If you are ready for a significantly longer and more challenging route, the South West coast of Lamma is even more impressive than SE one.

  • Beauty/fun: 8.5/10 impressive route full of slabs, fun scrambling walls, tons of little creeks coming down the walls, even caves with waterfalls, nice sandy areas. Usually not as clear water as in the Eastern Hong Kong, although the day we were there it was very good.
  • Difficulty (check this link if new here, this is not your standard HK hiking web): 9/10 really long route with two very different sections. The first half is full of slabs, climbs and complex navigation. The second is easier and easier, with sandy flat parts at the end and a lot more protected from wind and waves. Only messy and long potential early exits available.
  • The map (how to download to your phone offline maps)

See full screen & Garmin track.

As already mentioned in the the previous post, the Sham Wan restricted area is only accessible now (2021) from 1st November to 31st of March. It had been long in our to do list. Still warm, not bad wave forecast, there we went in early November.

Colin in his map had marked approx 8 hours required to do it all. The early sunset could be a problem. First ferry to Sok Kwu Wan therefore 😴 Arrive at around 8am and walk to Sham Wan beach. From the very start scrambling areas, big boulders, and slabs.

Some inlets required swims, sometimes we went up high almost till the bush line, sometimes fun (but tricky for beginners) traverses.

I have marked (brown line) an emergency exit close to the very tip of the first peninsula. I’ll write later another post with several dry options around. In any case, not an easy one. Hard bush and long hike to go back to the starting point. Now that I think about it, it could be used in summer time to avoid the restricted area.

Continuing on the coastline into the second bay. Tyler enjoying the clear cool water.

Just a little later another inlet that we were going to shortcut swimming, but Tyler found

that it was really nice inside. Water falling from atop in a nice colored “gorge”.

Continue on the huge boulders (“mini Tyler” for size reference) & easier slabs,

before arriving at the best known place in the area: Water Curtain cave (水簾洞).

Even if it had not rained significantly in months we could enjoy the view. In summer time it can be almost a wall to cross through to arrive at the little beach and cave. A video with the two waterfalls for reference.

And a reminder of rocks. We were joking, saying that 10% of the rocks that we stepped on moved. Even huge ones. I guess due to very little, or no coasteering activity in big parts of the route.

Next to the aforementioned waterfall I have marked in green the usual hiking paths used to arrive there in dry mode and a new shortcut we found recently, brown line. In any case, again, a long bushy exit out.

On the coastline, moving forward still some slabs and sections to wade carefully.

But easier and easier. Above all once we turned North. Several beach areas included.

Coleman’s Beach the biggest. Later still a few nice rock formations and a man made pool

where you can remove the salt. Or walk a little bit further to shower at Lo So Shing Beach. From there easy walk back to the ferry.

Everything you should know before coasteering.