Climate

Beijing and Hebei provinces experience a rather broad temperature range throughout the year. In October the weather is mild to warm with the possibility of some showers during the day. However at night the temperatures can drop to below zero, possibly as low as -5 deg C.  It is therefore important that your clothing and equipment is suitable for such conditions.  For example, at the end of October 2003, temperatures dropped to -5 deg C, and in the first week of November there was snow in Beijing

Food

China is a food lover's paradise with a seemingly endless variety. The entire range of Chinese recipes includes more than 1 million dishes and is by far the most extensive in the world. Our days usually start out with a typically Chinese-styled breakfast of rice porridge and several sweet and savoury buns and bite-size entrees.

During the trekking section we will eat a variety of foods, such as rice, noodles, chicken, tomatoes, vegetables, tinned meats, tinned fish and pickles as well as bread, fresh and dried fruit, nuts and hard-boiled eggs.

Trekking Routine

In Miyun County of Beijing the Si Ma Tai section of the Great Wall is on a series of ridges. The trek from Si Ma Tai makes a gradual ascent to the apex of this 40km-long ridge system and then descends gradually to Jin Shan Ling Pass , where the famous pass is entered on a walk down a valley. The walk along this section is framed by distant 3,000m mountains.

Tents and all camping equipment are provided. This gear is carried on each section by a mule team which follows below the Great Wall, meeting the group in a camping area near a village in the late afternoon. The pace is leisurely and on the first section at Mt Si Ma Tai we ascend gradually a reconstructed section of Wall to gain rolling ridges and then proceed along the original Wall. On all sections there is flexibility in movement, and progress can be adjusted to satisfy consensus (if the group wishes to stop to inspect something, or spend longer at a nearby community, such can be achieved within the schedule).

In the late afternoon the Chinese guides will set up camp at a village. They will cook all meals and attend to general camp duties (in the morning you will be provided with a bowl of warm water for washing). A toilet tent is provided for the evening camps. The tents are two-person, supplied by World Expeditions.