ASIA RUNNER – Hong Kong Running and Multisports

Hong Kong offers one of the most active running and athletic communities anywhere in Asia with the added benefit of being the hiding place for many talented athletes. There is a good combination of city parks and plenty of country parks with easy striking distance from the city centre. There is no excuse not to get out and start clocking some miles.

BEST PARKS IN TOWN
www.lcsd.gov.hk/parks

Hong Kong Park Located behind Pacific Place shopping mall,
Hong Kong Park has some nice paths and various pretty landscaped features that make it ideal for a morning run. Directions: Admiralty MTR Exit C1, take footbridge across road then take escalators to the park
Victoria Park, Hong Kong Island Victoria Park is a magnet for all kinds of sport enthusiasts. A 600m long jogging path cuts through wooded areas and passes various fitness stations. The park also has a foot massage garden (a pebbled area where you can walk upon without shoes) Directions: Tin Hau MTR Exit A2
Kowloon Park, Kowloon
This 14-hecatare oasis is set right in the heart of Tsim Sha Tsui. Within it is a fitness trail that goes through Chinese gardens and a banyan tree court.: Tsim Sha Tsui
Directions: MTR Exit A1
The Peak Circle Walk, Hong Kong Island
For a 4km lap, with picture postcard views start at the Peak Tower, run along the cliff-side Lugard Road overlooking the city’s skyscrapers and the Kowloon Peninsula. As you round the peak, the view changes from urban to rural. Below is a green valley and reservoir with outlying islands and the South China Sea in the distance. www.peaktrail.net

LONG DISTANCE TRAILS
All four of these trails are marked with distinctive signs 500m apart and these are sequentially numbered. Plan your hydration carefully.

MacLehose Trail (100km)
Stretches across the New Territories from Sai Kung in the east to Tuen Mun in the west. The Sai Kung area is particularly beautiful with pristine beaches and towering mountains.
The latter stages of the trail reach Hong Kong’s highest point, Tai Mo Shan, before descending into an area of outstanding reservoirs and soft trails.

Lantau Trail (70km) Located an easy bus or cab ride from the airport the Lantau Trail combines easy contour running mixed with extremely rugged mountain running. A simple introduction is to take the cable car from Tung Chung close to the airport, get off at the Big Buddha and then follow the trail in either direction.

Hong Kong Trail (50km)
Runs along the spine of Hong Kong Island from the Peak to Big Wave
Bay. Take the Peak Tram to the top and join the trail along Lugard Road. One option is to run the first half to Wong Nei Chong Gap where public transport is easily available

Wilson Trail (70km) The city’s newest trail is a hybrid that starts near Stanley on the south side of Hong Kong Island, uses the Mass Transit Railway to cross the harbour and finishes near the Chinese border. Some of the toughest climbs are reserved for the last bit of the route.

HONG KONG ANNUALS
Hong Kong Marathon March - www.hkmarathon.com

RUNNING SUPPLIES
There are a handful of small specialist running stores in Hong
Kong where advice as well as gear can be sought. For a complete listing check out www.hkrunners.com
WEATHER
Rain:
Year round, but particularly heavy May - September

Uncomfortable months:
May - September can have oppressive humidity.

Temperature:
Typically 20-34. Short cold spells now and then from October to March.

For more information on Bangkok, please consult our links section

Have you got something to add about the running scene in Hong Kong? Drop us an email and we will add the information in the next issue of the magazine and update the website.
info@asiarunner.com