[Characters of Baiyue] Becoming a bear wandering in the mountains, Guo Yanren

[Characters of Baiyue] Becoming a bear wandering in the mountains, Guo Yanren

Text: Xueyang / Picture: Guo Yanren

On this day, I made an appointment with him to meet in our hometown of Taichung and drink Coke at the second floor of Gongyi Road. Facing Guo Xiong, whose whereabouts are always erratic, I can never tell whether he is in Taipei, Taichung, or Hualien.

 

"If I want to drink, I would rather spend 300 or 400 yuan to take a taxi home. I can't take any risk!" When the topic of whether to have a drink came up, it was not difficult to see his cautious personality. It has been exactly 12 years since Kuo Yanren left Taichung to join the Pingke Wilderness Conservation Center and devoted himself entirely to black bears. He is currently the project manager of the Taiwan Black Bear Conservation Association and is the leading figure in the field of black bear research in Taiwan, together with "Black Bear Mother" Huang Meixiu. A soul figure with the same name as the teacher.

Because of this, the nickname "Guo Xiong" spread like wildfire. As early as 2015 , when I was still serving as a replacement in the Daxue Mountains, I had heard this name because he often went to the Daxue Mountains to investigate. The indissoluble bond between him and the black bear stems from his longing for the mountains and forests.

 

Guo Xiong, who originally liked mountains, joined the Jingyi Mountaineering Club when he was in college. At that time, his mountaineering style was similar to the mainstream today, focusing on pursuing the beautiful scenery of Baiyue Mountain. After entering PingTech University, in order to be able to legitimately "call the mountains my home", I chose the most far-reaching research topic: Taiwanese black bears, so that I could keep going up the mountains to investigate. This decision also greatly affected his life and completely reshaped his understanding of "mountain climbing".

 

The home of the Formosan black bear is between 1,000 and 3,000 meters above sea level, in the most precipitous and primitive areas of Taiwan, among the "intermediate mountains". In order to study black bears, Guo Xiong started his intermediate mountain journey. His first mission was also the most impressive journey for him, which was the famous "Beinan Dongling".

"That camp is the only place I dream about so far." Guo Xiong said leisurely, his narrowed eyes wandering to a jungle somewhere in the Central Mountains, the residence that deeply moved him. The past ten years of investigating black bears and observing the ecology in intermediate mountains have laid a solid foundation for his mountaineering physical fitness and experience. Because of his long-term cooperation with the Bunun people in Zhuoxi Township on mountain surveys, he was moved by the aboriginal spirit of "unity between mountain and people" inherited from their ancestors, and gradually began to learn their way of life, and also participated in the Neibenlu root-seeking action.

 

Walking into the mountains, as a citizen of the mountains who are equal to all things, you can feel the dialogue between insects, fish, birds and beasts, follow the footsteps of sambar deer and goats, grab a pot of delicious wild vegetables at your fingertips, and look for fuel and dead wood to build a gentle campfire. ... The old Bunun hunter was a heavy book that he could not finish reading no matter what. While studying, Guo Xiong also established a deep relationship with the tribe. Even the wedding was held grandly in the tribe with traditional etiquette. , the depth of his emotional bond is evident.

"It's a pity that he has left. In fact, I really admire Li Xiaoshi's climbing method - carrying a bag of enough rice, choosing a mountainous area, and walking aimlessly for a few days." For Guo Xiong now, it is already There is no such activity as "climbing". It is neither a challenge nor a pastime, but a way of life. Just like when we travel to different cities, he walked into different mountains and forests, enjoying the connection with the earth, using the wisdom learned from the tribesmen, and integrating his life into the pulse of nature - like a bear Walking and breathing normally, he lives a comfortable life in the mountains; reticent but humorous, he views the mountains and forests from the perspective of "home".

Guo Xiong's life is as diverse as the mountains and forests in Taiwan. While conserving black bears and traversing intermediate mountains, he also cherishes the dream of climbing overseas. In order to bet on the desolation of the ice and snow, he went to the 6,476- meter Merle Peak in Nepal. ; Because I wanted to see big trees from a different angle, I started learning tree climbing; and because of my appreciation for the Bunun people, I became obsessed with rattan weaving. He does not learn and climb for the sake of mountains or challenges, but only for curiosity and life, making life more diverse and exciting, and making every journey follow the deepest desire in the animal's heart - "go home."

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