Hiking pictures here.
20-something Trampers showed up today for a day of waterfall exploration. There were several new faces too, including combat-ready
Pictures are here.
According to the weather report, there were supposed to be some serious thunderstorms today. Fortunately, they were completely wrong
Hiking pics here.
Started at 10.30AM (Pak Tam Au) and reached the starting point of the climb to Sharp peak by 11AM. (so far so good).
But, the sun hit
2009-06-07, Shui Lo Chu Pools
Written by Vince,
*excludes traveling time
Shui Lo Chu
Hong Kong is probably best known for its high end (and freezing) shopping
If you are still strong and energetic but don’t wish to be an old balding man driving a red Ferrari several years down the line regretting having spent your youth banging on a keyboard and staring at a Bloomberg terminal instead of whizzing past picturesque landscapes at 15,000 feet, then this trip is for you.
Mission codename: “Operation Kashmir” Objective: To drive from Manali to Leh on a motorbike crossing several passes at 15K feet and to enjoy spectacular views of the placid Pangong lake at 15,000 feet. We may then do the Nubra valley circuit riding across Siachen glacier and Khardungla pass.. The squad:
- You have to be Indian citizens (we need special permits only issued to Indian citizens) with exceptional motorbiking skills and a license to drive in India
- So long as you are confident in your driving abilities, there is no need for you to have driven at high altitudes before
- You have to be adjusting, accommodating and should possess a good sense of humor and a spirit of adventure Leaders:
- Prashant Kukreti
- Vince Natteri
The Plan: (tentative)
June 25th 2009:
Leave from Hong Kong or wherever you are for New Delhi, India
June 26th 2009:
Reach Manali and get the bikes. Kukreti and I will see if we can talk to the bike shops beforehand and get 5 Pulsars ready
June 28th 2009:
Drive from Manali to Keylong and chill there
June 29th 2009:
Drive from Keylong to Sarchu and chill there
June 30th 2009:
Drive from Sarchu to Pang and chill there
July 1st 2009:
Drive from Pang to Leh and get all the permits sorted out
July 2nd 2009:
Give Pang Gong lake a visit (350KM back and forth)
July 3rd 2009:
Rest
July 4,5,6 2009:
Nubra valley circuit
July 7,8,9 2009:
Reserve days
July 10th 2009:
Return from Leh to Delhi
July 11th 2009:
Return to Hong Kong
Risk assessment:
1) Do not underestimate AMS. These altitudes will give anyone a headache even if you are hulk Hogan. Please Google online
2) Weather is unpredictable: It can literally change overnight. If Rohtang pass is closed, this trip will be off and we will plan a new trip on the spot
3) Roads are used by crazy, drunken Sumo drivers who drive like maniacs and the Indian armed forces. You need to have good driving skills
4) Your boss might fire you for taking 10 days off but this is not as big a risk – you will still survive.
20-something Trampers showed up today for a day of waterfall exploration. There were several new faces too, including combat-ready Kevin from the UK, who had evidently paid utmost attention to the Tramper rucksack details listed on the website. He was wearing camouflage pants, had sturdy waterproof hiking boots on and several pouches containing life-saving equipments like a torch were attached to his belt.
We left at 10.45 AM to embark on a 20-minute walk that led to the base of the stream. As we approached the stream, the fragrant smell of fresh stream water hit our noses and the sound of the water hitting against the boulders intensified.
Shoes and socks came off and many of us immersed our bare feet in the purifying stream water. We were all like children in nature’s playground as we hopped from one boulder onto another in order to reach the Wong Lung Hang waterfalls. The water current was very strong because of the previous day rains and there were several challenging boulder hops on the course to the waterfalls. While the gentlemen offered their helping hands to those who needed, Francis seized on this opportunity to help a beautiful lady Tramper by giving her a Stream Hiking 101 lesson. In fact, we could hear the conversation. It went something like this:
Francis: Put your leg here, hand there and gently move forward. Be careful of this rock (blah, blah)
After 2 minutes, I could hear her say “But we should have gone THAT way!”
About one grueling hour later, we reached the mesmerizing waterfalls. Many of us simply couldn’t resist a dip in the enticing water. At this point Francis approached me with an unusual request. He wanted me to buy some very unique cloth made of jute from my upcoming trip to India. He came to me bringing a cigarette lighter and a piece of cloth. That conversation went something like this.
Francis: You see, this is a genuine cloth made of jute. Can you observe the natural color? Feel the cloth. (He then brings another cloth for comparison). Now, this is artificial. If I burn it, you’ll notice that the strands turn black and the feeling will be of burnt plastic. That’s why it is artificial.
Arianna, who was sitting 2 rocks away, came closer to me and confessed her curiosity. She felt the specimen cloth too.
“Is this guy in the fashion industry?” she asked in amazement.
As I burst into laughter, I asked her to look at his green shorts, his unusual hat and rethink her question. She then retorted “You know you can get a lot of strange guys in the fashion industry”.
A refreshing swim and a couple of group photos later, Dominic and I were off to high speed yet exhausting finish.
It finally came to this! Here I am standing in front of Cheung Kong Center holding a placard saying “I want to have lunch with Li Ka Shing”. Actually, inspired by the guy next to me (Brian Chau) who wants Mr. Li to invest in his company!! I told him that if he’s successful in securing funding, Mr. Li can expect me to be standing there next!
According to the weather report, there were supposed to be some serious thunderstorms today. Fortunately, they were completely wrong and the day turned out to be cloudy with some sunshine here and there.
I decided to start a Plover Cove run at 11AM from Wu Kau Tang. Was targeting a 2PM finish but stopping to take photos on several occasions cost me at least 20 minutes. The visibility was fantastic and views from Plover Cove were simply stupendous.
I saw a green snake (about 1 meter in length) during the start of the hike and the discovery startled me. The snake slithered away as I came to a screeching halt downhill. There were about 5 people total on the trail. 3 were probably illegal immigrants from China (the shoes/cigarettes were unmistakable).
Finished in Wu Kau Tang at 2.30PM (30 minutes late) but considering the photo stops, it was pretty good. I reckon I can complete the circuit in less than 3 hours with a light backpack and no photo stops.
The brave ones:
Despite Francis’ deadly threat of stripping down to his underpants for a swim, an unbelievably large number of psychologically strong Trampers (close to 40!) joined today, putting utmost faith in the powers of the Shui Lo Chu waters to cleanse their minds of any lasting impression of that sight.
In fact, I was so overwhelmed by the large turnout that I even forgot the customary check of Lutz’s backpack for explosives (he is known to carry Yau Ma Tei batteries that explode randomly). Winnie who rarely shows up was present, Peter was there carrying a handmade Chinese fan to cope with the heat, Chris who joins about 2 hikes in a year showed up, Wendy joined us sporting a stylish new backpack, heeding Francis’ advice of showing up for hiking with a backpack and not with shopping bags.
How we got there:
Given our large number, we had to take two buses to Tai O; 23 including me in one bus with Ringo, our Senior Vice President for navigation leading us in this bus and about 17 in the other bus with navigation-in-chief Alex in charge of them. Destination was Sham Wat road.
After a nice long 1-hour bus ride to Sham Wat road, we started to climb our first and highest hill for the day – Keung Shaan in Man Cheung Po (550m). Given the scorching heat, the pace of the walk was expectedly slow – in fact, so slow that its pace could be compared to the progress of the ongoing Nina Wang court case.
The waterfalls:
Fast-forward to 2PM and we were ready for our descent to Shui Lo Chu waterfalls. Excitement was building up and cameras started clicking. The path down was so steep that it mandated intermittent rock climbing and boulder hopping.
I could hear Amanda shouting to me from somewhere behind – “[this time] I am behind you Vince!” Of course, she was playing safe after remembering an occasion back in history where I “allegedly” set off a boulder that gathered momentum, sped downhill and hit her legs causing her to collapse to the ground instantly (she hasn’t been able to produce proof of this incident since).
The weather surprisingly turned cloudy in the afternoon providing much needed relief from the stinging rays of the sun. We were all captivated by the sheer beauty of the waterfalls. The climb was well worth the effort and the scenery was an absolute treat to our senses. Several of us couldn’t resist taking a dip in the water and enjoy the natural massaging feeling of mineralized water hitting against our backs from an altitude.
The “aha” moment:
Regular readers should know by now that Francis is pretty popular for his hiking wear. In fact, I have suggested to him several times that he should start his own brand called ‘Nature Wear’ and I am sure his products would sell so fast that shopkeepers in Mong Kok and Wanchai would beg him to manufacture more. Take for example, his ‘khaki’ shirt, the 100% natural cloth for which was bought in India and carefully designed and stitched in the middle of a jungle in Burma by a gifted lady known to live up to 200 years. His hat is nothing short of a true masterpiece. Something I like to call ‘Flap Cap’ (trademark) because of its eerie resemblance to a kangaroo’s long ear tied to a made-in-Bhutan strap and worn along his forehead.
Today, when everyone was wearing the usual boring cotton shorts and conventional swimmers, Francis put on his Indian/Chinese collaboration Green shorts AND a red headscarf (made in India). In fact, Lisa who is already familiar with his idiosyncrasies was more surprised than usual which prompted her to ask a question..
“Why do you have to wear that???!!!” she asked puzzled and chuckling, referring to the headscarf.
All eyes were on Francis as he jumped into the water, enjoyed a swim and climbed out of the water. There was a slight problem though – his trademark Green colored made-by-some-old-lady-in-some-remote-location shorts evidently didn’t do the best job of retaining its opaqueness once it started to absorb water. In fact, it became translucent and even bordered on being transparent. And thus came the headscarf to his rescue. It doubled as a made-in-Malaysia sarong that he spontaneously wore around his shorts to guard his privacy.
The finish:
After soaking up the beauty of the waterfalls, we were off to a nice downhill trek to Tai O where we boarded a speed boat to Tung Chung. Catherine, who lives life to the fullest, grabbed a front row seat on this thrilling high-speed ride back to civilization.
We departed our own ways upon reaching the MTR station, marking the end to another great Tramping weekend adventure to sink into the beginning of yet another long workweek.
Thanks go to Alex, Ringo, Nerissa, Francis, Lisa for all help with navigation.
Also, I can finally tell where we have been, thanks to my state-of-the-art GPS receiver. You can see a map of the route taken today on http://techotek.com.
Started at 10.30AM (Pak Tam Au) and reached the starting point of the climb to Sharp peak by 11AM. (so far so good).
But, the sun hit me so strong and I didn’t have a cap (left it on the bus by mistake). Speed went down and I had to drink plenty of water. Reached Sharp peak only at 11.45AM (1 hr 15 mins – horrible). Saw Thomas Berns on the way and he was visibly struggling. Saw Caroline a little later.
Had to go back the same way walking (didn’t have energy to run) and reached Pak Tam Au at 1.50PM.
