Planning to visit this January

This is my first time at the Great Wall. I am generally a fit person, I exercise daily and would love to hike the Great Wall but with temperatures below freezing, I feel it would not be very comfortable to do so. Here are my questions

1. I plan to arrive around 7am before the wall opens so I can savor the wall with fewer visitors. Would you recommend I go to the north or south section first?

2. Can I bring a small tripod? This is a solo trip and I plan to take pictures of myself.