Travel

Rocks in Po Toi

by Kitty Lam

Natural environment lovers who have visited outlying islands in Hong Kong are always impressed by the stunning rock scenery of Po Toi Island. Visitors¡¦ imagination runs wild at the sight of the peculiar rocks on the island located in the south-eastern tip of Hong Kong ¡¦s waters.

To come and see the rocks and other attractions of Po Toi Island, visitors can travel between 30 minutes and an hour by ferry from Stanley , Aberdeen , North Point or Kwun Tong.

Ferries are the only means of transport to go to the island. But that does not discourage travellers from visiting the place.

Poon Wai-yin and Luk Pui-ling took about two hours to get to Po Toi from their respective homes in a Sunday morning. The pair of friends likes travelling in outlying islands to get close to the natural environment. ¡§It is boring to shop or walk around in Causeway Bay and Mong Kok,¡¨ Luk said.

Visiting the island for the first time, Poon said she was already captured by the attractive scenery and fresh air. ¡§I like the island because it is far away from the urban area and with less pollution. It has special rock features as well,¡¨ she said.

Travellers can explore the island through two sightseeing routes starting from the pier. One route goes to the Tin Hau Temple which can be reached by turning left from the public pier and walking for about 10 minutes. The other route is heading uphill to see the rocks, and there are many signposts along the way to guide visitors to enjoy every feature of Po Toi, including a magnificent view of the South China Sea , the coastal rocky scenery and ancient rock carvings.

The rock carvings can be found when visitors walk from the pier along the
uphill route for about 15 minutes. There is a marker indicating some stairs on the right that lead to the two sets of carvings, which are declared monuments in Hong Kong .

The carvings are shielded in glass to avoid erosion. One group on the left shows lines and patterns depicting animals and fish, while the other on the right consists of inter-locking spirals. They were discovered in the 1960s.

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Tortoise Rock (left) is one of the famous rocks in Po Toi Island.