Hunting at High Altitudes 



but eventually reached the summit, and had begun 

 our descent of the other side over steep rock slides, 

 when the clouds, which all day had been low, de- 

 scended, leaving us helpless. At last they lifted, 

 and we were just moving on, when a huge section 

 of the mountain just in front of us gave way, 

 coming down in an avalanche, which narrowly 

 missed the leading ponies. The noise was deaf- 

 ening, and we were much relieved when the dust 

 lifted to see our men safe. 



Down we went around a shoulder of the moun- 

 tain, where high above us the men could see with 

 the naked eye, and we with the glasses a large herd 

 of ibex on the sky line. Chew won the toss, while 

 I waited with the outfit, where I was to see an 

 example of good luck often dreamed of, but sel- 

 dom realized. It was i o'clock when he left, and 

 for the next two hours we watched him with his 

 hunter slowly climbing up the steep grass slope, 

 occasionally shut from view by heavy squalls of 

 hail and sleet. At last, with the big glass, I saw 

 that owing to the nature of the ground, he could 

 not get within shot, and was wondering what he 

 would do when the entire herd, numbering about 

 sixty male ibex, suddenly got up and moved 

 rapidly away from him, only to turn quickly and 

 charge in a body to exactly where he sat crouched 



338 



