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The Great Wall on the Cliff

As one of the tour destinations along the silk road, it is the best place where you can visit the culture of the ancient Silk Road and the Great Wall plus the ancient weapons exhibition in Jiayuguan.

Introduction of the Cantilever Wall:
The Cantilever Wall is a part of the Great Wall, the wall here was built on the ridge with the gradient of 45 degrees. It is high in the air and it looks as if it fell down from the top of the hill, so people refer to this section of the Great Wall as the "Cantilever Wall". The Cantilever Wall, the extension of the walls at the Jiayuguan Pass towards the north, was an integral part of the ancient defense system at the Jiayuguan Pass. The wall, whose construction was started in 1539, was made of gravel and yellow earth by tamping. It was originally 1.5 km long, but now it is only 750 meters long. It was renovated in 1987 and there are now 3 towers, two at the ends of the wall, and one in the middle.

What to visit?
The scenic area is divided into four areas, namely, Shiguanxia Ancient Silk Road Cultural Corridor Area, Cantilever Wall Military Defense System Area, Leisure Resort Area and Management Area. The cultural corridor of Shiguanxia Ancient Silk Road runs through the whole scenic area, with sculpture groups of "Ancient Silk Road". Meanwhile, the military defense system area includes the cantilever wall, the Watergate and the exhibition of ancient weapons and so on.

The sculpture group:
The "Silk Road" sculpture group carved the statues of Zhangqian, Huo Qubing, Banchao, Xuanzang, Marco Polo, Lin Zexu, Zuo Zongtang and five followers, two horses, two camels and a carriage to name just a few, which exhibited the long history and profound humanistic connotation of Shiguanxia.

Why is it worth to visit?
For the convenience of climbing, steps were built on the wall. Even though, it is quite hard for visitors to make it to the top through the 400 steps. But it is worth the painstaking efforts when visitors look afar on the top. The scenery is peculiar: the deserts extending to the horizon, with a few oases in it. People feel isolation and detachment from the noisy cities at first. They also feel the liveliness when they see the oases. Under such harsh natural conditions, people struggle to live on generation after generation.

When is the best time to visit?
Every May to October is the best time to travel to Jiayuguan, because the climate of Jiayuguan belongs to the temperate arid climate, the annual average temperature is about 6 degrees Celsius and the temperature difference between day and night. The annual precipitation of Jiayuguan is more than 80 mm. Meanwhile, January and February are the coldest months of the year, the lowest temperature is - 28.6 degrees Celsius, July and August are the hottest, the highest temperature is about 38 degrees Celsius.

The admission fees:
Peak season:
21 RMB/Person ( 1st May to 31st October ).
Off- season: 10 RMB/Person ( 1st November to 30th April ).

Opening time:
Peak season:
1st May to 31st October ( 8.30 AM to 8.00 PM )
Off- season: 1st November to 30th April ( 8.30 AM to 6.00 PM )


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