The Voice of HKHA

Route Introduction

Standing alone on the Top Hill Military Road in Sheung Shui, Wa Shan.
On top of Wa Shan, you may enjoy the magnificent scenery of Ng Tung River, gaze afar for the sky-high Wutung Shan in Shenzhen, and escape from the hustle and bustle of daily life. Resembling to “the Great Wall” as put by LCSD, the Wa Shan trail is a moderate difficult route suitable for family hiking. The Top Hill Military Road was used as sites of border patrol before the handover, stretching across ranges of Cheung Po tau, Cham Shan, Ma Tau Ling, Tsung Shan, and is now referred as “The Mini Great Wall”.

Starting point: Sheung Shui Fu Tei Au / Man Kam To Crossroad

Finishing Point: Peng Che Road, Ta Kwu Ling

Length: About 5.8km

Transportation

Take Kowloon Motor Bus Route 73K at MTR Sheung Shui Station to Fu Tei Au.

Return Transportation

Take Kowloon Motor Bus Route 79K from Peng Che Road to MTR Sheung Shui Station, or take minibus route 52K to MTR Fanling Station.

Level of Difficulty

2 stars (out of 5 stars)

Duration

About 2 hours

Remark

The route is suitable for moderate hikers and family hiking. Most of the route sections stretch across the open mountain landscape (below 150 meters). Do bring enough water and apply sunscreen in rainy and extreme hot weather.

Landscape

Depart from Sheung Shui Bus Terminus next to the MTR Sheung Shui Station. Take Kowloon Motor Bus Route 73K to Fu Tei Au. You’ll arrive at the starting point across the road. The beginning route section is relatively flat and will only turn bumpy for a short distance of a few kilometres after it takes you to Cham Shan. The rutted hiking section is made up of mostly military concrete pavements with mountain trails on steep slopes. You may have a view of the Shenzhen-Hong Kong borderline, Ng Tung River , the sky-high Wutung Shan in Shenzhen, and a number of historical sites along the journey.

Walk up to Tai Ling Stele, the stone tablet erected since the Daoguang reign of Qing Dynasty (in 1839), on which most of the characters are still visible after years of weathering. All 5 sides of the stele are engraved with Chinese characters, with “Tai Ling” written on the top. (the original name of Wa Shan).

After the break, get a view of Tai Ling Firing Range with 2 stone tablets writing “Luk Yau Shan” and “Extended Vision to Mainland China” along the path.

To the right of the top of Tsung Shan stands a military emblem of the Royal Hong Kong Regiment (The Volunteers) across the bushes. Even the Regiment was disbanded in 1995, volunteers nowadays continue to revamp the emblem from time to time. At the foot of Tsung Shan is the Shan Wai/Tai Ling PLA Firing Range.

Walk along and you’ll see a popular model aircraft flying field.

After crossing Tsung Shan will come the downhill section all the way long till Wo King Shan village, where you may head to Peng Che Road in walking distance.

Route Map