Pictures are here.
Tried my best to return home early on Friday night to catch some good sleep for what was supposed to be a highly strenuous hike on Saturday (54KM Stages 3,4,5,6,7,8 of the Maclehose). A little too confident in my fitness level, I decided to pooh-pooh going home early and went to Lan Kwai Fong instead. I left LKF at about 11PM. As I was walking home from the TST MTR station, I heard Michael Jackson yet again. “Cheapy” DVD store near the TST station has managed to keep Michael Jackson’s spirit alive ever since his demise, albeit the motive being increased revenue. “Dangerous” was playing loudly on the one big LCD TV outside the store and Michael Jackson had managed to take the place of prominent Chinese singers who were constantly being featured on the same LCD TV prior to his death. About 20 people outside the store were captivated by MJ’s moonwalking. I left the store amazed by the entrepreneurial skill of these small shop owners. Slept at about 1AM.
Got ready for the hike and left at 7AM with superior confidence in my hiking abilities. We started the hike at 8.45AM from Pak Tam Au. The sun was shining threateningly but that didn’t stop me from accelerating and I was a little too quick despite reminders to go slowly to maximize endurance. We finished Stage 3 in 2 hrs 10 mins. My teammates were as fit as trained soldiers. I had not anticipated such strong fitness levels among my teammates and this was the best team I have ever been with!
Kai Kung Saan – the first killer of the day
We did Stage 4 around noon time. The heat was destroying my confidence levels. I had to pour water over myself and the lack of sleep from the previous night came back to haunt me. I was falling asleep as I was walking. But, bailing out was not an option. I somehow managed to finish Stage 4 and reach Sha Tin pass in good time. 2 people bailed out then. I wasn’t going to.
Incredibly fit team. 21hrs will be a breeze at this level of fitness
My biggest mistake for the day began then. I drank way too much water and Tau Cheung (Soya bean milk). Felt sick as I was going up Stage 5. I was also sleeping every now and then. Had no choice but to seek the bailout option. One of my teammates had similar problems. The other 2 were fine.
At the end of Stage 5, we all decided to quit. 2 of us including me had to quit but the rest could have continued.
Lessons learnt: (a) no LKF the previous night (b) plenty of sleep necessary (c) got to go slow initially when endurance is important (d) got to do something about the heat -not sure what-
Tags: Hiking in Hong Kong, Kai Kung Saan, Maclehose 3, Maclehose 4, Maclehose 5, Sha Tin Pass
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Tags: Kai Kung Saan, Maclehose 3, Maclehose 4, Maclehose 5, Sha Tin Pass