《经济学人》双语：为什么Z世代年轻人喜欢去山野徒步?

原文标题：

Hiking misadventures

A step too far

More young, inexperienced hikers are ending up in danger

徒步旅行中的意外

走得太远

越来越多没经验的年轻徒步者陷入危险

Why Gen Z hikers keep getting lost up mountains

Following social media, they set off with more inspiration than preparation

为什么Z世代徒步者总是在山里迷路

受社交媒体的影响，他们出发时满怀激情，却准备不足

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SCHOTTY BOY, as he is known online, is a hiking evangelist.

一个网名为“斯科蒂男孩”的博主，是一位热忱的徒步文化传播者。

He posts dispatches from the Scottish Highlands—moody, misty pictures of streams, glens, lochs and hills—to his more than 100,000 followers on Instagram and TikTok.

他在Instagram和TikTok平台上有10多万粉丝，时常更新苏格兰高地的徒步日常，画面里有雾气缭绕的溪流、幽谷、湖泊和山野美景。

In these posts, he is usually toting sensible walking gear such as a backpack, flask and an anorak. Sometimes, and inexplicably, he is topless.

镜头里，他身上总会配齐实用的徒步装备，背包、便携水壶、防风冲锋衣一应俱全。但有些时候，他又会莫名其妙地赤裸上身出镜。

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He is one of many young people discovering the pleasures of the great outdoors. (As one TikTok video puts it: “Texting is cool, but hiking together is cooler.”)

他是众多领略户外山野乐趣的年轻人之一。（正如一条TikTok视频所说：“线上聊天固然有趣，可相约徒步山野才更酷。”）

Millions of posts extol the virtues of this cheap, accessible form of exercise.

数以百万计的帖子内容，都在赞扬这种低成本低门槛的运动所具备的种种益处。

Some influencers recommend scenic routes, way stops and refuges. Apps such as AllTrails make it easy to find footpaths.

一些网红会推荐风景优美的路线、沿途歇脚处和山间避难小屋。AllTrails等徒步软件，一键就可查找山间小径。

This is especially helpful for a generation more accustomed to reading from a phone screen than a map.

对于早已习惯看手机屏幕、而不习惯翻阅纸质地图成长起来的一代人而言，这类工具格外实用。

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The problem is that fans follow in influencers’ footsteps without fully understanding what an excursion in the wilderness might entail.

问题在于，粉丝们跟风效仿网红的徒步方式，却全然不知一场荒野短途旅行所潜藏的各类风险。

(Topless treks, for instance, are inadvisable, especially in cold, wet conditions.)

（例如，赤裸上身徒步是不可取的，遇上阴冷多雨的天气更是万万不可。）

Excitable explorers can walk into trouble. In the Scottish Highlands, the number of mountaineering incidents involving 17- to 25-year-olds has nearly quadrupled since 2022.

兴致高昂的户外爱好者极易身陷险境。在苏格兰高地，2022年以来，17-25岁青年遭遇登山意外的数量近乎翻了三倍。

In 2018 just 15% of people rescued in the Highlands were 17- to 25-year-olds. Last year 25% were.

2018年，在高地获救的人员中，只有15%是17-25岁的年轻人。去年，这一比例升至25%。

It was not always like this: in the early 2010s, it was middle-aged hikers who required the most assistance.

情况并非向来如此：在2010年代初期，需要救援的徒步者大多是中年人。

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Nor is this just a Scottish trend. American adventurers aged between 18 and 25 have grown as a share of those needing help.

这种现象并非苏格兰独有。在美国，18-25岁的探险者在山地救援求助人群中的占比持续攀升。

France, Italy and Switzerland have also seen surges in SOS calls from youngsters in recent years.

近些年来，法国、意大利、瑞士接到的年轻人户外求救电话数量也都出现大幅激增。

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Rescuers point out that more people of all ages are hiking.

救援人员指出，如今各个年龄段参与徒步的人数整体都在上升。

The “Instagram effect”, says Ludovic Richard from France’s mountain-safety observatory, is such that young walkers go to perilous lengths to take a photo at a beauty spot.

法国山地安全观察站的卢多维克·理查德称，“Instagram效应”导致年轻徒步者为了在风景优美的地方拍照，而不惜冒险。

Some have none of the gear and not much common sense.

有些年轻人既没有专业户外装备，也缺乏基础安全常识。

In December two walkers in their 20s were rescued from Britain’s second-highest mountain in “feels-like” temperatures of -15°C, wearing trainers and tracksuit bottoms (rather than thermals and walking boots).

去年12月，两名20多岁的徒步者在英国第二高峰获救，当时体感气温低至零下15摄氏度，他们只穿着普通球鞋和运动卫裤（并未穿戴保暖内衣和登山靴）。

Kev Mitchell, a rescuer in Scotland, was called out to a different pair of 20-somethings in the Highlands without a compass and proper jackets. Without his help, he reckons, they would have died.

苏格兰救援队员凯夫·米切尔还救助过高地另两名20多岁的年轻人，他们未携带指南针，也没有保暖冲锋衣。米切尔估计，如果没有自己的救援，这两个人肯定活不下来。

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The benefits of hiking are numerous. America’s National Park Service promotes it as “a great whole-body workout—from head to toe and everything in between”.

徒步旅行的好处数不胜数。美国国家公园管理局将徒步宣传为“一项绝佳的全身运动，从头到脚，身体各处都能得到锻炼”。

As well as strengthening muscles and bones, walking in nature is good for your mental health.

在大自然中徒步，除了强健筋骨，还十分有益于心理健康。

Gen Z has the right idea. They just need to prove they can, in fact, walk the walk.

Z世代选择徒步的初衷是对的。他们真正需要做到的是：充分准备，量力而行，知行合一。

（恭喜读完，本篇英语词汇472左右）

原文出自：2026年7月25日《TE》Culture版块

本文翻译整理: Irene
本文编辑校对: Irene
仅供个人英语学习交流使用。

【重点句子】（3个）

The problem is that fans follow in influencers’ footsteps without fully understanding what an excursion in the wilderness might entail.

问题在于，粉丝们跟风效仿网红的徒步方式，却全然不知一场荒野短途旅行所潜藏的各类风险。

Some have none of the gear and not much common sense.

有些年轻人既没有专业户外装备，也缺乏基础安全常识。

As well as strengthening muscles and bones, walking in nature is good for your mental health.

在大自然中徒步，除了强健筋骨，还十分有益于心理健康。

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