Jingxi Ancient Road and Horse Hoofprints
Hike a long section of the Jingxi Ancient Road, making a quick detour to check out the ‘horse hoofprints’, indentations left in rock by horses and donkeys carrying coal for trade.
This hike is not currently scheduled
This hike is a new version of our old ‘Ancient Horse Hoofprints’ hike, which we stopped doing after a big road was built right through the middle of the hiking trail. We’ve found a new start point which adds a longer walk on the Jingxi Ancient Road and avoids the big road.
The hike
We start off in a village that sits at a crossroads on the Jingxi Ancient Road, a network of old trails and trading routes that cross over the mountains in the west of Beijing.
Behind the village we stay on the path of the trading route, making a slow climb up 'Flower Valley' into the hills.
Part of the way up into the hills we'll come to a split in the trail, and we'll either go the steep way – a chain-assisted clamber up a cliff – or take a more meandering route around.
After stopping for a lunch break we’ll continue up to a pass in the mountains. On the other side of the pass is a long trail that leads down to the outskirts of Beijing city. Before we hike down, we’ll do a little detour to check out the ‘ancient horse hoofprints’.
The hike finishes in another village that was one of the main stops on the trading route.
Because of the COVID-19 situation we have some extra terms and conditions for participation.
In particular:
- DO NOT participate if you are sick or showing symptoms of fever and/or have an elevated temperature, or have been in close contact with someone who was.
- DO NOT participate if you have not completed any required quarantine after your return to Beijing.
- You MUST agree to the mitigation and prevention measures outlined here and that Beijing Hikers will not be held responsible if any participants become sick.
Please read in full here: Operating hikes under COVID-19 precautions
