There aren't that many people mountain biking here, but the few who are active are very ambitious and know exactly what we're looking for. They give us the tip to try the "Tai Lam Country Park", which covers the hilly area northwest of Kowloon. Here we find jungle biking at its best. Well-signposted single trails lead us in a steady up and down between the jungle giants.
The air is saturated with moisture, it splashes and drips everywhere and a veritable concert of chirping, whistling and unfamiliar animal noises envelops us. It smells musty and sweet and after the first few meters we are already drenched in sweat. The hills don't rise that far up here, but the constant alternation of technical descents and short, steep climbs really exhausts us in the humid climate. The terrain makes up for this. It seems as if the paths had been artificially created with mountain biking in mind. Here you will find everything that is fun: loamy berms, bumps, small and large edges that you can jump over, narrow, steep serpentines... pure riding pleasure!
And the nature changes every kilometer. Dense jungle alternates with passages through sparse deciduous forest, small gravel tracks on which the handlebars almost fly out of your hands turn into lovely little paths across green meadows. And it stays like this all day long. Our grins get bigger and bigger despite the effort. Another small but crisp climb and then the last ten kilometers are all downhill out of the valley. We've earned it! In front of us lies the Tai Lam Chung Reservoir - a huge turquoise reservoir. Only now do we realize that our water bottles have been empty for some time. The desire to drink becomes almost overwhelming in view of the crystal-clear water next to us. But it's not far now and nobody wants to risk an upset stomach. In the last evening light and in a huge cloud of greedy mosquitoes, we reach the small suburb of Kowloon, where the driver we ordered is already waiting impatiently for us.
Text: Jan Sallawitz | all photos: Stefan Hunziger
