Passing Through the World - ALWAYS ON THE WAY
Jiayuguan — the "Greatest Pass Under Heaven," crouched at the foot of the Qilian Mountains, deep in the great desert.
Whether Jiayuguan is worth the detour, you'll know by the time you finish reading.
I arrived with no expectations to speak of. Jiayuguan was simply a city we passed through on the "Hexi Corridor Journey," a single night to rest after Dunhuang's packed schedule had drained us. The high-speed rail from Dunhuang takes just two hours, yet the scenery shifts completely.
At the foot of the Qilian Mountains, Jiayuguan is exactly the "lonely city amidst ten-thousand-foot mountains" of Wang Changling's poem.
In the Hongwu reign of the Ming, to shore up the northwest frontier, the Duke of Song, Feng Sheng, took the Hexi region. Soon a rammed-earth city — 220 zhang around, two zhang high, one zhang thick — rose by the Nine-Eye Spring, the first seed of the Jiayuguan fortress. By the 18th year of Jiajing the pass town was reinforced and its wing walls added. Built across 168 years, Jiayuguan grew into a fairly complete defensive castle.
As clashes with the Turpan regime of the Western Regions intensified, the Ming enforced an on-again, off-again "close the pass, cut the tribute" policy at Jiayuguan. By the Jiajing reign, with the western garrisons pulled inward, Jiayuguan became the dynasty's final western threshold, and Dunhuang beyond the pass was slowly shut away — which is exactly why the Mogao Caves show no Ming-era excavation. Ming strategy was fixed on the northern Mongols, and with the capital at Beijing it could never throw itself into the Western Regions the way the Han and Tang had; it could only pause, and draw the line, at Jiayuguan.
We reached the "Western Starting Point of the Ming Great Wall" — Jiayuguan Pass City — and climbed the ramparts, where the northwest wind never stopped howling. Before us stretched the majestic Qilian and a vast desert Gobi. The freshly rebuilt towers strain to mimic the Ming silhouette, yet can hardly summon the feeling Pei Jingfu knew when he first saw Jiayuguan: "The Great Wall climbs to the white clouds; one step up the perilous tower, and ten thousand battlements seem low." This desolate, romantic Northwest is impossible to stand in without a catch in the throat.
Here is what Jiayuguan has to offer:
No.1 Jiayuguan Pass City
The Greatest Pass Under Heaven, the Ming Great Wall's westernmost starting point, its towers rebuilt in period style. Climb them and the view out across the frontier is unlike anything else.
Tickets: Off-season joint ticket 90 RMB, peak season 100 RMB, including Pass City + Overhanging Great Wall + First Beacon Tower
Tips: If you seek authentic ancient architecture, the value for money is average
No.2 First Beacon Tower of the Great Wall
The first beacon tower at the Ming Great Wall's western start. Behind it runs the Taolai River, and the canyon scenery is spectacular.
Tickets: 21 RMB (free with Pass City joint ticket)
Transportation: Scenic area shuttle bus (round trip 20 RMB), purchase at the Jiayuguan Pass City visitor service center. Route: Pass City -> First Beacon Tower -> Overhanging Great Wall -> return to Pass City parking lot
No.3 Overhanging Great Wall
Called the "Badaling of the West," first raised in the Jiajing reign. The wall runs steep, straight, and long, hanging as if suspended in midair — a majestic sight. With the Broken Arm Great Wall it forms a defensive pair guarding the Heishan Gorge. The stretch you can actually climb is short, though, about 40 minutes end to end.
Tickets: 21 RMB (free with Pass City joint ticket)
Transportation: Scenic area shuttle bus (round trip 20 RMB), purchase at the Jiayuguan Pass City visitor service center. Route: Pass City -> First Beacon Tower -> Overhanging Great Wall -> return to Pass City parking lot.
All three sights fit into a half-day. No public bus runs from town to the First Beacon Tower or the Overhanging Great Wall — small groups should take the scenic shuttle, larger ones a taxi.
