164 ©Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd

Sheung •# Shui •# Fanling Plover Cove Tai Po •# •#Yuen Sai Kung Long Peninsula •# Tuen Tsuen •# Sai Kung Mun Wan •# •# •# Town Sha Tin

Clearwater Bay Peninsula •# •#

010km e# 05miles New Territories

Tsuen Wan p 167 Has some of Hong Kong’s most important Buddhist and Taoist monasteries.

Tuen Mun p 169 Visit at leisure the temples and monasteries that dot the landscape.

Yuen Long p171 Hong Kong Park, laid-back Pak Nai and old walled villages.

Fanling & Sheung Shui p 173 A heaven for history buffs, with fortified villages and historic ruins.

Tai Po p 174 Lively markets and temples, plus an encyclopaedia of flora and fauna.

Plover Cove p177 Plover Cove is where you go to hike, hike, hike or bike, bike, bike!

Sha Tin p 181 A New Town with a historical feel, temples and a heritage museum.

Sai Kung Peninsula p 184 Pristine beaches and deserted coves grace this dramatic coastline.

Clearwater Bay Peninsula p 189 The name says it all – beaches with crystal-clear water. 165

MAI PO MARSHES

You’ll witness the magic of migration in Mai Po Marshes, DON’T MISS one of the world’s most significant and a major pit stop for the tens of thousands of migratory  Guided tours to the waterfowl travelling from Siberia to Australasia every Reserve winter. These months are the best time to visit this  Floating boardwalks Hong Kong treasure as you’re likely to spot a number of rare birds; in other months, nature lovers and urbanites alike come here for the sheer beauty and biodiversity PRACTICALITIES of Mother Nature.  %2471 3480  www.wwf.org.hk Mai Po Nature Reserve  Mai Po, Sin Tin, Mai Po Marshes comprise some 1500 hectares of wetlands at the centre of which is a nature reserve jointly managed by the World Wide Fund for Nature Hong Kong (WWFHK)  admission $70 and the government’s Agriculture, Fisheries & Conservation  h9am-5pm Department. Here, the fragile ecosystem abutting Deep Bay  gTake bus 76K simply teems with life. It is a protected network of mud- from Sheung Shui flats, gei wai (shallow shrimp ponds), reed beds and dwarf East Rail or Yuen Long , offering a rich habitat of up to 380 species of West Rail stations migratory and resident birds, more than a third of them rarely seen elsewhere in the territory. The area attracts birds in every season but especially winter, when an average of 54,000 migratory birds – including such endangered species as the Dalmatian pelican, black-faced spoonbill, spotted and imperial eagle and black vulture – pass through the marshes. The nature reserve includes the Mai Po Visitor Centre (%2471 8272) at the northeastern end, where you must register; the Mai Po Education Centre (%2482 0369) to the south, with displays on the history and ecology of the wetland and Deep Bay; floating board- walks and trails through the mangroves and mudflats; and a dozen hides from where you can watch birds up close without being observed. The WWFHK (世界自然基金會香港辦事處; %24hr hotline 2526 1011; www.wwf.org.hk; 1 Tram- way Path, Central) can arrange guided visits to the marsh. Three-hour English tours ($70) leave the visitor centre at 9.30am, 10am, 2pm and 2.30pm on Saturdays, Sundays and pub- lic holidays. The tours can be booked online, but you still need to reserve well in advance, especially during the winter months. Visitors are advised to bring binoculars (these may be available for rent at the visitor centre for $20) and cameras, and to wear comfortable walking shoes but not bright clothing. Visiting the nature reserve unaccompanied (for foreign visitors only) is possible but numbers are very limited. Going solo is in any case not recommended since you’ll miss out on a lot of fun without a professional guide. Call well in advance to book a time. Pay the $100 entrance fee and $200 deposit at the visitor centre; the latter will be returned when you leave the reserve. Bus 76K or red minibus 17 will drop you off at Mai Po Lo Wai, a village along the main road just east of the marsh. The WWFHK car park is about a 20-minute walk from there. Alternatively, a taxi from Sheung Shui will cost $70.