Walking the Great Wall

Our adventure begins in Beijing, the capital of China and home to world-renowned landmarks such as the Forbidden City. Free arrival transfers are available for everyone arriving into either Beijing Capital Airport (PEK) or Daxing Airport (PKX). Around 6pm, say ni hao to your tour leader and fellow travellers, when we gather as a group for the first time to get to know each other and learn more about the adventures ahead. Your tour leader then ensures a big welcome by arranging dinner at a local restaurant, allowing us to sample one of the city’s most famous dishes: Beijing duck. Vegetarians, do not fear – there will be an array of different dishes on a lazy Susan to choose from. Want more time in Beijing? Secure pre-tour hotel nights through your sales representative.

This morning we leave the capital and head into the countryside to the Great Wall, a 2-2.5 hour journey to the north west of the city. We reach the lesser-visited section at Huanghuacheng, which has an incredibly picturesque location by a lake. The name Huanhuacheng translates as ‘Yellow Flower City’, as during the summer the surrounding mountains are swathed in yellow as the local wild flowers come into bloom. The walk today is relatively challenging and with uneven topography, but the views are worth every effort! We will spend the night in a guesthouse close to this section of the wall.

Today we take a short drive (1-1.5 hours) to Mutianyu. At this lesser-visited section, the Wall is an impressive sight indeed, snaking off across mountains and valleys into the distance. As one of the best-preserved parts of the Great Wall, the Mutianyu section used to serve as the northern barrier defending the capital and the imperial tombs. There are 22 watchtowers (20 of which are open to the public) on this 2,250-metre-long section. After Mutianyu section, we transfer to Jiankou village to enjoy the hospitality of a local guesthouse.

The Jiankou wild wall section was built along a mountain edge and remains completely wild, with towers clinging impossibly to the steepest of ridges. Highlights of the day include “Spiderman Wall”, or “Sanshibadeng” in Chinese; an optional short vertical climb to the top of the wall for a panoramic view (those who are not a fan of climbing/heights can walk around and regroup at the viewpoint). This area is the most photographed section of the Great Wall due to the unique construction style combined with stunning scenery. We walk along this portion for approx. 4 km in the morning, returning to the guesthouse for lunch, then walking about another 4.5 km in the afternoon. We have the option of seeing sunset from the wall.

Today we walk the length of the Jinshanling Great Wall section (from Erchi Tower to Zhuandoukou Tower), which is renowned for being one of the best-preserved parts of the Great Wall and dates from the Ming Dysnasty (1368-1644). This section reaches seven metres high and six metres wide and incorporates five main passes, sixty-seven watchtowers and two beacon towers as it zig-zags its way through the Big and Small Jinshan Mountains (the Big and Small Jinshan Watchtowers are the highlight). The construction is of huge bricks, each weighing around 12 kilograms (26 pounds) and this section features various structures which were used for an array of functions ranging from weapon stores to soldiers’ bedrooms.

Today we hike from Zhuanduokou Tower along the Gubeikou section of the wall to Panlongshan. This portion keeps the original essence of the wall and will transport us back to the time of the Han Dynasty. We will pass many watchtowers until we reach the unique 24 Window Tower (three level tower).

We will walk from Panlongshan north gate to the main entrance. Following our walk along this part of the wall we’ll drive for about three hours back to Beijing.