Violet Hill & The Twins

On a map this looks like a gentle half-day: under five kilometres between two bus stops. In practice it is one of the hardest short hikes in Hong Kong, and local hikers know it by its step count. Wilson Trail Section 1 crosses Violet Hill and then The Twins, a pair of steep summits nicknamed the Terrible Twins, on a near-continuous staircase from Wong Nai Chung Gap to Stanley Gap Road. The climb starts beside Hong Kong Parkview and turns quickly from tarmac to steps. Violet Hill's slopes are among the least developed on the island, covered in scrub and grass rather than buildings, and the rare Hong Kong iris grows along parts of the upper trail. With so little tree cover the views are open all the way: south over the Tai Tam reservoirs and bay, north back to Wong Nai Chung Gap and the towers of Happy Valley. A trig point marks the summit at about 433 metres. Then comes the real work. The path drops to a saddle near Tze Kong Bridge and climbs straight up The Twins, 363 and 386 metres, with barely any level ground between them. Most people find this stretch harder than Violet Hill despite the lower heights, because the steps are steeper and the rest points fewer. The payoff is a wide view of the Stanley peninsula, Middle Island and Tai Tam Bay, and a short, airy stretch near the Ma Kong Shan view compass where the ridge narrows above Stanley. The descent to Stanley Gap Road is gentler, and Stanley's waterfront is a short bus ride away. Go early in the cool season, take more water than you think you need, and take poles if your knees object to stairs.