Day 181: The Reverse Dragon's Back (not a sex position. probably)

I was really determined to get the hike I messed up done before leaving Hong Kong, and with only a couple days left, this was the day to do it. Unfortunately the weather was hot and incredibly humid, and the 600ish stairs I almost jogged up last time were hellish obstacle this time. The Hong Kong Island Trail is divided up into 100 sections, with a marker roughly every 500m marking the section. The navigational mistake I made last time was following the trail the proper way (from 92 to 100 or something), when I should have followed it backwards (the Dragon's Back section is like 82-87 or something).

The initial stages, to get to the trail I wanted to do, were a bit dull. The trail hugged along the hills, but the jungle was too thick to have much of a view. Eventually I got to the marker confirming that I was on the right path this time!

Why exactly is it called the Dragon's Back? Well...

The hills/mountains stretch out as a peninsula that makes up Shek O Country Park, and the Dragon's Back is the section of the trail that runs straight across the line of peaks, undulating up and down over their summits with views down at the water on both sides.

This was far from the end of my hike though. The trail does its best to keep away from civilization, and I ended up having to go quite awhile without water in less than ideal conditions. I hiked all the way back up the peninsula around the sides of the mountains (checking out a few beaches along the way - boat access only), then around the Tai Tam Tuk Reservoir to end up near Stanley.

I came upon a nice little rest station which had vending machines, so I got myself a much needed lemon green tea and relaxed for a bit before catching a bus from here back north to near the subway line. I'm not sure how far I went, since it's hard to map out with all the winding trails following the hill countours, but I started out around 10:30am and caught the bus around 5pm. Overall it was a good hike with some lovely views. The only person with a better view? This guy.