Review: Mutianyu Great Wall Review

[Bryan]

Summary

The Mutianyu Great Wall has something for everyone. The main span is restored but original, unrepaired sections are usually accessible at both ends. Mutiayu is situated in beautiful, heavily forested mountains. Mutianyu is second only to Badaling for tourist activity, so if you’re looking for peace and quiet, be prepared to walk for a considerable distance before you find it.

Access

Being a major tourist destination, Mutianyu is easy to access. It’s about 30 or 40 minutes northwest of the Huairou urban area. There are buses traveling frequently to Mutianyu and any taxi driver in Beijing or Huairou should know how to get there.

Condition

The Mutianyu Great Wall consists of a medium-length span of restored Great Wall. The restoration is of a high quality but probably not done beyond the original quality of the Ming dynasty Great Wall. At both ends of the restored section, you will find long stretches of unrestored Great Wall which are in relatively good condition.

Description

When you arrive at the Mutianyu Great Wall, you have several choices on how to reach the Great Wall. As you walk northward through the parking lot, you will reach a path on the left side which takes up you a long series of steps towards the eastern end of the restored section. Further up is another path which goes more towards the middle. Last you will find the lower cable car station. This is a high-quality, enclosed cable car, much more refined than the "ski lift" type of cable cars found at most Great Wall locations. The cable car will take you up to the west of the center point of the restored section in just a couple of minutes.

However you arrive at the Wall, you can walk either to the left or right, continue to the end of the restored section, turn around and walk all the way back to the other end of the restored section, and finally walk back to your original entry point, in just a few hours. For many visitors, this is enough. There are many interesting features to enjoy. There are also many tourists and vendors who want you to buy their merchandise. This can be handy if you want some food or drink. There are also restrooms.

After you are finished exploring the Great Wall, if you don’t want to walk down or take the cable car, you can return to the parking lot via a toboggan ride that departs from near the eastern end of the restored section. I have never tried this myself, but I have been told that it is a lot of fun.

If you walk to the west, as you near the end of the restored area, you will find a long straight section with exactly 454 steps from bottom to top. At the top of this incline, there is a large tower. A sign at the far end of this tower shows that this is the end of the tourist area. However, it’s not usually guarded and it is possible to continue westward. The first part is difficult to climb and that keeps out most of the tourists. But climb it carefully and you can then proceed more easily. After maybe one hour of walking, you will reach the hairpin-shaped feature known as Niujiaobian (牛角边) or the Ox-horn edge Great Wall. The high point of this feature is one of the highest Great Wall spots in the area at 1029 meters or 3375 feet elevation. The view from here on a clear day is truly spectacular. If you decide to continue westward, you will reach the Zhengbeilou tower of the Jiankou section of the Great Wall, another high point at 991 meters or 3250 feet. See the Jiankou forum for more details about this area.

If you walk to the east from the restored section of the Mutianyu Great Wall, you will reach a special group of three connected towers called Zhengguantai. Beyond this, the Wall climbs steeply and just beyond the third tower are signs stating that the Wall is closed beyond this point. Here the Wall branches off in two directions. If you take the right branch, which leads south, you’ll be following a spur wall that is in very dilapidated condition and only continues for about one kilometer. If instead you take the left branch and head to the east, you will be following the main wall which is in better condition and follows precipitous mountain ridges to Lianhuachi.

While it’s usually possible to access these unrestored areas, there are times when guards are present. This can be the case during busy holiday times. This can also occur after accidents happen, which they do, even on restored sections of the Great Wall.

The nearest hotel is the Mutianyu Great Wall hotel, which is about a couple of kilometers away from the entrance area.

Along the road to and from Mutianyu are many fish farm restaurants which are sure to satisfy the appetite you will have after climbing the Great Wall.

The end of the restored section looking west towards the Ox Horn Edge Wall and, further along, Jiankou


The western end of the restored section


The main wall at the eastern end of the restored section


The spur wall at the eastern end of the restored section