A five day trek along the Great Wall of China in aid of Bowel Action!
Support for BDRF has recently been exemplified by a charity trek along the Great Wall of China. In October this year eight women (including the Chairman) trekked along rugged terrain, impossibly steep steps and narrow precipitous ridges for 5 to 7 hours a day over 5 days. Sore feet, stiff legs, aching backs and a cardiac workout as never before allowed us to raise over £20,000 for the Foundation. Read on for a full account of their journey...
After many weekends training with friends and Bromley Ramblers, and generous sponsorship, at last I was on the flight to Beijing to meet up with 7 other ladies undertaking the China Trek for BDRF. We joined up with Julian, our Team leader; Doctor Bill, the team doctor, no easy task when you have 3 surgeons and 2 GP’s in the group and local guide Roger. Towards the end of our transfer to the Jinshanling Hotel we spied through the dusk our first glimpse of the wall which was to be our challenge for the next 5 days. Happily the hotels got progressively better as Chinese plumbing and the lack of glass in the windows at the first were a bit of a shock!
Day 1
We reached the wall at Jinshanling directly from the Hotel. We had an easy first day, although it seemed pretty tough with steep slopes and steps together with many watch towers. This part of the wall dates back to the Ming Dynasty and had been restored. Lunch of egg fried rice and salad arrived courtesy of a local farmer and was much appreciated as the weather was cold. After lunch the condition of the wall deteriorated up to Simatai where it was being restored so 3 guards stopped us going further. We partly retraced our steps and then walked down to pick up the coach back to hotel all relieved that we had not let ourselves or the others down. There was a very interesting paper cutting demonstration before dinner.
Day2
The wall at Gubeikou was very different, not having been restored. The walk up to the wall was long and steep through scrub and with some extremely narrow vertiginous sections which proved very challenging for some of the group. When we reached the wall it was only 1-2 meters wide and overgrown with a central path and no side walls. Lunch was uninspiring and it had started to drizzle. We climbed back up to the wall but it started to rain. Luckily a farmer appeared out of the mist on his scooter with a flask of hot water and pre-sweetened Nescafe sachets, worth every penny of the £1.50 for a welcome warming drink. Our new hotel was well heated, which was important as we had lots of wet clothes to dry.
Day 3
We were walking in Black Dragon Paw Park. We climbed over the mountain on a steep path alongside water. There were many waterfalls, stepping stones and bridges across the river which was fast flowing following overnight rain. Rocks were lichen covered and pretty slippery. Lunch was spicy noodles and chicken served from a van outside the park gates. Our afternoon challenge was a climb to the top of the tallest tower on the wall. We were the only group allowed up on that day. There were spectacular views despite the limited sunshine.
Day 4
We walked up through terraces of pear, walnut and chestnut trees on a steep path to the wall at Mutianyu. This is the best restored section of wall that we trecked and it attracts lots of tourists especially at the cable car access point. We encountered wedding couples wearing both red (traditional Chinese) and white dresses to have their photos taken. We walked to the 20th Tower with an option, taken by all, to climb 473 steps for a view from a tower before lunch. Unfortunately there was no view as the top was shrouded in cloud. After lunch, we trekked back to the toboggan top station. The weather had sufficiently improved for the toboggan run to be opened again. It was a fast and furious way to get back down to the coach. At last there was an opportunity for some retail therapy although the need to barter for all prices took a bit of getting used to. A cup of real coffee at the cafe near the bus park was a very welcome end to the day’s walking.
Day 5
The final day; we were allowed an extra 30 minutes in bed as there was no chance of seeing the sun rise through the dense cloud but that still meant a 5:15 wake up call. We had to wait in the drizzle at the gate ready to start the climb at the Juyongguan pass as the guard hadn’t yet opened up. There were 1200 steps to climb before we ate our packed breakfast. The steps varied in height from 1 to 4 bricks and were truly awesome to complete. I thought that I had become pretty good at steps but these were something else. We had the wall to ourselves although a couple of the shops were already open hoping for our trade but were disappointed. By the time we reached the middle stretch of the wall, we were walking a path that was full of Chinese tourists in their customary red baseball hats. The hats are a colourful addition to the scene but I wouldn’t want to be walking in their high fashion stiletto-heeled footwear. Back to our hotel for celebratory photos, Chinese champagne and a well earned shower. I had succeeded in completing the challenge and although my calves and knees ached I hadn’t needed any of my huge stock of blister plasters.
We called at a Silk Factory on our way to the Rainbow Hotel Beijing. Then after checking in at the Hotel and having dinner we went out for a traditional Chinese foot massage. I had to be persuaded to go but it turned out to be great fun although there were various groans whilst the calf massage was going on; but it seemed to get my muscles back to normality.
The next day was spent at the Forbidden City, having lunch in a family home in one of the old Hutong districts. The afternoon was spent buying souvenirs in the famous Silk Market followed by a celebratory dinner that evening.
It is amazing how quickly the 5 days flew by and what a sense of achievement there has been both individually and for the group. Hopefully this will have brought significant sponsorship to BDRF. I had a great time but was sorry to see so little sunshine.
Jane Linsell, China Trekker, October 2010
This page was last updated on 11-11-2010