Kei Ling Ha () is an

area Area is the measure of a region's size on a surface. The area of a plane region or ''plane area'' refers to the area of a shape or planar lamina, while '' surface area'' refers to the area of an open surface or the boundary of a three-di ...

Shap Sze Heung Shap Sze Heung, sometimes transliterated as Shap Sz Heung (), is an area in Hong Kong located in Sai Kung North, the northern part of the Sai Kung Peninsula. Administration Despite its proximity to the neighbouring areas administered by Sha T ...

, on the

Sai Kung Peninsula The Sai Kung Peninsula () is a peninsula in the easternmost part of the New Territories in Hong Kong. Its name comes from Sai Kung Town in the central southern area of the peninsula. The southern part of the peninsula is administered by Sai ...

, in eastern

New Territories The New Territories (N.T., Traditional Chinese characters, Chinese: ) is one of the three areas of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory, and contains around half of the population of H ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

. Administratively, it is part of

Tai Po District Tai Po District is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong. The suburban district covers the areas of Tai Po New Town (including areas such as Tai Po Market, , Tai Po Industrial Estate, Tai Wo Estate), Tai Po Tau, Tai Po Kau, Hong Lok Yue ...

. It is a popular place for countryside visits, picnicking and bird watching.

Location

Kei Ling Ha is located at the coastal area near

Sai Sha Road Sai Sha Road () is a main road connecting Sai Kung and Ma On Shan. It begins at the roundabout at Mak Pin, Sai Kung and passes through Three Fathoms Cove and Shap Sze Heung before traversing the new town of Ma On Shan and Wu Kai Sha and endin ...

, at the junction of

Ma On Shan Country Park Ma On Shan Country Park () is a park located in the central neck of the Sai Kung Peninsula in the eastern New Territories of Hong Kong. The park covers an area of and links Sai Kung Country Park and Lion Rock Country Park to form an extensive ...

and

Sai Kung West Country Park Sai Kung West Country Park () is a country park on the Sai Kung Peninsula in northeast Hong Kong. Opened in 1978 the park's sights include: * Wong Chuk Wan () * Tai Mong Tsai () * Pak Tam Chung * Yung Shue O * Lai Chi Chong * Hoi Ha M ...

. It is located in the innermost shore of

Three Fathoms Cove Three Fathoms Cove or Kei Ling Ha Hoi () is a cove in Tai Po District, Hong Kong. Geography Three Fathoms Cove is surrounded by Shap Sze Heung (Tseng Tau, Nga Yiu Tau, Sai Keng and Kei Ling Ha are along the coast), Yung Shue O, Wong Tei ...

which is known as Kei Ling Ha Hoi indigenously.

Villages

$Water diffraction$ Kei Ling Ha Lo Wai 12

Kei Ling Ha Lo Wai () and Kei Ling Ha San Wai () are the two main

villages A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban village ...

within this area. Kei Ling Ha Lo Wai is a

Hakka The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka-speaking Chinese, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas, are a southern Han Chinese subgroup whose principal settlements and ancestral homes are dispersed widely across the provinces of southern China ...

walled village A walled village () is a type of large traditional multi-family communal living structure found in China, that is designed to be easily defensible. It is completely surrounded by thick defensive walls, protecting the residents from the attack ...

. Both villages are occupied by members of the Ho () lineage. The settlement of Kei Ling Ha Lo Wai probably dates back to the late 16th century. The New Village branched off from the "old Wai" around 1876. The combined population of the two villages was 135 in 1960. As a walled village, Kei Ling Ha Lo Wai features an entrance gate and a Ho Ancestral Hall. A drystone wall marks the outer edge of the village platform on a piedmont site. The site faces almost directly north so that the wall has a most likely a

geomantic Geomancy, a compound of Greek roots denoting "earth divination", was originally used to mean methods of divination that interpret geographic features, markings on the ground, or the patterns formed by soil, rocks, or sand. Its definition has ex ...

as well as a practical function. Kei Ling Ha Lo Wai and Kei Ling Ha San Wai are recognized villages under the

Small House Policy The Small House Policy (SHP, ) was introduced in 1972 in Hong Kong. The objective was to improve the then prevailing low standard of housing in the rural areas of the New Territories. The policy allows an indigenous male villager who is 18 ye ...

Ecology

Kei Ling Ha is the site of a

rocky shore A rocky shore is an intertidal area of seacoasts where solid rock predominates. Rocky shores are biologically rich environments, and are a useful "natural laboratory" for studying intertidal ecology and other biological processes. Due to th ...

Mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows mainly in coastal saline water, saline or brackish water. Mangroves grow in an equatorial climate, typically along coastlines and tidal rivers. They have particular adaptations to take in extra oxygen a ...

can be found at Kei Ling Ha Lo Wai, and the site has been a

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

since 1994. It is the habitat of

fiddler crab The fiddler crab or calling crab can be one of the hundred species of semiterrestrial marine crabs in the family Ocypodidae. These crabs are well known for their extreme sexual dimorphism, where the male crabs have a major claw significantly l ...

Transport

Kei Ling Ha is served by

. The end of Stage 3 and start of Stage 4 of the

MacLehose Trail The MacLehose Trail is a 100-kilometre hiking trail that crosses much of the New Territories, Hong Kong, starting from Pak Tam Chung, Sai Kung District in the east to Tuen Mun Town, Tuen Mun District in the west. It is the longest trail in Hong ...

is located at

Shui Long Wo Shui Long Wo () is an area of Hong Kong, part of Kei Ling Ha, in the eastern New Territories of Hong Kong. Administratively, it is part of Tai Po District. The end of Stage 3 and start of Stage 4 of the MacLehose Trail is located at Shui Long Wo. ...

(), part of Kei Ling Ha.

Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (; formerly the Agriculture and Fisheries Department () before 2000, of the Hong Kong Government is responsible for agriculture and fisheries in Hong Kong, conservation projects and issu ...

MacLehose Trail Stage 4

References

External links

{{commons category, Kei Ling Ha
Delineation of area of existing village Kei Ling Ha Lo Wai (Sai Kung North) for election of resident representative (2019 to 2022)

Delineation of area of existing village Kei Ling Ha San Wai (Sai Kung North) for election of resident representative (2019 to 2022)
Villages in Tai Po District, Hong Kong Sai Kung North Walled villages of Hong Kong