Discovery of Hong Kong Countryside
The history of Hong Kong is very impressive but not very long,
if we just talk about the city itself. The British were granted
territorial rights of Hong Kong Island and later the Kowloon
Peninsula by the Chinese Emperor after the opium wars. The New
Territories were added strictly for a lease of just 99 years in
1898. We generally refer to the countryside of Hong Kong as that
part of the New Territories that is either (former) farmland, the
surroundings of the old villages and in particular the more than
40% of Hong Kong territory that is protected under the
Countryparks Ordinance. However, countryparks are found on Hong
Kong Island as well (see below).
With the explosion of Hong Kong's population large inroads have
been made on the countryside. Shatin, Tsuenwan, Taipo, Fanling,
Sheung Shui, Yuen Long and Tuen Mun were just villages in the
early 70s and are now all towns of over 100,000 each. Shatin and
its suburbs counted more than 780,000 inhabitants in 1999! There
were just 30,000 people living there in 1972.
When the author of 'Magic Walks' arrived in Hong Kong in 1970,
there were 3.3 million inhabitants in the then colony of Hong
Kong. There are now 3.3 million people with a mobile phone! The
population stood at 6.97 million on 31 December 1999, and with
about 150 people a day admitted by the Central Government of the
People's Republic of China on a one-way permit, the population
is now well over 7 million.
The countryside is one of Hong Kong's great opportunities to get
away from it all. It is possible to leave the busy metropolis and
be just about anywhere in the countryside within an hour, and be
completely alone with nature. There are few cities on earth where
the sea, the hills and the city form such a perfect combination.
From a pastime of expatriates, soldiers, servicemen and dedicated
'orienteering' enthusiasts, hiking has entered the mainstream of
outdoor activities, especially on the weekend. The combination
of the old grasscutting trails, traditional and well-trodden
paths that interconnected distant villages and neatly prepared
new concrete steps leading up otherwise inaccessible hillsides
now form altogether an intricate pattern that makes discovery of
Hong Kong's countryside an exciting formula for residents and
first-time visitors alike.
When the first volume of MAGIC WALKS came out in April 1990, it
instantly occupied the no. 1 spot on the bestseller list of the
South China Morning Post (SCMP) and stayed there for eight weeks.
It stayed on this list altogether for a full 17 weeks until the
ratings were revised into hardcover and pocket books only. It
proved that the book filled a demand. Many people, both residents
and visitors impressed with the scenic setting of Hong Kong,
would like to discover and explore the countryside, but just do
not know how to go about it.
A second volume was published in December 1990 and made it even
easier to escape from the hectic pace of life, as we stayed
closer to town on most walks. This volume was later split into
'2a' and '2b'. The ten walks of volume 2a are on Hong Kong
island, some just minutes. You would have no inkling that such
undisturbed nature abounded. In volume 2b, five are on Kowloon
side or near Shatin, while the remaining five will guide readers
to the islands of Peng Chau, Lantao, Cheung Chau and Lamma. All
walks (except possibly for 33, 34 and 39) can be made by complete
novices to strenuous exercise. Most of them, in fact, can be done
with children of six years and over! We later added a volume 3
for the New Territories and Lantau Island, and the MacLehose
Trail and Its Surroundings. The Wilson Trail will be finally
added this year, and other volumes are being updated.
It is always gratifying for an author to see that he has
struck a chord and is making an impact. Quite a few
publications in Hong Kong started carrying articles where
reference was made to the healthy, stress-relieving effect of
walking in nature's reserves. There is no doubt that the
combination of clean air, healthy exercise and removing
oneself for a few hours from air and sound-pollution has a
highly beneficial effect on anyone suffering from our
stressful and often dirty city environment.
The message is slowly hitting home too that pollution is
affecting the quality of our lives. We are now referring to what
was written in 1990! In the meantime, the pollution problem has
gotten much worse. We do not only have to cope with the diesel
fumes of crossborder trucks servicing the container terminal
(16.5 million containers or TEU exported in 1999!), buses, taxis
and other polluting vehicles. We also are inundated with a lot
of pollution from north of the border, when the wind turns north
in the dry season. Some indicators put this at 37% of our air
pollution. Almost all of Hong Kong's industry moved across the
border in the last since 1980, after China opened up to take
advantage of lower wages and land prices.
When volume 2 was written, the Hongkong Bank Foundation, the
SCMP, Duty-Free Shoppers and other organisations focused our
attention on the pollution problem and donated sizeable sums to
inform the public of its responsibility to nature and coming
generations. Because od Hong Kong's economic expansion and
continuing prosperity in the 1990, the issue of pollution has now
become even worse, and hardly a day goes by without an article
appearing in every newspaper, or the issue being discussed in the
electronic media and Legco.
Still, health is a very personal thing and the medical
profession is slowly coming over to the point of view that
each patient has at least as much responsibility for and can
influence his health to a probably larger degree than the
physician. The old adage "Prevention is better than cure" is more
valid than ever.
An article by London-based medical journalist Neville Hodgkinson
(author of the wonderful book "Will to be Well", Rider & Co. Ltd.
1984) in the Bangkok Post of 25 September 1990 says:
"A remarkable study from America has demonstrated that with some
straightforward lifestyle changes, advanced heart disease cannot
simply be halted, but actually put into reverse. What is more,
patients with the most severe narrowing of blood vessels serving
the heart are the ones who can improve most - given the right
kind of encouragement and help. The approach that works best, it
seems, is not to give patients a punishing routine of dieting and
exercise ... but to help them to relax and enjoy themselves,
while eating plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables. (...) Stress
control measures included stretching and breathing exercises,
meditation, progressive relaxation, and conjuring up relaxing
images in the mind. (...) No animal foods were allowed except
egg white and one cup a day of non-fat milk or yoghurt. Gentle
exercise to rehabilitate the heart was included - mainly
walking, but totalling at least three hours a week. (...)
Evidence is piling up that prolonged stress - anger,
frustration and hurt - poses the biggest threat to the heart.
It causes cholesterol and blood pressure levels to rise and
increases the tendency of the blood to form clots."
Emphasis in other articles and books on the fitness craze is
on moderation in exercise and not becoming dehydrated. An
article in the SCMP by fitness expert Gordon Ross says: "...
70% of the human body is composed of water and most of it is
contained inside cells. Research has shown that when two
percent of body weight has been lost due to sweating, there is
a reduction in performance and in the capacity to exercise
(...) While engaged in physical activity, drink smaller
amounts frequently but always more than you need (...)
Ultimately, dehydration is the main danger in hot Asian
climates such as Hong Kong, but prevention in the form of
sufficient water intake will ensure the safety margin needed
for all those who intend to engage in stenuous activity."
Purpose of the "MAGIC WALKS" books are not only to help you
discover the marvellous surroundings in the countryparks, but
also to help you to improve health while doing so. Most of the
walks in this volume can be made the year around. Only for the
ones with degree of difficulty of three and over it is necessary
to exercise caution during the hot months of May through mid-
September. Just taking more time and drinking more liquids
will do the job.