Seeing as this is going to be one of the most challenging and amazing things I have ever done in my life, so far, I am really keen to blog about my trip to China and my seven-day extreme hike across the Great Wall of China.
We’re set to encounter the ‘wild’ wall; broken stones and a rather intimidating stretch (that looks almost 180 degrees) known as ‘Heaven’s Ladder’.
Heaven’s Ladder in the mist. Image from Mark B. Griffith’s Flickr.
As a trekking novice this has all been an eye-opening experience, and I’m not even on the wall itself yet! I can help but feel wholly unprepared, both physically and mentally, for the trip and the trek itself. I have little over two weeks to ready myself, my kit (and my visa!) for this epic adventure.
After the Great Wall I’m also going to be spending a little time in Beijing and Shanghai, using both domestic airlines and the High-Speed rail network, and I really want to blog about that so keep your eyes peeled (not literally) for that in a month or so’s time!
Ahead of my trek, however, I have begun a series of pages of information for the trek, preparations and, hopefully, reviews of places and kit which I will do after proper testing and use ‘in the field’, so to speak. You can find these pages here, or at the top of this page. I hope these will be of use to somebody as I have had a real hard time finding any information tailored to a novice at trekking, and especially any information not secretly trying to sell me something.
Alongside this I will be more active on this blog, updating my reading list and making everythign a little more open 🙂
Goodbye, Zhai jian!
The Jiankou section of the wall, another shot of Heaven’s formiddable ladder. Image from GreatWallForum.com.
Sunrise to Starlight 