Hong Kong and Macau_ City Guide (Lonely Planet, 14th Edition) - Andrew Stone [79]
Other attractions here include seafood drying on racks in the sun, dragon boats bobbing in the harbour and, strangely, a herd of cows. It’s an easy (and signposted) walk northward to Mau Ping Shan (125m), the island’s highest point; a windy pebble beach on the southeastern shore; and an odd stone formation called Balanced Rock, a couple of hundred metres south of the beach.
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TRANSPORT – TAP MUN CHAU
Ferry Depart from Ma Liu Shui near University MTR East Rail station.
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For ferry routes, schedules and fares for Tap Mun Chau, see Click here.
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TUNG PING CHAU
Kidney-shaped Tung Ping Chau ( Map), sitting in splendid isolation in Mirs Bay in the far northeast of the New Territories, is as remote as it gets in Hong Kong (making it a handy staging post in times past for gun and opium smugglers). The distance from Ma Liu Shui to the southwest, from where the ferry serving the island departs from, is around 25km.
It is part of Plover Cove Country Park ( 2665 3413; 9.30am-4pm Sat, Sun & public holidays). The island, its rock pools and the waters around it – which teem with sea life (especially corals) – form Hong Kong’s fourth marine park.
At one time the island, which is called Tung Ping Chau (East Peace Island) to distinguish it from Peng Chau (same pronunciation in Cantonese) near Lantau, supported a population of 3000, but now it is virtually deserted. The former village of Sha Tau is an eerie ghost town these days. There are a couple of tiny settlements on the northeastern side, including Sha Tau, where you’ll find a food stall.
Tung Ping Chau is just 12km from the mainland’s Daya Bay nuclear power station and has Hong Kong’s only radiation shelter, at Tai Tong just north of the pier.
Tung Ping Chau’s highest point is only about 40m, but it has unusual rock layers in its cliffs, which glitter after the rain. The island has some sandy beaches on its east coast that are good for swimming. The longest one, to the northeast, is Cheung Sha Wan. There is a small Tin Hau temple on the southwestern coast of the island, and some small caves dotting the cliffs. A good 6km walking trail encircles the whole island.
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TRANSPORT – TUNG PING CHAU
Ferry Boats depart from Ma Liu Shui near University MTR East Rail station.
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Tsui Wah Ferry Services runs ferries here on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. For ferry routes, schedules and fares for Tung Ping Chau, see Click here.
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CLEARWATER BAY PENINSULA
Clearwater Bay Peninsula ( Map) is a wonderfully untamed and roughly contoured backdrop to urban Hong Kong – at least that’s the case on its eastern shore. It is wedged in by Junk Bay (Tseung Kwan O) to the west and Clearwater Bay (Tsing Sui Wan) sitting to the east; Joss House Bay (Tai Miu Wan) lies to the south.
Junk Bay is now the site of Tseung Kwan O, a New Town that was built on reclaimed land and has a growing population of more than 350,000 and a sixth MTR line, but the eastern coastline remains fairly unscarred and offers some exceptional walks, fine beaches and one of the most important temples dedicated to Tin Hau on the South China coast.
Clearwater Bay Peninsula is on the southeastern edge of the New Territories. The country park is divided into two parts: a long and narrow finger-shaped section stretching from Joss House Bay in the south almost to Port Shelter, and a half-moon-shaped section to the east between Lung Ha Wan and Clearwater Bay.
BEACHES Map
Bus 91 passes Silverstrand beach (Ngan Sin Wan) north of Hang Hau before reaching Tai Au Mun; if you wish you can get off at Silverstrand and go for a dip. If you’re heading for Lung Ha Wan, get off the bus at Tai Au Mun village and start walking. From Sai Kung, take bus 92 to where Hiram’s Hwy and Clearwater Bay Rd meet and change there to bus 91.
From Tai Au Mun,