On April 19, 2021, the eighth day of the itinerary, Laoniuwan-Thirty-two Great Wall-Shahukou-Youwei City.
Scenic view of the Great Wall along the way
Bid farewell to Laoniuwan Scenic Area, drive north to Youyu County in Northwest Shanxi, where there is the famous and rich history of Shahukou, as well as the amazing 32 Great Walls that have just emerged.
This is like a newly built road. The asphalt road is flat and coiled between the mountains with high loess slopes. The figure of the Great Wall appears from time to time. What's even better is that there are almost no cars on the road. It is very suitable for self-driving tour and leisurely viewing. .
Take a look, the Loess Plateau is no longer as bare as it used to be, and there are patches of green trees growing up.
At 10:49 a.m., the post read: Great Wall No. 1 23 (kilometers), and the blue sign standing beside the road read: Laoniuwan Town Forest and Grassland Fire Prevention Checkpoint.
After continuing to drive for 15 minutes, the road post shows: Great Wall No. 1 35 (km), and the Great Wall mound stands not far from the roadside.
I walked on the Great Wall Tourist Highway No. 1 completely by accident, and I couldn't figure out the specific direction of the No. 1 Highway, so I completely relied on the navigation guidance. What was even more unexpected was that the road guided by the navigation entered the territory of Inner Mongolia again.
Here is still the landform of the Loess Plateau, with the rammed earth walls and beacon piers of the Great Wall standing on the terraced fields.
Afterwards, I looked at the walking route on the map. I passed the Shuiquan Bridge shortly after the G209 National Highway on the Shuiming Line. The village beside the bridge should be Shuiquan Town. The road sign points to the direction of Qingshui River. Qingshuihe County is located at the junction of the three provinces of "Mongolia, Shaanxi, and Shanxi". The southeast is bounded by the Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty, and borders Pianguan County and Pinglu District of Shanxi.
There is a two-story building on the left side of the road, the visitor center, the Great Wall on the hillside behind, and the tall tower wrapped in brick walls. It is so strange, why is there another scenic spot here?
Look at the right side of the road, the guide map of the scenic spot: Laoniupo Red Cultural Tourism Area, with Mongolian text. The meandering Great Wall on the map should be the dividing line between Shanxi and Mongolia, and the red circle at the current location seems to be on the inside of the Great Wall on the Shanxi side.
Qingshuihe County is located at the intersection of the Inner Mongolia Plateau and the Loess Plateau, with gentle rocks and thick loess coverage. It is also the intersection of agricultural and pastoral areas, with terraced fields on the slopes and cattle and sheep herding at the bottom of the ditch.
A viewing platform was built on the side of the road, located at the entrance of National Highway 209 and Beibaochuan, where you can enjoy the magnificent scenery inside and outside the Great Wall.
The Ming Great Wall site in Qingshui River is the middle section of the Great Wall. It enters from Qingxin Village in the Basin, crosses Jiucaizhuang and Beibao Townships to the Yellow River in the southwest, with a total length of 150 kilometers. With Kouzishang Village in Beibao Township as the center, it was the transportation hub and military fortress between the Outer Great Wall and the Inner Great Wall in Ming Dynasty.
Qingshuihe service area of Rongwu Expressway, here is a simple self-service lunch.
Arrive at Yongchang International Hotel in Youyu County, the best hotel in the county.
Thirty-two Great Wall
The Thirty-two Great Wall is located on Hualin Mountain, about ten kilometers southwest of Youwei Town, Youyu County. It is named after the Thirty-two Village beside it. The two watchtowers are a section of the Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty. Because of the rugged mountain roads and sparsely populated areas on the Xiongteng Mountains, there are relatively complete side walls and beacon towers.
Youyu County has 84 kilometers of the ancient Great Wall, more than 70 ancient castles, and more than 140 beacon towers, all kinds of buildings that fully reflect the ancient pass culture in China, and are known as the "Hometown of Ancient Castles in my country".
After a short rest, drive to the 32 Great Wall. I was always worried that I couldn't find the way to go here. After passing the Youwei Old Town, there was a sign at the intersection, and I felt at ease all of a sudden.
This road sign is more specific: the road leading to the village, with steep slopes, sharp bends, and narrow roads throughout the journey....
Sure enough, the road is a bit steep, the key is that it is too narrow, only one car can pass, and I am worried about the oncoming traffic. Once you meet a car, it is not an ordinary trouble, especially on the ramp or at the corner.
Driving past the area lined with large windmills, the endless Great Wall appeared on the skyline. The city wall was not very clear, but the beacon fire mounds at different intervals were very eye-catching.
The road ahead became narrower and narrower, and turned into a dirt road with potholes, which made people feel bottomless.
Finally saw a sign: Great Wall Tianlu-Thirty-two Sides, I finally got in touch with you and shook hands with you.
The Great Wall Tianlu is the only road in China that can be close to the Great Wall and travel freely by car. It is an authentic, unadorned, intimate landscape road that blends natural and cultural scenery.
The Great Wall Heavenly Road passes through nine Great Wall frontier villages, two ancient castle ruins, three Ming Dynasty boundary markers, crosses six mountains and two provinces. Listen to the names of these villages: Thirty-two, Thirty-eight, Forty-two, and Thirteen. They seem to be called so casually, eclectic, and carefully tasted, and they all look like a strong army in the army that has endured battles and battles. number.
The scenery of the Great Wall Tianlu is unique, and the scenery here is unique. But the hardships and unknowns of the rugged dirt road are daunting, and I really want to move on, but in the end I can't complete the journey, so I stop here and say goodbye. With deep regret and reluctance, I embarked on the return journey, and took a few more pictures of the Great Wall Tianlu that made people fall in love at first sight in the bumpy car.
On the way back, I encountered a construction machine. I couldn't overtake it. I didn't dare to whistle and followed it at a low speed. Fortunately, the driver of the car in front quickly spotted our car and took the initiative to pull over.
Seeing this group of big windmills have already walked out of the most dangerous area, and the remaining road has turned into a concrete road, the uneasy heart finally landed, and returning safely and smoothly every day is also one of the important elements of travel.
After the development of Shahukou tourism, the thirty-two Great Wall, which was inaccessible in the past, suddenly became lively. The local people said: "Nowadays when tourists come to Youyu, they don't look at Shahukou, and go directly to the Thirty-two Great Wall to see the authentic ancient Great Wall."
hotel dinner
Dinner is at the restaurant of Yongchang International Hotel.
The dishes are carefully prepared, carefully presented, and the taste is not bad. The bill was more than 500 yuan, which was the most expensive meal on this trip. I remember the last time I came to Youyu, I also stayed at the Yongchang Hotel. I drove into the county and found a small restaurant. It was unexpectedly cheap and cost-effective.
The room rate includes breakfast, which is rich in variety and has many diners.
kill the tiger
Shahukou is located in the northernmost part of Youyu County, at the junction of Shanxi and Mongolia. It is a major pass of the ancient Great Wall with a history of more than 2,000 years. The tiger-killing pass is also an important tax card. As the only way for trade between the Central Plains and Mongolia, Xinjiang, and Russia, the tariffs are increasing day by day. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Shahukou became the birthplace and main channel of Shanxi merchants. In addition, the west entrance in "Zouxikou" refers to the tiger-killing entrance. The so-called "there is Zhangjiakou in the east and the tiger-killing entrance in the west".
In order to resist the invasion of the Mongol Oirats to the south, the Ming Dynasty sent troops from this mouth many times to fight, so it was named "Shahukou". This Hu character represents the ethnic minorities in the north. Later, when Kangxi personally conquered the north and the war subsided, the name of this place was changed to "killing the tiger's mouth".
Although it has a long history and a great reputation, it is the only way for Youyu to go to Inner Mongolia. But it turned out to be nothing more than a dilapidated rammed earth city gate, and the walls on both sides were also piles of rammed earth. Because of tourism development, the entire Shahukou city gate was rebuilt, the original high gate and narrow road were demolished, and the old site disappeared. The new city gate is composed of two towers. On the southeast side of the city gate, a new Kangxi sculpture and a museum have been built. Cultural relics experts are deeply dissatisfied with this, and believe that the original appearance of history has been destroyed.
The bronze statue of Kangxi's Western Expedition, with a tall head and a big horse, is majestic.
After taking a group photo with the Shahukou Tower, first go for a walk along the ancient Xikou Road, and visit the Ancient Castle of Shahu at the other end of the ancient road.
Tongshun Bridge, with a total length of 14 meters, is located on the south side of the ancient Great Wall and the northwest end of Shahubao. It has been more than 300 years ago. People who walked west from here walked across this bridge, crying farewell to their homeland, and hoped in their hearts that they would be able to go smoothly after walking on the long road, so they named it full of meaning: Tongshun Bridge.
At your feet is the ancient Xikou Road, which has experienced wind and rain. The bluestones are mottled, the ruts are still there, and it is old and vicissitudes.
We went retrograde along the Xikou ancient road, and in front of the extension of the stone road, a brick gatehouse and earth walls connected on both sides are the Tiger Killing Castle.
This is the west gate of Killing Tiger Fort, which connects to the ancient Xikou Road, or to be precise, it is the west gate of Zhongguan.
Shahu Fort is composed of three parts: Shahu Fort, Zhongguan, and Pingji Fort. The walls of the "three forts" are connected as a whole, forming a chain of forts. The plane is rectangular and consists of six walls.
Killing Tiger Fort is in the north, built in the 23rd year of Jiajing (1544) of the Ming Dynasty, in the second year of Wanli (1574). Only the south gate of the castle is opened, and an urn is built; Pingji Fort is on the south side. It was built in the 43rd year of Wanli in Ming Dynasty (1615), and its scale is the same as that of the old castle. Later, due to the prosperity of border trade and the increase in population, two east and west walls were built in the middle of the two north and south forts to connect the two forts. Kill Tiger Fort.
The fort wall is broken, and you can easily climb to the top of the wall. Looking around, it is desolate.
After more than 450 years of wind and rain erosion and man-made destruction, the Shahu Fort still exists, and the pass remains the same. Now there is no one living in the old fort, and it has been reclaimed by the locals into farmland; the residents in Pingji Fort have also been demolished, and between the north and south gates of the fort, government offices, shops and streets with antique buildings have been built; while in Zhongguan there are only a few The villagers still live in the old houses.
Although dilapidated and desolate, there was no major construction work and the original appearance was maintained.
Shahubao Stage is located on the west side of the North Gate of Pingji Fort.
Next to the stage there is a residential house.
Anlan Gate should be the north gate of Pingji Fort. The gate tower is covered with bricks, and the fort walls are rammed earth on both sides.
Passing through the fort gate, a north-south street leads directly to the south gate of Pingji Fort.
On both sides of the Anlan Gate, there are large slogans in red letters on a white background, or traditional characters, all of which are slogans of the Anti-Japanese War, which brings the years back to the magnificent period of the Anti-Japanese War.
The walls of the houses facing the street are also painted with slogans from that year. Pingji Castle was once used as a film and television base, and it is estimated that the slogans were left over from the filming of the year.
There is a main street running north-south, and the south gate of the ancient castle is in front of it. Although the houses on both sides of the street are in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, they look relatively new and should have been rebuilt in recent years.
At the south gate of Pingji Fort, the gate tower is completely covered with bricks, and the two sides are also incomplete rammed earth walls, overgrown with weeds.
When Tiger Killing Fort was first built, it was mainly used for stationing troops and defending. After the establishment of a horse market in Fort in the third year of Zhengtong in the Ming Dynasty (1438), the border trade between Mongolia and Han began, but the border trade was closed from time to time. Qiang Fort, Desheng Fort, Hongci Fort, and Xinping Fort are the most important places among the five forts. In its heyday, there were "eight major yamen" in the fort, with a total population of more than 40,000 garrisons, yamen, residents, merchants, and refugees. Schools, temples, and inns were scattered all over the streets and alleys, and there were more than 50 temples alone.
The outside of the south gate looks quite impressive, after all, this is a military fortress and a commercial center.
Guangyi Bridge, located on the small river outside the south gate of Pingji Fort, was built in the 17th year of Yongle (1419) in the Ming Dynasty. It is 24.4 meters long and 6.75 meters wide.
On the east arch of the bridge is a dragon's head, with wide-open eyes and bearded mouth, as if about to fly away.
The dragon's tail is exposed from the west arch of the bridge.
There are 2 stone monkeys, 4 stone lions, 8 fairy peaches, 2 pomegranates, and 2 papayas carved on the pillars of the stone bridge. The carvings are fine and lifelike.
Walking on the Xikou Ancient Road, I didn’t see any other tourists until after visiting the Tiger Fort. It’s a great honor to be a VIP for a special event, and it’s free.
Follow the ancient Xikou Road and return to the front of the Shahukou Pass Building. The large-scale demolition and construction in the development here has always been controversial, and there are still doubts. The change started around 2000, when there was a wave of "Shanxi Merchants" cultural craze in China. As the "first tax customs" in the Qing Dynasty, Shahukou was also a key stop for Shanxi merchants to "walk to the west entrance". Naturally, it attracted people's attention and drove development of local tourism. Some locals said: "The current Shahukou is completely different from before. The walls of the Great Wall were also burned later, and it doesn't have the same taste as before."
As an ancient military fortress and an important border trade town, Shahukou has a high reputation and rich historical and cultural relics. "Going to Xikou" not only carries the glory and dreams, growth and hardships of Shanxi merchants, but also inscribes the blood and tears of Shanxi people who immigrated to Xikou to make a living. Killing the tiger is the epitome of the history of Shanxi in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and it is a demonstration of the rise and fall of modern Chinese finance and trade.
Introduction to Shahukou - The long and long Xikou Road is full of love between Jin and Mongolia. At that time, this place was glorious, and the officials stationed at Shahukou Tax Customs were "imperial envoys"; the tax customs were directly managed by the Ministry of Household Affairs;
The horse market site in the Ming Dynasty was specially built on the Great Wall to facilitate border trade transactions. The height and width of the horse market entrance are only enough for one person to pass through with a horse, which is convenient for horse inspection. In 2004, when the Youyu County Government rebuilt the Great Wall, it discovered this mouth and brought it back to glory.
Climb to Guancheng, look at the inside and outside of the Great Wall, feel the nostalgia of the past, and recall the heroic frontier poems: "In the Qin Dynasty, the moon was bright, and in the Han Dynasty, the people who marched for thousands of miles have not yet returned. But let the dragon city fly generals, and don't teach Huma to go to the Yinshan Mountains." "Shooting peng leaves Hansai, and returning geese enters Hutian. The desert is solitary and the smoke is straight, and the long river falls into the sun."
The couplets on the towers: In the desert, the sky sweats and the horse chases the clouds, and the long song at the west entrance marches to the camel to accompany the moon.
At the end of the brick wall, the rammed-earth Great Wall stretches straight to the sky. This is the original, authentic, unaltered and repaired Great Wall.
Out of the tiger's mouth.
Before killing Hukou Pass, I temporarily separated from my companions and met in Datong City at night. They went directly to Yungang Grottoes for sightseeing. We have been to Datong many times and wanted to leave more time for Youyu.
We drove through the city of Shahukou Pass and entered the territory of Inner Mongolia. We also tried to walk back to the west entrance. After driving for several kilometers, the road began to go uphill, and large trucks appeared again and again. They made a decisive U-turn and turned back. The road ahead was marked: 2 kilometers away from Shahukou.
Youwei Old Town
Youwei Town is located in the northwest of Youyu County, 25 kilometers away from the county seat, and borders Inner Mongolia and Linger County to the north. It used to be the seat of Shuoping Prefecture and the seat of Youyu County People's Government, and is now one of the four major towns in Youyu County. One is the northern gate of Shanxi Province.
Youwei Town has a long history and has been an important town in the north since ancient times. The Shanwu County where King Zhao Wuling, the famous advocate of "Hufu Riding and Shooting" was located at that time was the predecessor of the present Youwei Town. Shanwu County was restored in the Northern Wei Dynasty, Jingbian Military City in Tang Dynasty, Yunzhong County in Liao and Jin Dynasties, and Datong County in Yuan Dynasty. In the seventh year of Ming Yongle (1409), Datong Right Guard was established. In the fourteenth year of Zhengtong (1449), it was changed to Youyulinwei, under the jurisdiction of Datong Prefecture. In the third year of Emperor Yongzheng of the Qing Dynasty (1725), the guard was withdrawn and Youyu County was set up, Shuoping Mansion was established, and the prefecture and county were Tongzhi.
Wei is a kind of military establishment in Ming Dynasty. As an important military town in ancient times, especially Datong Frontier Guard, one of the nine borders of the Ming Dynasty, its important military status occupies a place in Chinese history. At the foot of the Great Wall, the ancient city of Youwei is a city that condenses a long history and splendid culture. ancient city.
A road around the city was built outside the Youwei City. Drive along the road and enjoy the scenery outside the city.
The Cangtou River Ecological Corridor outside Youwei City is a national wetland park.
Natural water systems, riparian grasslands, shrubs and arbor forests, and farmland with gentle slopes form the original foundation of natural ecology. It is also a rare pastoral landscape in the northern Loess Plateau, and it has become a scenic spot for ecological tourism in Youyu County.
"The mountain has no head, and the water flows backwards" is known as the two wonders of Youyu County. The backflow of water refers to the torrential water of the Cangtou River, which does not flow eastward or southward like other rivers, but flows northward, flows 40 miles through Inner Mongolia into the Honghe River, and then turns south into the Yellow River. Cangtou River's unique flow direction has made it famous.
The ruins of the ancient city of Shanwu, under the ancient city of Youwei lies an ancient city of "Shanwu" in the Qin and Han Dynasties,
Today, Youwei Town still retains a relatively complete earthen city, with a circumference of 10 miles and four gates. Wengcheng depends on each other, and there are two urn cities in the north and south. They were relatively dilapidated in the past, but now they have been renovated.
Vehicles are allowed to enter the Youwei Old City, and drove in and out through different city gates several times to browse the old city.
The former site of Youyu County Party Committee.
Since March 2011, General Secretary Xi Jinping has made important instructions and instructions on Youyu's spirit five times, pointing out: "Youyu's spirit embodies serving the people wholeheartedly. Benefits in the long run."
At the beginning of the founding of New China, the forest greening rate in Youyu County was less than 0.3%, the average annual temperature was only 3.6°C, the precipitation was less than 400mm, and the frost-free period was less than 100 days. The ecological environment was very fragile. Youyu County Party Committee worked one after another, drawing a blueprint to the end, with the realm of "success does not depend on me", perseverance and selfless courage, leading the cadres and the masses to persevere in sand control and afforestation to improve the ecology. Over the past 70 years, nearly 1.7 million mu of artificial forests have been planted, and the forest greening rate has reached 56%, creating an ecological miracle of "desert" turning into "oasis", and at the same time nurturing and forming the precious Youyu spirit.
Over the past 40 years of reform and opening up, Youwei Town has gradually transformed from a remote town with population emigration and economic decline to a nationally famous sketching base and "art town", which has also driven the further development of tourism.
Youwei, an ancient frontier city, quietly tells the romance of the times and witnesses the vicissitudes of history. Because it carries the glory and pride of yesterday, it will surely give birth to the hope and dawn of tomorrow.
Leave Youwei Ancient City, go to Datong City, and stop at Youyu Service Area.
