holidays. Be aware that you must register with the Agriculture, Fisheries & Conservation Department (AFCD; 1823) in advance, though.

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ISLAND HOPPING IN SAI KUNG

Exploring the islands that dot the harbour is a delightful way to spend a few hours or even an entire day. Most kaido (small, open-sea ferries) leave from the piers on the waterfront, just in front of Hoi Pong Sq.

The easiest (and cheapest) way to go is to jump aboard a ‘scheduled’ kaido (ie one that goes according to demand and when full) bound for the small island of Yim Tin Tsai (return $35, 15 minutes, departs 10am and 11am, returns 2pm and 4pm Mon-Fri; an extra service on Saturday, Sunday and public holidays departs 9am and returns at noon).

On the way, the boat weaves through a number of small islands. The first island to the east of Sai Kung Town is Yeung Chau (Sheep Island). You’ll be able to spot a horseshoe-shaped burial plot up on the slope; for reasons dictated by feng shui, the Chinese like to position graves with decent views of the sea. Southeast of Yeung Chau, Pak Sha Chau (White Sand Island) has a popular beach on its northern shore.

Just beyond Pak Sha Chau is the northern tip of the much larger