Jiayuguan Pass

Jiayuguan Pass is hemmed in by the perennially snow-covered Qilian Mountain to the south and the winding Ma mountains to the north. It was the first pass at the westernmost end of the great wall.

Jayuguan, the best preserved of all Great Wall passes, is in the west of Jayuguan City, Gansu Province. It was known in ancient times as the first pass of Hexi and a key passageway of the Silk Road.

�The castle begin in 1372 (the 5th year of the Ming Hong Wu reign). It got its name for being located on the Jayu Highland between the Wenshu and Heishan mountains at the foot of the QilianMountains. The pass is shaped like a trapezoid. The west wall is about 166 meters, the east wall 154 meters and the north and south are both 160 meters. The gatetower, watchtower and embrasures brick and the rest is rammed earch. The pass has a good layout with a three-storied gatetower, 4 corner towers and consisting of an inner city wall, outer city wall, trenches, and fortifications with walls around them.

Once abandoned, Jiayuguan was rebuilt and reinforced in 1539 (the 18th year of the Ming Jiajing reign) and garrisoned. In the Qing Dynasty it became an office for checking merchants and travelers.

The architectural complex of the castle is magnificently exquisite. Its towers and pavilions have a classic beauty and grandeur with their roofs upturned at the end of the ridges. The castle commands fascinating views of the boundless Gobi Desert and the snowcapped Qilian Mountains.

Overhanging Great Wall

The Overhanging Great Wall is situated at the north slope of the Black Mountain, 8 kilometers away from the Jiayuguan Fort. It was built during the Ming Dynasty under the supervision of General Liyan for military purpose. Work began on it in 1539 and was completed the next year. The wall was originally 1.5 kilometers long while wars launched by enemies to conquer the fort has dwindled it to its current 750 meters.

It was built using layer upon layer of stone and yellow earth and served as additional military defense for the Jiayuguan Fort. The wall was built using layer upon layer of stone and yellow earth. It is an extended part of the Jiayuguan Pass, and was once an important component in the medieval military defense system. Winding through the Gobi dessert to the steep Black Mountain (Hei Shan), the wall appears to hang over the cliff and block the vital pass of Shiguan Xiakou, which is how it got its name. It is similar in appearance to the grand Badaling Great Wall in Beijing, and is therefore also known as the Western Badaling. The Overhanging Great Wall was reconstructed in 1987, with sidesteps added to allow visitors to climb the Wall.

The First Fire Town of the Great Wall

This attraction, located some 7 kilometers south of the Jiayuguan Pass is the beginning of the Ming Great Wall. The first fire town was first built during the reign of the Ming Emperor. It takes a shape of a pyramid. This area is highly exposed to the erosion of winds and rains, which have severely destroyed parts of the structure. The remaining frustum stands alongside the sheer cliff, which looks very dangerous.

The First Fire Town is a good place of dreaming of the gone by past and vast Gebi scenery.