Running Along the
Longest Wall

KRABBEL GEAR: The steps on the Great Wall are often so steep that runners were faster on all fours. Gloves were sold at the info session.

"What now?" Asked my friend Christian as we sat in a bar in Manhattan in the evening. He had just finished the New York Marathon in Central Park a few hours earlier. What else can we do? After a lot of discussions, we got an idea: a race on the Great Wall of China!

An organized journey saves time and effort. Meanwhile, there are several runs on the incredibly long and equally old protective wall. For us the Jinshanling section is more suitable — it is well restored and especially beautiful. Moreover, traveling via Beijing is easy. However, planning such a project on your own costs a lot of time: the communication takes long, the corresponding pages on the internet are usually not in English, and information on transportation is rather vague. We booked the organized trip from laufreisen.de.

The preparation phase was unexpected. Before the trip, our dear Chinese friend had set us required routines, which is to some extent funny. For example, when applying for a visa, one will be asked about their parents' profession. If one of them died, the profession column should be filled with "Deceased." The organizer was necessarily requested to provide the runner's blood type, otherwise there is no start number. And the organizer of the Pasta Party sent, weeks before, a menu of eight pages — from seagrass salad over grilled herring to French fries: everything was there.

20,000 Steps — Is There an Extra Zero?

At the pasta party, not only seagrass and grilled herring was served, but also the complete race route information. The faces of the astonished listeners proved that not everyone had informed themselves in advance. As the number of 20,000 steps to climb over the race was announced, they repeatedly asked if an extra zero had been put there by mistake. The 80% steep rise of the wall was explained by the organizer by comparing it to a folding ladder to be climbed.

A Route Shared With Tourists

According to the organizers, 2,469 athletes gathered at the start line with the aim of tackling the different distances: marathon, half marathon, or ten km. A good two km running after the starting shot would meet an impressive gate with a turnstile. Behind the gate the route began to ascend to the wall. It already became clear: there is no fast running here, because some tourists stood in the way or sat next to it.

Amazingly, we stood there now with fabulous spring weather in the midst of flowering shrubs. The glorious Great Wall stretched out to the horizon in front of us with thousands of steps. At the top of the wall, the dilemma became clear: here you could only run with the highest concentration. Because the levels not only varied in shape and height, but sometimes disappeared completely. It was incredibly steep — really scary steep. Then I understood why gloves were sold at the information session. They helped when proceeding on all fours.

To make matters worse, there were defense towers at regular intervals where darkness had to be managed. It was easy to take 20 minutes for a single kilometer on the wall. Along the way, one can see warning signs and pictograms of a man falling now and then.

Powered by Pickled Cabbage

So I ran alone for an hour and a half. Although it was all enchantingly beautiful and the experience was incredible, on the other side of the medal stood the untold efforts. Out of nowhere, Alex from our tour group appeared in front of me. The Düsseldorfer treated the whole event quite optimistically. She planned to run the full marathon and was looking forward to any expected challenge.

At the next numerous refreshment points we allowed ourselves longer stops. We mashed pickled white cabbage and toasted ourselves with energy drink for the next few miles. From then on, we wanted to do this together — scrambling, stumbling, and sometimes even running.

Meanwhile it got really warm. The higher the sun rose, the worse the condition became — which in turn signaled us that we were approaching the turning point. The length of the restored section of the wall at Jinshanling is ten kilometers, with a good three quarters of it considered our race track. But before we could run back after seven and a half kilometers, we had to get down from the wall to make a round through the area. Through small trails we arrived in a village. Then we went through undergrowth bushes and back up to the wall! The way back demanded even more effort.

Run the Extension Euphorically

With rather shaking knees we ran toward the finish. But that was only for me. Alex had to pack another half through the surrounding mountains. She kept persuading me to accompany her. It was so beautiful. I made a determined decision to run with her on the full marathon route. Since the full and half distance cost the same entry fee, the organizer and surrounding helpers did not mind that I ran further.

So then we followed the arrows that stuck on the road until a farming village in the mountains. From then on, small red bows navigated the trails. At the 35th kilometer point, we reached the highest point of the second half. Many participants took a chance here on the rocks for a quick rest. Good idea! We joined them.

As I looked down at the wall, gratitude overcame me: gratitude to Alex — I would never have reached this spot without her and should never have experienced this moment; gratitude to this remarkable race which allows such experiences. The final kilometers we walked eloquently side by side. After seven hours, I finally done: we crossed the finish line. What an unexpectedly good turn this race was for all of us!

Join the 2026 Jinshanling Great Wall Marathon. Race day: October 11, 2026. Early bird until July 31.