Great Wall Pianguan Pass

After saying Goodbye to Yalu River in Liaoning Province, the Wall finally arrived at the bank of Yellow River after countless hardships and hazards. Pianguan Pass witnesses the first time that the Wall meets the Yellow River. Located in Pianguan County, Shanxi Province, Pianguan Pass joins the Guancen Mountain in the east, faces Yellow River in the west, connects Inner Mongolia in the north and links Yanmenguan Pass and Ningwuguan Pass in the south.

Together with Ningwuguan Pass and Yanmenguan Pass, it is one of the three outer passes of the Great Wall. Baiyang Mountain, the east part of the Wall under the jurisdiction of the Pianguan Pass is the point of juncture of the inner and outer sides of the Great Wall.

The Wall we see today was built during the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644) after repeated repairs and extensions. The pass is 1.6 miles in circumference and 38.4-feet high. There are three gates in the east, west and south sides originally. But due to many years of dismantling from the 1940’s, only left the south brick arched gate and a 32.8-yard brick wall in the west of the pass remain today.

The Laoniu River Bend (The Old Ox River Bend) is the area where the Great Wall meets the Yellow River. There is a well-preserved hollow brick tower standing on the cliff and looks out onto the Yellow River. It is a famous sight in Pianguan Pass.