Venezuela’s lost world 委内瑞拉：失落的世界
Venezuela’s lost world
委内瑞拉：失落的世界
BBC Travel 26 October 2012
Author：Sarah Grainger Translated by：Rice1919
转自：http://club.topsage.com/thread-3049028-1-1.html
In an age of satellite technology and cheap air travel, few corners of the planet remain undiscovered. But southern Venezuela’s tepuis – the sandstone, table-topped mountains that inspired Sir Arthur Conan-Doyle’s novel The Lost World – still make travellers feel like 19th-century explorers setting off into the hinterland.
当今时代卫星技术发达，航空运输廉价便捷，我们的地球家园上还未被人类踏足的角落已少之又少。然而，置身于委内瑞拉的特普伊山地，你依然会产生一种犹如19世纪的探险家探索蛮荒秘境的感觉。正是这里砂岩峭壁的平顶山激起了亚瑟·柯南道尔的灵感，创作了《迷失的世界》。
Towering over the surrounding forest, the tepuis have almost sheer vertical flanks; and while you are unlikely to see the dinosaurs and prehistoric animals that Conan-Doyle imagined, the area is full of strange geological formations and carnivorous plants.
放眼俯瞰，层林葱郁之中一座座平顶石山陡然而立，绝壁凌然；当然，你不会看到柯南道尔小说中幻化出的恐龙和史前动物，但这里的确有奇特的地质构造以及遍地可见的食人植物。
The most accessible tepui, 2,180m-high Roraima, was unexplored until 1884. Today, the plateaued summit is home to small waterfalls, natural quartz-lined pools and Punto Triple, the point at which the borders of Venezuela, Brazil and Guyana meet.
罗赖马山，高2,180米，是其中最易攀爬的一座。对罗赖马山的首次勘探直到1884年才得以实现。如今，这块平顶高地是众多小瀑布的源头；这里蕴藏着大量的天然石英；这里还是委内瑞拉、巴西和圭亚那三国的交汇点。
At first glance, the 30sqkm sandstone surface seems barren – a contrast to the rainforest teeming with life below. But many extraordinary plants have adapted to the environment, including carnivorous sundews, bladderworts and march pitchers, all of which trap mosquitoes and other insects. Rain has carved out small canyons and caves where travellers can pitch their tents, and erosion has created bizarre rock formations, including one that is said to resemble former Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
乍看去，这块30多平方公里的砂岩平顶略显贫瘠，与山下雨林郁郁葱葱之势截然相反。但也有生命力极强的植物适应了这里的环境，如茅膏菜、狸藻以及猪笼草之类的食肉植物，它们都以捕食蝇蚊小虫为生。雨水在山顶冲刷出的沟壑洞穴，是登山者歇脚扎营的好地方。在自然的侵蚀作用下，这里出现了千奇百怪的岩石构造，据说还有一块酷似古巴前领导人菲德尔·卡斯特罗的岩石。
Tour companies such as Backpacker Tours and Kamadac organise six-day guided hikes to the summit from the nearby town of Santa Elena de Uairen. While the tour groups often provide equipment like tents and sleeping bags and stop at established campsites along the way, the hikes can be demanding, especially during the rainy season between June and October, so visitors should have a decent level of fitness before ascending. Those with deep pockets but little time or energy to hike can charter a helicopter from Raul Helicopters.
“背包客”和“Kamadac”之类的旅行社为游客提供为期六天的徒步登山旅游服务，可从山脚边小镇圣埃伦娜出发登顶罗赖马。旅行团会提供沿途扎营所需的帐篷和睡袋。登山并不简单，尤其是在六月至九月的雨季，因此游客最好考虑一下自己的身体能不能吃得消这样的登山之旅。口袋宽裕但又惜时如金，亦或是体力不佳的游客，若想一睹山顶风貌，租台直升飞机是不错的选择。
委内瑞拉：失落的世界
BBC Travel 26 October 2012
Author：Sarah Grainger Translated by：Rice1919
转自：http://club.topsage.com/thread-3049028-1-1.html
 |
In an age of satellite technology and cheap air travel, few corners of the planet remain undiscovered. But southern Venezuela’s tepuis – the sandstone, table-topped mountains that inspired Sir Arthur Conan-Doyle’s novel The Lost World – still make travellers feel like 19th-century explorers setting off into the hinterland.
当今时代卫星技术发达，航空运输廉价便捷，我们的地球家园上还未被人类踏足的角落已少之又少。然而，置身于委内瑞拉的特普伊山地，你依然会产生一种犹如19世纪的探险家探索蛮荒秘境的感觉。正是这里砂岩峭壁的平顶山激起了亚瑟·柯南道尔的灵感，创作了《迷失的世界》。
Towering over the surrounding forest, the tepuis have almost sheer vertical flanks; and while you are unlikely to see the dinosaurs and prehistoric animals that Conan-Doyle imagined, the area is full of strange geological formations and carnivorous plants.
放眼俯瞰，层林葱郁之中一座座平顶石山陡然而立，绝壁凌然；当然，你不会看到柯南道尔小说中幻化出的恐龙和史前动物，但这里的确有奇特的地质构造以及遍地可见的食人植物。
 |
The most accessible tepui, 2,180m-high Roraima, was unexplored until 1884. Today, the plateaued summit is home to small waterfalls, natural quartz-lined pools and Punto Triple, the point at which the borders of Venezuela, Brazil and Guyana meet.
罗赖马山，高2,180米，是其中最易攀爬的一座。对罗赖马山的首次勘探直到1884年才得以实现。如今，这块平顶高地是众多小瀑布的源头；这里蕴藏着大量的天然石英；这里还是委内瑞拉、巴西和圭亚那三国的交汇点。
At first glance, the 30sqkm sandstone surface seems barren – a contrast to the rainforest teeming with life below. But many extraordinary plants have adapted to the environment, including carnivorous sundews, bladderworts and march pitchers, all of which trap mosquitoes and other insects. Rain has carved out small canyons and caves where travellers can pitch their tents, and erosion has created bizarre rock formations, including one that is said to resemble former Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
乍看去，这块30多平方公里的砂岩平顶略显贫瘠，与山下雨林郁郁葱葱之势截然相反。但也有生命力极强的植物适应了这里的环境，如茅膏菜、狸藻以及猪笼草之类的食肉植物，它们都以捕食蝇蚊小虫为生。雨水在山顶冲刷出的沟壑洞穴，是登山者歇脚扎营的好地方。在自然的侵蚀作用下，这里出现了千奇百怪的岩石构造，据说还有一块酷似古巴前领导人菲德尔·卡斯特罗的岩石。
 |
Tour companies such as Backpacker Tours and Kamadac organise six-day guided hikes to the summit from the nearby town of Santa Elena de Uairen. While the tour groups often provide equipment like tents and sleeping bags and stop at established campsites along the way, the hikes can be demanding, especially during the rainy season between June and October, so visitors should have a decent level of fitness before ascending. Those with deep pockets but little time or energy to hike can charter a helicopter from Raul Helicopters.
“背包客”和“Kamadac”之类的旅行社为游客提供为期六天的徒步登山旅游服务，可从山脚边小镇圣埃伦娜出发登顶罗赖马。旅行团会提供沿途扎营所需的帐篷和睡袋。登山并不简单，尤其是在六月至九月的雨季，因此游客最好考虑一下自己的身体能不能吃得消这样的登山之旅。口袋宽裕但又惜时如金，亦或是体力不佳的游客，若想一睹山顶风貌，租台直升飞机是不错的选择。
