AAC 會員刊物：Guidebook XIII 專訪

李孜亞攀登音樂廳的亞哈船長。翁紹評攝影 ｜ Zy Li on Captain Ahab, Music Hall. Photo by Shao Ping Weng.

焦點志工 Volunteer Spotlight 翻出一片天 Found in translation

一個懷抱願景的人，期待這座島上的攀岩社群不斷拓展視野

One Man’s Vision to Widen the Collective Knowledge of a Small Island’s Climbing Community

By Holly Yu Tung Chen｜撰文：陳俞同 Photos by Shao Ping Weng｜影像：翁紹評 Originally published in Guidebook XIII｜原文刊載於 Guidebook XII、americanalpineclub.org/news

2024 年 7 月，盛夏的空氣中瀰漫著沉重的濕氣，在太平洋彼岸一座名為臺灣的小島上，攀岩者陳震宇 / Maurice 收到一封來自美國高山俱樂部 / American Alpine Club 執行編輯 – 杜格．麥克唐納 / Dougald MacDonald 的回信。信中的附件檔案是一份龐大的文件：2024 年版《北美攀登意外事故 / Accidents in North American Climbing》的完稿檔。Maurice 立刻與 TOCC 臺灣戶外攀岩協會 / Taiwan Outdoor Climbers’ Coalition 的兩位夥伴 – 羅馬修 / Matt Robertson 以及王大濟取得聯繫，三人便隨即投入繁雜的翻譯工作中；逐頁翻譯內文、註記、鑽研各種專有名詞，同時也對每一件和臺灣攀岩圈類似的意外事故進行鉅細靡遺的討論。即便這項工作冗長而枯燥，但他們仍全力以赴。

Across the Pacific, on the small island of Taiwan, climber Maurice Chen received an email from Dougald MacDonald, the Executive Editor of the American Alpine Club. It was July 2024, and the summer air hung as heavy as mist. Attached to the email was a large document: the full version of the 2024 Accidents in North American Climbing (ANAC). Chen called his two colleagues at the Taiwan Outdoor Climbers’ Coalition (TOCC), Matt Robertson and Ta Chi Wang. Together, they began their meticulous work—marking pages, circling terms, and discussing any accident relevant to Taiwanese climbing in obsessive detail. The task ahead would be long and tedious.

***

臺灣是一座狀似蕃薯的島嶼，漂浮在南海與東海之間，籠罩在兩大強權的陰影下；一方長年威脅著要佔領它，另一方則心不在焉地保護著它。若從地質學的角度看臺灣，它就是一座由兩大板塊擠壓形成的年輕島嶼，這座島嶼寬約 89 英里 (約 143 公里)，長約 250 英里 (約 402 公里)，由一道中央山脈作為脊樑將東、西半部彼此相連，而在這道山脈中，有 151 座高度超過 10,000 英尺 (約 3,048 公尺) 的山峰 – 其中的最高峰玉山更高達 13,000 英尺 (3,952 公尺) – 臺灣是一座與海天相連的島嶼。

這座島嶼的氣候和它的地形一樣多變；在不到一百英里 (約 160 公里) 的距離內，從沿海地形轉變為高山凍土，接著又再變回海岸地貌。正因為擁有如此豐富的自然景觀，讓臺灣人熱愛健行、登山、潛水、自行車、衝浪、攀岩等各式各樣的戶外活動。

臺灣最早的登山俱樂部可追溯至 1905 年；大濟算是臺灣第二代的攀岩者，而 Matt 與 Maurice 則算是第三代。第一代的臺灣攀岩者多半生長於日治時期，是 20 世紀早期的攀登活動開拓者，多半以傳統的探險攀登風格 – 圍攻式攀登完攀眾多高山。

Taiwan is an island shaped like a yam, floating between the South and East China Seas. It sits in the shadow of two superpowers, one threatening to occupy it and another half-heartedly protecting it. A young island by geological standards, it was formed by the collision of two tectonic plates. The island is 89 miles wide and 250 miles long, with its eastern half stitched to its western half by a spine of mountain ranges. Among these ranges are 151 peaks taller than 10,000 feet, with the tallest, Jade Mountain, standing just shy of 13,000 feet. Taiwan is a land of sea and sky.

The island’s diverse climate shifts from coastal tide pools to alpine tundra and back to tide pools in less than a hundred miles. Thanks to these rich natural landscapes, the Taiwanese have always embraced outdoor activities such as hiking, mountaineering, diving, biking, surfing, and climbing.

The first mountaineering clubs of Taiwan were formed as early as 1905. Chen and Robertson belonged to Taiwan’s third generation of climbers, Wang to the second. The first generation of Taiwanese climbers were born during the Japanese occupation, and were early-century mountaineers, tackling the many tall peaks with traditional expedition and siege-style strategies.

1972 年「臺灣百岳」問世，詳列臺灣境內一百座最具代表性的山峰，讓登山健行活動開始受到主流社會關注，也讓當時致力於攀登活動的登山者紛紛以完登百岳為目標。

1970 年代末，登山鞋仍是攀登活動的標準裝備，而當時「石頭大師 / Stonemasters」的豐功偉業已飄洋過海傳到臺灣。大濟回憶起他曾讀過朋友從美國帶回來的一期《Climbing Magazine》雜誌，當年沒有網際網路，資訊傳遞十分緩慢，而臺灣攀岩活動的發展也比美國和歐洲落後約五年左右，然而隨著時間推進，臺灣的攀登活動愛好者也漸漸開始將登山與攀岩活動區隔開來。

1980 年代晚期大濟開始攀岩時，自由攀登 – 主要為傳統攀登 / trad climbing – 已相當普及；而當 Matt 在 2002 年初訪臺灣時，運動攀登正開始受到大量關注。到了 2010 年代中期，室內岩館快速興起，岩館數量激增了三倍，然而由於臺灣城市宛如迷宮般擁擠，且寸土寸金，因此多數攀岩館都以抱石 / bouldering 為主，並孕育出第三代與第四代的臺灣攀岩者，而他們也多半專注於抱石。

Mountaineering and hiking gained main-stream attention when a list of a hundred notable mountains was published in 1972, aptly named “Taiwan’s Hundred Mountains.” The serious Taiwanese mountaineer aspired to climb all hundred.

By the late 1970s, mountaineering boots were the go-to climbing shoe, but tales of the Stonemasters had floated across the Pacific. Wang remembers reading an issue of Climbing Magazine that his friends and brought back from the States, but without the internet, information passed slowly. The climbing scene lagged behind the Americans and Europeans by about half a decade. Gradually, Taiwanese climbers began distinguishing rock climbing from mountaineering.

When Wang began climbing in the 1990s, free climbing—primarily trad climbing—was already widespread. By the time Robertson arrived in Taiwan in 2002, sport climbing had just begun to gain traction. In the mid-2010s, the indoor climbing scene boomed, and the number of gyms tripled. Due to the limited real estate in the maze-like Taiwanese cities, most of these facilities were bouldering gyms, which gave rise to the fourth generation of Taiwanese climbers, predominantly boulderers.

***

龍洞風景。翁紹評攝影 ｜ Scenery of Long Dong. Photo by Shao Ping Weng.

Maurice 和 Matt 是在龍洞認識的 – 一座位於臺灣最北端的濱海岩場。

曾有攀岩者將龍洞與美國紐約州的 Shawangunks 或科羅拉多州的 Clear Creek Canyon 相提並論，大濟則對此一笑置之 – 他認為任何地方都無法與龍洞相比，因為「那種來自家鄉的安定感是無可取代的」。從太平洋竄起的岩壁、以及確保者身後不斷濺起的浪花，讓這裡的攀岩者不僅需要了解岩壁，還需要掌握潮汐知識。這裡的路線短而強勁，即便是不到 50 英尺 (約 15 公尺) 的短路線，攀登難度也往往都能充分展現。

當臺灣的室內岩館方興未艾時，他們倆合作出版了龍洞第二本中英雙語的攀岩指南：《臺灣龍洞攀岩｜運動攀登與傳統攀登》。當時的 Matt 剛從企業界出走，換下筆挺西裝的他，穿上了攀岩吊帶和東縫西補的攀岩褲；而剛接觸並熱衷攀岩的 Maurice 則希望能為社群做出貢獻，於是便主動提供他的平面設計專業作為協助；大濟身為一位早期投入並大量開發龍洞攀岩路線的攀岩者，更為這本書貢獻了岩場開發歷程、首攀紀錄，以及岩場地質等豐富知識與歷史脈絡。

Chen and Robertson met at Long Dong (meaning “Dragon’s Cave”), a seacliff climbing area on the northern end of the island.

Climbers have compared Long Dong with the Shawangunks in New York or Clear Creek Canyon in Colorado, but Wang waves away those comparisons—it cannot be compared because the serenity of home is an incomparable experience. Seacliffs rise out of the Pacific and waves crash behind the belayer, requiring not only knowledge of the rocks but knowledge of the tides. The lines are short and stout, punchy, getting the grade in less than 50 feet in most places.

This was before the first climbing gym in Taiwan had opened, and the pair collaborated to publish the second bilingual edition of Rock Climbing Taiwan: Sport Climbing & Trad at Long Dong. Robertson had recently ejected from the corporate sphere, trading in neatly pressed suits for a harness and patched-up pants. Chen, enamored with climbing and wishing to contribute to the community, lent Robertson his background in graphic design. Wang, a prolific and early developer of Long Dong, contributed his extensive knowledge of the area’s history, first ascents, and geology to the book.

游健郎攀登校門口的虎牙。翁紹評攝影 ｜ Jen Lang Yu on Tiger's Tooth, School Gate. Photo by Shao Ping Weng.

約莫在那段期間，Matt 向 Maurice 提起美國高山俱樂部 / AAC 每年出版的《北美攀登意外事故》，而這話題立刻就引起 Maurice 的興趣。攀岩是一項高風險的戶外活動，在臺灣也時常發生意外，但這些意外事故通常由個別攀岩者或獨立群體自行處理，鮮少將過程公諸於眾，加上臺灣攀岩者對於意外事故的討論往往趨於保守，擔心會讓當事人感到難堪，或讓其親友更加傷心，因此多數意外事故經常缺乏詳實的記錄。然而在資訊傳播快速、網路盛行的時代，各種意外事故的謠傳經常在攀岩相關平台或即時通訊群組中傳播；人們常常僅根據有限的資訊猜測、討論，甚至分析，結果往往導致各種錯誤訊息紛飛的混亂局面。

根據臺灣戶外攀岩協會 / TOCC 資料顯示，2009 – 2020 年間共有兩起攀岩意外死亡事故、三起重傷事故，以及數起輕傷事故。Maurice 深知，如果人們能有機會從過去的錯誤中學習，許多意外其實是可以預防的。他細讀每年的攀岩意外相關資料，開始統整事故發生的原因，並嘗試在自己常去的龍洞岩場協助推動各項預防措施。當時龍洞的安全問題主要來自海鹽 (含氯離子) 與不鏽鋼固定設備之間的化學作用 – 當這兩者結合水氣時，會大幅加速金屬設備的鏽蝕現象，而過去也有數起因錨栓鏽蝕斷裂而導致的事故。此外，岩場的步行小徑 (非常規步道) 也潛藏風險，特別是剛從室內岩館轉向天然岩場的岩友，往往不擅長在暴露且崎嶇複雜的地形中行走。

自從 Matt 開始在龍洞攀岩的這二十年間，龍洞已進行過兩次大規模的錨栓更新計畫，絕大多數使用超過十年的 304 不鏽鋼膨脹式錨栓與化學膠錨栓均已汰換。臺灣攀岩者以泰國南部的攀岩社群為借鏡，體認到唯有鈦合金錨栓才能在亞熱帶濱海環境中長期使用。龍洞岩場最近一次大規模的錨栓更新計畫始於 2010，由各方岩友與攀岩社群共同募款資助，不僅將老舊錨栓更新為鈦合金或 316 不鏽鋼錨栓，並且也在熱門的傳攀路線上設置錨栓固定點以避免在下撤過程中發生意外，同時也對岩壁上現存的 316 不鏽鋼錨栓定期進行拉力測試，以確保其強度無虞。然而，錨栓更新與監測只是攀岩安全方案中的環節之一，在 2024 年的《北美攀登意外事故 / ANAC》中，他們注意到一起令人震驚的案例 – 鉤環切斷主繩的意外事故 – 並將相關討論與見解分享給攀岩社群。

Around then, Robertson told Chen about the yearly publication of accident reports by the American Alpine Club. Chen was intrigued. Climbing, being an inherently dangerous sport, had its share of accidents in Taiwan, but these incidents were typically managed by individual climbing clubs and were rarely made publicly available. Taiwanese climbers were also conservative about accident details, out of fear of embarrassing the climber or causing further grief to their families. In the age of rapid information sharing and the internet, rumors of accidents frequently made rounds on online climbing forums as people speculated and analyzed the limited information they had. It often devolved into a muddle of misinformation.

According to the TOCC’s records, there have been two fatalities, three severe injuries, and several minor injuries between 2009 and 2020. Chen knew that many climbing accidents are preventable, but only if people can learn from past mistakes. Having read each year’s accident reports cover to cover, Chen began taking stock of how accidents happen and tried to implement prevention measures in his home climbing area of Long Dong. The unique safety problem at Long Dong lies in the interaction between sea salt, containing chloride ions, and steel. Combined with moisture, it significantly speeds up rusting, and several serious accidents have happened as a result of bolt failure. The social trails along the cliffs also present a safety hazard, as gym climbers transitioning to outdoor climbing are less apt at navigating exposed and complicated terrain.

In the decades since Robertson began climbing at Long Dong, two significant rebolting efforts have removed most expansion bolts and glue-ins that are a decade or older, and replaced them. Taiwanese climbers learned from climbers in southern Thailand, another place with abundant seaside climbing, that titanium is the only long term solution for safe seaside bolts. The most recent rebolting effort in 2011, spearheaded by both individual climbers and community donations, replaced dangerous bolts with titanium glue-ins or SS 316s, installed bolted anchors on popular trad routes to prevent walk-off accidents, and pull-tested any remaining old bolts to ensure their integrity. Yet rebolting was only part of the safety equation. In the 2024 ANAC, they pored over an alarming report on a carabiner cutting a climber’s rope and shared their thoughts with their community.

章可瑜攀登黃金谷的華西街。陳震宇攝影 ｜ Koyu Chang on Snake Alley, Golden Valley. Photo by Maurice Chen.

他們三人對於網路上流傳的各種錯誤資訊，以及缺乏可靠機構統整攀岩意外事故報告的現狀感到憂心。Maurice 希望臺灣的攀岩社群能夠更容易取得攀岩意外事故的相關資訊，藉以從中學習、分析，並運用這些資訊深入暸解天然岩場，進而預防各式各樣的潛在風險。

此外，TOCC 也建立了一個供攀岩者自行回報的意外事故資料庫，自 2009 至 2020 年間共收集了 19 份事故報告。然而，自主回報有其侷限性，而 Maurice 與大濟也對此表達他們的顧慮；臺灣在文化上普遍傾向避免討論意外事故，特別是涉及重傷甚或死亡的事件。而人們之所以迴避談論此類話題，不僅僅出於尊重當事人及其親友，有時甚至出於迷信，認為談論死亡會招致厄運或不祥。此外，險些發生意外的事件通常也不會回報，有時是因為當事人認為事態輕微不值一提，有時則是因為對自己的人為疏失感到難為情。

為了跨越上述障礙，Maurice 推斷，若能有一份紀錄詳實且公開透明的攀登事故報告作為範例，或許能讓攀岩社群開始習慣以正面的態度接收或分享這類資訊，於是他將目光投向美國高山俱樂部 / AAC – 其每年發行的《北美攀登意外事故 / ANAC》過去也曾有翻譯版；例如 2021 年有西班牙文版，2022 年則有中國攀岩者周鵬翻譯的簡體中文版。在讀完 Dougald 回信的附件完稿檔後，Maurice 深知這將會是一項龐雜而艱鉅的工作。

The trio worried over misinformation being passed around online, and the lack of an authoritative voice to manage accident reports. Chen wanted the Taiwanese climbing community to have readily available information on accident reports so they could learn from them, analyze them, and use the information to research climbing areas and prepare for hazards.

The TOCC has an accidents database for climbers to self-report. They collected 19 reports between 2009 and 2020. But self-reporting has its limitations. Both Chen and Wang express concern over the cultural reluctance to talk about climbing accidents, particularly those involving a fatality or serious injury. The topic is avoided not only out of respect but also due to superstitions that discussing death may invite bad luck or misfortune. Close-calls often go unreported, sometimes because climbers think it may be too trivial, other times because climbers are embarrassed by human error.

To cross that hurdle, Chen theorized, he wanted an example of accident reports that are meticulously documented and freely available. So he turned to the Club. ANAC had seen translations in the past, notably to Spanish in 2021 and to Simplified Chinese in 2022 by notable Chinese climber and translator Zhou Peng. Chen knew it would be a daunting task.

兩個月後，經過數百個小時的辛苦工作，他們三人完成了 2024 年《北美攀登意外事故》繁體中文版 的翻譯作業。TOCC 臺灣戶外攀岩協會也將該文件上傳至官網，開放岩友與廣大民眾免費下載。

Maurice 表示，未來將持續投入《北美攀登意外事故》的翻譯工作。如同許多將自己的時間、技能與精力無私奉獻於自身信念的美國高山俱樂部志工，Maurice 經常在充滿挑戰或資源有限的條件下工作。對於自己投入的大量時間，他淡然以對，反而更強調在工作過程中那種發自內心的喜悅與回饋感。這份翻譯成果將長期造福臺灣攀岩社群，並可望成為推動攀岩者正視並探討意外事故等艱難議題的契機。

而在著手建立臺灣自身的攀登意外事故報告之前，Maurice 深知有必要先讓大家了解：記錄詳實而嚴謹的事故報告，能夠豐富並深化整體攀岩社群的知識底蘊。

Two months and several hundred hours of labor later, Chen finished a Traditional Chinese translation of ANAC. The TOCC posted the document on their website, free to download.

Chen says he will continue to translate ANAC next year, and wishes to continue in the years after. Chen, like many AAC volunteers who give their time, skills, and energy to causes they believe in, is often working in challenging environments or with limited resources. Downplaying the sacrifice of his own time, Chen instead emphasizes the rewarding aspects and intrinsic joy of giving in volunteer work. This translation will serve the Taiwanese climbing community for years to come, and may serve as a catalyst to climbers embracing the idea that hard topics like accidents warrant discussion and analysis.

Before there can be a Taiwan climbing accident report, Chen knew he needed to share existing data of how meticulously documented accident reports can add to the collective knowledge of a community.

***

臺灣群山終年綠意盎然。在龍洞，向北望去是無垠大海，向南則是一大片綿延起伏的碧綠山巒。臺灣亞熱帶的山林總是鬱鬱蔥蔥，樟樹、榆樹、榕樹、山棕與山黃麻交錯生長，林相交雜而滿賦生命力，不斷翻湧的綠浪從山腳一路蔓延至山巔；放眼遙望鮮有半點別色，盡是大片的綠與藍。

這三位岩友對我說：臺灣在呼喚著妳回家。大濟特別記得自己在優勝美地攀岩時，面對如海洋般遼闊無垠的巨大花崗岩壁，總讓他感到驚嘆不已，但在內心深處，他始終惦記著龍洞的海崖與臺灣的群山。如今他們一同站在龍洞岬灣的懸壁前整裝待發、準備攀登時，面對這片令人百看不厭的景色，依舊讚嘆如昔。

The mountains and hillsides of Taiwan are green year-round. At Long Dong, you turn north and you see the sea, you turn south and you see sweeping swaths of green hillside. The subtropical mountainsides of Taiwan are always lush with camphor laurels, peeling elms, banyans, sugar palms, and charcoal trees, a mess of jungle, undulating waves from the foothills all the way to the top. Not a speck of anything else but green and blue.

The trio of friends say Taiwan calls you home. Wang specifically remembers climbing in Yosemite, marveling over the big walls and seas of granite, but in the back of his mind, he still thought about the seacliffs of Long Dong, and the mountains of Taiwan. They stand together on the cliffs overlooking Long Dong Bay, racked up and ready to climb, marveling over how they’ll never get sick of the view.