The Great Wall’ker

Blue fantastic skies this morning too. Nothing better than to wake up to a warm sun knocking on the tent door after a fairly cold night.

I use a down winter sleeping bag and the down has a tendency to move to the top part of the sleeping bag after some days usage. Before I went to sleep yesterday, I knocked some down to the bottom part. Looks like I did the job too well, because it was cold on the top last night for the first time ever.

This morning my feet became wet when the boots warmed up. My boots had a thick layer of melted snow and mud on them last evening. This morning they were rock solid ice.

I had placed them so as to stop the tent entrance flapping too much in the strong wind. There was no snow last night, but I wonder if the humidity inside the boots turned to ice before it evaporated. The other alternative is that they are not as Gore-Tex’y now as when I started using them. I hope for the first option. They are beside me now above a radiator slowly drying out.

The goal for the day was Shahukou as I could hitch a ride to a place where I could stock up on food both in the rucksack and in my stomach. At what I thought was the end of the day, a middle sized river separated me from Shahukou. By this time my cold and wet feet made me feel cold as soon as I stopped. I walked along the river looking for a place to get over. Got over to an island half way, but found no crossing point to the last half. I considered taking off the boots and wading, but there was still ice on the river in places, and I didn’t like the prospect of standing on ice as it broke under my bare feet. Ice can be as sharp as glass if one is unlucky. I took the safe (and boring) alternative and walked 5-6 kilometres crossing over a bridge to the north.

By the time I got to a guesthouse, all I could think of was warming my feet. Luckily, the Chinese always have hot water at hand, so soon I had both feet in a bucket of hot water. Felt like a lovely spa.

I have just finished two whole dinners, and have drunk 2.5 litres after arriving at Shahukou. Starting to feel normal again.

My mind has played a trick on me. I have started calling Shanxi Shaanxi. The former is the province I am in now. It is pronounced with the first tone (high and flat), and this seems longer to me than Shaanxi which is written with the third tone (low falling and then rising). Next time, I’ll just have to remember the first sign of Shanxi which means mountain and is pronounced with the first tone. (This won’t make that much sense to those that don’t understand a little Chinese.)

Speaking of mountains. I descended from 1750 metres above sea level to about 1450 today. In only a few days time, I will see the flat plains north of Datong in front of me. With a few exceptions, they last until Hebei - the next province.

24 kilometres today

No internet coverage on the mobile phone. This is the report for Monday 1st of March.

I was surprised, after so much snow, to be greeted by the warm sun this morning. All I had to do was open the two tent doors and it shone straight on my face. It also started melting and later drying the ice and snow in and on my tent and sleeping bag.

When I started walking, the sun disappeared as grey clouds drew in from the  south. They have been the main ingredient of the day together with snow and a strong wind.

The Great Wall follows high ridges almost all the time here. Luckily on some parts there was a small dirt road right beside The Wall. The snow made it difficult to walk on the steep slopes and slowed me down.

It snowed for a couple of hours. In the afternoon I started scouting for inhabited houses as I was very short on water. I started talking to an older woman without startling her too much, and she invited me into her home. She kindly gave me boiling water to make some noodles I have brought along. She was not of the timid type and asked me if I wanted a smoke before she lit one up for herself. It was fun to sit on a warm Kang again.

At the end of the walking day, I was climbing a fairly steep section of the Great Wall. The visibility was really poor and snow was blowing strongly horizontally across my path. The Great Wall disappeared into thick fog. I decided this was enough for one day, and climbed back down to a place I knew I could set up the tent. It was challenging to set up in the strong wind, but the earth is still soft, so I could nail it to the ground before starting to raise it.

16 kilometres today

It started snowing at 10 am and went on until after dark. About 6 cm all together. Was happy I made the decision to stay in the tent as there was a fairly high wind in addition to all the snow. Am at 1700 metres above sea level, and at these heights it is sensible to be careful.

In the tent, I listened to a book by Conn Iggulden called Genghis Lords of the Bow. It is the second in a series and many of the stories happen in places I have seen on this walk. The San Guan Kou pass is on the border between Inner Mongolia and Ningxia, where Genghis broke through the Xixia defences after leading his warriors on a treacherous journey through the Gobi desert that almost killed them. It’s about the Xixia people and their fortress in Yinchuan, and the mighty Yellow River. Having been to all these places makes the stories come alive.

Indeed staying a whole day and two nights encamped right by the Great Wall on the border to Inner Mongolia, while the wind and snow is making life miserable for those outside, gives me an insight into how tough these warriors were.

Many thanks to brother Jon for making adjustments to the picture gallery yesterday