Hiking from Mutianyu to Jiankou

This hike goes from the Mutianyu Great Wall to Zhengbeilou tower at the Jiankou Great Wall.

To the west of Mutianyu village is a small settlement called Beigou or Yingbeigou village. Beigou provides a good shortcut for hiking in a westbound direction from Mutianyu. You won't have to pay the Mutianyu ticket price or ride on a cable car.

Otherwise you can start anywhere at the Mutianyu Great Wall and walk towards the west in the direction of Jiankou.

Road north from Beigou village

Trailhead on right side of road almost at the end (40°26'39.4"N 116°33'1.8"E)

View of Great Wall from the long and steep trail

40°26'47"N 116°33'16"E
You first reach the Great Wall here but you don’t need to get up onto it.
Instead, follow the path alongside the Great Wall and up the hill.

Steep path

Views of the Great Wall from the path alongside

The path joins the Great Wall at this gate (40°26'57"N 116°33'12.2"E)

Here you can go up to the left to continue towards the west.

The walking surface of this part of Mutianyu was repaired in 2010. :(

Here is the end of the repair and the beginning of the unrepaired Great Wall

A closer look at the line where repairs end

The Wall quickly becomes wild beyond that point. Here is a place where you walk along an edge with an 8-meter dropoff.

The Great Wall continues west towards Niujiaobian

Sometimes you must walk close to the edge

You must use this stack of bricks to climb up through this tower to proceed

In the foreground, the eastern side of Niujiaobian
In the middle ground, the western side of Niujiaobian
In the background, Zhengbeilou
In the distance, Jiankou Great Wall and Jiuyanlou

Long, slippery path up to the top

Awesome view from the top
In the foreground is Zhengbeilou
In the distance is the mighty Yingfeidaoyang
From here it's mostly downhill and easy walking to Zhengbeilou

Elevation profile from the start of the trail at Beigou Village to the top of Niujiaobian