Great Wall at Mu Tian Yu

I spent a few months working in Beijing this summer. Although I was busy, I got a chance to visit the Great Wall. We went to the Mutianyu section because there are very little tourists and it scales a mountain. You have to take two long cable car rides up to the top. Well we didn't know that there was second cable ride for other half of the mountain. So we ended up walking the rest of the way to the top. Which is not a good idea if you are not in really good shape(as you can see from the pictures). It actually felt more like climbing the great wall. We were covered in sweat by time we reached the top. The Wall lived up to its name. Plus the awesome payoff once we got to the top. Instead of taking the cable cars back down, We took the Toboggan Slide all the way down the mountain. Those things are so fast and cool, we had to climb back up just to ride the toboggan back down again.If you are ever in Beijing, I definitely recommend touring the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall. It's only 50 minutes outside the city, there are very little tourists, and You get to ride the Toboggan slide down the mountain.

Although this section is a bit further away from the city, it has less crowds. it is still overwhelmed by vendors selling food, water, and souvenirs at the beginning of the climb.
If you are not in the mood to walk up the steep path to the wall there is a ski lift device that will bring you up. But the walk is very short and perfectly manageable with well kept stairs.
The wall is breathtaking. It was restored in the 1950's but retains the old charm. This section of the wall does not let you go on to the unrestored sections but you can see how it is, with overgrowth making it impossible to get any further.
Don't buy any souvenirs from the people at the entrance. The price will be 10 x more than anything in Beijing even if you bargain it down. I recommend that you bring a bottle of water for each person, to buy any kind of drink once you are on the wall will cost 20 yuan rather than four.
Also, in summer the weather near Beijing tends to get cloudy. So if you can get up early and reach the wall before the clouds set in you will get a much clearer view.
To get there you can take a taxi and ask for all day rate. Our driver agreed to 600 yuan for all day and also took us to some temples and small villages around the area.