Lion Rock & Amah Rock Hike: A Secret Route from Tai Wai
Contents
- Essential Information
- Lion Rock and Amah Rock Highlights
- Amah Rock Folk Legend
- Google Route Map and GPX
- How to Get There
- Quick Route Summary
- Starting with Stairs of Suffering
- Amah Rock Detour
- Amah Rock Views
- Reunification Pavilion (Optional Escape Route)
- Hiking to the Summit
- How to Visit All the Best Viewpoints
- The Way Back
Essential Lion Rock Hike Details
- District: Tai Wai (NT)
- Duration: (if returning to Tai Wai): 2-3 hours
- Distance: 7-8km round trip
- Elevation: 495 meters
- Difficulty: 3.5/5
- Facilities: Vending machine, public toilet at start point
Why Hike Lion Rock and Amah Rock?
Lion Rock (獅子山)is one of Hong Kong’s most iconic and recognizable mountains, appearing in local cinema, pop culture and advertisements across multiple decades. Its revered status has cemented this route as a must-hike for just about every visitor and resident of the city.
Cultural influences aside, summiting Lion Rock offers breath-taking panoramas of Kowloon, Hong Kong Island and much of the New Territories. You’ll also have a high chance of seeing groups of macaques swinging from the trees as you hike.
Most people who hike to Lion Rock’s summit start from Wong Tai Sin MTR station, but that route is often crowded and involves walking up a boring concrete road full of cars and taxis for nearly an hour.
Starting from Tai Wai forgoes all these annoyances and gets you to the top of Lion Rock quickly, in the shade (which actually makes this a decent summer hike option), with fewer people around, and lets you detour to Amah Rock along the way!
Amah Rock Folk Legend
Before beginning your hike, decide whether you want to take a little side excursion to Amah Rock.
The Cantonese name for Amah Rock is 望夫石 (Mong fu shek), which means hoping/watching husband stone. The 15-meter-tall rock looks like a woman carrying a baby on her back if you look at it from the right angle.
An old folk legend tells the story of a woman who returned to the same spot every day to wait for her husband who had vanished on a fishing trip out at sea.
Unbeknownst to the woman, her husband had actually perished on his fishing voyage and would never returned. Guan Yin, The Goddess of Mercy, took pity on the woman and reunited with her dead husband. BY TURNING HER INTO STONE.
Darn, that’s pretty brutal. Guess the baby was turned to stone, too.
On a less depressing note, the view from Amah Rock is pretty sweet as it lets you look out across Shatin district, the Shing Mun River and even Ma On Shan in the distance.
Google Route Map and GPX
How to Get to the Lion Rock Hike Start Point
By Bus
Get off at the Worldwide Gardens bus stop. The start point on Google Maps is ‘Hung Mui Kuk Barbecue Area’. For detailed instructions look at the section below.
From HK Island:
- Bus 182
- Bus 170
From Kowloon:
- Bus 81c (Toward Yiu On)
From the New Territories:
- Bus 81c (toward TST)
- Bus 85
From Lantau:
- Bus E42 (get off at Tai Wai Station and follow the MTR instructions below)
By MTR
Get off at Tai Wai Station exit F.
Tai Wai MTR to the Start Point
Leave via exit F (it's on the platform of trains heading toward Admiralty) in Tai Wai MTR Station and head toward the ‘Octopus Pedestrian Bridge’. Take the Hung Mui Kuk road exit (on the far left of the bridge near the playground and village houses). Go straight past the playground and cross Tin Sam Street via the overhead footbridge.
Keep following Hung Mui Kuk Road (it will slope upward). At the Chung Pak Road intersection, just after the World Wide Gardens bus stop, cross to the other side of Hung Mui Kuk Road.
Nearby, you’ll see a bus stop and another crossing. There, you’ll need to cross back to the right-hand side of Hung Mui Kuk Road to access a set of stairs under a little tunnel.
Take the stairs up. The start point on Google Maps is ‘Hung Mui Kuk Barbecue Area’.
No matter what happens, stay on Hung Mui Kuk Road and you’ll eventually find the stairs to the start.
Quick Lion Rock Route Summary
- Get the MTR to Tai Wai Station and leave through Exit F
- Walk to the Octopus Bridge just past Festival City and head all the way to the end of the bridge
- Take the furthest left exit and walk along Hung Mui Kuk Road, crossing another pedestrian bridge
- Keep following Hung Mui Kuk Road as it ascends upward. You will be able to see Lion Rock and Amah Rock as you head higher.
- Cross to the left side of Hung Mui Kuk Road. This area is where you will alight if you took a bus to Worldwide Gardens
- Take the stairs up at in the tunnel and you'll arrive at the start of the trail
- Follow the stairs with white markers until you reach a concrete road with a little bridge that you should cross
- Follow the Amah Rock sign at the fork just after the bridge (unless you want to head straight to the summit without the Amah Rock detour)
- Follow the trail to Amah Rock (it's steep). The entrance is behind a little gate on your right
- After Amah Rock, follow the trail as he meanders for a while before ascending to Reunification Pavilion
- Follow the sign pointing to the Lion Rock Summit
- Once you reach the summit, you can head up the rocks for a really cool viewpoint
- The main viewpoint is on the left
- You can continue past the main viewpoint to an additional viewpoint about 5 minutes away
- Retrace your steps back and when you see the sign pointing to Lion Rock Tunnel Road, take the stairs all the way down to the concrete road and little bridge
- Retrace your steps back from there
Starting with Stairs of Suffering
Once you arrive at the start point, you’ll see a sign that says ‘Lion Rock Country Park’. This is where the fun begins, and by "fun", I mean stairs. Lots of them. So, grab a drink from the vending machine (next to the country park sign) if you didn’t stock up on water, use the public toilet if you need to and prepare for a steep and rewarding climb ahead.
The first section of the hike is literally a steep set of stairs that forces you to warm up really quick. They get pretty steep, but it's all shaded, so you won't suffer too badly.
When you arrive at a concrete road, head across it and follow the signs pointing you toward "Lion Rock" and "Amah Rock".
Amah Rock Detour
I'd recommend the detour to Amah Rock. If you plan on taking it, head right at the fork and begin the steep ascent. Expect to add an additional 15-20 minutes to your total hiking time if you opt to visit Amah Rock. It's a totally optional detour and you can simply take the left fork to expedite your climb up to the summit.
The climb up to Amah Rock is really strenuous, though it's blissfully pretty short. The entrance to Amah Rock is demarcated with a signboard giving a brief explanation of its cultural significance. A pair of small brown swing gates indicate where the rock is to your right.
Amah Rock Views
Amah Rock is pretty impressive up-close. Just don't expect to see the iconic silhouette of mother holding child from this vantage point!
The views out beyond the iconic rock are also quite the sight to behold! You'll see iconic mountains like Needle Hill, Tai Mo Shan and even Ma On Shan!
I always take this detour on the way up because the views out across the New Territories are just so gorgeous!
Hiking Up to Reunification Pavilion (Optional Escape Route)
Follow the path forward from Amah Rock. There's a bit of climbing, but nothing as strenuous as what you just conquered. Don't miss the little viewpoints along the way, especially the one of Amah Rock!
As you keep heading upward, signs continue to mark your way. You’ll eventually reach the Reunification Pavilion which serves as a crossroads of different paths. From here, you should head to Lion Rock Peak (which is the highlight of this hike).
If you’re tired, you can go back the way you came or take the path toward Wang Tau Hom, which will eventually lead you to Lok Fu or Kowloon Tong MTR, though it takes around an hour from this point.
The adventurous folk should keep the trail to Beacon Hill in mind as it can extend your hike. Or you can do it another time from a different route!
Hiking to the Summit
After Reunification Pavilion, your chances of encountering wild macaques are much higher. Don’t interact with the monkeys, don’t feed them and don’t leave any litter behind. Enjoy these beautiful creatures from a respectful distance and feel grateful that despite all the construction going on in the city, we still have pockets of beautiful wilderness like these.
Monkeys aside, you'll go past an epic outdoor gym where you’ll find older locals using bamboo pull-up bars, engaging in tai chi or doing sit-ups. Feel free to use the facilities if you feel the hike is too easy.
After this, don't miss the rocky outcropping with one of the hike's best viewpoints. These intriguing "side quests" will help break up the steep climb.
Eventually, after some real steep climbing, a wooden fence will let you know when you're at the top.
How to Visit All the Best Viewpoints
Once you reach the summit, there are actually three different viewpoints, which I have made up names for. First is the "Lion's Head" viewpoint, then is the "Lion's Back" viewpoint and finally there's the "Lion's Ass" viewpoint.
The "Lion's Head" viewpoint is on the right of where the steps end. It’s a very short climb up some rocks, but you'll need to use your hands to help you balance on the way up. For those who prefer safer viewpoints, follow the path to your left.
After "Lion's Head", you can head down and follow the wooden barrier to "Lion's Back" viewpoint, which is the most crowded spot on the whole hike.
Head a little beyond this point by going down some stairs and then climbing to another hill a short distance away, and you'll be at "Lion's Ass" viewpoint.
From all summits, Hong Kong looks like a collection of Lego buildings dotting the landscape. With open views across all of Kowloon, Hong Kong Island and much of the New Territories, take some time to appreciate just how insane the city looks from up high.
If city views aren’t your thing, then simply turn around and check out the New Territories behind you. It’s much greener there, though more buildings are cropping up daily to keep up with housing demand (which sucks).
The Way Back
Retrace your steps back down to the Reunification Pavilion.
- From here, you can choose to return to Tai Wai by taking the Amah Rock sign (45 mins). Save 10-15 minutes by taking the Lion Rock Tunnel Road path that shows up during your descent (as per the pictures above)
- Or, head toward Wang Tau Hom (1 hour), which will take you toward Kowloon Tong or Lok Fu
- Or, continue to hike to Beacon Hill for another uphill section and epic view.
