Crescent Island 娥眉洲

 “If the sound of roaring waves is exhilarating, calm waters are medicine for all who are tired and need to cleanse their souls. If you feel you are ready to start again, come to Crescent Island.”

「如果洶湧的浪聲令人感到激昂，那平靜如水的鏡面，必定是人們走累了，洗滌心靈的藥，如果你 需要重新出發，就來娥眉洲吧。」

Crescent Island also known as Ngo Mei Chau is very appealing with its martial arts inspired name and its U-shaped viewed from above resembling a crescent moon. Although it is close to Yan Chau Tong Marine Park, it is just outside the boundary with Wan Chau separated by a straight coastline. Although it is not part of the Marine Park, its ecological landscape value should not be underestimated.

娥眉洲，這個具武俠特色的名字已經很吸引了，再加上高空看呈現U型，故英文名為Crescent Island，意指新月。它雖然靠近印洲塘海岸公園，卻剛好與灣洲相隔了一條直門海岸，而置於界線 之外。它雖然不屬海岸公園範圍，其生態地貌價值不容輕視。

The U-shaped Crescent Bay creates calm waters that nurture colourful corals. Queen Elizabeth once visited this place before Hong Kong’s reunification, giving this place a sense of nobility. Most people come here for snorkelling and camping but with an island of this size, how can one just stay on the beach? I was convinced that the hidden charms of Crescent Island were yet to be discovered so I decided to take a trip to the other side of the island.

娥眉灣因呈U形，形成平靜水域，孕育七彩珊瑚。回歸前，英女皇曾到訪，令此地多了一份貴族的神聖感。大部分人只會在娥眉灣浮潛露營，然而一個面積這麼大的島嶼，怎能駐足於沙灘？我很  相信，娥眉洲的隱藏魅力有待發掘，所以決定往島的另一面走一轉。

We came with our camping gear to stay here for two days and one night, determined to explore different parts of the island. There is no ferry service or pier at Crescent Island. We had to contact a boatman to get here. My companion Ah Hang and I set off from Wong Shek Pier and the boat ride took about 20 minutes. When we arrived at Crescent Bay, we hastily opened a tent, put our bags in and then took our pre-packed waterproof backpacks back to the boat and asked the boatman to take us to the east side of Lo Kei Wan. After a boat ride along the land route that we will be exploring today, I realized it’s going to be a long hike! Oh dear, I should have just come for a barbecue! Too late now!

我們帶同露營用具來兩日一夜，決意要海陸空全方位探索。娥眉洲沒有渡輪服務及碼頭，所以要  自行聯絡船家前往。我和同伴阿恒在黃石碼頭出發，船程大約20分鐘。到達娥眉灣後，我們急忙 開了一個營帳，將行裝放進去，再拿事先收拾好的防水背包重回船上，拜托船家載我們到東面的 籮箕灣，坐著船沿路經過今天即將綑邊的路線，才發覺 真是大長征呀～不如坐船遊覽然後回去燒烤吧！

Joking aside, any path taken is a real adventure. As soon as we got off the boat, we saw the strange rock 'Dragon Drop' on the right-hand side of Lo Kei Wan. The rocks along the edge of the mountain have been eroded by weather and looks like a lazy dragon swimming slowly into the water. It's not easy to stand on the back of the narrow dragon and stay calm. My feet were trembling, so I decided to give up standing.

說笑的，用雙腳走過的路才是真正的探索。一下船就見到籮箕灣右手邊的怪石「龍落水」，沿著山邊的岩石因風化侵蝕而變得斷落有致，好像一條懶洋洋的巨龍，慢慢游進水裡，站在淺窄的龍背上，裝作陣定神氣不容易呀～易腳軟的人還是放棄做龍的傳人吧。

After taking photos, we headed towards the left side of Lo Kei Wan. Fortunately, the sea was calm. The tide was out. I could walk through the water which was nice. This did not last long! Once I left Chik Mun Channel. the waves started to build. I had to walk carefully along the rocks. I didn't know then that the road ahead was about to be the most challenging I have ever embarked in my life! After walking for about half an hour, I saw a fault in the side of the hill, cut open on both sides to create a passage just large enough for one person to pass through, with a large boulder above my head which sealed the top. This scene reminded me of the movie 127 Hours, where the hero's hand was stuck in a boulder inside a canyon. It took him more than five days to free himself. There is no point in trying to conquer nature but to learn to respect it for accommodating us.

拍照後，我們就正式朝籮箕灣左手邊走，幸好海面平靜正值退潮，我可以涉水而行，涼浸浸舒服 多了，但好日子不長，離開直門海峽後，海浪開始大，安全起見要走岩石，當時我還不知道，前面的路即將是我人生中最高難度及危險的一次綑邊，難度系數絕對是爆星！走了大概半小時，看見山邊出現斷層，斬開兩邊有一條通道，剛好夠一人身位通過，頭上的大石像積木，拼巧封了頂，這 個情景讓我想起外國電影127小時，男主的手卡在峽谷的大石裡，經過5天多的努力才解救出來。

人類置身大自然顯得渺少，意圖征服它是沒意思的，不如學會敬偎感謝它容納我們。

After spending some time here, I didn't realise that the highlight of the day was just around the corner! There is very little information about Crescent Island on the internet, but there is mention of a stone arch bridge shaped like a sacred stove. I have seen a lot of sea eroded arches, but this is the first time I have seen an arch bridge built into a mountain. It is 20-30 metres in height from top to bottom. I tried to walk up but there were no giant trees on either side for support. The gravel consists of stones in different sizes. It was impossible to estimate the depth. It’s quite scary, if it wasn't for good skills and experience, a normal person would never get up there. You walk one step ahead and you slip half a metre down. I was crawling on the ground, unable to move, not daring to grab the rocks next to me, as none of them were solid. In the end, I had to sit down and descend slowly. This punctured a hole in my trousers. A lesson for me to be more vigilant!

玩了一會兒峽谷，卻不知今天的重頭戲就在轉角。網上對娥眉洲的資料甚少，其中提及有一座石拱橋，形似一個神仙灶台。海蝕拱就見得多，但一個依山而成的拱橋是第一次見。由下以上望目測有20-30米。阿恒嘗試正壁走上去，兩邊沒有巨樹借力，地下碎石大小不一，更無法估計深度， 真是一步一驚心，若不是有他這般好身手又富經驗，正常人絕對上不去，掘強的我硬要試就差點出事！走一步，下滑半米，整個人爬在地上動彈不得，雙手又不敢亂抓旁邊的石頭，因為沒一塊是實在的，最後只可坐著慢慢下降，褲子又穿了個洞，當買個教訓吧。

There are two strange trees in front of the sacred stove. One triangular and the other rooted in rocky outcrop. Ah Heng said that there were three pillars of branches in front of the door. This resembled the incense and goes well with the sacred stove. What looks ordinary to us can be enriched with a little imagination. "You can make fun of it, but I think it's because one sees what others don't."

神仙灶前有兩棵怪樹，一個呈三角形，一個盤根岩石份外滄桑。阿恒說門前有三柱樹枝，像極敬香，同神仙灶吻合。在我們眼中平平無奇的東西，只要加點想像力就豐富多了。「你可以取笑這是自得其樂，但我反而認為，是我們看到你看不到的。」

Hiking along Crescent Island is not as simple as climbing rocks. You need to pass a 60-degree slope that requires extraordinary technique to keep your balance and hold your body against the rocks so that you are lying forward and not falling backwards down the slope or into the sea. The scariest thing is that the east side of Crescent Island has been eroded by waves for years, so the rocky shore appeared to be a straight line. When you get close you find that it is concave. You are forced to swim across to the other side. In fact, I am not an expert climber, so I had to rely on Ah Heng to remind me which rock to step on. I had to climb the rock with my bare hands, leaning against the cliff and moving across carefully. It's important to have company on a hike.

娥眉洲綑邊已不是攀爬岩石這麼簡單，會經過一些60度斜的岩坡，必須採用三點不動一點動的技 術，保持平衡，身體靠向岩石，無論如何都是向前躺，而不會向後跌下坡或海裡。最可怕的是，娥眉洲東面長年受海浪侵蝕，看似一條直線的岩岸，靠近才發覺是凹進去的，所以被迫要下水游過去對岸。其實我不是攀爬高手，不少位置都要靠阿恒提醒，才知道要踩哪一塊石頭才穩妥，其中一個位置要徒手攀抓岩石，背靠削壁小心翼翼地橫移過去，小一點手力都不行，我嚇得不敢往後看，現在回想，都不知自己哪來的神力，可能是因為我知道，前方有一雙友誼之手會抓緊我吧，所以...同伴真的很重要啊。

The next must-see is the triple cave 'Hok Tsui Wan' just around the corner from the long rocky outcrop. The unobstructed rocky shore forms a straight line, as far as the eye can see. It took us more than three hours and we aren’t even halfway in our journey. The heat accelerated our physical exertion and as we saw many boats pass by, we shouted for one of them to give us a lift but in vain! If it were that easy, there would be no story to tell.

下一個必到地貌是三連洞「鶴咀環」，就在前方的長岩轉角，無遮擋的岩岸成一條直線，遠在天邊 近在眼前。我們花了三個多小時還沒走完行程的一半，天氣酷熱加速體力消耗，沿途見到很多船  家走過，我們決定放膽一試，大聲呼喊希望其中一個可以拔刀相助，送我們一程，當然這是天荒   夜譚...要是這麼容易就不會有後來的故事啦。

After continuously wetting and drying our hair, we came to a cave that was not marked on the map. I thought it would be a normal cave. It was smooth and wavy just like the wavy cave in Clearwater Bay. When we went a little further, we found a cave within a cave. When I shone my torch, three bats flew out! I was so scared that I crouched down and held my head. Although we had discovered somewhere new, it was not a place we would stay for long and we left shortly.

頭髮濕了又乾，乾了又再濕，不知過了多久，我們來到一個地圖上都沒有標明的海蝕洞。原本以  為平平無奇，怎料洞紋竟是平滑的波浪狀，像極清水灣的紐紋洞，再走進一點更發現是洞中洞，  我用電筒一照竟有三隻編幅飛撲出來，我嚇得原地蹲下抱緊頭。雖然我們成功發現新大陸，但此 地不宜久留，最好速速離開。

"We seem to have arrived at Hok Tsui Wan," Ah Heng said.

「我們好像到了鶴咀環」阿恒說。

"I feel like anyone who tells me anything now is lying to me." I replied helplessly.

「現在任何人跟我說什麼，我都覺得是在騙我。」我無奈地回答。

Why did I think this? The landscape of Crescent Island or Ngo Mei Chau with its martial arts-inspired name has a sacred cave and then a spider spirit cave. The erosion of the sea has carved three holes of different sizes and lengths, from small to large, just like an ancient cave. The two of us dived in and out of the cave. As I was about to dive in, my bottom got stuck on a sea nettle as soon as I sat down. The hole I created in the sacred cave was now even bigger.

是有多無助才這樣想呢～大概是感受不到腳的存在吧...娥眉洲的地貌與其帶有武俠特色的名字 一樣，先是神仙灶，後有蜘蛛精洞。海水侵蝕的刻意雕琢，形成三個大小長短不一的洞，剛好由矮至高，就像一個古洞一般。古怪的我兩在洞間穿來穿去，怎料洞如其名，掛得一身蜘蛛網，正當我想沖下去沖一沖，一坐下去就被水底裡的海刺卡到屁股，原本在神仙灶弄破的洞現在更大了，痛死我～

It was almost 6 o'clock when we left Hok Tsui Wan. It was getting dark and there was a bit of burning sky which was a joy to see after a long day. We slowed down and walked slowly, "Because no matter how fast you walk, time still goes by quickly. Instead of racing against time, let's enjoy the moment." Of course, headlamps and torches are essential. It is not advisable to visit this place at night as it is treacherous.

從鶴咀環離開時已接近6點多，天色漸暗，有少許燒天，算是今天辛苦行程的一點安慰，我兩放慢腳步慢慢走，「因為不論走得多快，都不及時間過得快，如其與它競賽，不如好好享受當下吧。」當然，頭燈電筒這些是必須的，而入夜綑邊有一定的危險，不建議大家學習啊～