"Malaysia. We started walking at night from near Pantai Cenang. We scared off groups of aggressive monkeys by shouting and throwing rocks. We reached the start of the Seven Wells when the sun was warming up. We made our way through dense jungle and had leeches sucking our legs. I got dizzy after we left the easy part behind us. The path became roped and very steep. We rested, endured and made it to the summit at noon. Got a ride back from two Indonesian artists who play Dutch disco music and a friendly driver from a closed resort. We wore face masks and practised social distancing." — Pieter • Apr 20, 2020

"Coastal village path + HK trail section 8 (Dragon’s Back) Start; Lin Hok Sin Koon bus stop - take #9 bus from Shau Kei Wan MTR Finish; Big Wave Bay - take red minibus to Shau Kei Wan MTR http://www.16seats.net/eng/rmb/r_h09.html Fare 10 HK$ * Cash only * From the bus stop walk back up the road a bit towards the opposite direction bus stop to find a proper stepped zig-zag path down *ignore the steep straight concrete steps alongside a drainage channel* At the bottom an interesting coastal village path** wends it’s way south via five tiny sleepy old villages facing across Tai Tam Harbour to Stanley. The first, Lan Nai Wan, has a small temple (Lin Hok Sin Koon). The fourth village, Ngan Hang, has a small beach with WWII concrete machine gun positions. To Tei Wan has a nice beach and is busier owing to its location on the Hong Kong trail. All the villages bar To Tei Wan contained unleashed barky Chinese village dogs in the habit of loping over to within a few feet to check you out. In Ngan Hang a gaggle of 7 came over to ‘say hello’; I wanted to get a picture of them but didn’t have my camera to hand. **Don’t venture on the coastal village path if dogs alarm you Much is w..." — davidb • Mar 27, 2020

"Hong Kong trail section 7 with Obelisk Hill sidetrack loop + D’Aguilar Peak Start : Tai Tam Reservoir North bus stop - take #14 bus from near Sai Wan Ho MTR Finish : Shek O beach - take #9 bus home to Shau Kei Wan MTR Follow the flat HK trail to marker post H075 where a bridge crosses the catchwater and a ribboned trail goes north up Obelisk Hill. From here an anti-clockwise circuit back to H075 takes a little over 1hr. The actual summit of Obelisk Hill is a fenced off GPS station. 200m prior stands one of two concrete obelisks built ~1900 by the navy. The second obelisk can be spied away to the south on the shore by Red Hill. Ships moored in the natural shelter of Tai Tam Bay used the obelisks to calibrate, aka “swing”, their compasses; the obelisks lie on the same line of longitude, so by lining up on them sailors could accurately define true north. A secondary use for the obelisks may have been to navigate obstacles on approach to Tai Tam Harbour. Descend NW to regain the HK trail at marker post H071. Soon after the summit are some WWII defence buildings to explore; an old fibreglass helmet liner lay on a window ledge, what era I don’t know. Continue on the HK..." — davidb • Mar 26, 2020

"Hong Kong trail section 7 with Obelisk Hill sidetrack loop + D’Aguilar Peak Start : Tai Tam Reservoir North bus stop - take #14 bus from near Sai Wan Ho MTR Finish : Shek O beach - take #9 bus home to Shau Kei Wan MTR Follow the flat HK trail to marker post H075 where a bridge crosses the catchwater and a ribboned trail goes north up Obelisk Hill. From here an anti-clockwise circuit back to H075 takes a little over 1hr. The actual summit of Obelisk Hill is a fenced off GPS station. 200m prior stands one of two concrete obelisks built ~1900 by the navy. The second obelisk can be spied away to the south on the shore by Red Hill. Ships moored in the natural shelter of Tai Tam Bay used the obelisks to calibrate, aka “swing”, their compasses; the obelisks lie on the same line of longitude, so by lining up on them sailors could accurately reference true north. A secondary use for the obelisks may have been to navigate obstacles on approach to Tai Tam Harbour. Descend NW to regain the HK trail at marker post H071. Soon after the summit are some WWII defence buildings to explore; an old fibreglass helmet liner lay on a window ledge, what era I don’t know. Continue on th..." — davidb • Mar 26, 2020

"Malaysia. Two playful dogs followed us from Tanah Rata Park. We named them Corona and Ebola. They went with us to Parit Falls, up hard in the jungle all the way to the summit and back down into town. Got a ride after monsoon rain hit us on the way back." — Pieter • Mar 19, 2020