Nam Sang Wai

Birds, open ground, a clean river– thee are all things that you would associate with the great outdoors and very, very not Hong Kong. Sai Kung aside though, there is one particular location in the North West corner of Hong Kong, just outside Yuen Long, that may change your perception of what the «fragrant harbor» is all about.
If you came here looking for completely unfettered nature– then you would be hugely disappointed. This part of the Yuen Long was previously a collection of neglected farmland, floodplains and just land that was not yet planned for anything. However, human activity was clearly possible and the river that runs through it had been polluted to the point that nothing without a hazmat suit on could survive in it. An overhaul was conducted by the government in widening the course of the river and cleaning out all the gunge in it and this had revitalized the location as a spot of natural attraction.
Seasonal birds migrate here, there are some features of the ones abundant marshlands and more importantly at the end of the road that runs along the river, there is a large piece of flat green grassland that permits any kind of activities. You can fly kites, ride bikes or let your kids run loose like the plains of Africa. The problem with all this is that at the weekends this means complete gridlock and meanwhile you still have to fight the cyclists also coming through here.
All the downsides though, are nothing if you could make it at sunset and you see the sun dipping below the horizon. Its a beautiful sight and one that is certainly not very Hong Kong.

Nam Sang Wai is a very nice and popular area for locals outing at the north of Yeun Long (another is Ha Pak Nai, which I have a separate review). It’s quite close to Yuen Long town center actually and so besides driving, one can get there easily by taking bus route no. 76K on Long Yat Road in Yuen Long or bus route no. 68X from Tsuen Wan MTR station.
It’s bounded by 3 rivers, the Shan Pui River (where the little crocodile was discovered and later captured and transferred first to Kadoorie farm and subsequently the Hong Kong Wetland park, affectionately named Pui Pui after a naming contest jointly held by RTHK and AFCD), the new Kam Tin River and the old Kam Tin River. The common route of exploration is to walk around the triangular piece of land along Nam Sang Wai Road at its outer perimeter. Trying the small local boat (called Nam Sang Wai ferry) to cross the river Shan Pui River is also a special experience on local culture, as it is the only river-​crossing ferry remaining in Hong Kong, after the other one in Tai O was abolished. The area is partly luscious trees (River Red Gum trees mainly) and partly is a wetland area where you can see the mudskippers and fiddler crabs. The sandbar at the intersection between Kam Tin and Shan Pui rivers is a popular spot for bird observers too.