April 29, 2010
Wine & Bike
As most of my regular readers would know, I love the outdoors and on weekends I usually go hiking either on Saturday or Sunday, and sometimes on both days. Last Saturday, though, I did something different. I went cycling with this meetup group called 'Tao of Wines'. Usually this meetup group goes for a hike, and at the end of it, finds a spot to sample a few bottles of wine that they take along on the hike. Last Saturday it was 'Wine & Bike' instead of 'Wine & Hike'. We couldn't have asked for more perfect weather for a picnic last Saturday - sunny blue skies with temperatures in the low 20s.
We met at Tai Wai (大圍) MTR station and rented bikes from a shop opposite the station.
I'm all set to go with a bottle of Riesling stashed in my backpack. Heehee. Other members in the group had goodies stashed in their backpacks as well.
The Tolo Harbour cycling track has proper cycling lanes that run from Tai Wai all the way to Tai Po, passing through Sha Tin and the Tolo Harbour. There are many cyclists on the track with both leisure and serious cyclists sharing it.
In Sha Tin, you'll see the scullers practising in the canal. There were also dragonboaters having a training session.
The Hong Kong Science & Technology Park was our rest-stop after cycling for about 11km. The Science & Technology Park sits in a lovely spot that has great views of the harbour and the hills in the New Territories.
It was such a gorgeous day to dine al fresco!
As you cycle, you'll be able to enjoy the view of the hills that unfold before you. In this photo, you can see the Pat Sin Leng (八仙嶺) ridge.
After cycling about 21km, we reached our end point cum picnic spot in Tai Mei Duk （大美督）. This particular picnic spot is called Chung Pui (涌背). Out comes the wine, cheese, grapes, and bread.
What a great way to end the bike ride! The first wine we sampled was an Australian Logan Pinot Gris 2008. It was really nice and refreshing and I liked it.
The spread.
A view from our picnic spot. It's a lovely way to spend the afternoon fishing or reading a book. I saw people fishing and even managed to see a man net a fish!
You can also cycle to the dam where you'll get gorgeous views of the mountains that surround the area. Here you see Pat Sin Leng (八仙嶺) again with its eight peaks. Pat Sin Leng literally translates to 'Eight Immortal Ridge' and each individual peak is named after one of the Eight Immortals in Chinese mythology. The highest of the eight stands at 591m and the lowest ones are at 510m. I've hiked this ridge before but unfortunately on the day I hiked it, the day was so foggy that I couldn't see a thing below the fog. My fellow hikers and I could only use our imagination. It'd have been an amazing view that greeted us had it not been rainy and foggy that train. The Pat Sin Leng Country Trail is a hike I'd recommend for anyone who hasn't done it yet.
If you're keener on cycling, definitely try out this route for a start. It's a great route for beginners as it's very flat. And of course, ending the bike ride with a picnic is the cherry on the icing for a perfect day spent outdoors!