Hiking on the *mini* Great Wall

Yesterday, the family and I went on what was suppose to be a Cherry Blossom tour. Due to the earlier warmer weather and the rains on/off the past week - some places have minimal to no cherry blossoms left. Of course the did not tell us this until we were on the buses - leaving. Our guide also informed us that Donghak Temple probably no cherry blossoms (our original intended and only destination for the tour when I booked our tickets) and that our first (and added stop) would be Mt. Mai. Mt. Mai has very few cherry blossoms but there were some at least. The guide tells us that we can walk up & down the mountain pass to get to the restaurant for our lunch. It was gorgeous weather out and lovely to have the yellow dust level not a concern for the day. We were told that there was nothing but steps/stairs down the main mountain path - the one we were all taking. The other paths are hiking trails that require you have "hiking" gear - we were told after we asked another guide what they were. We walk up along the pathway, gradually going up hill. It gets a little steeper before leveling off a little bit. We approach a temple and notice a longer, steeper, winding pathway going around the temple grounds. The tour guide points to "that" pathway as our way to go. May of last year (2008) we climbed the Great Wall of China. We figure, as unexpected as this hike was - we can do it. Although, I climbed the Great Wall with Samantha on my back most of the way. She was walking the whole way this time.


J had his camera backpack (a huge one with most of his lenses and all) on and the other two kids had their cameras with them. I had my purse slung across one shoulder a small, soft lunch cooler across my other. Water bottle in one hand and Samantha holding my other. We approach a steeper, stone step climb. Then we come to a very long series of wooden (very nice ones too) steps. We keep hiking. J's and my bags start to feel heavier the longer we hike up and fatigue begins to set in. The peak of the journey doesn't appear. It feels never ending. It's getting warmer outside. We are all breaking a sweat. I'm so thankful for tree shaped along much of the pathway, I forgot the sunscreen. :( I remind us all that we have climbed the Great Wall, we can do this - just take it one step at a time.

J took too much camera equipment for such a hike - but then none of us on the tour were expecting this. The older 2 kids gain a 2nd wind and zoom up the last bit to the peak of our trail along with a couple of the school teachers that were also on the tour and ahead of us on the trail. Samantha can only walk so fast, so we hang back with J. We finally all make it to the peak, our legs feeling a little shaky. It's time settle for a few, drink some more water and regain composure for the trek down. We now head down the mountain trail - all way down the wooden stairway. With a slight onset of fatigue and gravity assisting, we just have to be sure we don't fall down the stairway. Samantha gets loads of sweet remarks from the Koreans about and our fellow tourists, about how cute she is and what a trooper she is for walking such a long way. We all make it, safely, to the bottom and head to the restaurant for lunch. I was simply happy to sit down on a pillow on the floor for about 45 minutes. All of use were. We eat lunch then head back to the bus. We leave for another 1 1/2 hour trip to Donghak Temple (Buddhist). We came to these temple grounds about this same time last year. There were millions upon millions of cherry blossoms then. This time there are absolutely none. We made the most of it though. Enjoyed the great weather and having the chance to do something outdoors as a family. J finally had an opportunity to try and new trick of the photography trade. After a few tries he got it right. Good for him! All the pictures we all took were really nice. I look forward to sharing them with you real soon. Today is a chill out day. Mentally I'm not altogether with it either. I think my mind is just as fatigued as other parts of my body. Monday I'll go back to my usual routine.