North Cherry Blossoms, South Snow: The Badaling Great Wall Displays a Springtime Wonder, Beautiful Like a Chinese Painting
I recently learned that the Badaling Great Wall has reopened, and in the recent period, strict limits have been placed on the number of visitors allowed in.
Yesterday evening, it rained overnight in Beijing's urban area, and this morning the air is clear. I decided to go to see it while it's not crowded.
I unexpectedly made a wonderful discovery.
It took less than an hour and a half by car, through three highways, to reach the Great Wall entrance.
The staff were very responsible; before entering the scenic area, I encountered 5 temperature checks and health code scans, as I had imagined.
Currently, the scenic area is only open to sections of the North Six Watchtower and South Five Watchtower.
I first climbed the South Five Watchtower, which is higher here, and the temperature is also lower. After climbing over two watchtowers, I found myself amidst a vast expanse of 'Wujitangshanlin' (literally 'Snow-covered Pine Forests'), with the Great Wall beautifully dotted within.
When taking photos, I used my phone's built-in 'Transparent' filter, which made the snow look even whiter, and the trees were a vibrant green.
After climbing the South Four Watchtower, the view was expansive:
Because it was a weekday and the weather was not good, there were very few tourists.
I used a 5X zoom on my phone, as it's lossless zoom, so there was very little compression in the image.
Having reached this point, the journey to the South Five Watchtower was complete.
I walked around, took photos, and it took about 50 minutes to get from the entrance to South Five Watchtower. Since it's a one-way loop, coming down required walking along the side path.
The path also had its own unique scenery. Using a 2X zoom, I framed the watchtower with the snow-laden branches, creating a beautiful composition.
Then, using a 5X zoom, I locked in the exposure and used these branches as a foreground element, making the watchtower look artistic.
It took 20 minutes to walk back to the entrance, in the opposite direction to the North Six Watchtower.
Because the altitude is lower here, there is no snow on one side of the North Six Watchtower,
But precisely because of the higher temperature, the cherry blossoms on the north side were in full bloom.
I used the flowers as a foreground element to capture a shot of the watchtower on the south side, blending the snow-covered branches with the snow scene,
The watchtower on the west side, enveloped in cherry blossoms, should be a beautiful painting in a few days,
At that time, I will come back to take photos under a blue sky and white clouds with the cherry blossom-covered Great Wall.
