Xiangshuiyu

Chinese: 响水湖
Pinyin: Xiǎng shuǐ hú
English: Sounding lake
Coordinates: 40°27'34"N 116°27'13"E

The Xiangshuihu Great Wall is located west of Moyashike and Wangquanyu and east of Lianyunling. This section has been partially restored and is officially open to the public. It's a good place for a brief visit to the Great Wall if you are nearby and you want to avoid crowds. Xiangshuihu is probably the least-visited Great Wall location in the Beijing area that has been restored and is officially open.

Xiangshuihu is about one hour's drive from the Huairou urban area. Go to Dazhenyu and just beyond that village you will find the entrance to Xiangshuihu at 40°27'3"N 116°26'51"E.

To reach the Xiangshuihu Great Wall, take the road from the Huairou urban area towards Mutianyu. At the Mutianyu roundabout, go straight and continue to the west. Drive about 8.5 kilometers (5.6 miles) until you reach Nanye, where you turn to the right. From Nanye, drive about 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) north and then turn right towards the Xiangshuihu Great Wall. From there, drive about 3.5 kilometers (2.2 miles). You will drive through Dazhenyu town and pass a parking area before you reach the ticket gate.

Overlooking Xiangshuihu to the west

The main pass of the Xiangshuihu Great Wall is known as Moshikou. The pass structure was mostly destroyed in 1973 when a dam was built at its location. A span of 0.4 kilometers (0.3 miles) of the Xiangshuihu Great Wall in the Moshikou pass area was rebuilt in 2007 and therefore is in very good condition in this area. But the restored spans on each side of the pass are short, and appear to have been designed simply to look good from the road.

Taxi drivers are not necessarily allowed into the entrance gate of the Xiangshuihu Great Wall without buying a ticket, unlike many other Great Wall locations. And the entrance gate is relatively far from the wall. Beware of this if you intend to take a taxi to Xiangshuihu.

The Xishuiyu Great Wall is a popular tourist resort. It connects with Zhuangdaokou and Erdaoguan in the east and Longquanyu in the west. There are many hotels, farm houses, and restaurants here as well as activities like boat rides and scenic walkways. But the main attraction for readers of this forum is of course the Great Wall. There are many places where you can see the Great Wall here, and the views are impressive with high mountains and water all around. But if you are looking for a way to reach the Wall you may be a bit perplexed because it appears to be up on top of mountains and basically unapproachable. You have only a few choices of how to reach the Wall. Upon entering the main gate into the park, there is a path off to the right that goes up to a high point on the Wall, but it is protected by a fence and signs warning people to keep out. There were paths going around this fence but I did not try to follow them. If you can get onto the Wall here, you can follow it to the east over some very steep mountains to Erdaoguan.

From the main road, the wall heads east towards Moshikou and Moyashike Park, and west towards Lianyunling and Luanling.

To the east, there's a large dam that was built over the original wall pass. Parts of the old pass can still be seen from the dam as you cross.

Once across the dam, the first incline is quite steep. But because it is recently rebuilt, it's not very dangerous or difficult to climb. Only a short span of the wall was restored on the east side. Walking towards the east, one quickly reaches the first summit and the end of the restored section. The original area starts with a short downhill section followed by a long uphill section, and a large tower at the summit. The view from this point is quite good. The Great Wall can be seen for a long distance in two directions if the weather is clear. Most of the view from here is of little more than the Great Wall and nature, as very few other buildings or man-made objects are visible. Up to this point, all of the Xiangshuihu Great Wall is relatively easy and safe to climb.

Looking east across Wangquanyu from Xiangshuihu's eastern summit

If you continue down towards Wangquanyu valley from here, you will pass one more tower and then you will reach a very steep area that cannot be climbed.

To the west, the wall comes nearly down to the road. However, it can't be climbed from there because it is too steep. Instead, there is a well-maintained and well-marked trail to the left (south) of the wall on this side. The trail is steep with many switchbacks and meets the wall high up on the mountain. Like the restored area on the east side, the restored part of the west side is not long. Beyond the restored section, the wall immediately becomes much more challenging. You can follow it here until you reach Lianyunling.

Location summary: Xiangshuihu is about 62 kilometers (38 miles) north of downtown Beijing. It is and about 0.8 kilometers (0.5 miles) west of Moshikou and about 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) east of Lianyunling. The path of the Great Wall from Xiangshuihu to Lianyunling is about 1.5 kilometers (0.9 miles).

Driving directions: From the Huairou urban area, take X009 northwest for 24 kilometers (14.9 miles) to Nanye village. Turn right on X008 County Road and drive north for 1.6 kilometers (1 mile). Turn right again and drive for about 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) to the Xiangshuihu Great Wall.

Xiangshuihu Great Wall map

The main entrance to Xishuiyu is at the lower right (southeast) corner of the map. The bus to and from Huairou arrives and departs at A. There is a good convenience store at B. At C is the hotel where I stayed. It’s one of the nicer hotels around, but there are several from which to choose. At D is the ticket gate and park entrance. Take the leftmost path after the entrance, cross over a bridge over the river, and continue following this path up the hill. It will curve around sharply to the right, and at this point (E on the map) there is another, smaller path off to the left. Follow this path off to the left and soon you will come through a gap in the Wall at F on the map. Here you will not be able to safely climb up onto the Wall but you can walk alongside it in either direction and look for a way to get up onto it. If you go to the right (north), you can follow the Wall for a decent distance before it abruptly stops on the edge of a steep hill above the dam. If you go to the left (south), the Wall simply curves around and rejoins the path. Continue straight and you will again cross the Wall at a point where it’s barely noticeable unless you look for it. You can follow the wall to the right (northwest) here, but it is pretty steep and overgrown and soon ends at the water’s edge where you would have to turn around and come back. Continue along the path and you will see a tower atop a hill on the right side. Once you have passed this hill you will reach point H on the map where there is a trail off to the right. Follow this path down to the valley. It’s steep and sometimes a little bit hard to locate. Cross the stream on some rocks at I on the map. Following the trail back up the other side of the valley you will reach the Great Wall at J on the map. You can get up onto the Wall here, but at this point you can only go to the right (east) up to one high tower and then down to the reservoir. Heading left (west) you will soon find a tower that has been blocked off to prevent access. You must therefore find your way through the thick woods and at K on the map you will find a pile of bricks that you can use to climb up onto the Wall. From here, you can hike to the west as far as you want to on the Wall, to Longquanyu and beyond. There are some dangerous sections and there are some places where the Wall is highly overgrown and passage is difficult.

As you follow the Wall to the west here, you will get views of the Xiaoxihu reservoir to your right. You will find several opportunities to get off the wall and walk down the reservoir, crossing through a large Ming dynasty chestnut field at the bottom. There is a path all the way around the reservoir so you can follow it in either direction. You can also follow a path to the west along the valley and stream all the way to Longquanyu.

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall

Xiangshuihu Great Wall