| Shek O | |||||||||||||||||||
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 Shek O as viewed from Dragon's Back | |||||||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 石澳 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 石澳 | ||||||||||||||||||
| CantoneseYale | Sehk'ou | ||||||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | "Rocky Bay" | ||||||||||||||||||
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Shek O is an area of the south-eastern part ofHong Kong Island, inHong Kong. It can refer toShek O village,Shek O Peninsula orShek O Headland. Administratively, they are part ofSouthern District.
The nameShek O literally means the "rocky bay". The entire area is apeninsula on the southern coast of theHong Kong Island, facing theSouth China Sea. Shek O is surrounded byShek O Country Park,Big Wave Bay andCape D'Aguilar.
Shek O Village (石澳村) has a history of some 200 years.[1] It was established by fishermen of the Chan, Yip, Li and Lauclans[2] and was once famous for its lobster.[3] The majority of the population previously lived on the land presently occupied by the Shek O country Club, from where it was forcibly removed. In 1841, Shek O Village as a whole, together withHok Tsui Village (鶴咀村) andTai Long Wan Village (大浪灣村), had a population of around 200.
TheTin Hau Temple in Shek O Village was built in 1891.[1] It is aGrade III historic building,[4] and its management has been delegated by theChinese Temples Committee to the Shek O Residents Association.[5] Thememorial archway near the main entrance road to the town is inscribed with the calligraphy of R.C. Lee (利銘澤) (1905–1983).
Themodernist Shek O Bus Terminus building next door was constructed in 1955[6] and designed by Hsin Yieh Architects, founded by Chinese architect Su Gin Djih (徐敬直). However, the earliest bus service to Shek O dates back to the 1920s, when the Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels Limited operated a bus route between the Hong Kong Hotel and Big Wave Bay in Shek O.
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Shek O Beach is a sandy publicbeach at Shek O.[7] The water quality is fair and is gazetted Grade 2. It is a popular weekend and holiday destination, offering a public barbecue area and many restaurants. The rocky cliffs provide an excellent place for sports climbing.
Around one mile north of Shek O beach, after passing the Shek O Country Club, isBig Wave Bay. As its name suggests, big waves roll on to the beach, propelled by the wind, making it a popular destination for surfers. Wind surfers can be found in the sea off Big Wave Bay and Shek O beaches. TheDragon's Back above Shek O is home to Hong Kong Island's only paragliding site. Paragliders can be seen riding the lift and landing at the nearby Rocky Bay.Big Wave Bay Beach is also the site of prehistoricrock carving similar to those found onCheung Chau Island.
Both beaches have basic bars and restaurants, and equipment hire, such as body boards and lilos. In addition, Shek O Beach has a small golf course.
Due to the isolated location of Shek O, the environment near the beach remains rustic and quiet, which is one of the area's main attractions.
The Shek O Country Club (石澳鄉村俱樂部) is built around a par 65 private golf course. Its history goes back to 1919. The construction of the Clubhouse was completed in 1925.[8]
Shek O Country Club is a private golf club sitting on the Shek O peninsula with a history dating back to 1921. The course is short, playing to a par 65, with no par 5s and only two par 4s measuring over 350 yards.[9]
Shek O Beach has been noted as generally suffering from the highest drowning rate among Hong Kong's beaches, although this is not reflected in official statistics as theLeisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) only records incidents which occur while lifeguards are on duty. Residents estimated nine drowning deaths at the beach in 2011, and seven in 2012, figures which were not disputed by the LCSD.[10] The high rate of accidents at the beach has been attributed to its high patronage, usually strong waves, the steep underwater slope of the beach, swimmer inexperience and poor public awareness of water safety principles.[10]
The scenery of Shek O is the setting of numerousCantopopmusic videos. The Hong Kong directorStephen Chow's 1999 filmKing of Comedy (喜劇之王) was also shot at Shek O.[11]
Shek O is served byShek O Road, which connectsTai Tam Road toStanley andChai Wan. There is public transport link toward Shek O Beach: bus route 9 andred minibuses fromShau Kei Wan. There is limitedparking near the beach.
Shek O is in Primary One Admission (POA) School Net 16. Within the school net are multiple aided schools (operated independently but funded with government money) and two government schools: Shau Kei Wan Government Primary School and Aldrich Bay Government Primary School.[12]
Urban areas of Hong Kong, Kowloon and New Territories | |||||||||||
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| MHong Kong1,3,4,5,6,7,8,9a,10,11,12,14,15,16 |
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| MKowloonKL,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9a,10,11,12,14,15,16 |
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| MNew KowloonNKL,2,3,4,5,6,7,9a,10,11,12,14,15,16 |
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| New Territories |
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Official place names are summarized from "Geoinfo Map" of Government ofHong Kong Special Administrative Region, "Hong Kong Guide" ofLands Department, "Hong Kong Guide Book" of Universal Publications Ltd. and "Areas and Districts" ofRating and Valuation Department. M：Narrow meaning of urban areas KL:Kowloon Peninsula at the south ofBoundary Street NKL: Former New Territories area at the north of Boundary Street and at the south ofLion Rock 1: Common definition (1) 2: Common definition (2) 3: Common definition (3) 4: Areas not adopting small house concessionary right ofindigenous inhabitants 5: Jurisdiction area of formerUrban Council 6: Definition of "Metropolitan Area" ofPlanning Department 7: Jurisdiction area ofUrban Renewal Authority 8: Unique operating area ofurban taxis 9: "Urban" (9a) and "Extended Urban" (9b) areas defined byHong Kong Housing Authority 10: Definition of Urbanrates 11: Hospital cluster belongs to Hong Kong or Kowloon 12: Police region belongs to Hong Kong or Kowloon 13: Regions having 999-year land lease 14:Geographical Constituency inHong Kong Legislative Council belongs to Hong Kong or Kowloon 15:Regional Education Office belongs to Hong Kong or Kowloon 16:Primary One Admission School Net belongs to Hong Kong or Kowloon | |||||||||||
22°13′50″N114°15′07″E / 22.23056°N 114.25194°E /22.23056; 114.25194