Moderately difficult hill walking in the mountains north of the Ming Tombs.
We start off at Longevity Village, the midpoint of our popular Silver Pagodas hike. We’ll be heading in the opposite direction to the pagodas, aiming to cross a notch in a ridge on the southern side of the village.
The first part of the hike is on mostly flat ground, first on the road that leads through Longevity Village, and then on a dirt trail that heads up into the hills, passing through all the terraced chestnut fields that are a major source of income for the villagers.
As we get closer to the point where we cross over the ridge, the trail starts to zig-zag as it climbs up the hillside, eventually rising to the saddle between two peaks—a good place for a rest!
From the saddle, we follow a largely disused trail down into the valley on the other side.
Near the bottom of the valley, we pass through a nice narrow ravine before arriving at the village on the other side of the hill. Just before the village we walk along a narrow lane between brick buildings that are some sort of small factory. Depending on the mood of the workers, and the state of the gate, we might need to skirt around the buildings instead of strolling through.
A sealed road leads down into the village where we begin a hike called Tomb Raiders, and, after a sharp turn at the village square and exercise machine yard, we’re back into the hills, following another valley trail up on to a ridge.
It’s a slightly tougher climb this time, getting rather steep near the top. There are quite a few false peaks on the way up, but these provide a good opportunity for a rest! If you don’t think it’s tough enough, there’s an option to take a short detour to the highest hill in the area, where there’s a rusted trig and great 360° views of the area, including many of the Ming Tombs.
We hike by and around a few of the closed Ming Tombs, but can’t go inside either of them. This hike is more about exercise than tomb-visiting.
Cost: ¥380 / ¥340 for members
See a full description, more photos, and book online at https://www.beijinghikers.com/hike-in-beijing/view/345/longevity-village-to-the-ming-tombs/
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