The road less trodden

The Great Wall under the Milky Way is also in his portfolio. Each year from March to June part of the Milky Way is clearly visible, and Yang Dong patiently waits until it moves to the right place in the night sky－above the watchtower on top of the mountain－then presses the shutter.

"Night on the Great Wall is often so dark that I can't see my fingers," Yang Dong says, adding that he usually sleeps in a tent inside one of the watchtowers.

He says he is either at the Great Wall taking photos or on the way to it. The tough climb to and from the wall never stops him.

"When I'm climbing, I feel like all my energy has run out, but once I've reached my destination, I feel like I'm fully charged," he says.

He also walks hand in hand with danger and loneliness－he has witnessed lightning flashing just 5 meters in front of him, been scratched many times by the thorns of wild jujube trees and had some close encounters with some of the creatures, such as boars, that roam the wilder parts of the wall.