Afraid of height, must i take Cable Car up the hill in order to enjoy Great Wall?

Or can i just walk/hike a bit up the wall from foothill?
Or is there sufficient things to see at Badaling foothill?
Is it safe to go is it snows? in terms of bus and cable car?
How's the bus journey like from Beijing City center to Badaling, is it a treacherous uphill journey? or it rather flat road..? Tks.