Nestled in the lush green Sai Kung East Country Park, Pak Lap Wan 白腊灣 is perfect for hiking & water excursions. There are plenty of amazing spots to visit like the Mok Min Cave 木棉洞, beautiful beaches and the mountains offering you exquisite view of the surrounding, hikers can feast their eyes along the way. 

Pak Lap Wan 白腊灣 is actually an ideal place for camping if you would love to spend the night at the beautiful beach and explore more around the country park. The beach has basic facilities like toilets, a local restaurant and store where you can get food, drinks and take shower by paying a reasonable price. You can also rent a kayak to go on your own excursion.

Pak Lap Village is a small village locating just 5 mins walking distance from Pak Lap Wan, recently there have been some village refurbishments and the village is now an instagram spot with its colorful houses. 

Mok Min Cave 木棉洞 is one of the many sea caves you will find in Hong Kong. Yes, you heard me, you will be surprised that there are quite some sea caves in this concrete jungle, and many of them will blow your mind away. Mok Min Cave 木棉洞 is one which you can easily reach by feet without needing to swim or take a boat. Read on this blog and I will share with you all the spectacular spots that you must not miss. 

My Trail: 

” Pak Lap Taxi Get Off Point > Pak Lap Village 白腊村 > MOK MIN CAVE 木棉洞 > Pak Lap Village 白腊村 > PAK FU SHAN 白虎山 (156M) > Kei Tau Kok Teng 企頭角頂 > Ma Tau Wan 馬頭環 > Sha Kiu 沙橋 > Tung A 東丫 > Pak Lap Village 白腊村 > Pak Lap Taxi Get Off Point  ”

Distance: 11 KM
Duration: 6 hours
Elevation Gain: 712 M
Difficulty: 4/5
(the challenge of this trail is mainly the navigation part!)
View: 4.5/5

How to get there & return:

1. Take MTR Kwun Tong Line to Choi Hung 彩虹 station.

2. From MTR Choi Hung station, proceed to the C2 exit. Take the green minibus #1A to Sai Kung.

3. From Sai Kung pier bus terminal, get on a taxi and tell the driver to drop you at Pak Lap Wan 白腊灣, it should take you around 20 minutes to get there. Estimate the taxi fare of around HKD120-130, before you get off the taxi, get the number of the driver so you can call him to go pick you up at the same spot for your return. 

4. Your fun hike begins there!

5. This is a circular hike and you will be finishing at the same point where you start. Call for the taxi to go pick you up and drop you at Sai Kung pier. 

6. From Sai Kung pier, you can get on KMB bus #92 to go to MTR Choi Hung & Diamond Hill station.

Hike Overview:

The trail starts as soon as you get off the taxi, follow the sign to Pak Lap Village, follow the steps and walk down, in about 10 minutes you will be arriving at the village where you will see a beautifully maintained grass field on your left and the colorful houses on your right. If you keep going straight you will arrive at the beach, Pak Lap Wan.

After the grass field, pay attention to a little sign showing you the direction to Mok Min Cave, or you can navigate your way through the Hiking Trail HK App, locate your position and the path to the cave, it is easy. From the village, it is slightly over 1 km to the cave.

Once you get to the top of Mok Min Cave, the clear path will show you down to the right side of the cave, before going down, look for a path and get down to the left side of the cave instead. The reason is because you can get a better view of the cave on the left side, not only you will be able to see through the cave to the other side, it is easier for you to walk inside the cave for taking pictures.  

If you are planning on walking inside Mok Min Cave, I’d advice that you check the tidal forecast before going for this trail. During low tide, with at least 1 meter and below, you can walk inside without getting your feet wet. 

Of course, if you don’t mind getting wet, you can still visit the cave during higher tide, just be very careful of the slippery rocks and the strong waves. I took off my shoes and placed it on the rocks and walked inside, it feels so free! If you have aqua-shoe, change it to walk in the water, it protects your feet from cut and slippery. 

After Mok Min Cave, head back to Pak Lap Village, and right in front of the colorful houses, follow the sign to Tung A 東丫/ Sha Kiu 沙橋. 

In less than a kilometer on the concrete path, pay attention to your left and find a clear path with colorful ribbons on the branches, turn left into the path, it will lead you to Pak Fu Shan. 

From now on, you will have to keep tracking yourself in Hiking Trail HK App and navigate your way, ensuring you stay on the right track. I have to say at some parts, the path might be a little bit confusing, you just need to look around and spot the colorful ribbons, that’s where you are heading. It is definitely a training of your navigation skill, it’s fun actually. 

Before getting to Pak Fu Shan, you will arrive at a field where you can have an unobstructed view of the ocean, you will probably see people camping there, with cows walking around eating grass. Spend some time there to enjoy the environment and unwind yourself.

You are very close to getting up to Pak Fu Shan, in less than half a kilometer ascending on the path and you will be there. Up on top, you are going to get a captivating view of the ocean and Town Island.

Next, follow the path for approximately 1 kilometer and you will get to Kei Tau Kok Teng. From there, you can get down to the shore if you want, otherwise you can move on to Ma Tau Wan. 

There’s a nice photo spot down the shore, go check it out! 

Ma Tau Wan, a secluded beach is about a kilometer away from Kei Tau Kok Teng. The path to Ma Tau Wan might not be obvious because of the bushes, make sure you keep tracking your Hiking Trail HK App and spot the colorful ribbons so you don’t get lost.  

Once you are at Ma Tau Wan, you will immediately feel like you are on a holiday. It’s a hidden paradise! You can take a swim and relax at the beach before finishing your last part of the trail.   

“ Hiking side effects include sweating, euphoria and general awesomeness. ”

– Unknown

You will also do some easy coasteering to a small beach before getting back on the path to return to Pak Lap Village, via Sha Kiu & Tung A. 

From the small beach, spot the ribbon and then climb up to the path and you will have your final 3 km to the finishing point (starting point). 

There is a store at Sha Kiu if you want to buy cold drinks, you can also use the bathroom. 

If you are interested in exploring more beautiful sea caves, please check out my Pak Kok Cave Hike on Lantau Island and Twisted Cave Hike in Clear Water Bay. They are breathtaking!