Snaking its way across North China --- Standing on these mountain peaks, I was amazed at the path the Wall took crossing this part of China.  Apparently there are no records of the length of the Qin Dynasty walls. Most of those ancient walls have eroded away over the centuries and very few original sections remain today. I was never sure whether I was on a Qin Dynasty Wall or a Ming Dynasty Wall.  Not that it mattered to me; after all, how old does something need to be to be considered old?  

Contrary To Beliefs . . .

Contrary to belief, the Great Wall is not a continuous line. There are side walls, circular walls, parallel walls, and sections with no wall at all in the high mountains, or when steep rock cliffs block passage, or where rivers form a barrier instead.

Also contrary to common belief, the First Emperor of Qin was not the first to build the Wall. He linked the northern walls of the states he conquered.

And finally, contrary to common belief, the Great Wall cannot be seen from space by the human eye without some type of visual aid.

Photographed in 1986.