Sunday, February 15, 2015

Run from Tai Wo to Shek Kip Mei

My wife and I went to Tai Wo 太和 to buy organic produce.  She took the train home and I tried to run back home.  A drizzle started as soon as I took off from the market.  I ignored it and kept running.  Then it got heavier, and I ignored it.  Then it got even heavier.  Someone seemed determined to make me stop.  


I had my mind set on running last evening.  I even checked with my wife to ensure that there was nothing on our schedule that would preclude my running.  So the rain was really annoying.  The more it rained, the more I was determined that I would continue running.  By the time I reached the Science Park it was raining cats and dogs and I was completely soaked, and the University Station of the KCR was close by. By then I had run 8 km in about an hour and it was already a decent good workout. I could have hopped on the train and called it a day.  

But I persisted. By the time I reached Tai Wai the rain had slowed to a drizzle again.  I felt I had won.  But I had planned to run to Kowloon, so I got on Tai Po Road and ran uphill.  That was hard.  


But I was rewarded by scenes that I suspect few people see with their own eyes - there was no one around on foot, and no driver stopped to look.  One is the water treatment plant.  This is where our drinking water becomes drinkable.  The other is the entrance to the Shing  Mun Tunnel linking Shatin with Tsuen Wan. [Actually it is Tsing Sha Highway.  Thank you, Homing Tam, for pointing it out. :-)]


At the top near the reservoir, I found that the battery of my phone was dead - my run was not being tracked anymore!  My legs were wobbly already, and I wanted to stop.  But I was determined to get back to Kowloon, at least to the bottom of Tai Po Road.  Fortunately, by then it was all downhill.  By the time I saw SCAD (what a name!) in Shek Kip Mei 石硤尾, my legs were really protesting, and I decided to take the MTR to get home.  I estimated that I ran ~22 kilometers in ~3 hours.

My ankle is swollen, my legs wobbly, and my legs hurt.  But it is a good kind of hurt, if there is such a thing.  





2 comments:

Homing Tam said...

Dr. Chan, it's not Shing Mun Tunnel in the picture. It's Tsing Sha Highway, linking Taiwan & Cheung Sha Wan. :)

StephenC said...

Thank you so much. I will correct it. :-)