SPORT IN THE TEKKES : IBEX 87 



which nearly sent us round by the lower road, as it 

 seemed possible the upper way might be closed, but 

 as it cleared up again in the morning we decided to 

 risk it. 



The next two days were uneventful. We jour- 

 neyed on by short marches over a very up and 

 down country, seeing some ibex on the way. I shot 

 one the first evening with horns 40 inches long. 

 Anywhere else this would have been accounted a 

 good head ; here, however, I was assured it was 

 quite small, but being rather sceptical, I concluded 

 to keep it, just in case Akjas fell short of its reputa- 

 tion, which it didn't. The third day we crossed the 

 pass into the Akjas watershed, and soon after begin- 

 ning the descent saw some sheep, of which we had 

 been told there were still a few left. 



We all three started off to do the stalk. Morse 

 had the first shot, and the final result was that we 

 got two of them, losing another wounded one, which 

 I followed till dark by a slight blood-track, but 

 never could come up with, my day ending with a 

 long tramp down to the tents, which were near a 

 scattered clump of high-up pine trees ; the road was 

 none of the best, and the camp fire a welcome sight 

 when at last it came into view. The best of the 

 two heads was forty-five inches in length, and I 

 think these sheep are undoubtedly O. karelini, as 

 though they were a little dark in colour, this might 

 be their summer coat. 



