Practicing social and physical distancing as well as forest bathing up on Braemar Hill one May day (Photo-essay)

I can't say it enough: I'm so grateful that Hong Kong's country parks have stayed open throughout the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic (and, for that matter, the political unrest that has consumed Hong Kong for a year or so now).  While I ended up not hiking for much of 2019 (thanks in no small part to my taking part in a number of long marches throughout the city; some of which were made particularly physically demanding through the sheer number of people who turned up, others from the police and associated others making movement difficult, and still others from the police unleashing tear gas on protestors), I've actually been venturing into the country parks pretty regularly in 2020 and plan to do so in the coming months despite summer, with its attendant high temperatures and humidity levels, having arrived already.

With the rest of this week forecasted to be on the very hot side, I decided to take advantage of today being a partially cloudy -- and therefore at times cooler -- day by hiking for a bit in the Braemar Hill section of Hong Kong this afternoon.  Early on in my Hong Kong hiking days, a friend and I got lost in this part of the Hong Kong countryside that's got quite a number of hiking paths, many of them unnamed.  In recent years though, I've got to know this area pretty well -- and like that quite a bit of it doesn't attract the crowds that, say, Mount Parker Road or Mount Butler do.  

Thus it was that I was able to spend some time most definitely socially and physically distancing while "forest bathing" this afternoon.  And it wasn't until I got back home from my hike that I found out that: a) today was yet another day in Hong Kong with zero new Wuhan coronavirus cases reported (and the 16th since the most recent confirmed local transmission in the territory); and b) from this Friday, a number of social distancing measures will be eased -- including cinemas and bars being allowed to re-open after having been closed for weeks! :)   

One of still so many (ribboned) trails in Hong Kong 

that I've yet to go on (and, actually, may never do so)!

Scenic view from the far western section of Sir Cecil's Ride

There's no public access to Braemer Hill's wireless station 

but I now know about the path that takes one around 

its main building and into the transmitter field! ;b

This "secret" area is normally quiet but today, there were

cleaners about and there also was the disturbing sound 

of gunshot issuing from the nearby firing range :(

 

The kind of view that gets one realizing how green

much of Hong Kong -- even Hong Kong Island -- is

 

Further evidence for my case: Mount Parker (in partial

shadow thanks to the huge clouds overhead)

 

 At the same time, there's no denying that Hong Kong is home

to a lot of buildings, and many of them tall ones at that! ;b

And while many homes in Hong Kong don't come with gardens,

sections of the country park can feel like one's private garden at times :)