Here’s a rough sketch of the ride we are designing around the Hebei section of the Great Wall of China, followed by two days in beijing to explore the Hutong’s and check the must see sights of the Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven – and eat as many roast peking Ducks , dumplings, Jia Jiang mian and other northern delights – as posible.
Trip price:
Early Bird Discount:
Itinerary
Day 1 – Thursday 7th May
Arrive in Beijing airport. Transfer to Changping.
Welcome to Beijing. We start our trip to the wall at the airport at 4 pm and head North of the city to Changping, where the ride starts the following morning. It takes around 1.5 hours driving. Here we’ll do a group meeting and answer any questions about the upcoming tour. We’ll have our first banquet dinner together. Changping is a district situated in the northwest of Beijing. Established in the Han dynasty (206BC-220AD), Changping is renowned for it numerous scenic spots, such as the Ming tombs, Juyong pass and Datangshan museum. It is rich in natural resources, mineral products and rural products.
Stay: Ibis Hotel (3 stars) or similar
Meal: D
Day 2 – Friday 8th May
Cycle from Changping to Yongning.
After breakfast and bike fittings at 8am, we will start the ride at 9am from the hotel to Yongning Town via the Ming T ombs. We will cycle pass the famous Ming Dynasty Tombs, and the Yan Ruins section of ancient Great Wall. The cycling starts on pretty flat terrain for about 17km to Xingshou village, after which we have our first climb before rolling hills over 15km brings us to our lunch spot. After lunch we will hit about 10km of uphill and then 19km of downhill interspersed with some small hills into Yongning town to end the days ride. Yongning was a regional centrre as far back as the Xia (2070BC- 1600BC) and Shang Dynasties (1600BC-1046BC) as well as the Warring States Period (475BC-221BC). Yongning is famous for its old town, ancient city gates and city walls.
Stay: Juyuancheng Homestay – farmhouse style guesthouse near Yongcheng Old Town
Meals: BLD
Cycling distance: 61 km, Total gain: 1131 m, Average gradient: 1.3%, Total descent: 709 m
Day 3 – Saturday 9th May
Cycle from Yongning to Xiadelongwan.
An early start this morning has us cycling from Yongning to Xiadelongwan. The cycling is reasonably challenging in the morning as we climb for around 10kms to the top of a pass – the reward for the effort is that the rest of day is either downhill or flat roads for about 45kms in superb scenery along the 100 Mile Gallery Scenic Area, noted for it’s spectacular mountains, rivers and lakes. We will end the ride in Xiadelongwan, next to the Bai River, located in the main part of the 100 miles Gallery Area. In the afternoon, time permitting, we can visit Dishui Lake scenic Area.
Stay: 8090 Farmstay – family run guesthouse in Xiadelongwan village.
Meals: BLD
Cycling distance: 55 km, Total gain: 799 m, Average gradient: 1.0%, Total descent: 532 m
Day 4 – Sunday 10th May
Cycle from Qianjiadian to Qinglianggu.
Today is longest cycling distance of the ride, around 72km, but it is relatively easy with around 50km of downhill and only 5km climbing with the rest on gently undulating roads. Our destination today is the Qingliang Valley, which is located in Miyun district. The Yumeng Mountain Range rises above the valley and there are also dozens of waterfalls, rock pools and forests of Chinese pine. The average altitude is above 500m and can be 5-8 degrees cooler than Beijing, which makes it a popular summer escape for Beijing locals. We stay in a local style guesthouse for the evening.
Stay: Qinglianggu home stay in Qinglinggu Valley
Meals: BLD
Cycling distance: 72 km, Total gain: 280 m, Average gradient 0.4%, Total descent: 309 m
Day 5 — Monday 11th May
Cycle from Qinglianggu to Gubeikou.
Another longer ride to finish our challenge today with a total distance of around 71km. Starting with gentle and slow hills up for around 15km, with a steeper 5km up to the top of the pass, the rest of day is cycling on downhill and relatively flat roads to reach our final destination at Gubeikou Great Wall. Gubeikou boasts the most intact sections of the Great Wall of China system. It is composed several sections including of Wohu, Panlong Mountains, Jinshanling and Simatai Great Wall. We’ll celebrate the end of our bike ride with a beer or two in a local guesthouse. We’ll say goodbye to the bikes and prepare for the hiking section beginning the next day.
Stay: Gubeikou Great Wall Inn
Meals: BLD
Cycling distance: 71 km, Total gain: 480 m, Average gradient 0.3%, Total descent: 550 m
Day 6 — Tuesday 12th May
Hike the Great Wall from Gubeikou to Jinshanling.
After breakfast we start the hiking journey right from the guesthouse. It is about 5-6 hours hike over 12km and ends in Jinshanling Great Wall. We will arrange vans to drive everyone back to Gubeikou Inn (vans work better for these roads) for another overnight stay. Gubeikou was a strategic fort in days gone by and is the start of our hike. We climb up to the wall and follow it’s winding route along ridgelines to the Jinshanling section. The sections we hike are relatively unrestored and much less visited than other sections of the wall, so you’ll have superb views of this wonder largely to yourself. Ancient brickwork, battlements and watchtowers are plentiful and the surrounding views are sublime. As the wall is unrestored you must be prepared for a reasonably strenuous hike on rough rocks and steep stairs.
In the afternoon , we transfer to Beijing. The trip ends at 5 pm at Beijing Airport, which is timed for people to jump aboard a flight to Zhan Jia Jie – the next leg of our ride (the pre pre bit in Hunan) to the Yangshuo Bike Festival!
Meals: BL