How to hike Tai Mo Shan

Tai Mo Shan is the tallest mountain in Hong Kong and the second tallest coastal peak in China. Smacked right in the centre of the New Territories, it is also called Old Big Head or, literally, Big Hat Mountain. If you haven’t been there, you must. It’s a treasure trove of mature trees, shady glades and rushing streams, with butterflies, birds and larger fauna in abundance.

Read more: Best hikes in Hong Kong

Getting there

Take MTR to Tai Po Market Station. Get a taxi for a quick trip up Sai Sha Road and arrive at the Tai Po Kau Forest car park.

Start at Tai Po Kau

All the Tai Po Kau trails are well signposted in a clockwise direction. But for this walk you need to follow the brown trail anti-clockwise, or going backwards, so you need to start at the end of the trail. Climb up the short section of road from the car park and, at the warden’s post, take the lower unmarked road rather than the higher signposted one. That bit is important; it’s not hard if you start in the right place.

There’s a section of road for a kilometre or so, but then you have the joy of entering real forest. Follow the brown markers around the northern side of Grassy Hill, until the Forest Walk signpost, where you deviate off the trail to connect with the road to Lead Mine Pass. At the fork in the road, go right.

Stage 8 of the MacLehose Trail starts at the pass, and from there it’s a straightforward climb up Tai Mo Shan. It’s steep at first, but soon levels off. This section seems popular with local hikers, both muscle-bound, Lycra-clad trailwalker types and the more cautious, swathed in scarves and teatowels, and equipped with hats, sunshades, knobbly sticks and Cantonese opera.

Arrive at Tai Mo Shan

When the Big Hat doesn’t have his cloudy hat on, Tai Mo Shan offers a clear view of his strange headgear: an accumulation of radio, satellite and military installations. It’s worth making the summit trip on a clear day for the magnificent panorama that throws Hong Kong’s bumps and wrinkles into clear relief. From up here, you can see nearly all parts of the territory and Shenzhen to boot.

Getting back

There are many options for the return trip, depending on how much gas is left in your tank. If you left a car at Tai Po Kau, try taking another route back down through the forest, perhaps even climbing Grassy Hill on the way. Or you can go over Needle Hill and past the Shing Mun reservoir. Or simply stroll sedately down Route Twisk to catch Bus 51 to Tsuen Wan MTR.