The Wild Wall at Huangyaguan

Google Earth is a very useful tool to plan trips to the Great Wall, but unfortunately only a small part of the wall is covered by high resolution image – among them Huangyaguan. After looking at the Huangyaguan area I located a place where it seemed possible to visit the unrestored wall.

About 1.9 kilometres south of Huangyaguan a small road leads west into the mountains, and after about 5 kilometres a sign show the way to the Old Great Wall – 古长城. From here it’s about 1.2 kilometres to the path leading the the Great Wall.

Just before the sign it’s possible to se the remains of a watch tower on a mountain peak close to the road. This part of the wall can also be seen from the top of the Old Great Wall, and close to the road some parts of the wall coming down form the mountain is visible. However this part of the wall is rather steep so it is recommended to follow the signs towards the Old Great Wall.

It’s possible to park the car close to the path leading up to the Great Wall, and from here it’s about 10 minutes hike to the wall.

The wall here is made of stone and very difficult to climb, but fortunately a small path have been cleared just south of the wall heading westwards.

Eastwards the wall winds its way over a small mountaintop and traces of a double wall is clearly visible here.

The wall here is a magnificent sight and the huge amount of work and skilled craftsmanship involved in making this wall and fitting the different sized stones together almost makes this wall a piece of art.

It was getting late so I just considered this to a reconnaissance trip to prepare for a future visit. I only walked about 500 meters before turning around a returning to the car, but it seems possible to continue much further.

Entrance price: free

Date of visit: May 10, 2008