Little Hawaii

This late autumn day blessed us with generous sunshine.  We had a family outing with a group of young children.  There is plenty of water to play with in this area of eastern New Territories.

The Little Hawaii of Tseung Kwan O used to be a private pool for rich tycoons, perhaps a few decades ago.  There are three significant points of interests on this trail.  The first one is the Lin Yuen Terrace Falls, and I would say this is where you see a rather pleasing water scene.  Then there is the Little Hawaii Dam, and it is more a stream than a waterfall.  Then finally the farthest end of the trail is Tai Ngau Wu, which we did not visit this time.

Apparently, Little Hawaii was a very popular destination for the annual primary school outings, again perhaps a few decades ago.  Yet this was the first time I have even heard of this place.  It did not disappoint, however, and I had a wonderful time with the children.

The Little Hawaii Trail

On Wing Lai Road, we entered the Little Hawaii Trail.  At the crossroad we took to our left and visited the first waterfall, the Lin Yuen Terrace Falls.  The path was a gentle incline.

We were on this part of the trail for perhaps some fifteen minutes, when we felt the distinct presence of water.  We heard the stream singing.  It became cool, breezy, and a fresh humidity tapered the heat of this sunny day.

The children could not have had enough of this downstream pool.  Not just our children, everybody else searched for a spot to set down.  There were quite a lot of people indeed.  To me, taking off the shoes for a cool wash was about enough.  The children changed into their swimsuits and played.

Soon enough they had their attention on the living things in the stream.  There were some really small fishies.  The fathers showed them tadpoles, with the nets that other tourists left behind.

We left the Lin Yuen Terrace Falls and upward to the Little Hawaii Dam.  Back at the crossroads again we turned left, and took on a gentle incline for another 20 minutes or so.  We came across the stream.  As compared to the Lin Yuen Terrace Falls, this area is much more open.  There was plenty of sunshine.

Then we walked up to the Little Hawaii Dam just to take a look.  For activities, the downstream area was safer.

The lesson for this day is, don’t get the children excited over tadpoles.  They continued to play with what tadpoles they saw at the Little Hawaii Dam area.  They did not want to leave, and as a result we had our lunch really late in the afternoon.

Dangers and Annoyances

At the Lin Yuen Terrace Falls it is possible for one to tread the waters upstream.  As always, I do not recommend any risk-taking, particularly when it comes down to water trails.  I am certainly not experienced enough to do that, so I only went up about ten meters to take my photographs.   I then stayed at the downstream pool with the children.

Another annoyance is the mosquitoes.  The Lin Yuen Terrace Falls area are well-shaded.  This is the kind of habitat that grows fierce mosquitoes.  Therefore bring your mosquito repellent!

How to Get There

We went by private car and parked at Wing Lai Road.  Parking was not so easy and we had to park illegally on the roadside.  The closest MTR station is Po Lam and from it a 20-minute walk to the entrance of the Little Hawaii Trail on Wing Lai Road.  There are many road signs pointing the way to Little Hawaii in the Tsung Kwan O Village area.