After a Rainstorm

This is the second rainstorm in a week. Better than the last one, the observatory issued the black rainstorm warning before dawn. Last week, I had to turn back home when the black rainstorm warning was issued after 9:00am. This time, I could have an extra hour’s sleep. Inevitably, the volunteering service session that I always enjoy has to be cancelled. It is disappointing.

Heavy rainstorms and flooding news reports have been frequent on TV for the past month. Nobody will argue that the weather has been extreme and unpredictable this year. I am not particularly interested in the causes of these extreme high temperatures, torrential rains, and thunderstorms, but getting around in such kinds of weather does cause a lot of inconvenience. Wearing a pair of wet shoes around is at the top of my annoyance list. Plans for hiking have been cancelled because my hiking friends are becoming very safety-conscious. I often end up spending the hiking time at McDonald’s having the unneeded food.

Last Wednesday evening, the rain started to die down. A friend called to invite me for an easy hiking trip the next morning if the weather stayed dry. The only safe choice was the Shing Mun Reservoir trail, my suggestion. It is my favourite hiking route in all kinds of weather. On other days, nobody will join me on that.

It rained briefly again at midnight and stopped by dawn, so we decided to stick to the plan. The sky was very cloudy, and the air was warm and humid. The sweat started running down underneath my shirt once I left the train station. By the time I arrived at the minibus station, the shirt was completely soaked. There were few passengers, and we had to wait a long time before the bus started. Only six passengers got off at the terminus.

This trail is still popular on the weekends but was packed with people every day during the lockdown period of the last pandemic. The rainy weather must have deterred many regular hikers from coming in such an early morning. We took the opposite direction of the other hikers. It was a wise decision.

The trail was basically deserted. Apart from our own voices, there were only gurgles of the rivers, roars of the waterfalls, chirrups of the birds, and occasional howls of the monkeys. Such human-free nature sounds were a treat to the ears. We decided to cut our chattering to a minimum. After the prolonged rain, everything was cleansed. The leaves of the trees were drenched and were as clean and fresh as the dinner salad. The litter and plastic waste along the trail and on the riverbeds were all washed away. The whole trail was not like the one I used to know.

Coming out of the thick woodland, we took a break at one of the famous banks along the reservoir trail. Usually, these banks are always crowded with people after heavy rain to take photographs of the tall paperbark trees in the flooded banks. I never came for that because I am uncomfortable taking photographs in a large crowd.

The bank area was not flooded with water, and we were able to walk down to the shore. It was breezy there, and the air was fresh and dry. We decided to take a short break. I was amazed that I could not see a single bit of litter in the whole area. There were plastic bottles, used tissue papers, fruit peels, supermarket carrier bags, glass bottles, tins, torn magazines, and even shoe soles last time I was there. The repeated rainstorms must have done a great job. Despite the dark sky, with the beautiful scene in front, I decided to use my little camera to take some photos. We ended up spending nearly 45 minutes staying in the bank only to be interrupted by a group of sixty-plus hikers who really enjoyed posing with all kinds of oriental dancing gestures, singly and in groups. The giggles and laughter told me it was time to move on, but that was the best 45 minutes of this year’s hiking trips so far.

It started to rain at the last quarter of the trail, but we were able to wait it out in a pavilion. Isn’t it good?

Last Saturday, my hiking friends arranged another trip for tomorrow. With the heavy rainstorm throughout this morning and afternoon, they have changed plans to go for tea instead. I will make my own decision tomorrow morning. You never know what you will find after a rainstorm.