WAPITI AND IBEX 117 



bent on my getting another stag and some ibex as 

 well, saying that the ibex here were even bigger 

 than the Akjas ones, and that it was a pity to come 

 so far and not shoot a few of them. Certainly there 

 were lots of ibex, and big ones too, but it was now 

 altogether too late in the year to face the high and 

 steep ground of the valley I was in, and, as will be 

 seen, I did no good with them. 



Next morning, November 6th, I did not go out, 

 as our men were busy mending their foot-gear with 

 the stag's skin, so I amused myself writing up 

 my diary, first having to thaw the ink over a fire, 

 though it was twelve o'clock, and the sun was out ; 

 besides, the ink-bottle had been most carefully 

 wrapped up. 



In the afternoon we went out and saw some ibex, 

 also an enormous brown bear, but all on the other 

 side of a deep valley, and far out of reach. It 

 came on to blow hard, and was so cold on the ridge 

 where we were that we gave it up and returned. 



I do not think that the bears here are the same 

 as the red bear of the Himalayas. This one looked 

 to me much bigger, and being only about half a 

 mile beyond the ibex, I had something to compare 

 him with the size of which I knew. Also the 

 natives say they are very savage, which the 

 Himalayan red bear certainly is not, rarely if ever 

 assuming the offensive, even when wounded. 



The following day we moved camp a bit further 



