Gubeikou Great Wall | One of the towers on the Gubeikou ‘Panlongshan’ Great Wall trail.
One of the towers on the Gubeikou ‘Panlongshan’ Great Wall trail.

Gubeikou Great Wall

Explore the Panlongshan section of the the Gubeikou Great Wall, starting with a climb up to the 24-Eyes Tower, finishing with a look at some of the Great Wall towers on the west side of the big North Gate, and hiking all the wall in between. Includes a post-hike lunch at a countryside restaurant.

Level 3
3–4 hours of hiking over approx. 9km. (Can I do it?)

This hike is scheduled as a join-in group tour on the following dates

Follow the links to see current hike information and booking details.

We’ll start off nearby the small hamlet where we used to finish this hike, and hike up to the small reservoir further up the valley from the houses.

By the reservoir is a hill track that will take us up to the top section of the Great Wall at Gubeikou. It’s not a difficult climb, but once we’ve finished it we’ll be almost at the highest point of the whole hike.

The actual highest point of the whole hike is the 24-Eyes Tower, and we’ll follow the wall up for long views of more Great Wall and mountains all around.

24-Eyes Tower is the highest tower on the Panlongshan ‘Coiling Dragon Mountain’ part of the Great Wall, and was one of the largest, too. The name ’24-Eyes’ came from the number of windows—six on each of the tower’s four sides. The tower only has two sides now due to damage over the years, including explosions and gunfire during a 1930s battle between Chinese and Japanese armies.

Hiking up to Gubeikou’s 24-Eyes Tower.
Hiking up to Gubeikou’s 24-Eyes Tower. (Click for larger image)

After a break at 24-Eyes Tower we’ll hike down the Great Wall, heading for Gubeikou’s North Gate. We’ll be on the wall most of the way there, passing through Haowang Tower and the General’s Tower along the way.

Just after the General’s Tower we’ll take a detour off the wall to head for the North Gate, hiking hill trails to get back to the wall that encircled Gubeikou Village, and then along the wall to the North Gate, an arched gate in the wall.

Gubeikou West Circuit, 2017/11/18 photo #2
Views from the other side of the North Gate, with the General’s Tower and 24-Eyes Tower seen in the far distance.

We’ll head down to the village from the North Gate and finish our day with a big meal at a village restaurant.

COVID-19 and participation precautions

The current precautions are minimal. Please read in full here: Operating hikes under COVID-19 precautions

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Photos and trip reports: Gubeikou Great Wall

  1. Gubeikou Great Wall, 2024/10/19

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    See sixteen shots from a super-nice day out on the Gubeikou Great Wall—long views, clear skies, and the start of the autumn colours.
  2. Gubeikou Great Wall, 2024/08/18

    Gubeikou Great Wall, 2024/08/18

    We ended up hiking here after everywhere else closed down due to a forecast for heavy rain, and we were lucky to get the hike done before any rain arrived—see fourteen photos from the hike.
  3. Gubeikou Great Wall, 2024/06/15

    Gubeikou Great Wall, 2024/06/15

    Check out 18 photos from a hot day hike on the Great Wall at Gubeikou—views of Great Wall, mountains, and a sky of puffy clouds.
  4. Gubeikou Great Wall, 2023/10/08

    Gubeikou Great Wall, 2023/10/08

    We saw the start of the autumn colours on this hike—check out 15 photos of the Gubeikou Great Wall and its surrounding scenery.
  5. Gubeikou Great Wall, 2023/04/02

    Gubeikou Great Wall, 2023/04/02

    A walk on the wall in the early spring, with views of blossoms around the Great Wall only slightly spoiled by a little sandstorm—see 15 photos.
  6. Gubeikou Great Wall, 2023/03/05

    Gubeikou Great Wall, 2023/03/05

    Pictures from a hazy day’s hike at the Gubeikou Great Wall—see 21 photos, including Great Wall and Gubeikou village temples.

See all the hikes  In the calendar / in a list