228 AFTER WILD SHEEP IN THE ALTAI 



answered decisively that there were no sheep about 

 there, so we continued our journey northwards and, 

 having crossed the main river, began ascending one of 

 its small tributaries along a narrow ravine with high 

 banks on either side, and, having gone up a few miles, 

 pitched camp at 3 p.m. The weather was still fine 

 and exceedingly hot. 



We were off again next day, starting as usual at 

 about 7 a.m., still heading northwards parallel to the 

 main Muss-Taou range, and crossed a fairly high 

 pass into loftier ground. It rained almost the whole 

 of that afternoon, and we pitched camp on the plateau 

 at an altitude of 8,400 feet. On our way we saw 

 Antelope of the larger kind. The end of that 

 day's march cheered us up a little, for, as we entered 

 a narrow valley with a small lake in the middle, many 

 heads of sheep strewed the ground, and it seemed 

 possible that we had struck a new vein. Close to the 

 place where we had pitched camp stood two dirty 

 yourts, whose inhabitants were so frightened at the 

 sight of us that they all disappeared behind the rocks 

 on our approach, and did not reappear until next 

 morning. We decided that night that we should start 

 early next day, Littledale and I, to try our fortune, for 

 to the north and north-west rose high mountains and 

 grassy rolling boulders which we had not seen for 



