An upper Northeast New Territories hike (Photo-essay)

As I write this, the Weather Underground of Hong Kong website has it that it's 1.8 degrees Celsius up on Ngong Ping (and actually -4.3 degrees Celsius after factoring in wind chill)!  Even at sea level, it's on the distinctly cold side -- e.g., it's currently 6 degrees Celsius in Tsuen Wan, 6.6 degrees Celsius in Sha Tin and 7.5 degrees Celsius in Shau Kei Wan.

In contrast, the maximum temperature on the summer's day that the photos in the photo-essay below were taken was 34 degrees Celsius!  Consequently, even though the fire lookout my hiking buddy and I climbed up that day is only atop a 300 meter high hill up in northeast Hong Kong, trust me when I say that we felt quite a sense of achievement -- as well as were bathed in sweat -- when we got up there.  And while the trail after we got down to Kuk Po was on the level side, the lack of tree and other overhead cover in the area is something that both my friend and I aren't going to be forgetting any time soon... ;b

I didn't realize it when I took this photo but the 

Shiny-spotted Bob is a very rare butterfly indeed!

 

 The view southwards from the hill takes in part of  

Pat Sin Leng, the Plover Cove Reservoir and  

Tolo Harbour, and also Ma On Shan

The view north from the fire lookout takes in the

Starling Inlet and, across it, mainland China

A well worn village path takes one down the northern 

side of the hill to the largely abandoned hamlet of

Kuk Po and its neighboring environs

One would think that a beautiful building in a scenic location

would not be left abandoned but one would be wrong!

In this part of Hong Kong, one is as -- if not more -- likely to

come across feral cows than one's fellow humans!

With the help of my zoom lens, Shenzhen really doesn't look

that far away from the shores of Hong Kong where I stood

when taking this photo!

Concluding with another bug pic -- this one of a critter 

whose shape got me thinking it's some type of wasp but whose

shiny nature I found very unusual as well as eye-catching...