中國的優勝美地 探索不爲人知的攀巖新大陸

Michael Dobie moved to Liming in September 2010 with two friends who discovered the Chinese village in a travel brochure. Crisscrossed by dirt roads, the rustic setting in the mountains of Yunnan province offered few amenities.

2010年9月，邁克爾·多比(Michael Dobie)和兩個朋友搬去了黎明村。正是這兩個朋友在一本旅遊指南中發現了這個中國村莊。這裏位於雲南省的山區，泥土路縱橫交錯，幾乎沒什麼便利設施。

“It was pretty wild,” Dobie said. “People were walking miles into town for supplies. It was kind of just one street, that type of traditional village.”

“非常偏遠，”多比說。“進城買東西要走很遠的路。差不多隻有一條街道，就是那種傳統的村莊。”

But the group came with a purpose — to establish traditional, or “trad,” climbing in China — and for this, Liming offered two advantages. First, its endowment of soaring sandstone cliffs was rich with cracks and crevices ideal for the sport. Second, the local government embraced their vision and granted permits to explore the surrounding crags. In the early months of 2011, Dobie set out cleaning routes, removing undergrowth and knocking away loose rock. By the summer, he’d finished more than 40.

但他們來這裏是有目的的——在中國推廣傳統攀巖，而在這一點上，黎明村有兩個優勢。首先，這裏高聳入雲的砂岩懸崖上佈滿了裂口和縫隙，非常適合進行傳統攀巖。其次，當地政府支持他們的設想，准許他們探索四周的懸崖。2011年初，多比開始清理路線，清除矮樹叢，敲掉鬆動的岩石。到夏天的時候，他已經清理完了40多條路線。

Traditional climbing differs from other varieties like sport climbing in the method climbers use to protect themselves against falls. While sport climbers tie into a line of permanently fixed bolts, traditional climbers carry along a set of removable anchoring devices that they jam into cracks in the rock face. The skill involved in making placements that will hold a person’s weight and break a big fall adds difficulty, and the extra equipment costs are significant.

傳統攀巖不同於運動攀巖等其他攀巖的地方，在於攀巖者用來防止自己跌落的方式。進行運動攀巖的人會把自己固定在一排永久固定的螺栓附近，而傳統攀巖者會隨身攜帶一套可拆卸的錨固裝置，並把它們卡在巖面的裂縫裏。攀巖者安放的裝置要能承載自身的重量，在墜落時也能撐住。這其中涉及的技巧增加了這項運動的難度，額外的設備成本也很高。

In part because of these differences, sport climbing became popular in China as early as the 1980s while traditional remained all but unknown. By 2010, other southern cities like Yangshuo and Kunming had cultivated homegrown sport climbing communities, with hundreds of routes developed by multiple generations of enthusiasts.

在一定程度上正是因爲這些區別，運動攀巖早在80年代就在中國流行起來了，而傳統攀巖依然幾乎不爲人知。到2010年，中國南方的陽朔和昆明等城市都培養出了本土的運動攀巖羣體，幾代愛好者開闢出了成百上千條路線。

“I consider Yangshuo the Yosemite of China because it’s where rock climbing started here, and it’s the largest place in China,” said Andrew Hedesh, a Yangshuo-based climber and author of a forthcoming guidebook on the area. But the dearth of traditional climbing frustrated Dobie.

“我覺得陽朔就是中國的優勝美地(Yosemite)，因爲攀巖就是從那裏開始發展起來的，那裏是中國最大的攀巖聖地，”身在陽朔的攀巖愛好者安德魯·赫德什(Andrew Hedesh)說。他寫的一本介紹該地區的指南即將出版。但傳統攀巖的稀少令多比感到失望。

“At the beginning I saw it as a service project,” he said. “All the people developing over the last 20 years in China have all been foreigners doing sport climbing. So the Chinese, that was all they knew.”

“剛開始我把它當做是一個服務項目，”他說。“過去20年裏，在中國推廣攀巖的人，都是進行運動攀巖的外國人。中國人也一樣，他們只知道運動攀巖。”

Less than a year after its inception, however, Dobie’s project took on an unlikely life of its own. Word of his efforts in Liming spread abroad, and professional climbers, including Matt Segal, began to notice. Segal visited Liming in 2011 to explore and develop new, more challenging routes, documenting his trip for a wider, international network of climbers with sleek videos and colorful articles.

然而，開始不到一年後，多比這個項目的命運出現了意想不到的變化。有關他在黎明進行的多項活動的消息傳到了國外，包括馬特·塞加爾(Matt Segal)在內的一些職業攀巖者開始關注。2011年，塞加爾前往黎明村探索和開發更具挑戰性的新路線，並用優美的視頻和引人入勝的文章記錄下了自己一路的見聞，向更廣大的國際攀巖社區介紹了這裏。

The next year, Liming held its first trad festival, backed by major sponsors. Segal returned to participate.

第二年，黎明舉辦首屆傳統攀巖交流大會，得到了大型贊助商的支持。塞加爾重回故地，參加交流大會。

“It was crazy to go back to this area where I felt like I was developing routes for myself, to see dozens and dozens of Chinese climbing these 5.9s that I was like, ‘Nobody’s ever going to be climbing these,’” said Segal, referring to the Yosemite Decimal System which ranks climbs on a scale from 5.0 to 5.15.

“我曾在這個地區開發路線，當時感覺是在給自己開發，覺得‘沒人會來這兒攀巖’，而今我回到這裏，看到很多中國人在攀登這些難度係數爲5.9s的峭壁，我覺得很興奮，”塞加爾說。他指的是優勝美地登山難度係數(Yosemite Decimal System)，範圍是5.0至5.15。

“Liming is turning into a world-class climbing destination.”

“黎明正變成世界級的攀巖目的地。”

For most of China’s modern history, a tumultuous political climate and strict regulations left the country closed off to any would-be foreign explorers. But as restrictions were eased in the late 20th century, its vast interior and potentially exceptional terrain have captivated the interest of climbers and outdoor enthusiasts worldwide. Mark Synnott, a professional mountaineer who was one of the first foreigners to climb in a newly opened Tibet in 2002, is among them.

在中國現代歷史的大部分時間裏，政治環境動盪，政府管制嚴格，任何外國探索者都無法進入這個國家。但是20世紀末限制放鬆後，中國廣袤的內陸和潛在的獨特地形引起了世界各地登山者和戶外運動愛好者的興趣。職業登山運動員馬克·辛諾特(Mark Synnott)是其中之一。他是2002年西藏開放不久時第一批去那裏登山的外國人之一。

“One thing that stuck with me since that trip is how much of China, back then and still today, is unexplored,” he said. “China may be the place that holds the biggest treasure trove of unexplored mountain territory in the world.”

“那次旅行之後，我一直在想，中國還有多少地方無人涉足——不管是那時還是現在，”他說，“中國未開發山峯的寶庫也許是世界上最大的。”

Segal, who has retuned to China several times to scout other areas outside Liming, agreed. “You can just kind of like point your finger at a map of China and find good rock, and some of it’s getting developed really fast,” he said.

塞加爾後來幾次回到中國，探索黎明之外的其他區域。他和辛諾特的想法一樣。“你隨便在中國地圖上指一個地方，就能在那裏找到很好的峭壁，有些地方開發得很快，”他說。

Given the scale of China’s unexplored inland, Liming’s evolution under Dobie might suggest a coming boom in new climbing areas. But the same ruggedness that makes China’s outback so enticing also creates obstacles to new development.

由於中國內陸未勘察的地方還有很多，所以黎明在多比的開發下所取得的進步可能意味着會出現一大批新的攀巖地點。但是中國內地令人着迷的崎嶇不平也給新的開發帶來不便。

“Yangshuo is in Guangxi province and within Guangxi there are already about 12 different climbing spots,” Hedesh said. “It’s just that nobody goes to them because they’re in the middle of nowhere.”

“陽朔在廣西，其境內已有約12處攀巖點，”赫德什說，“不過中很多地方就是沒人去，因爲地點實在太偏僻。”

For this reason, some more-established climbers doubt that the sport is moving away from its traditional centers, at least for now.

也正是因爲這個原因，有些名氣更大的攀巖家對於這項運動正在遠離它傳統中心的說法是持懷疑態度的，至少目前是這種情況。

“I think Yangshuo is going to continue to be the epicenter of climbing in China,” said Adam Kritzer, the owner of Climb Dali, a climbing club in central Yunnan. “There are probably a few dozen potential Limings in China, but they aren’t going to get developed any time soon.”

“我認爲，陽朔會繼續成爲中國的攀巖中心，”雲南中部的攀巖俱樂部大理攀巖(Climb Dali)的所有者亞當·克里策(Adam Kritzer)說，“中國很可能還有幾十個地方具有黎明那樣的潛質，但它們在短時間內得不到開發。”

Yet while the familiar sport climbing hubs still dominate China’s climbing scene today, others see a transition ahead. Driven by a growing Chinese middle class that can afford to travel, rock climbing has become increasingly popular as an outdoor recreation sport.

不過，雖然如今的中國攀巖業仍以常見的運動攀巖地點爲主，但也有人認爲未來會發生變化。隨着有財力旅行的中國中產階級的壯大，攀巖變成一種越來越受歡迎的戶外休閒運動項目。

“Climbing has been in parts of the Chinese community for the past 15 years, and it’s really been in gyms and Yangshuo, but now people want the adventure part of it,” said Colin Flahive, a founder of Dali Bar, a natural food company in Kunming that sponsors China-based climbers. “With climbing there’s the exercise and there’s the drive to reach new levels, so going to the gym is almost as exciting as going to the crag. But when you move past that, the excitement of going to new places and exploring new spots is the second phase of climbing, and I think that’s where everything is moving at this point.”

“在過去15年裏，攀巖已經出現在中國社會中，主要是在健身館裏和陽朔，但現在人們想獲得攀巖的冒險體驗，”昆明天然食品公司達力巴(Dali Bar)的創始人科林·弗拉海夫(Colin Flahive)說。該公司爲在中國的攀巖者提供贊助。“如果人們攀巖是爲了鍛鍊身體或達到更高水平，那麼去健身房和去峭壁幾乎同樣令人興奮。但是當你過了那個階段，下一階段就是想獲得去新地方探索新攀巖點的興奮感。我認爲，現在一切都在朝那個方向發展。”

This expansion into new areas has been helped along by a number of entrepreneurs who have seized on the sport’s growth as a business opportunity. “There are these Chinese outdoor companies that want to become larger names, and so what they do is they hire people to go develop routes,” Hedesh said. “They get an entire team of famous rock climbers, travel around for a month and put up 50 routes in an area.”

向新地區的擴展得到一些企業家的幫助，他們從這項運動的發展中看到了商機。“有些中國戶外運動公司想更出名，所以他們僱人開發新路線，”赫德希說，“他們請來全部是著名攀巖者組成的隊伍，四處旅行一個月，在一個地區開發50條線路。”

While this business-driven model feels unnatural to some western climbers, others see it as the realistic next step. “I think a lot of it has to do with the culture of China and the way that a lot of Chinese people think, maybe more in terms of business rather than the joy of climbing,” Kritzer said. “But it’s basically worked really well for the development of climbing. It’s made it a little more commercialized, but it’s enabled people to develop areas that wouldn’t otherwise be developed.”

雖然這種商業驅動的模式在一些西方攀巖者看來不是自然發展，但也有人認爲那是下一步的現實步驟。“我覺得這與中國文化以及很多中國人的思維方式有很大關係，他們更多的是從商業角度而非享受攀巖的角度出發，”克里策說道。“不過總體來說，它對攀巖的發展很有用。它雖然讓攀巖變得更商業化了一點，但它能讓人們去開發原本得不到開發的地方。”

The relatively free license to develop far-flung rural areas for rock climbing is another aspect of China that many find exceptional. Where other countries have rigid national laws governing public land, China’s land administration system gives a great deal of authority to leaders at the local level. So particularly in the mountains, where agricultural and commercial interest is minimal, climbers are generally welcomed.

相對來說，中國政府對在偏遠農村地區開發攀巖項目沒有限制，在很多人眼裏，這也是中國的一大優勢。其他國家對公共土地管理制定了嚴格的國家法律，但中國的土地管理制度賦予地方領導者很大的權限。尤其是在幾乎毫無農業和商業價值的山區，攀巖者總的來說是受歡迎的。

“The freedom we have here is really nice,” said Peter Mortimer, a researcher at the World Agroforestry Centre and a Kunming-based climber. “I’ve bolted and climbed a bit in Laos, Vietnam and Thailand, and there there’s always issues — there’s a lot of red tape. But here I’m just kind of free of all of that, which appeals to me.”

“我們在這裏真的擁有很大的自由，”世界農林業研究中心(World Agroforestry Centre)的研究員、駐紮在昆明的攀巖者彼得·莫蒂默(Peter Mortimer)說道。“我在老撾、越南和泰國攀過巖，總是有各種問題，需要很多審批手續。但這裏幾乎完全不需要審批，這一點很吸引我。”

He added: “The easy access and the low level of restriction in terms of development just means it’s going to take off.”

他補充說：“從開發角度講，這裏很便利，限制少，那意味着它會蓬勃發展。”

With growing numbers of well-off Chinese able to travel in search of newer and better terrain, some believe this coalescence of natural advantages will make China’s hinterland more appealing to the next generation of climbers.

越來越多有財力旅行的富裕中國人在尋找更新、更好的地形，所以有些人認爲，所有這些因素會使中國內地對下一代攀巖者更具吸引力。

“Krabi in Thailand, which used to be all Europeans and Americans, it’s now almost all Chinese climbers going down there,” Flahive said. “In that search for adventure, there’s going internationally, but then there’s also developing the local stuff. In Yangshuo, the rock is getting polished. People are craving something new.”

“泰國的甲米府(Krabi)原來到處都是歐洲人和美國人，現在那裏幾乎全是中國攀巖者，”弗拉海夫說道。“追求冒險已成爲全球趨勢，但人們也在開發地方特色。陽朔的岩石正被磨光。人們渴望新事物。”

Mortimer, who continues to develop outside Kunming, said: “I noticed that in some of these areas I’d been developing, people I’d never even seen before had somehow heard of it and were appearing at the crags. Ten minutes from one of our favorite crags here we just followed a new farm road and came across a new cliff that’ll yield another 60 climbs. It’s just been sitting there like 10 minutes away. Who knows what else is in the hills.”

莫蒂默繼續在昆明之外的地方開發。他說：“我注意到，在我開發的一些區域，一些我從沒見過的人不知怎麼聽說了它，出現在那些峭壁上。我們從最喜歡的一塊峭壁出發，沿着新建的鄉間公路走了10分鐘，發現一塊新的峭壁，它有潛力躋身60個經典攀巖點之列。它就在10分鐘路程之外的地方。誰知道山裏還有什麼。”

Now back in the United States, Dobie is quick to admit that despite his work in Liming, traditional is still very much a niche part of China’s climbing scene. “It rings true for the rest of the world — most people are really into sport climbing,” he said. “I don’t think Liming will ever be as popular with the Chinese as sport climbing.”

已經回到美國的多比承認，雖然他在黎明做了很多工作，傳統攀巖在中國攀巖界仍是小衆市場。“在世界其他地方也是如此——大部分人真的喜歡運動攀巖，”他說。“我覺得，黎明在中國人中永遠不會像運動攀巖那樣受歡迎。”

But even among this small community, he has already witnessed a growing appetite for new undertakings. “Some of the Chinese climbers who’ve been to Liming have started developing another area called Beiliu in Guangxi, so that’s an example of them finding something of their own, in their own country, that I’d never seen, and then starting to develop,” he said.

但是，即便在這個小圈子裏，他已經看到了人們對新項目越來越大的興趣。“去過黎明的一些中國攀巖者開始在廣西北流進行開發，這個例子證明，他們在自己的國家自己找到一個地方進行開發——那是我沒見過的地方，”他說。

“People in Yangshou once said the Chinese would never get into sport climbing, and now you go there and there are like 40 people sharing a crag,” Dobie said. “I think there’s this sense of disbelief about something new. I think it’s human.”

“陽朔的攀巖者曾經說，中國人永遠不會迷上運動攀巖，現在你去那裏看看，一塊巖壁上能有40個人，”多比說道。“我認爲，這是因爲人們對新事物有一種不信任感。我覺得這是人的本性。”