Outdoor activity trend drives higher accident rate

Growing trend

In recent years, more Chinese have started to engage in challenging, high-risk outdoor activities, such as scuba diving, cycling across windswept, isolated plateaus and trekking through inhospitable wilderness.

In 2016, six government departments, including the General Administration of Sport, issued a guideline on outdoor activities in mountainous areas to promote the development of sports and better regulate the industry.

Activities such as climbing, hiking, camping and cycling, which take place in natural surroundings, including mountainous areas, focus on participation and are aimed at promoting physical and mental health, the guideline said.

It added that in 2016, about 130 million Chinese participated in outdoor sports in mountainous areas, and the number will continue to rise. The report also estimated that the scale of the outdoor sports industry in mountainous areas will reach 400 billion yuan ($58 billion) next year.

Wu Hong, 49, deputy head of the Nanping Mountainous Sports Association in Fujian province, said: "A growing number of people are enjoying outdoor activities because they can get close to nature and relieve the pressure of sitting in an office. These activities are different from traditional pursuits, such as taking a walk in the park or jogging, and they are more challenging because they usually take place in inhospitable places, so more skills and equipment are required."

Yang, the rescue team member, said: "Mountaineering and trekking have relatively low entry thresholds, making them more accessible to the public. That's more likely to cause people to let down their guard.

"As more city dwellers go hiking in the Qinling Mountains to enjoy the clean air and greenery, some tend to think it is an easy activity, but actually we see countless hikers getting lost and asking for assistance."

According to the CMA report, getting lost and falling from high ground were the main causes of accidents last year, and most of them occurred while people were climbing and trekking through inhospitable areas.