A good place to see some raw sections of the Great Wall is Deshengbao, a 16th-century walled fort almost on the border with Inner Mongolia that is now a small farming village. The fort’s north and south gates are still standing, as are parts of its walls. Walk through the village (many of its houses are built out of Great Wall bricks) to the north gate and beyond it you’ll see wild wall – 10m-high sections of it.
To get here, take a minibus to Fengzhen (丰镇; ¥17, one hour) from opposite Tónghé Dàfàndiàn, next to Datong train station. There are about 10 buses a day between 7.15am and 3.45pm. The bus will drop you at the turn-off for Deshengbao, from where it’s a 1km walk to the south gate. Heading back, return to the highway and flag down any Datong-bound bus.
