It was curiosity that led us to Xishuiyu (西水峪), Huairou District. The catch was the Great Wall under water.

The route itself was rewarding. After we reached Huairou, the country roads were lined with beautiful, tall poplars. As we approached our destination, patches of crystal clear blue sky and cotton white clouds incurred wows from my travel companions. Big patches of cloud cast shadows on green mountains so that they looked darker than the neighboring peaks. Just 85km from central Beijing, the air is already so much fresher, wind so much cooler.

It took us an hour and 45 minutes to arrive at Xishuiyu Village. Although the village has adapted a lot to tourists, with a big parking lot, farm houses running restaurants, and farmers selling souvenirs, it is still less frequented than many other destinations.

We later learned that a path next to Xishuiyu Village led up to a part of the Great Wall. Instead, we followed other tourists and came to an entrance marked "water Great Wall.?No regrets, though, because it turned out to be good fun, with nice mountain scenery, and easy access for walking. Most parts of the Wall are not yet repaired, and therefore maintain their original looks.

The first thing we saw was an imposing dam of the Xishuiyu reservoir. Water flowed down from the side to the river below. We stopped at a passageway below the dam for people to cross to another side, and then got up the dam from stairs at a side.

The area seemed to have a climate of its own. Not soon after we reached the place, two dark patches of clouds developed into a downpour. But the sky cleared in less than an hour, and it was blue and white again.

Looking from the dam, the reservoir was bounded by a range of green peaks. One can choose to walk the passage through the middle of the mountain, or take a two-minute yacht to an island between the mountains. Once there, we saw the part of the Great Wall under water. It was not at all as imposing as we imagined, and can only be approached by boat. But that doesn't matter: the beautiful mountain and water make up for that.

One can go boating on a limited part of the waters, or go further to a patch of sand beach, and a pond called Black Dragon Pond, further within the mountains. Or one can buy fishing nets and fishing poles. But catching fish was not easy. A pleasant surprise was a beautiful dragonfly with blue and purple wings, which looked like the beautiful wings of a butterfly.

The path back was lined with chestnut trees. If we walked further, there was a great patch of chestnut trees that was several hundred years old. And further more, it would be Huanghuacheng, another travel destination.

Walking back from that island to the entry only takes 20 minutes. The route was lined with chestnut trees, wild flowers and nameless plantations. We decided to come back in September for the chestnuts.

Entry costs 25 yuan, yacht 15 yuan per person.

To get there: Jingcheng Expressway(京承高速)-Northern Sixth Ring Road (酸枣岭立交桥,上北六环)-Xiaotangshan Exit (小汤山出口)-Daliushu Traffice Isle (大柳树环岛)-Xingshou Lu (兴寿路)-Huanghua Towship (黄花镇)-Huanghua Village (黄花村).