Continuing from my previous post, Friday morning a group of us drove an hour or so outside Beijing to visit a section of the Great Wall. There are several maintained sections to which the public can go. The section where we went is called the Matianyu area. The first thing that you do when you get there is climb. This is the view from the parking area at the bottom of the hill leading up to the wall when you first realize that the wall is up there.
Climb, climb, climb. Only part way up the path and my legs were feeling the burn. This could have been the 23,000+ steps that my pedometer had registered walking in Beijing the day before, but it's important to realize that it really is a good, healthy climb to get to the wall itself. Once you get there, it's incredible. The Great Wall stretches over 6,000 miles and is built of stone.
Once you are on the wall itself it is no leisurely stroll from here to there. The wall follows the natural terrain. The section that we visited is on hills with some significant elevation differences.
You will notice in these pictures what looks like a mist or haze. There is no mist -- the air quality had gotten progressively worse since our arrival and was pretty dense by this time. This is normal air quality according to our coworkers. There had been a storm the night of our arrival that had blown the smog away for awhile, so we didn't see the smog until about Thursday.
At the beginning of our climb of the Great Wall we approached the middle of the section and went to one end. Overall, there are sections that are maintained, but most of the wall is not. After reaching the end of the maintained section there is a sign that says that further access is prohibited. That said, beyond that point the wall looks like the following couple photos. The plants have overtaken the wall and are surviving. An unpreserved tower about a quarter mile past the end of the official road is the next shot.
If you're tired and are eager to get to the bottom of the mountain quickly, you can take an alternative mode of transportation -- toboggan.
3 comments:
Wow, Kent...the pictures are fantastic! I would REALLY like to climb that mountain and see that great wall! You've been places and seen things that I'll probably never get to see! Thanks for a great job with the photos and sharing.
My first thought is about how nice the fall colors look out there. Look how steep those hills are.
Very cool. Did they explain what the groove in the side of the steps was for? A pipe or something?
Post a Comment