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A Simatai Great Wall Trip
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It has been 2 years since I came to Beijing, but I did not have a chance for the Great Wall. In early April, several friends get together to talk about a Great Wall tour. April is not a bad time as it is getting warm and everything is full of life. As for which section to go, we choose Simatai. Badaling is the most famous Great Wall section in Beijing, but we have heard that it is renewed just like a man-made site and the area is highly commercialized. Legend has it that Simatai is wild and natural, telling the ups and downs of the time. We have found numerous materials about Simatai Great Wall online yet no much detail about the transportation and cost, which are just the weak points of us. Here below is our trip.
We started our trip at 06:00 of April 10. We 7 people, 7 guys and 1 lady, got together at Xizhimen, and then took subway to Dongzhimen to make sure we would on the long-distance bus on time. (it is ok to take bus) Out of Dongzhimen subway exit B, we walked to the Long-distance bus station at Dongzhimen Waixiejie to take bus 980 of Muyun county. It was 07:40 when we were up on the bus. It took us 2 hours or also to reach Muyun county as we were in peak hours. After a big Huandao (Changcheng Huandao), the terminus was not far.
We were surrounded by a circle of van divers the minute we alighted. It must be so easy for them to tell what we were going to do as we were a large group of 7 backpackers. Out of those drivers, there was one with rock and roll hairstyle. Dude, how could we trust you?! Lol. Anyway, we agreed with one of them for a round trip at the price of 140RMB. Note that the price is not fixed. It is depend half on the petroleum price and half on the number of tourists of the day. Technically speaking, the van was overloaded with 8 persons, but the road condition was good and things went on well. However, it took us 1 and a half hours, 20mins more to get to the scenic area. When we saw beacon towers, it was almost noon and we were feeling empty. But we insisted climbing Simatai first dining second.
The Great Wall is divided into two sections by a valley, with an iron chain bridge as the connection in the middle. We were told the other side belonged to Hubei Province and cost extra money to visit. Plus we had time pressure, we gave it a miss. Along the smooth stairs, we were up on the Great Wall resting at the ridge of the mountain. A 30RMB cable car service was also available for this part. From the entrance to the peak, there were 15 beacon towers in total. The roads of first few were cragged but the stairs were there. Walls became incomplete and roads got danger with time passed by. Between the last 2 and 3 beacon towers, the walls were not walls, it was just a tower upon the mountain. It is rumored that someone fell from somewhere of the last 3 beacon towers of great danger and oddness, so they are not closed to tourists. Though we could not make our trip to the last 3 towers, we did not feel any regret. It was enough for us to feel the greatness of the Great Wall.
It was 15:30 when we got down. We spent about 4.5 hours on the mountain. The divers told us the 3.5 hours was enough, but we were a large group and it took us more to take pictures and get recharged. Remember to bring enough water. We run out of water and bought some high price water, 5 times higher than normal price at the foot of the mountain. Three bottles of water are enough while four will be more and heavy to take.
We started our trip at 06:00 of April 10. We 7 people, 7 guys and 1 lady, got together at Xizhimen, and then took subway to Dongzhimen to make sure we would on the long-distance bus on time. (it is ok to take bus) Out of Dongzhimen subway exit B, we walked to the Long-distance bus station at Dongzhimen Waixiejie to take bus 980 of Muyun county. It was 07:40 when we were up on the bus. It took us 2 hours or also to reach Muyun county as we were in peak hours. After a big Huandao (Changcheng Huandao), the terminus was not far.
We were surrounded by a circle of van divers the minute we alighted. It must be so easy for them to tell what we were going to do as we were a large group of 7 backpackers. Out of those drivers, there was one with rock and roll hairstyle. Dude, how could we trust you?! Lol. Anyway, we agreed with one of them for a round trip at the price of 140RMB. Note that the price is not fixed. It is depend half on the petroleum price and half on the number of tourists of the day. Technically speaking, the van was overloaded with 8 persons, but the road condition was good and things went on well. However, it took us 1 and a half hours, 20mins more to get to the scenic area. When we saw beacon towers, it was almost noon and we were feeling empty. But we insisted climbing Simatai first dining second.
The Great Wall is divided into two sections by a valley, with an iron chain bridge as the connection in the middle. We were told the other side belonged to Hubei Province and cost extra money to visit. Plus we had time pressure, we gave it a miss. Along the smooth stairs, we were up on the Great Wall resting at the ridge of the mountain. A 30RMB cable car service was also available for this part. From the entrance to the peak, there were 15 beacon towers in total. The roads of first few were cragged but the stairs were there. Walls became incomplete and roads got danger with time passed by. Between the last 2 and 3 beacon towers, the walls were not walls, it was just a tower upon the mountain. It is rumored that someone fell from somewhere of the last 3 beacon towers of great danger and oddness, so they are not closed to tourists. Though we could not make our trip to the last 3 towers, we did not feel any regret. It was enough for us to feel the greatness of the Great Wall.
It was 15:30 when we got down. We spent about 4.5 hours on the mountain. The divers told us the 3.5 hours was enough, but we were a large group and it took us more to take pictures and get recharged. Remember to bring enough water. We run out of water and bought some high price water, 5 times higher than normal price at the foot of the mountain. Three bottles of water are enough while four will be more and heavy to take.
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