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n this cold Decembermorning it feelsas f theGreatWall is mine
alone.The gentlesilenceof a snow-drapedandscape as eplaced
hejostlingcrowdsof summer,and snolt'flakes retumbling through the
air, wrapping he wall
in a soft white cloakand creatinga winter wonderland hat isas
beautiful as t is unusual. Snow at this time of year is almosta
given, but watching it fall on this ancient structure is a
rareprivilege.
While it's possible o get o the GreatWall
usingpublictransport,standing n th e snow waiting for what you hope
s theright bus sn't much fun. Booking an experienced uide n
Beijingis money well spentand cheaper han you might think. They
canarrange ransport, pay your entry feesand keep you
entertainedwith fascinating toriesabout he wall'shistory and
creation.And ifyou've forgotten o bring enoughwarm clothes,hey
canprobablyhelp with that too.
Four separate ections fthe wall can be easily eached romBeijing
but experiencedguides will likely take you to Mutianyu,located90km
from the capital.This segmentwas estored n the1980's nd s renowned
or the visualdramaof its tightly packedguard owersand
knife-edgedmountain peaks.Surroundedbytoweringpine treesand
dramaticscenery,t offersa compromisebetween he slightlycloser et
tourist-packedBadalingand thephysically challengingsectionsat
Juyongguanand Simatai.
Winter temperaturesrequentlydrop belowzero so snowor hiking
bootsare a must.Joggers an be dangerous s heydon't offer enough
grip and your feet will be freezing after a fewminutes.Having the
right shoesmakesall the difference.Myguideand I are soon sitting n
the cosycabinof the Mutianyucablecar hat takes ust over hreeminutes
o reach he top.
The GreatWall snakes lmost9,000kmacrossChina and sthe only
man-madestructure hat can be seen rom outer space.Original
sectionswhich areno longer standingdatebackas ar as656BC,but the
GreatWall of today s from the Ming Dynastyandwas createdasa
frontline defenceby Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang.Back then guards were on
duty in every ower watching forMongols approaching rom the north.
If intruderswere spotted,aflare would be lit to alert the guard in
the next tower, who woulddo the sameuntil the wall was ablazewith
light. History comesalive here and it's not difficult to imagine
smokedrifting overthe 300-year-old inescovering he
surroundingmountains.Ourview is pulled into soft focus by the snow
and shows he wallsnaking nto the distancewith imposing owersand
paraPetspunctuating ts entire ength. t is difficult to
imagineanyonebrave or foolish) enough o take on sucha formidable
ine ofdefence.
Viewing platforms at the end of the cable car ride offerstunning
photo opportunities, specially hen there s no onearound.
Despitebeingeager o explore he wall, we spenta fewmomentsenjoying
he view and taking photos n case he weatherchanged. rom here t was
only a shortwalk up somesnowy stairsto the star t of the
Mutianyrrsection.
In the warmer months t's possible o take he cablecar up,walk
about one kilometre along the wall then take an old-stylechairlift
or ride a steel rack uge down, but neitherof these
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7/30/2019 Exploring the Great Wall in Winter
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options appealed oday. At the top of the stairswe were facedwith
a decision:an easystroll to Tower 14 or navigating a
slipperyslopedown to Tower 15. Snow quickly turns to ice on the
wall'sancient cobblestonesand we watched two intrepid visitors
setoff on the steepdescent owards Jiankou,only to end up on
theirbehinds.They had a laugh and gaveuP on the idea, but falls
canbe serious and often result in broken bones.Even with snow
bootssomeparts of the wall are best avoidedat this time of year.
Lookfor sectionswith steps ike the one betweenTowers 14 and 13
thatare relatively short and offer spectacular iews.
In summer visitors huddle in the towers to escaPehe
searingBeijing heat; n winter thesemagnificent fortifications
arepleasantlysnug.We had Tower 14 almost all to ourselves.Fromthis
vantagepoint at the highestpart of Mutianyu, we could seemany of
the 22 watch towers on this section, ncluding Tower 11which peeked
antalisingly through the falling snow. It i s separateto the rest
of the wall with a path leadingout to the solitary towerand would
have been my first stop had conditions beenbetter' Ahwell, next
time.
We stayedwithin 20-minutes of the cablecar in case heweather
urned, but fortunately it didn't. After exploring Tower14 and the
surrounding areawe decided o call it a day andbeganwalking back to
the cablecar. On the way we passedanelderly visitor who was
negotiating the snowy conditions with thesupport of a local guide
and a cane.'Peoplethought I was crazy to do this in winter,' she
saidwhen we stopped or a chat, bu t it's an amazing ime to
visit.'Wecouldn't help but agree. i
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