Jiankou Section of the Great Wall of China
The Great Wall of China is one of the world’s most famous tourist destination. So many people visit the wall, the popular Badaling section has had to restrict the visitors numbers to 65,000 people a day. One section, the Jiankou segment that winds up and down the mountainsides north of Beijing is accessible only after a forty-five-minute hike. Getting there is challenging, but this segment, built in the 16th-17th century CE, gives them an authentic experience. Unfortunately, this authenticity can be deadly. While other sections of the Great Wall are designed for tourist visits, the Jiankou section is remote and difficult to get there. Once explorers arrive at the spot, they are greeting with a crumbling, steep, slippery-when-wet and unforgiving relic of the Ming era section of the Great Wall.
