Hiker: M. John Fayhee, writer and editor
executive summary by darmansjah
I heard about this trail as a youngster from my Uncle Jack, a retired
sergeant major in the British Army. The mountain footpaths that were eventually
spliced together to make a continuously marked proper trail had been used
forever for fitness competitions between the various national components of the
British Army. Uncle Jack, as macho a person as has ever been bred, actually
graciously deferred to the Gurkhas of Nepal when he described the MacLehose. He
stated that, tough as he and "his lads" were, they could not hold a
candle to the famed Gurkhas. I hiked this trail in 1987 over the course of a
week and it kicked my ass. —M. John Fayhee
Length: 62 miles
The Details: While Hong Kong may be one of the most densely
populated places on the planet, the surrounding New Territories are rural and
quiet—and they are tough country to hike. The MacLehose Trail makes constant,
grueling 1,000-plus-foot descents followed immediately by ascents along the
fingers of ridgetops, making it more challenging than its mileage suggests.
The trail is broken down into ten sections, starting at the stunning eastern
beaches before climbing up into tropical mountains, where monkeys chatter from
the branches—watch out for cobras—and winding past 3,140-foot Tai Mo Shan, the
highest peak in the area. It usually takes five to six days to complete the
trail, which has been made a bit easier since the days of the Gurkhas with
stone steps and paths and first-come-first-serve free campgrounds. Occasional
food vendors offer more comfort along the way. When you are done, take a cab
back to a hotel in the metropolis.
When to Go: Winter (November-March) is best since summer is
very humid.
About Fayhee: Besides being an expert on the fine arts of
smoking cigars and occupying a barstool, author M. John Fayhee has spent a lot
of time walking across the planet and observing nature and the humans who visit
it. The former contributing editor at Backpacker and author of Smoke
Signals: Wayward Journeys Through the Old Heart of the New West (Raven's
Eye Press, 2012) was also the longtime editor of the Mountain Gazette,
where he built up a faithful tribe of mountain-town followers who eagerly
awaited his monthly columns. An unassuming heir to Henry Thoreau, Edward Abbey,
and Hunter S. Thompson, Fayhee has found inspiration on trails from Mexico's
Copper Canyon to the Rockies’ Continental Divide, but his bucket list trail is
in one of the world's largest cities.
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