Shuitou Village Loop hike
Hike over the hills to isolated Shuitou Village, hidden deep in the hills of Huailai District. Great hilly scenery and exercise, and a walk through at a village that hasn't changed much since the '80s.

Work day If you work in Beijing you might be expected to show up at the office today, as it’s a make-up work day for the big holiday next week.
This trail follows short sections of a few of our Zhenbiancheng area hikes, but adds a big extra section that takes us back in time with a hike over to the left-in-the-80s village of Shuitou.16km in the hills and valleys, with a good 952m of ascent over the course of the hike.
Members and regulars who have had enough Great Wall: You’ll see a bit of wall on this hike, but just 600m of the whole trail is actually on the wall. The rest of it is hill trails and dirt roads.
Highlights
- Views of the jagged peaks of Brushrest Mountain
- The jungle-y trail through Potato Valley
- The Shuitou Great Wall water arch, through which water used to run down from the hills
- The isolated farming village of Shuitou, which made Big Boss Huijie feel like she was back in 80s-era China
What to bring on this hike
- Lunch and snacks to eat
- Sun protection: long-sleeved shirt, hat
- A bottle of sports drink with salt content (Gatorade, Pocari Sweat)
- Warm clothes in case it gets chilly
- Good hiking boots
- A light rain coat or poncho, just in case
- (Click here to read our full What to Bring on a Hike list)
Reasons you might not enjoy this hike
- Parts of the trail will be overgrown and scratchy, with a bit of ducking and weaving required to get through Potato Valley.
- We finish the hike following the first 4km of our Zhenbiancheng Great Wall hike.