Great Wall, Beijing

4 more images

Visiting the Great Wall of China is a must when in Beijing. Most people will visit the extremely touristy and most visited section of the wall at Badaling which is only about 50 miles (80km) outside of Beijing. Many others will opt for the Mutianyu section of the wall which is older than the Badaling section and from many accounts better to visit. I'm sure either of these two sections will suffice for your visit to the wall.

However, for an incredible, rewarding experience, take the 3 hour (120 km) journey from Beijing to Jinshanling. The initial section of the wall at Jinshanling has been restored but thats it. You will hike 10 km from Jinshanling to Simatai where the Great Wall is in its original, authentic, unrestored condition. The hike can be anywhere from 2-4 hours but it is an awesome experience. We went with a group of about ten, who all hiked at their own pace, ultimately herded by our tour guide. Throughout most of the hike there is nobody else in sight (as you can see from my pics). Remember to take water, snacks, and maybe some toilet paper! It gets very steep and strenuous at times so keep that in mind before going. I would say its not for children nor adults with knee, ankle, or hip problems. Those who are unfit, heavy set, or of age can definitely do it but be prepared to work. By no means is that meant to scare prospective visitors away, remember this is a tip and I want you to go, but rather useful information in knowing that its no cake walk! Trust me, hiking the Great Wall of China from Jinshanling to Simatai will NOT disappoint.

By all means, make the effort to see sections of the wall that are not overrun by tourists. When I say overrun by tourists, I’m talking about Badaling. Wild sections of the wall include Mutianyu, Simatai, Hoanghua, Jingshanling, Gubeikou and Jiangkou, which is said to be the most dangerous but most scenic section of the wall. They say that the wall is made up with enough bricks to encircle the earth 5 times at the equator. That’s a lot of bricks.

4 more images

We hired a driver for about $60 USD, left Beijing at 2:00 AM and arrived at Simatai at 4:30 AM. We jumped the gates with ease (of course, we do not condone this illegal activity), but they do not open until 7 or 8. We reached the summit at around 6:30 AM. The site was absolutely awesome with no tourists and complete silence. Watching the sun rise at Simatai is a religious experience. As a reward for scaling the steep steps, you should ride the cable car afterwards to relish it all.

If you are leaving Beijing at that time, however, make sure you have a caffeinated driver that you trust.

We were back at our hutong by 1 PM after this impressive experience.

4 more images

Off the beaten path?.
I decided to leave the crowds and go to a place where the wall was not renovated and seemed quiet and, who knows why, I wanted to go there. . . At the end of the renovated section, the wall was closed and wardens told me it was forbidden to go beyond. I came back and looked at a staircase going to the cable cart (not in service) and I decided to go down and I quickly was on a small path in the woods on the Mongolian side; I followed this path where nobody could see me from the wall and after one kilometre I was at the foot of a little fort on the wall, far from the renovated section, but I was on the foot, had to climb up somewhere; I followed the wall for another half kilometre and at another small tower I could climb up easily the ruins and I was on the wall, finally, the real wall, in ruins, yes but it was the real one, very quiet (I met nobody), had the wall for me alone, could look at the landscape, look at the stones, dream about what could have happened here or there.
Main picture: Ah, here we are on the un-renovated part of the wall; do these bricks and stones not look more authentic than the ones on the renovated part? And the perspective through the slit (a wide slit, I do not find a correct name for this “window”) is really what I was expecting coming here.
Picture 2: Walking in the woods on the “Mongolian side”, little towers, little forts along the wall.
Picture 3: A little fort seen from the “Mongolian side”; I was already walking in the woods when I could see the fort; from here, it looks seriously as a military construction and from a Mongolian perspective, it looks impressive.
Picture 4: A small pagoda the visitors of the renovated part will not see, hihihi. I like to see that kind of little building isolated in the mountain.
Picture 5:And again, the old wall, the old rocks and the quietude. . .

4 more images

I walked slowly for about 3 kilometres on the old ruins, looking at the small forts, the small towers, being like attracted to go further and further. At one point I had to stop and think of returning.
I could sit for whiles without being disturbed, listening to the noises of nature, the birds, the wind. . . I thought of this tremendous piece of architecture: its building began 2400 years ago and it is now 6400 km long; lets calculate quickly: between 5 and 7 metres wide, 6 and 17 metres high (let us take 6 and 12 as averages), 6400 km long: 461 million cubic metres construction (do not count towers, little forts and short side sections. . . ); compare to . . . the Kheops pyramid for instance: 2.6 million cubic metres. The great wall represents 180 Kheops pyramids (in stone volume used for construction, nothing else can be compared of course!!!!), I just imagine the construction site with thousands of people working and dying there.
It is the only human feature you can see from the moon, etc. . I will not write the book of records. . . I was thinking, walking on the ruins even the biggest human artefact will disappear one day, that is history, and geology. . .And this wall proved almost totally useless against the Mongol invasions for the prevention of which it had been built!!!
Ah how did I come back? I walked back on the wall almost until the renovated section and found a place where I could go down on the “Chinese side” this time (Mongolian side is the northern (but not north everywhere, as the wall turns a lot) side, where defensive towers are built in front of the wall, and where are the crenels, on the Chinese side there are usually no crenels.) and I followed a small track which led me to a barb wire fence; there was a big hole in the fence and going through the hole I was back in the legal area for visitors of the Great Wall!

1 more image

I took a free-&-easy 5 hours Jinshanling to Simatai hike tour via the tour desk of my Hostel. Paid 225RMB (including a packed light meal) for the to-&-fro journey circa Jun 07. (Be prepared to pay between 650-750RMB per car privately circa Jun 07)

Jinshanling [金山岭] is a section of the Great Wall located in the mountainous area in Ruanping county, 120 km northeast of Beijing. This section of the wall is connected to the Simatai section & was built from 1570 during the Ming Dynasty.

The entrance fee is 50RMB. A cableway (30RMB 1 way) will take visitors up to the Small Golden Hill along the Wall, which is the starting point of the hike if you take the Cableway. You can also climb up to the wall via 3 passes: Hou Chuan Pass, Sha Ling Pass & the further Zhuan Duo Pass (meaning you have to hike the most if you start from here).

This section is 10.5 km long. The initial section of the wall has been restored to its original condition, but the condition of the wall quickly deteriorates towards its natural state (bumps & potholes) as you move past the few initial watchtowers and as you approaches Simatai.

There are about 30 watchtowers in total to pass before exiting Simatai. Be prepared to climb upwards on narrow steps and defy gravity (103 steps climb upwards at the worst) for much of this section.

The view is stunningly spectacular though when you managed to catch your breath!

WARNING:
1) Wear sensible comfortable clothes & shoes and bring enough water and sunblock (sunny days)! This isn't a walk in the park!
2) There are persistent touts. Be firm but never rude and after 5 or 6 towers of toil, they'll give up. There're 2 types: The peddlars and the "shortcutters" who offer "shortcuts" to struggling folks.

Simatai [司马台] is located in the north of Miyun county, 120 km NE of Beijing & was originally built during the Northern Qi dynasty (550-577) and rebuilt in the Hongwu years of the Ming dynasty. This section of Great Wall has retained original features of the Ming dynasty Great Wall.

It is 5.4 km long. Hanging precariously onto the Yanshan Mountain, Simatai is known for its steepness, ingenuity and uniqueness. It is separated by a valley into eastern and western parts. The latter is connected to the Jinshanling section with the steepest part of the wall inclined at 70 degs.

It is advised that you begin the hike at Jinshanling since much of the Simatai section is downhill (except for the very last 2 watchtowers). It would be MUCH more tormentuous the other way round. You'll would have hiked past at least 30 watchtowers from both sections in total before exiting Simatai.

You may see herds of goats along this section as there are farm lands below this section of the Wall.
WARNING: One of the farmers actually approached me for a "fee" after I had taken a picture of his goats. I smiled and simply walked away.

There is an exit fee of 40RMB (already pre-included in the tour fee), but you'll stay need to pay 5RMB to cross a suspension bridge over Yuanyang Lake (Reservoir).

You can choose to take another 30 mins to walk down the hill to Simatai Village for your transport back or opt for a 35RMB 5 minutes Flying Fox ride down. If you have no issues with height, I'll suggest you do the latter! It was a great way to end a good 5 hrs hike!

WARNING:
1) Wear sensible comfortable clothes & shoes and bring enough water and sunblock (sunny days)! This isn't a walk in the park!
2) There are persistent touts. Be firm but never rude and after 5 or 6 towers of toil, they'll give up. There're 2 types: The peddlars and the "shortcutters" who offer "shortcuts" to struggling folks.

Badaling Section of the Great Wall is a restored site for touristic purposes. But if you have the time, legs and lungs enough to walk for a while going up and downs the hills, you'll reach the end of the restored section and you'll find the "real" wall, ruins, almost untouched since the original constructors 1000 years ago.