Hong Kong's number 1 trail
The best ride Hong Kong has to offer, this thrilling downhill has it all. a fast following trail with nasty drops and killer technical sections
Getting there
To reach the start of the Tai Mo San country park it is best to hire a van or take a car or taxi. It is particularly brutal to ride up. From Tseun Mun head up Route twisk road Most van and taxi drivers know the way. On reaching the top of route twisk look for a carpark on the left hand side. This is the unloading spot.
To the trailhead
Exit the carpark turn left, a 500m road ride will take you to a right turn in the road, look immediately to the left of the barriers and you will see a small clearing. You are at the trailhead.
Trailhead to the Kap Lung Trail
The first 200m of the ride is technical and treacherous, beginners beware! Once through the rocky steps the trail levels and contours the hillside. Follow the trail for roughly 1km until you come upon a split in the trail, to the right is the Kap Lung trailhead. Here you will notice a bench and a map.
Kap Lung to Ho Pui downhil
Continue along the left trail, which immediately takes a sharp left turn down, after about 200m you hit a very nasty section, Beware! For the next 4k the trail meanders through the forest. You will cross two streams all the time losing elevation. It's a beautiful section where you can ride flat out. Before getting to Ho pui reservoir downhill a clearing on your right will let you see Yuen Long valley and into Shenzen if the weather is clear. After another 500m you will come across a turn off to the right with a signpost pointing down indicating the downhill route to the reservoir
The start of the 2km downhill is steep and gnarly to begin with but soon levels out to a more manageable
ride. At the bottom the last drop is daunting but rideable, this will bring you out to the reservoir, look to your right to see where the trail continues, this bottom section is more technically challenging. The trail ends at the concrete road, turn left over the bridge, immediately on your left you will see a BBQ area, just beyond that is a road to the left that climbs sharply. Follow this all the way up to the dam and a Chinese style pagoda.
Ho Pui reservoir pass to Tai lam reservoir
From the pagoda you will notice a sign for MTB trail follow this path. After about 15m the path veers to the left and starts to climb, continue along this trail until you reach a set of concrete steps that only the foolhardy will try! Hike a bike down the steps and then up a rough rutted section until you reach the top. At the top the path splits, to the left is the Ho Poi contour trail. To the right the trail descends, take this trail. It is very rough with a lot of rock gardens and drops The danger here is loosing balance and dropping off to the side where the slope is precipitous and rock strewn. At the end of this section is a set of stairs leading to a service road.
Tai lam reservoir to The Gold Coast
At the service road turn left. After about 2k of fast sealed road you will come across a sitting out area with benches and tables on your left. A little chinese style bridge crosses a stream and marks the start of the Maclehose trail that contours Tai Lam reservoir. This is a fast rolling trail that is ideal for beginners. Continue along the trail until you reach a steep section of steps and the exit onto a sealed road. Turn left and follow it straight down, eventually you see the Gold Coast residential buildings and the road to the Gold coast marina, an ideal place for food and drink and to organize transport home
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Trail Finder - Tai Lam Country Park (2.9 MB) and handy Route Finder: Route Finder - TMS (2.42 MB)
Check out pictures of riding Tai Mo San in our gallery