Castle Peak, Hong Kong
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Castle Peak (, sometimes transcribed Tsing Shan) or Pui To Shan () is a 583-metre (1,913-feet)-high peak in western
New Territories The New Territories (N.T., Traditional Chinese characters, Chinese: ) is one of the three areas of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory, and contains around half of the population of H ...
, Hong Kong. It is also the highest granitic hill in Hong Kong. In contrast to its Chinese name, which means green hill, Castle Peak is notorious for its severe loss of vegetation and
weathering Weathering is the deterioration of rocks, soils and minerals (as well as wood and artificial materials) through contact with water, atmospheric gases, sunlight, and biological organisms. It occurs '' in situ'' (on-site, with little or no move ...
of its
granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...
surface.


Geography

The hill looks to be triangular, with two other peaks surrounding the hill in its north and south (with heights of 539 metres (1768 ft) and 517 metres (1696 ft) respectively). The area to the west of the hill is an industrial area with two power plants owned by CLP ( Castle Peak Power Station and Black Point Power Station). It is also the old name of
Tuen Mun Tuen Mun () or Castle Peak is an area near the mouth of Tuen Mun River and Castle Peak Bay in the New Territories, Hong Kong. It was one of the earliest settlements in what is now Hong Kong and can be dated to the Neolithic period. In the mo ...
during early British rule before starting development of
Tuen Mun New Town Tuen Mun New Town (formerly Castle Peak New Town), commonly referred to simply as Tuen Mun, is a satellite town of Hong Kong. It is one of the new towns that were developed by the Hong Kong Government in the New Territories from the 1960s. ...
. In early proposal of the development, the
new town New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz (South Korean band), The Boyz * New (album), ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** New (Paul McCartney song), "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * New (EP), ''New'' (EP), ...
was named ''Castle Peak New Town''. Castle Peak is unique in that it is among the few prominent mountains in Hong Kong which are not inside a
country park A country park is a natural area designated for people to visit and enjoy recreation in a countryside environment. United Kingdom History In the United Kingdom, the term ''country park'' has a specific meaning. There are around 250 designated c ...
.


Formation

The shape of the hill is formed by wearing and erosion on the granite forming the hill. This weathering erodes granite blocks, causing disintegration of the blocks. The granite are broken into smaller pieces, where they fall and accumulate on the less steep slopes in the west of the mountain. As there are more steeper slopes on the eastern side, some of the debris would fall down there to the Tuen Mun Valley.


Castle Peak Hinterland


Firing

Most areas north of the mountain and west of the mountain are commonly known as the Castle Peak Hinterland. Much of this large rocky hinterland is a designated
firing range A shooting range, firing range, gun range or shooting ground is a specialized facility, sports venue, venue, or playing field, field designed specifically for firearm usage qualifications, training, practice, or shooting sport, competitions. ...
used by the
People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the military of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People's Republic of China (PRC). It consists of four Military branch, services—People's Liberation Army Ground Force, Ground Force, People's ...
and police forces in Hong Kong, and is named the "Tsing Shan Firing Range". Warnings are issued to the public before live military exercises are carried out. Sometimes the Firing Range is open to the public, but before venturing into the restricted areas, it is best to confirm the days on which the hinterland firing range is open to the public by searching for "firing range" in the Hong Kong Government press release websit

The press releases concerning the firing range for any given month is typically released one week prior to the start of that month. Generally speaking, Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays are open days. There are many hills that are considered sub-peaks of Castle Peak within this hinterland. Mountains Kon Shan and Por Lo Shan are frequently visited by hikers because the area's terrain has been compared to that of the
Grand Canyon The Grand Canyon is a steep-sided canyon carved by the Colorado River in Arizona, United States. The Grand Canyon is long, up to wide and attains a depth of over a mile (). The canyon and adjacent rim are contained within Grand Canyon Nati ...
in the US, but on a smaller scale. The summit of Castle Peak is not part of the Hinterland and is accessible daily, some of the routes leading up to the summit, namely from the north and west, may be closed because of military exercises on select days.


History

The name Pui To Shan was associated with a Buddhist monk '' Pui To Sim Shi'' (). In Cantonese, ''Pui'' means "cup", ''To'' means "water-crossing", ''Sim Shi'' means "Monk of Zen". Legend has it that the monk had travelled over water in a cup and finally reached the Castle Peak. He established a monastery on the hill, which became the present-day Tsing Shan Monastery. Early records have indicated that the peak was an island once named ''Tuen Mun Island'' (). Its former channel with
Kau Keng Shan Kau Keng Shan ( Cantonese: 九逕山, Yale romanisation: gáu ging shāan) is a hill in Tuen Mun, the New Territories, Hong Kong and stands opposite from Castle Peak. Kau Keng Shan has a height of . During the Ming dynasty era (1368–1644), th ...
of an important sea route in
South China South China ( zh, s=, p=Huá'nán, j=jyut6 naam4) is a geographical and cultural region that covers the southernmost part of China. Its precise meaning varies with context. A notable feature of South China in comparison to the rest of China is ...
. Defence structures were built on both hills.


Hiking

Known as one of Hong Kong's "Three Sharp Peaks", Castle Peak is a challenging hike that's mainly composed of a series of stairs all the way to its 583-meter summit. The start of the hike is on Yeung Tsing Road in Tuen Mun, right where the Tsing Shan Monastery sign is. The safest way to hike Castle Peak is to take the stairs straight to the top and then take the same stairs back down. It is also possible to hike down into the "hinterlands" beyond, though this route is steep, slippery and tricky.


See also

*
Tuen Mun New Town Tuen Mun New Town (formerly Castle Peak New Town), commonly referred to simply as Tuen Mun, is a satellite town of Hong Kong. It is one of the new towns that were developed by the Hong Kong Government in the New Territories from the 1960s. ...
*
Castle Peak Road Castle Peak Road ( Chinese: 青山公路) is the longest road in Hong Kong. Completed in 1920, it has the approximate shape of an arc of a semi-circle. It runs west from Tai Po Road in Sham Shui Po, New Kowloon, to Tuen Mun, then north to Y ...
*
Kau Keng Shan Kau Keng Shan ( Cantonese: 九逕山, Yale romanisation: gáu ging shāan) is a hill in Tuen Mun, the New Territories, Hong Kong and stands opposite from Castle Peak. Kau Keng Shan has a height of . During the Ming dynasty era (1368–1644), th ...
* Three Sharp Peaks of Hong Kong *
List of mountains, peaks and hills in Hong Kong The following is a list of mountains, peaks and hills in Hong Kong. In the Hong Kong Government Cantonese Romanisation, romanisation system used by the Hong Kong Government known as Standard Romanization (Cantonese), Standard Romanisation, 's ...


References

{{coord, 22, 23, N, 113, 57, E, display=title, region:CN_type:mountain_source:GNS-enwiki Mountains, peaks and hills of Hong Kong