Huanghua Great Wall - Any good? Still ... - Thorn Tree travel forum

Huanghua Great Wall - Any good? Still open?

Replies: 7 - Last Post: 17-Oct-2007 18:20 Last Post By: mountainstuss

jump to

Posted
14-Oct-2007 11:07
by: sagar1206

Posts: 3
Registered: 14/10/07

Huanghua Great Wall - Any good? Still open?

Hi all,

I'm in Beijing at the moment and am trying to sort out my trip to the Great Wall.

I would prefer a more "authentic" Wall experience and therefore do not want to visit Badaling. My friends have recommended I visit the Huanghua section of the Wall.

Does anyone know if this section is still accesible to travellers? If so, what is the easiest way to get there? The travel desk at my hostel (the Far East Int Youth Hostel) said that this section is closed for renovation, but I suspect this may be because they wanted to sell me an expensive tour to Simatai.

I plan on going this Tuesday, 16th October. If anyone would like to join me, feel free to email me at: sagar (dot) thakur @ gmail (dot) com

Cheers,

ST

Posted
14-Oct-2007 12:48
by: Sarah55

Posts: 17,434
Registered: 19/02/05

1

I don't know anything about Huanghua, but if you can get in touch with the Leo Hostel, they run an excellent 'secret wall' trip to a totally unspoiled section of wall, where you'll not see anyone else.

Kashgar lies where the maps in people's minds dissolve.

Posted
14-Oct-2007 12:49
by: Sarah55

Posts: 17,434
Registered: 19/02/05

2

Here.

Kashgar lies where the maps in people's minds dissolve.

Posted
14-Oct-2007 19:34
by: vegasgambler

Posts: 720
Registered: 14/09/06

3

What do you mean by more "authentic" A wall is a wall is a wall. There are more tourists at B and M. Besides that averything else is the same.

Posted
14-Oct-2007 23:09
by: Sarah55

Posts: 17,434
Registered: 19/02/05

4

At Badaling the wall is restored. There are pylons for lights, and other things that may 'take away' from the experience for some people, such as hawkers, a cinema etc.

Elsewhere it is just wall - and for some people that is all they want, so they can feel the history and let their imaginations have free rein. Personally I liked being on a stretch of wall that looked its age.

Kashgar lies where the maps in people's minds dissolve.

Posted
15-Oct-2007 00:51
by: sewage

Posts: 394
Registered: 18/06/07

5

You could take a bus to the suburban town of Huairou, then from there negotiate with a taxi driver to get you to Huanghua. I tried that last December but the driver said that part of the wall was closed for some reason. I ended up going to the Jiankou section of the wall instead which was well preserved and I had the wall all to myself.

I saw on Flickr someone who had gone to Huanghua around the same time as I did and she said the drivers told her Jiankou was closed so she settled for Huanghua. So who knows.

Posted
15-Oct-2007 05:57
by: rploehn

Posts: 262
Registered: 11/01/06

6

Stick to your guns! The Great Wall is different at different spots. I enjoyed the Jinshanling access point for its rustic-ness. When I got near Simatai, I could feel the group-bus-tour tourist vibes. Nice restored brick by brick, every convenience that the Chinese never saw for 700 years, zip-lines and boat rides. Yes, this is what the Great Wall was meant to be...NOT.

Some people like to go to Disneyland and others want to see the real thing as it existed through centuries.

Always looking for new adventures, new cultures, interesting geography.

Posted
17-Oct-2007 18:20
by: mountainstuss

Posts: 10
Registered: 30/08/07

7

Huanghua is closed for renovation. We hiked it anyway, west to east toward Mutainyu. This involved a little bit of miving quietly on paths through people's orchards and then some stealthing along the wall where it has been restored, but all that is left behing pretty quickly. Then you are alone out in the middle of nowhere. The wall stays on the highest ridge and has a ton of up and down. Many crumbled guard towers, lots of firewood. There is no water source up on the ridge. You will be forced all the way to the valley floor at one point -- fill bottles here for the next climb to the top. This is a great section of wall if you enjoy bushwhacking, because that is what you will be doing ALL day!

Subscribe to the latest messages in this branch.

Your Recent Threads

Announcements

Website speed - Facebook...
Posted By: VenessaP -- 07-Oct-2009 16:30

Latest Community News

	Speaking in Tongues Messages: 66,144 Last message posted at: 22-Nov-2009 07:13
	On Your Bike Messages: 28,932 Last message posted at: 22-Nov-2009 04:58
	Travel Tech Messages: 27,853 Last message posted at: 22-Nov-2009 01:28
	Kids To Go Messages: 25,775 Last message posted at: 21-Nov-2009 23:38
	Like a Sore Thumb Messages: 22,513 Last message posted at: 20-Nov-2009 14:04
	Trekking & Mountaineering Messages: 21,985 Last message posted at: 21-Nov-2009 18:22
	Travel on a shoestring Messages: 20,862 Last message posted at: 22-Nov-2009 06:32

Destinations

Asia: Destination information

Asia is a spectacular assault on the senses, whether you're riding the trans-Siberian railway, gazing up at the temples of Angkor, struggling with the immense tide of humanity in India, or trying to s... more »

Shop Online