Hikers complete their first Year of the Snake trek
On the third day of the Lunar New Year, Tianjin office worker “Little Money Lover (online alias)” completed her first-ever hiking trek. The 24-year-old girl was proud to have unexpectedly discovered an ancient Great Wall site during her maiden trek alongside 23 experienced hikers—an exciting potential new find related to the ancient Great Wall.
24 hikers
Six and a half hours of trekking nearly 20 kilometers
With new and modern ways of celebrating the New Year emerging, group hiking has become one of the public's favorite activities. Influenced by her mother, “Little Money Lover” joined the trend. “I wanted to exercise so I wouldn’t gain weight over the holidays, but I didn’t expect to walk nearly 20 kilometers in one go.” The “hiking leader,” “Forest 1.8 (online alias),” was also surprised: “When I posted the route recruitment, I estimated it would be 15 kilometers, but it ended up being noticeably longer. All the hikers finished the whole trek in one go—even newbies like ‘Little Money Lover’ kept up.”
On the morning of the third day of the Lunar New Year, 24 members of the Jizhou Hiking Group set off from the North Gorge of the ancient Great Wall in Jixian County, passed through Wapianliang Village, and then continued to Qianganjian Village, completing the hike in six and a half hours. The scenery along the way was breathtaking—not only did they pass several small icefalls, but they also saw large expanses of birch forests, pine forests, and wild azalea woods. The snow on the shaded mountain paths was about 30 centimeters thick, but luckily the hikers were wearing high-top hiking boots. “No one had ever walked this path before, and trekking through the snow felt amazing.”
After hiking six or seven kilometers through the gorge, the group began climbing uphill. After crossing three mountains, they spotted the ancient Great Wall, and then followed it all the way along. The ancient wall, built of stone, was somewhat dilapidated at first. Later, the hikers began to see sections repaired with bricks, which were much more orderly than the earlier parts. “Forest 1.8” explained that on the mountainside between Wapianliang Village and Qianganjian Village in Jixian County, the hikers came across an old, rundown stone house. Although one side had collapsed, its style was clearly different from modern residential buildings, leading the hikers to speculate that it might be part of the ancient Great Wall site. They took photos immediately. Not long after, upon reaching the mountaintop, they saw the ancient Great Wall, further confirming their theory.
Relevant departments
Possibly an overlooked relic from a cultural survey
Yesterday, Zhao Zhili, head of the Marketing Department at the Huangyaguan Great Wall Management Bureau in Jixian County, examined the photos of the stone house taken by the hikers and, based on the location they described, speculated that the stone structure was once a residence for soldiers guarding the Great Wall in ancient times. According to Zhao, over three years ago, China’s cultural relics authorities conducted a unified survey and documentation of the Ming Great Wall, registering details such as soldiers’ residences, watchtowers, and stoves. Compared with those records, the structure discovered by the hikers was not listed. “We can preliminarily assume that this site was missed during the previous survey, possibly because it was overgrown with weeds and went unnoticed at the time. This winter hike occurred when the grass had withered and leaves had fallen, leading to the unexpected discovery,” Zhao said. He added that relevant departments will be contacted soon for further investigation and confirmation. Additionally, the age of the section of the Great Wall encountered during the trek has drawn attention. Previously, experts had claimed that only Ming Dynasty Great Wall existed in Jixian County, with no older structures. However, local legend suggests there was a section of the Great Wall dating back to the Northern Qi Dynasty around 557 AD, during the Wei-Jin-Northern and Southern Dynasties period. The hikers tend to believe the local accounts. “The Northern Qi Great Wall was built with stone, while the Ming Great Wall was built with bricks—the difference is obvious.”
Yesterday, a reporter interviewed Zhao Zhili on this matter. Zhao explained that there is indeed some debate within the industry regarding the age of the Great Wall in Jixian County. “We lean toward the view that the Ming Great Wall was rebuilt on the foundation of the Northern Qi Great Wall,” Zhao said. The section trekked by the hikers this time is located on Wangmaoding Mountain on the western side of Huangyaguan Great Wall. It features a mid-to-upper Proterozoic cliff landscape, with an altitude of 750 meters—much higher than other peaks. The ancient Great Wall was also built along steep cliffs, and many remnants such as watchtowers still remain. There are also many local legends associated with it.