Great Wall of China at Jinshanling number 2 by T. E. Smith-Lamothe

This second of three hand-held panoramas were taken during a 7.5 kilometers (5 miles) hike along the Jinshanling section of the Great Wall. "Jinshan" means "Golden Mountain" in Mandarin. The village of Jinshanling is a little over 90 minutes northeast of Beijing and is one of several sections of the Wall restored and open to tourists (although the last few kilometers were rough and ruin-like). This section was built during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and is made primarily of clay bricks. Distances between watchtowers vary from as little as 60 meters to no greater than 200 meters --- an archer from each opposite tower could shoot an arrow half way, so the middle was never vulnerable. We hiked the Great Wall (in Mandarin, one would say "climbed the Long Wall") on a brisk, sunny November day with very few other visitors. Our hike was arranged with an English-speaking guide through www.thechinaguide.com