Chris Burkard: The joy of surfing in ice-cold water

譯者: Alan Wang 審譯者: Seke Wei

So if I told you that this was the face of pure joy,

如果我告訴你們這是一張充滿喜悅的臉

would you call me crazy?

你們會覺得我瘋了嗎？

I wouldn't blame you,

我不會怪你們的

because every time I look at this Arctic selfie, I shiver just a little bit.

因為每當看到這張在北極的自拍， 我都會顫抖一下

I want to tell you a little bit about this photograph.

我想告訴你們一些有關這張照片的故事

I was swimming around in the Lofoten Islands in Norway,

我當時正在挪威的羅弗敦群島游泳

just inside the Arctic Circle,

剛好在北極圈裡面

and the water was hovering right at freezing.

水快要結冰了

The air? A brisk -10 with windchill,

空氣？頂著凜冽寒風，體感溫度零下10度

and I could literally feel the blood trying to leave my hands,

我簡直能感受到血液離開我的手、腳和臉

feet and face, and rush to protect my vital organs.

流去保護我身體的重要器官

It was the coldest I've ever been.

那是我經歷過最冷的時刻

But even with swollen lips, sunken eyes, and cheeks flushed red,

但是即使雙唇腫脹，眼眶凹陷，雙頰通紅

I have found that this place right here is somewhere I can find great joy.

我發現這正是能給我帶來極大喜悅的地方

Now, when it comes to pain, psychologist Brock Bastian

此刻，要是說有什麼痛苦

probably said it best when he wrote,

心理學家 Brock Bastian 說的最好:

"Pain is a kind of shortcut to mindfulness.

“痛苦是到達心智全開之捷徑

It makes us suddenly aware of everything in the environment.

它讓我們突然之間感受到周遭的一切，

It brutally draws us in

它猛然把我們導引到

to a virtual sensory awareness of the world much like meditation."

一個無形的感官世界，就像冥想一樣。”

If shivering is a form of meditation, then I would consider myself a monk.

如果顫抖是冥想的一種形式， 那我就是一個修道士

(Laughter)

（笑）

Now, before we get into the why

在我們談論

would anyone ever want to surf in freezing cold water?

為甚麼會有人想要在寒冷刺骨的水中衝浪之前

I would love to give you a little perspective

我想讓你們知道一些

on what a day in my life can look like.

我每天生活的樣子

(Music)

（音樂）

(Video) Man: I mean, I know we were hoping for good waves,

（影片）男：我想我們都期待有好海浪

but I don't think anybody thought that was going to happen.

但是我不認為有人相信那會出現

I can't stop shaking.

我不停地顫抖

I am so cold.

我實在太冷了

(Music)

（音樂）

(Applause)

（鼓掌）

Chris Burkard: So, surf photographer, right?

Chris Burkard： 講到衝浪攝影師，對嗎？

I don't even know if it's a real job title, to be honest.

坦白地講，我甚至不知道 這是不是一個正式的職業名稱

My parents definitely didn't think so

至少我父母不這麼認為

when I told them at 19 I was quitting my job to pursue this dream career:

19歲時我曾告訴他們 我要辭職去追尋這個夢想中的職業：

blue skies, warm tropical beaches, and a tan that lasts all year long.

藍天，溫暖的熱帶沙灘， 以及一年四季黝黑色的皮膚

I mean, to me, this was it. Life could not get any better.

對我來說，生活沒有比這更美好的了

Sweating it out, shooting surfers in these exotic tourist destinations.

揮灑汗水，在異國旅遊景點拍下衝浪者英姿

But there was just this one problem.

但是這裏有個問題

You see, the more time I spent traveling to these exotic locations,

當我花越多的時間去這些異國的旅遊景點

the less gratifying it seemed to be.

我的滿足感卻越少

I set out seeking adventure, and what I was finding was only routine.

我出去追求的本是探險， 但所見的卻都是平凡事物

It was things like wi-fi, TV, fine dining, and a constant cellular connection

舉凡wi-fi、電視、美食、 或者隨時行動上網

that to me were all the trappings of places heavily touristed

對我來說， 這些都是過度旅遊開發地區的點綴物

in and out of the water,

不管是在水裡還是陸地上

and it didn't take long for me to start feeling suffocated.

不久，我就覺得窒息般難受了

I began craving wild, open spaces,

我開始渴望野外，更開闊的空間

and so I set out to find the places others had written off

我開始尋找那些對衝浪來說

as too cold, too remote, and too dangerous to surf,

太冷，太遠以及太危險的地方

and that challenge intrigued me.

這樣的挑戰令我著迷

I began this sort of personal crusade against the mundane,

我開始這場超越平凡的個人聖戰

because if there's one thing I've realized,

因為我發現

it's that any career,

任何一種職業

even one as seemingly glamorous as surf photography,

即使是衝浪攝影師 這種看起來很令人嚮往的職業

has the danger of becoming monotonous.

都有變得單調乏味的可能

So in my search to break up this monotony, I realized something:

所以在我追尋刺激的過程中

There's only about a third of the Earth's oceans that are warm,

我發現地球上大約只有三分之一的海水是溫暖的

and it's really just that thin band around the equator.

就是在赤道附近那條窄帶

So if I was going to find perfect waves,

所以如果我要去找完美的海浪

it was probably going to happen somewhere cold,

很有可能就要去一些較冷的

where the seas are notoriously rough,

眾所週知比較危險的海域

and that's exactly where I began to look.

這正是我開始尋找的地方

And it was my first trip to Iceland

當我第一次去冰島的時候

that I felt like I found exactly what I was looking for.

我發現這正是我所尋找的地方

I was blown away by the natural beauty of the landscape,

我陶醉於那兒美麗的自然風景

but most importantly, I couldn't believe we were finding perfect waves

但最重要的是，我無法相信

in such a remote and rugged part of the world.

在這種遙遠而崎嶇的地方會有完美的海浪

At one point, we got to the beach

有一次，我們到了沙灘上

only to find massive chunks of ice had piled on the shoreline.

只能看到堆在海岸線上大塊大塊的冰

They created this barrier between us and the surf,

這些冰成了我們去衝浪的阻礙

and we had to weave through this thing like a maze

我們必須在冰塊迷宮中迂迴前行

just to get out into the lineup.

以脫身進入等浪區

and once we got there,

等我們到達海浪邊

we were pushing aside these ice chunks trying to get into waves.

我們要把這些冰塊推到一邊， 以進入到海浪裡

It was an incredible experience, one I'll never forget,

那是個很不可思議的經驗， 我永遠無法忘記

because amidst those harsh conditions,

因為在那樣嚴苛的環境中

I felt like I stumbled onto one of the last quiet places,

我感覺自己突然發現了最後一塊寂土

somewhere that I found a clarity and a connection with the world

我感受到一種清明、和世界連結的感覺

I knew I would never find on a crowded beach.

我知道我永遠不會在擁擠的海灘上找到這些

I was hooked. I was hooked. (Laughter)

我上癮了. 我上癮了(大笑)

Cold water was constantly on my mind,

由於冷水常縈繞我心中

and from that point on,

從那開始

my career focused on these types of harsh and unforgiving environments,

我的生涯就專注在這種 嚴峻且毫不留情的環境上

and it took me to places like Russia, Norway, Alaska, Iceland, Chile,

因此我去過一些地方， 像俄國、 挪威、 阿拉斯加、冰島、 智利

the Faroe Islands, and a lot of places in between.

還有法羅群島、還有那之間很多地方

And one of my favorite things about these places

關於這些地方我最喜歡之處在於

was simply the challenge and the creativity it took just to get there:

如何挑戰及發揮創意，以到達那裏

hours, days, weeks spent on Google Earth

在Google地球上要花上幾小時, 幾天, 幾星期

trying to pinpoint any remote stretch of beach or reef we could actually get to.

才能找出某個 我們真正到達得了的長灘或礁石

And once we got there, the vehicles were just as creative:

而為了到達那裏， 交通工具也一樣要動點創意

snowmobiles, six-wheel Soviet troop carriers,

雪上摩托車、六輪的蘇聯運兵車

and a couple of super-sketchy helicopter flights.

還有幾次超級危險的直升機飛行

(Laughter)

(笑聲)

Helicopters really scare me, by the way.

順便說，直升機真的嚇到我了

There was this one particularly bumpy boat ride

這一次坐船特別顛簸

up the coast of Vancouver Island to this kind of remote surf spot,

我們沿著溫哥華島海岸北上， 到達這處遙遠的衝浪地點

where we ended up watching helplessly from the water

在那邊我們最後無助的從水上

as bears ravaged our camp site.

看著熊蹂躪我們的營地

They walked off with our food and bits of our tent,

他們帶走了我們的食物 而且咬了我們營帳幾口

clearly letting us know that we were at the bottom of the food chain

很顯然是想告訴我們， 位在食物鏈底層的是我們

and that this was their spot, not ours.

這是牠們的地盤，不是我們的

But to me, that trip

但對我而言, 那趟旅行

was a testament to the wildness I traded for those touristy beaches.

證明我愛的是野外， 而非那些擠滿旅客的海灘

Now, it wasn't until I traveled to Norway -- (Laughter) --

再來，要等到我去挪威 (笑聲) (車上的字: 衝浪)

that I really learned to appreciate the cold.

我才學會怎麼欣賞冷天

So this is the place

就是這裡

where some of the largest, the most violent storms in the world

一些世界最大、最猛烈的風暴

send huge waves smashing into the coastline.

送出巨浪打擊海岸線

We were in this tiny, remote fjord, just inside the Arctic Circle.

我們當時在這個遙遠的小海灣， 位置剛好在北極圈內

It had a greater population of sheep than people,

這裡羊比人多

so help if we needed it was nowhere to be found.

所以我們即使求救也沒用

I was in the water taking pictures of surfers,

我當時在水中拍攝一些衝浪者的照片

and it started to snow.

然後開始下雪了

And then the temperature began to drop.

氣溫開始下降

And I told myself, there's not a chance you're getting out of the water.

我告訴自己，你不能就這樣離開

You traveled all this way, and this is exactly what you've been waiting for:

你旅行了這麼遠， 而這些就是你所期盼的

freezing cold conditions with perfect waves.

刺骨的冷天和完美的海浪

And although I couldn't even feel my finger to push the trigger,

雖然我已經感覺不到按快門的手指

I knew I wasn't getting out.

我知道我不能離開

So I just did whatever I could. I shook it off, whatever.

所以我儘可能作點什麼， 不顧一切擺脫寒冷

But that was the point that I felt

就在此時我感到

this wind gush through the valley and hit me,

一陣風吹過峽谷，打在我身上

and what started as this light snowfall quickly became a full-on blizzard,

然後原來一場小雪突然變成一陣暴風雪

and I started to lose perception of where I was.

我開始失去方位感

I didn't know if I was drifting out to sea or towards shore,

我不曉得我正飄向海或飄向岸

and all I could really make out was the faint sound of seagulls

我唯一能分辨的是海鷗微弱的叫聲

and crashing waves.

還有拍打的波浪

Now, I knew this place had a reputation for sinking ships and grounding planes,

我知道此處以沈船和墜機聞名

and while I was out there floating, I started to get a little bit nervous.

隨著我在那兒漂浮，我開始有點緊張

Actually, I was totally freaking out --

事實上, 我快徹底抓狂了

(Laughter) -- and I was borderline hypothermic,

(笑聲) 就在我接近低溫症邊綠

and my friends eventually had to help me out of the water.

朋友們終於幫我離開水中

And I don't know if it was delirium setting in or what,

我不知道是出於精神錯亂還是怎樣

but they told me later

他們之後告訴我

I had a smile on my face the entire time.

我那段時間臉上滿是笑容

Now, it was this trip

現在，就是這趟旅程

and probably that exact experience where I really began to feel

也許就是這個經驗， 我真的開始覺得

like every photograph was precious,

每張相片都是珍貴的

because all of a sudden in that moment, it was something I was forced to earn.

因為在拍照那一瞬間， 我都要很勉強才能拍得成

And I realized, all this shivering had actually taught me something:

我也體會到， 冷得顫抖實際上教會我一樣東西:

In life, there are no shortcuts to joy.

人生沒有獲得喜悅的捷徑

Anything that is worth pursuing is going to require us to suffer

追求任何值得的事物都需要吃苦

just a little bit,

吃一點苦

and that tiny bit of suffering that I did for my photography,

我為了攝影而吃的那一點苦

it added a value to my work that was so much more meaningful to me

它增加了我工作的價值，對我來說

than just trying to fill the pages of magazines.

我不再只是從事一份填滿雜誌版面的工作

See, I gave a piece of myself in these places,

了解嗎， 我貢獻出我的一部份給這些地方

and what I walked away with

而我離開所獲得的

was a sense of fulfillment I had always been searching for.

是我一直夢寐以求的滿足感

So I look back at this photograph.

所以我回顧這張照片

It's easy to see frozen fingers and cold wetsuits

上面很容易看到凍僵的手指和冰冷的潛水衣

and even the struggle that it took just to get there,

以及為了到達那個地方所花費的努力

but most of all, what I see is just joy.

但最重要的是, 我看到了喜悅

Thank you so much.

非常謝謝你們

(Applause)

(鼓掌)