Buffalo Hill 水牛山 & West Buffalo Hill 黃牛山 are 2 hills located in Ma On Shan Country Park west of Sai Kung. Hikers and instagrammers hit the top mainly for one reason, that is owning their shots with the increasingly popular “Window of the Sky 石天窗”, situated just right beneath the top of West Buffalo Hill, in the Rock Fortress 黄牛石城.

It is an instragram-worthy photo spot, go get your shots to impress your friends! 

This trail is very scenic, you will see the whole Shatin district at the beginning of the trail, as you hike towards Buffalo Hill, you’ll soon discover the Sai Kung district. Along the hike, you’ll enjoy the panoramic view of Ma On Shan country park, it’s stunning! 

Apart from the beautiful landscapes and the “Window of the Sky 石天窗”, “Penis Rock 陽元石” & “Fish Basket Rock 魚簍石” are two eye-catching spots for your instagram gallery too. 

My Trail: 

” City One 第一城 MTR > Greenhill Villa 綠怡雅苑 > FISH BASKET ROCK 魚簍石 > PENIS ROCK 陽元石 > Nui Po Au 女婆坳 > BUFFALO HILL 水牛山 (606M) > WEST BUFFALO HILL 黃牛山 (604M) > WINDOW OF THE SKY 石天窗 > Sam Fai Tin 三塊田 > Pak Sha Wan 白沙灣 ” 

Distance: 13.5 kms
Duration: 6 hours
Elevation Gain: 1069M
Difficulty: 4/5
View: 5/5

How to get there & return:

1. Take MTR Tuen Ma Line to City One 第一城 station, then take exit D to get to Ngau Pei Sha St.

2. Follow on Ngau Pei Sha St. until you reach Sha Tin Wai Rd., at the junction, turn left, and follow on Sha Tin Wai Rd. until you get to the tunnel. 

3. Go in the tunnel to cross Siu Lek Yuen Rd., once you are out of the tunnel, look for Greenhill Villa 綠怡雅苑. There’s a small path next to it, that will be your path to begin the trail. 

4. Enjoy your hike! 

5. You’ll finish your hike at Pak Sha Wan 白沙灣, cross the road and you will see the bus stop. You can get on the KMB bus #92 or #96R to go to MTR Choi Hung or Diamond Hill station, for returning to the city. 

Hike Overview:

Before you begin the hike, please do some stretching to warm up your muscle to avoid cramps, especially on your thigh and hamstring. The level of this trail is intermediate, you will hike across a few mountains before reaching West Buffalo Hill, where you will start your descend and hike to the finishing point. Be physically and mentally prepared for this trail, with the total distance of 13.5 kms and there will be some ups and downs, it’s not going to be easy. But trust me, not only you will achieve it, you will be feeling great doing this trail, because you are going to find it very rewarding. 

After taking the path next to Greenhill Villa 綠怡雅苑, you are starting the ascent in the country park. Always look for the ribbons tied on the branches, so you know you are on the right path. 

After around 2 kms of ascending, you will arrive at your first photo spot, “Fish Basket Rock 魚簍石”, it’s a huge rock with ropes for you to climb to the top. The view up there is beautiful, take some moments to rest and enjoy the landscape.

Continue on with the trail and after slightly over 1 km, you’ll see a big group of rocks, make your descent on the path, soon you’ll find this gigantic rock with the shape of a penis, erecting from the ground pointing towards the sky. That’s “Penis Rock 陽元石”, it’s unbelievable when you see it with your own eyes, it looks exactly like an erecting penis, with testicles.

Now it’s time for you to exercise your creativity and get some nice and fun shots. On weekend and public holidays, there will be many hikers queueing to have their shots taken with the rock.

After Penis Rock 陽元石, you will keep descending until arriving at Nui Po Au 女婆坳, a junction where you can go to Mui Tsz Lam 梅子林 if you turn left, Fa Sam Hang 花心坑 if you turn right, you take neither left nor right. Keep going straight and here comes the challenging 2 kms ascent until you reach Buffalo Hill.

(Fa Sam Hang 花心坑 is an exit point, if you don’t wish to go on after seeing the Penis Rock, you may walk to Fa Sam Hang where you’ll find buses returning to Shatin and the city.)

The 2 kms ascent might be challenging but it’s scenic at the same time because you are hiking on the ridge of the mountains, the scenery is going to take your breath away. Put more sunscreen on your face and shoulder because this part you will be totally exposed to the sun. 

“ Going to the mountains is like going home. ”

– John Muir

From Buffalo Hill, it takes about 1 km to West Buffalo Hill, once you are there, the Rock Fortress 黄牛石城 is just close by. Go look for “Window of the Sky 石天窗”, the highlight of this trail, aim for a big group of rocks, you won’t miss it. I have heard some took a long time to find it and some couldn’t find it the first time. For us, we played smart, we asked the other hikers around the area to locate it. Ha!

To be honest, this “Window of the Sky 石天窗” is really impressive, the nature is such a great architect, incredible! Standing on the rock and look out the “window”, the view is absolutely captivating. That’s no doubt the highest window I have ever been. Try to avoid doing this trail during weekends and public holidays, because you might have to wait for a long time at this spot for pictures. 

 
It is rather steep at the spot, please be extremely careful while enjoying yourself. Watch every step you make and go slowly! 

Next you will descent from the “Window of the Sky”, there are ropes to help you go down. It can be dangerous, so please take all your time and don’t rush. 

You will then reach MacLehose Trail Section 4, it’s a nicely paved path, take your left turn, and head to Sam Fai Tin 三塊田. From now on, it’s going to be nice and relaxing until the end. 

You’ll soon find the sign, follow the direction to Pak Sha Wan 白沙灣, that’s your final 2.3 kms to the finishing point. 

I hope you enjoy this trail as much as I do, this is definitely one of the trails that I will do it again and again.