Hong Kong’s 5th major trail commemorates late community legend Nic Tinworth, with iconic sights along 92km route

Hong Kong now has a fifth major trail route, named after the late community legend Nic Tinworth.

The 92km Tinworth Trail, dedicated to the former trail race organiser who died two years ago after a long battle with a brain tumour, runs from the North East of Hong Kong to the South West, starting at the mainland border in Sha Tau Kok, and ends in Tai O on Lantau.

The route was created in the image of the famous four trails that preceded it – the 100km MacLehose, 78km Wilson, 50km Hong Kong and 70km Lantau Trail.

However, the Tinworth Trail is not official, and therefore does not have designated markers like the others.

Like its official counterparts, the trail is split into 10 sections, but is a completely original collection of paths. It only crosses the MacLehose for around 3km on Tai Mo Shan and less the 1km of the Lantau Trail.

Other than that, it offers a unique way to explore Hong Kong.

“Part of it was that I had a strong desire to stay off the four trails as long as humanly possible,” said Will Hayward, 55, the Hong Kong-based New Zealander who designed the Tinworth Trail.

“It’s like the four trails but a little bit more adventurous. It’s pretty similar to the four trails [in difficulty], there are just three sections that are a little bit more through overgrown trails. None of them are that long.”

Despite Hayward’s insistence on avoiding the more famous routes, he still made sure to take in some iconic trails and viewpoints.

Section One goes over Robin’s Nest, which has stunning views of Starling Inlet, Pat Sin Leng and Shenzhen, while Section Three traverses the Tai Tao Yan ridge line. Section Eight takes you over Tiger Head above Discovery Bay, and Section Nine goes up the Lin Fa Shan Trail, which has amazing views of Sunset and Lantau Peak.

It’s not just the natural wonders, though.

“I like that it’s really varied and that there are lots of quintessential Hong Kong experiences,” Hayward said. “After Tai Mo Shan, about 2km on from [Route Twisk] you basically run through the kitchen of a restaurant.

“They have their washing up supply on one side of the path and the restaurant on the other side of the path.”

At the end of Section Six, you have to get from Sham Tseng in the New Territories to Lantau Island, before jumping on a minibus to Tsing Yi station, and taking the MTR two stops to Sunny Bay – echoing the use of public transport in other iconic routes.

The trail has been designed to commemorate Tinworth, who co-founded the trail race company RaceBase and was a tireless figure in promoting trail running, and including newcomers.

“I’ve always felt, since Nic passed, he had a lot of knowledge and spirit for the community that has been lost and I’ve been thinking of a way to keep that alive,” said Hayward.

Tinworth designed a lot of routes and organised monthly meet-ups for them, with his desire to create new ways for people to explore echoed in the new trail named after him, the creation of which became a community project.

“He created a lot of great trails, let’s keep them going. I just think that it’s a nice way to keep his knowledge alive,” Hayward said.

Steve Carr, RaceBase’s co-founder, helped Hayward in the early stages, while trail runner Vic So pointed out shops and other facilities – and the famous Sham Tseng Chan Kee Roasted Goose restaurant, where the New Territories section ends.

Top runner Tom Robertshaw also drew Hayward’s attention to the short but beautiful Hok Tau Country Trail below Pat Sin Leng.

Tinworth’s partner Nia Cooper and his family also contributed.

“Slowly over time, we added more people. The wisdom of crowds will come up with better things than just me,” Hayward said.

Hayward hopes that, over time, the Tinworth Trail becomes part of the fabric of Hong Kong’s rich trail and hiking communities, with people spending their weekends ticking off sections of it like the MacLehose Trail.

“It’s not an event, it’s just a trail. People can do it how they want, when they want,” he said. “We are not making any money from it.”

Before Hayward publicly launched the trail, Hong Kong-based Nepalese runner Dina Bagale completed the whole route in around 20 hours, posting it on his Strava account.

The positive response from commenters was gratifying for Hayward.

“If no one does take any interest, then that might be mildly disappointing,” he said. “I’d love it if people got really excited by it and started to do it. They are always looking for new places to explore. It might be a slow burner.”