Hong Kong Trampers: Just Turn Up & Start Walking
"We meet up in a lighthearted manner, but we take hiking and the preservation of the countryside and the habitat of Hong Kong’s wildlife seriously." wrote John Ure, one of the founding member of the Hong Kong Trampers, a group of passionate trail walkers who gather and organize weekly walks every Sunday morning.
Since its informal formation in 1997, it has seen hundreds, if not thousands of highly memorable walk and completely non-commercial gathering. Its members — my self included — are submitted based on presence alone: Just turn up & be responsible for your self.
There may be countless of beautiful places around the world, thousands of incredible trails in every continents, but no walk is ever truly enjoyable without a great group of company, and the HK Trampers is one-of-a-kind. I have not seen anything quiet like it elsewhere.
If you ever find your self in the city, just go to the website and find the next rendezvous and show up. You're in on a big day.
The way how the trampers operate promotes sustainable fun, based on a communal need for a pure experience. It does not get tainted by commercial interest or social agenda.
This is what I'm not seeing enough in places in the Lonely Planet destinations. Wouldn't it be awesome if we can just arrive in a place with our backpack and not to have worry about someone sniffing our pockets for every dime we have? For all the urban extravagance Hong Kong tends to create, it'd the last place on earth to expect such a decent hospitality. Maybe that's what's great about it; whenever I find my self craving for Polo Pao I have another reason to convince my self to come and visit.