Wilson Trail (Y2013 Winter Trek)
BASIC INFORMATION
Trek: Y2013 Winter Trek
Date: 5 - 15 December 2013
Location: Wilson Trial, 大潭水塘道, Hong Kong
Length: approx 78km
Duration: 10D9N
BRIEF ITINERARY
Day 0
Flight to HK
Day 1
Stage 1, 2
Day 2
Stage 3, 4, 5
Day 3
Stage 6, 7
Day 4
Stage 8, 9 ,10
I would like to express my thankfulness for the wonderful weather throughout the trek (for there was no rain except like a 5 min drizzle) and also for the safety of all 16 of us on the trek. I really appreciate the contributions of my Org Committee, which made sure all things turned out well, the advice that came from the Exco before and on the trip itself and all the participants who were supportive during the trip.
A wise man once said, “A trek is life once magnified and condensed”.
This quote speaks volumes of this trek. If I were to describe the trek in just 2 words, I would have to say, “explosively therapeutic”. This was a face excessively used during the trek after it was coined by our very own Leon and Ka Shing, but as cliché as it may sound, it really personifies the feelings during the trek. Climbing stairs after stairs, peak after peak was something that was no easy feat, especially when the stairs sometimes seemed to go on forever. But it was all worth it; each climb was worth the view. We had many different angles of HongKong to appreciate; their HDB, their jungles, their green canopies, their city landscape, their Lord-of-the-Rings-like scenery.
Day 0
Arrival in Hong Kong, Prep Day
So our fellowship of 16 people left Changi Airport on the wee morning hours of 6th Dec, 1.30am, where we took a 4 hour flight via Scoot to Hong Kong International Airport. We also bumped into some familiar SMU friends who were taking the same flight as us. After some routine airport procedures and a short pitstop at the only convenience store at the airport that was open, we boarded a mini-bus with our luggage and proceeded to take a 45min bus ride to our hostel.
Us waiting outside our Guest House
We arrived about 7ish at the Chung King Mansion Garden Guest House, which was an Indian dominated building with plenty of different guesthouses, and was located only minutes away from the Tsim Sha Shiu MTR Station. The guesthouse wasn’t open for check-in yet, so we hanged outside the building for awhile, before proceeding into building and getting what was soon to be known as the “Hobo Point”. We then took turns to go eat breakfast as a nearby Dimsum place.
Our Hobo Spot in the hostel
The first afternoon was spent mostly at the nearby Mongkok area, where we were shopping for some necessities like our 5 deg sleeping bag. Mongkok area was filled with many stores, of which quite a number was of outdoor gear. Some of us even stocked up on other equipment like Water Bags and Sleeping Mats.
We then proceeded back to the hotel to check into our rooms. At this point I would like to elaborate about a key feature of our hostel. It has 2 lifts, with a maximum load of 525kg, but yet is able to only able to hold 5 people, or maybe 6 with some pinpoint weight distribution juggling stance. We all got rooms of either 2s, 3s or 4s, and to say each room was cramped was an understatement.
We proceeded to do some all important grocery shopping as well as purchasing of the MTR cards, which would provide the fuel for the next 5 days of adventure.
Group 3’s Food Inspection before the trek
Day 2
(Trek Day 1)
Stage 1 (4.8km Strenous)
We woke up around 6 and after shifting all the luggage to a single room at 7.30, we gathered at the Hobo spot for a short briefing on the expectations of trek, and we then took the MTR, followed by a bus at Exchange Square in Central to the start point of Wilson Trail Stage 1. But as we alighted from the bus stop, the map board which marks the start of the trail was nowhere in sight. We attempted a flight of stares only to realize that we were at the wrong location and had alighted at the wrong stop. We retraced our path to the previous bus stop that was the correct stop and the Wilson Trail was in sight, marked by the map board and took pictures before we embarked on the first stage of Wilson Trail.
“Nobody said it was easy,
No one ever said it would be this hard.” – coldplay
We knew Wilson Trail wasn’t going to be easy, but we were kind of stunned at how challenging it was. It was stairs, after stairs, peak after peak. We went up in single file, greeting the many locals we saw along the way, and stopping to admire the occasional view.
An interesting sight along the way was when we were going downslope was this family where the father was carrying his kid in this backpack. That is some remarkable feat.
The views atop the peaks were really breathtaking, both literally and figuratively.
We concluded stage 1 at about 2pm, way behind schedule. We then proceeded to resup our water and have a toilet break before heading up stage 2.
Stage 2 (6.6km Fairly Challenging)
Stage 2 was more of the same, with steps going up a ridgeline.
We stopped to rest along the ridgeline for lunch. Group 1 was well endowed with sandwiches, thanks to Grace. Unfortunately the rest of us did not have the luxury of sandwiches, so we coped well with biscuits, and Pocky, which would turn out to be an integral part of the trek and the RnR. Our lunches for the entire trek were intended to be had on the go, while our dinners were a more lavish affair.
Upon further progress, we finally reached the top of the highest peak in stage 2, where you could see a huge chunk of the Hong Kong city langscape. After a motivational pep talk by MX, we decided to push on to try and hit the first campsite, with the very real possibility of night trek.
The path soon turned from steps to become more rocky and abit more slippery. But our joy was shortlived as we soon returned to our stair ways.
Cramps was also commonplace in the first day, with KaShing being one of the first to experience one of these “explosive” cramps. Benedict Seow was the next to fall victim to it, as he collapsed on the stairs with cramps on his quads. Thankfully, Leon was close behind to come to his aid.
We witnessed a beautiful red sunset by the mountains. We weren’t the only ones who saw it; there was a middle-aged man to purposefully set up his tripod and was waiting for the perfect moment to snap his camera.
We descended the steps, and then geared up for night trek. It got dark quickly when we were going down, particularly due to the thick jungle canopy down there. After about an hour of night trek, we reached a playground, and we decided to harbor there for the night. It proved to be a very decent campsite, although it was partially obstructing human traffic. Thankfully there wasn’t anyone passing by the area. We even had a pavilion and shelter to do our cooking and lepaking. Groups 2 and 4 had decided to collaborate and cook all their meals together. They had pasta with cheese for dinner, a fitting end to the first day. Group 1 had soup with 2 huge loaves of bread which Benjamin Lim had lugged up the trail. Meanwhile, group 4 had a dinner of canned food as they toppled their messtin of half-cooked pasta.
We then prepared our breakfast and lunches for the next day, and proceeded to have a good nights’ rest at 10pm.
Day 3
(Trek Day 2)
First light broke out at about 6am, however it was about 6.30 before the tents finally stirred. It was a sign of the days to come, where we would have a slow but hearty breakfast every morning.
Packing up for Day 2
Stage 3 (6.6km Fairly Challenging):
This stage was unique because it required us to actually utilize the MTR (yes with our heavy bag packs and all). Upon leaving the MTR station, we were greeted with a sight of a mountain in the far North that was as high as the tallest HDB building around. And then reality struck that we were going to scale that. Challenge accepted. Thankfully our fellowship of 16 was just nice a number to fully occupy the public bus (its max capacity is 16), and it brought us from the MTR station to the foot of the hill. With much lethargy from the brief contact with civilization, we pushed on.
The Stage 2 passed by a Chinese cemetery, alongside being very close to the neighboring HDB buildings. We adopted a one-peak-one-rest strategy, as scaling each peak took a lot out of us.
We had a long break at around 11am where we reached one of the highest points in this stage, followed by mandatory posing with shades and group photos and selfies. It was also during this time where Bernard brought out his bananas, which he somehow seemed to have an endless supply of. There was also time for some Hunger Games reenactment by Benedict Seow.
Group 1!
Group 2!
We completed stage 3 by midday, and it began to drizzle. We had hoped for good weather for the trek, and this was the first real threat for it. We stopped for a quick lunch and geared up with our hardshells. 30 mins later, it proved to be hardly warranted as the drizzle subsided. We took another pitstop at a toilet, freshened up and continued on.
We decided to proceed to stage 5 instead due to time constraints.
On the second night of the trek, we camped at a BBQ site that was rather deserted and was also blessed with toilets and clean water. However, a bit further down would be the more happening and active BBQ sites where there were a lot more people and was next to the main road. We had a very good dinner, ranging from Curry Udon noodles to Bacon + Luncheon Meat + Pasta to Cream Pasta.
Day 2 Dinner!
We then proceeded to build our very own campfire at the BBQ pit. It was an interesting experience nonetheless. Theres just something therapeutic about fires in the wilderness.
Clinton decided he would try to sleep outside for tonight, as the view of the sky was magnificent. However, after an hour or 2, he woke everyone as it was raining, and we braced ourselves for a cold night ahead.
Day 4
(Trek Day 3)
Once again, with each morning came a huge slice of inertia to get moving. Although our reveille was 6am, some of us were awokened by the greetings of “Zhao San” by the locals as early as 5am. We had a hearty breakfast of cooked oats, bread and cereal before we proceeded with the trek at 8am.
We also received the shocking news of the Little India riots in Singapore during our warmup, and it was greeted with general disbelief. We also had the amusement of witnessing Zheng Da’s decision to finally change to long pants, because of the mosquitoes.
Second half of Stage 5
This was one of the more interesting parts of the trek; it was just a long and winding road, which finally allowed us to move in more than single files, and have proper conversations while trekking.
Stage 6 (5.3km Fairly Challenging)
This was a very eventful stage for all of us. Firstly, this section of the trail was rather tranquil and beautiful as it was next to the reservoir, and hence was very peaceful. However after a while, we entered monkey terrritory, which was abit Hunger-Games-esque. The monkeys were in groups, and often with a mother who was very protective of her young.
The Monkey Trail that doesn’t seem suitable for families
After we finally ended the stage, we were faced with a dilemma where we were short of water. We had expected the toilets to have taps and proper facilities, but it was just 2 portable toilets. Thankfully for our navigator Wei Jie, and his recce, we were able to find an unlikely water source in the form of a stream flowing from a pipe out of the rocks. This has got to be one of the coolest way to collect water, although it was tediously long.
Collecting stream water
After a bit more exploring in the woods, we then reached a dam with a magnificent view.
All smiles at the scenery
The Dam with a magnificent view.
Thirdly, Wei Jie and I was interviewed by Professor Wong Fook Yee, a geography lecturer from the University of Hong Kong, former Assistant Director (Country and Marine Parks) of the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) just as we crossed the dam.
According to the producer, the interview would be featured on national television at the end of the month.
Interview and photo with the Prof
Following that, we proceed uphill and to our campsite, which we reached super early, at about 3.45pm.
Campsite 3
We had another delicious meal, and then proceeded to have our warm night of just chilling by the fire that was made and maintained by our army-trained guys.
Day 5
(Trek Day 4)
Stage 8 (9km Strenous)
That night was freezing cold, and the morning fire was warmly welcomed by Felicia’s scream of “fire fire”, which prompted those in the tents to react to a turnout.
Day 4 was when Xavier and Guan Wen met up with us with some valuable resup. The trail went into some urban areas, and then back up into the mountains. We stopped at a bridge near the river for awhile, while we had some bought breakfast.
Steps up to Cloudy Hill
We then had a thoroughly challenging climb up to Cloudy Hill. As the name suggested, it was as high as the clouds. It was a pity that most of our view was shadowed by the mist of Hong Kong throughout the trek.
We had thought the worst was over, but boy were we wrong. Day 4 was a day of stairs as well.
Steps steps and more steps
Thankfully, it was worth the view. We had lunch atop one of the higher peaks, and also began to snap more pictures.
We soon reached another dam, this one relatively more beautiful.
The 2nd Dam. Doesn’t it remind you of the Amazon
We noticed 2 bbq sites, and proceeded to stop at the latter one. However, MX, Clinton, Bernard and i went for a long recce to a supposed campsite in search for water source. And it proved to be very fruitful. It was best campsite for the trek, large open area with benches, camp fire and toilet facilities (even for showering).
Some of us even tried to bath in the super cold water, and their shrieks of shock could even be heard from the campsite about 50m away.
We had saved our best meal for last, and it was worth it. We were expecting Eugene and Jia Jie to catchup with us, but it seemed that we would only get to see them on the last day.
Once again, the day ended with a campfire at the BBQ pit, its warmth much needed.
Stage 9 10.6km (Strenous)
We met up with the Presidents early on day 5, and our climb quickly escalated. In my opinion the scenery of this stage was arguably the most beautfiul.
Awesomely Scenic Spot
We also finally made it ot .693, which was the highest peak of our entire trail, and the view was to die for. The winds were also very strong, with Eugene being the only brave soul who was in just tshirt and shorts.
Stage 10 (6.8km Fairly Challenging)
The last stretch of the trek was a series of 7 peaks, of up and downs. Morale was high and also excited at the prospect of finally ending the trail.
The 7 peaks of Stage 10.
Along our descent, we also passed the flower garden, which was a sight to behold.
Clinton and the purple flowers
And after abit more navigation and a lot more descent on rocky steps, we finally reached our end point, and promptly rested at the playground.
End of Trek Photo!
Thank you to those who made this trip possible! Can’t be more grateful for the friendships forged during this trip and the experience of trekking the Wilson Trail.
Written By: Leah Kwang, Trek IC
