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Jiumenkou Great Wall

The restored section of Great Wall at Shanhaiguan, in Hebei Province is on a well-trodden tourist trail. Just a few kilometers from where the wall runs dramatically into the Bohai Sea and the beach resort of Beidaihe, it is a must-see for all visitors.
But just a little way north east, across the border in Liaoning Province, is another, less well known section of wall, known as the Jiumenkou Great Wall. Restoration work has been done on this section, which was only recently rediscovered.

Located at Lijiaxiang Town , Suizhong County in Liaoning Province, this section of Great Wall consisted of sixteen watch towers and one beacon tower. With a total length of 1,700 meters, this section was originally built during the Northern Qi period (550-577) and further expanded under the supervision of General Xu Da during the Hongwu period (1328-1398) of the Ming Dynasty.

A 110-meter-long bridge with nine five-meter-high sluice gates straddles the Jiujiang River. It was once used to regulate the flow of the river and hold off invading enemies. The name “Jiumenkou” means literally “Entrance to Nine Gates.” In the riverbed below the bridge have been placed rectangular stone slabs, covering an area of 7,000 square meterWalled fortresses once stood at each end of the bridge. Constructed in 1626, the two fortresses are about one kilometer in circumference. The eight-meter surrounding wall consists of two layers: the inside made of brick and the outside of stone, an unusual combination.

The wall has weathered badly over the years, but its contours can still be clearly made out. In 1992, some repairs were carried out and the section was opened officially to tourism. In 2002, Jiumenkou Great Wall was listed as a World Cultural Heritage Site by UNESCO, the only such listed site in northeast China.

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Getting there:
Take train K265 or 2539 from Beijing Railway Station to Suizhong. Or take the Beijing-Shenyang highway to Suizhong County, a 350-kilometer drive.