Further Exploration of Centre Valley 



In a small recess of the mountain-side partly filled 

 with moraine matter, we were able to make a dry though 

 cold bivouac, in which to spend the night, as we must 

 wait for a new day before commencing what might well 

 be a long and tiring, if not perilous, climb. Our pro- 

 visions were running low, and if we did not reach camp 

 within the next thirty-six hours our stock would be 

 completely exhausted. 



Dawn saw us up and packing, and as soon as the 

 light was sufficiently strong we set out to look for a 

 route up the rocks. Luckily these were but little 

 weathered all loose material having been swept from 

 their surfaces by the glacier at the time when it had 

 reached these higher levels. There were thus numerous 

 secure holds both for hands and feet, and, having found 

 a ledge which ran along the face of the cliff in the direc- 

 tion in which we wished to go, we had great hopes of 

 reaching the smooth ice below the fall early in the 

 afternoon. 



When we had followed this ledge for about half an 

 hour it suddenly came to an end, and we were forced 

 to climb 600 feet up a series of vertical rifts or 

 chimneys, eventually finding ourselves on the higher 

 slopes of the mountain, which were much less steep and 

 well above the snow-line. Here travelling was easier in 

 spite of the fact that the snow had become rather soft 

 from the heat of the sun. 



The sun was no longer shining on this particular 

 slope and the snow became firmer as the afternoon 

 advanced, but in spite of this it seemed probable that 

 we should have to spend a night in the snow, as we could 

 not as yet find any way down to the glacier, though we 



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