The Forgotten Village Swallowed by Nature被大自然“吞噬”的遺落村莊

Like something straight out of a fairytale， the abandoned village of Houtouwan on Shengshan Island， part of the Shengsi Archipelago off the eastern coast of China， has become an unusual travel hot spot.

Houtouwan was once a prosperous fishing village， with a 1980s population of more than 3，000 residents. However， because of its remote and hard-to-access location， its residents started to move out in the 1990s. In 2002， the village was depopulated and merged into a nearby village. After several decades， empty houses in the ocean-facing， cliffside village—some of them still furnished—have been taken over by a blanket of lush climbing plants.

就像童話故事里的場景一樣，位于嵊山島（在中國東海岸的嵊泗群島）的后頭灣廢棄村莊成了一個不尋常的熱門旅游景點。

后頭灣曾經是一個興盛的漁村，20世紀80年代時有3000多居民。然而，由于地處偏遠、交通不便，居民在20世紀90年代陸續搬出。2002年，該村人口減少，隨后被并入附近的一個村莊。經過幾十年，這個面朝大海的懸崖村里的空房子——其中一些仍然配有家具——已經被茂盛的攀緣植物所取代。

An uninhabited village-turned-tourist hot spot

無人村變身熱門旅游景點

Houtouwan soared to fame among Chinese netizens in 2015 when a series of marvelous photographs of the deserted village went viral.

“Our telephone lines are jammed and we are getting more tourists to Houtouwan，” an official of Shengshan Island， said in a statement at the time. “Houtouwan of Shengshan hasn’t been equipped with the conditions to open to tourists…”

But now， it’s ready for tourists. Sort of.

2015年，關于這個廢棄村莊的一系列引人入勝的照片在網上瘋傳，后頭灣在中國網民中名聲大噪。

嵊山島的一位干部當時在一次發言中表示：“我們的電話被打爆了，越來越多的游客來到后頭灣。嵊山后頭灣目前還不具備向游客開放的條件……”

但可以這么說，現在它已經準備好迎接游客了。

Hiking Houtouwan

徒步后頭灣

After more than two years of planning， Houtouwan has implemented a few new moves to serve the visitors.

A viewing platform opened in 2017， offering an overview of the village from afar. Visitors can hike around the hilly village for over 50 yuan. Signs are put up outside empty houses to warn tourists about the possible danger of entering the ran-down structures.

The fame of Houtouwan village bolstered the tourism industry of Shengshan Island. According to local news reports， the village welcomed 90，000 visitors in 2021， earning ￥3.3 million for the island.

經過兩年多的規劃組織，后頭灣已經實施了一些新舉措來迎接游客。

2017年開放的觀景臺，可以俯瞰村莊。游客可以花約50多元徒步游覽這個小山村?？帐幨幍姆课萃饷尕Q起了標志，提醒游客進入日益磨損的建筑可能存在危險。

后頭灣村的名氣帶動了嵊山島的旅游業。據當地新聞報道，2021年該村接待了9萬名游客，為該島帶來了330萬元人民幣的收入。

How to get there

怎么去后頭灣

The best time to see the village is summer—when vegetation is in full bloom.

Getting to Houtouwan isn’t a straightforward trip. The visitors must first get to Gouqi Island Limited ferry services run between the departure and Gouqi Island （the island is connected to Shengshan by a short bridge）.

One ferry departs daily from Shanghai’s Shenjiawan Pier to Gouqi Island. Visitors who want to take the ferry have to buy the ticket and take the early bus from Shanghai Nanpu Bridge Tourism Center. The bus ride takes around 1.5 hours and the ferry ride takes 3.5 hours. It will drop visitors off at Gouqi Island， where they can get a local taxi to Houtouwan.

Another ferry departs from Zhoushan Shenjiamen Banshengdong Dock to Gouqi Island. It is recommended to book tickets early due to its limited availability.

游覽后頭灣的最佳時間是夏季，此時植被處于全盛時期。

前往后頭灣并不是一次簡單的旅行，游客需先到枸杞島。出發地和枸杞島之間的航運服務有限（該島通過一座小橋與嵊山相連）。

每天有一班渡輪從上海沈家灣碼頭出發到枸杞島。想要乘坐渡輪的游客必須購買船票，還要從上海南浦大橋旅游中心乘坐早班車（客車車程約1.5小時，航運時長約3.5小時）。游客在枸杞島下船，在那里可以乘坐當地的出租車前往后頭灣。

另一班渡輪則是從舟山沈家門半升洞碼頭出發前往枸杞島。由于船票數量有限，建議提前預訂。

Word Bank

prosperous /'pr?sp?r?s/ adj. 繁榮的

merge /m??d?/ v. （使）合并，并入

The village expanded and merged into one large town.

furnish /'f??n??/ v. 布置，陳設（家具）

bolster /'b??lst?（r）/ v. 加強