Today I walked from the last stopping point to the bridge just northeast of Gaotai. A total of 33 km (20 miles).  Jon stayed in Gaotai for the day.

Since the rain had washed all the sand away, the day was very different to the last time we were walking. Less wind and the sky was clear blue. I had a great view of the mountain range to the southwest.

Most of the walking was in the desert. Some places it was the traditional image of a desert with sand dunes, but other places the sand was replaced with small stones and pebbles.

Several times today I saw beautiful watchtowers of the Great Wall. I also walked past what was probably the largest watchtower along the entire Wall. It was huge and just looking at it from the outside must have scared the enemies of the Middle Kingdom. It is now starting to fall apart. Large chunks have fallen down from the sides, but it was still monumental.

Later on I walked past a large fortress. Its walls were 6-8 metres high (20 – 26 feet). On the inside there was a dense forest and for the first time I saw all the leaves on the ground that, with time, will turn into soil. There seems to be a continual battle between the desert and people planting trees here. Some places the desert stopped right next to a road, while other places the planted trees stretched for half a mile into the desert.