Our Huanghuacheng to the Walled Village hike takes us up and down a stretch of steep Great Wall in Huairou District, climbing steep ridgelines out of and into valleys. On this visit we had clear weather, and the views were amazing!

We headed out to Huairou for a Great Wall hike the day after a heavy snowfall. We were a little unsure of what we’d find, but we it’s lucky we went – the views of a snow-covered Great Wall were amazing!

We drove out to Changping District to do our Tomb Raiders hike, a trail in the hills behind the Ming Tombs in Changping. After the hike, we made a visit to the Sacred Way, the official entrance to the tombs.

On this trip we visited the valley where a Tang Dynasty leader and his followers created an inter-connected series of cave dwellings after fleeing from a coup The visit to the valley of the caves involves a short, easy walk that is suitable for children. Afterwards, we visited Yongning Town and took a look at its ancient tower and the old Catholic church there.

During Chinese New Year we arranged two very special overnight trips to Yu County in Hebei Province, home to ancient pagodas, temples, pavilions, and large gates and plaques inside fortified walled towns that preserve traces of the Zhou, Liao, Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties. A most interesting trip! Click through to see the photos.

The hike to Longyunshan is a scenic but not too challenging hike in Miyun District. It allows us to get great views of the surrounding countryside, peaks, and valleys from the top of Dragon Cloud Mountain before we explore the beautiful White River valley below, which gives us a totally different perspective with views of the canyon floor.

In 2012 we did more of our special long distance trips, visiting interesting and scenic locations outside of Beijing – some old favourites, some new trips. Click through to see a summary of where we went in 2012, with link to see extra photos and write ups!

On Boxing Day we did a special hike: a climb on the snowy Great Wall, followed by a soak in the pool at a secluded hot springs hotel. Great hike, great meal, great soak, great photos – click through to see photos and a writeup!

This hike starts at a place called ‘Auspicious Village’, and finishes at another village named ‘Eastern Palace.’ It sounds like an interesting hike, and it is, even though there isn’t actually an palace at the end. What makes the hike interesting is all the sights of the countryside we see along the way: small villages, farmers and fields, terraces and trees, donkeys and dogs. Click through to see photos!

We took a roundabout way from Longevity Village to the Silver Pagodas, walking through two small villages and chestnut orchards with nice views of the surrounding countryside. Click through to see photos from the nice day we had!

Every year we do a Great Wall Christmas hike, and follow it up with a dumpling-making competition – click through to see photos from Christmas 2012!

We did our Rolling Hills hike the weekend after a snowfall, and had a nice walk through snowy scenery – click through to see photos of snow, hills, donkeys, and hikers!

We were happy to see the Big Black Mountain hike scheduled for the same week that Beijing had some snow fall – it’s a really good hike to do with snow on the ground. Click through to see the photos.

Our last long distance trip of 2012 took us to Lijiang and Shangri-La in Yunnan Province. Missed it? Click through to see the best of the photos!

In 2011 we made a scouting trip to this part of northern Sichuan, and in 2012 we made our first group visit to the area, visiting the Jiuzhaigou National Park and the Huanglong National Park, and exploring two of the ancient towns in the area. Click through for photos and more!