The Jiankou section of the Great Wall stretches from the Nine Eye Tower (Jiu Yan Lou) in the north to Zheng Bei Lou in the south-east and has around 22 towers.
The starting point for hiking Jiankou is a small village called Xi Zha Zi that is around 75-80 kilometers north of Beijing and hard to reach.
To get to the village you first catch the subway to Dongzhimen station on line two then catch the 916 express bus at Dongzhimen Wai long distance bus station.
The village is small and only has a population of around 300 people who are mostly farmers. Walking through the village is a great way to see a side of China that most tourists never experience.
Once you pass through the village, there are a number of paths you can take and only one of the paths heads towards Nine Eye Tower.
I had to ask for directions three times to find right path. The locals are friendly so if you are not sure, ask for “jiu yan lou” or just point at the wall which is clearly visible I the distance look lost.
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