As both the weather gets better and restrictions start to loosen in Beijing, people are feeling the itch to venture out of their homes and get a fresh breath of air in the beautiful hiking spots scattered around the outskirts of Beijing.
Unfortunately, there is still a lot of confusion regarding government policies about social gatherings and there is still the looming fear of COVID-19 itself. On top of that, resources to find out more information about which hiking spots are available, or even which one is the best to explore during this time, may be limited.
Huijie Sun and her daughter Hayley
Luckily, there are many hiking experts around Beijing and we managed to speak with Huijie Sun, a Beijing mom of a 3-year-old daughter and organizer of Beijing Hikers, a group that specializes in family hikes all around Beijing.
Sun filled us in on what it’s like to explore the natural and historical beauty of Beijing’s hiking locations.
We’ve seen more families going on hikes as the situation and weather get better now. How do you usually prepare before a hike in the current situation?
We check in with park management and local contacts before going for a hike to find out if they have any restrictions or requirements, like having to wear masks, and we let the hikers know about it in advance so they can get ready. We usually do all this anyway, but we’re doing it more often right now because the situation has been changing quite a lot.
For our own hikes we added extra Coronavirus-specific precautions to our regular safety guidelines. These precautions are published on our website for people to go over before booking a hike. For example, the number of hikers is limited so there’s enough space between people on the bus, we ask people to sanitize hands and wear masks before boarding the bus, and the buses are disinfected twice a day. You can see all the info here.
Huijie’s husband Hayden, with their daughter
For hiking with kids, is there anything specific to be taken care of? Any tips?
Kids must wear a mask as well, just like the adults. Parents should bring extra sanitizer, wet wipes, or 75% ethyl alcohol and disinfect their hands more often than usual. Bring an extra mask for your kids when you go out, because most kids don’t enjoy wearing a mask and they will take it off or throw it away when they feel hot or uncomfortable.
Can you list the top three things to be careful during a hike, based on your hiking tours during COVID-19?
- Keep 1 to 1.5 meter distance between you and others while you hike in a public park, especially when there are more people around.
- Bring warm clothes to the hike, because you don’t want to catch a cold right now.
- Bring your own food and snacks, because most places to buy food are still closed.
Do you have places (open to the public now) to recommend for hiking these days?
Beijing Xishan Forest Park (西山森林公园), Phoenix Ridge Scenic Spot (凤凰岭风景区), and Huanghuachuang Water Great Wall Scenic Area in Huairou District (黄花城水长城).
Photos: Courtesy of Huijie Sun
