A SMALL HERD 



135 



an almost certain find, was much disgusted. The snow 

 en route was hard until sunrise, everywhere but in the 

 birch woods, but there the going was bad. Again and 

 again we broke through the upper crust and sank up to 

 our hips, and where there was a slope to get up the 

 labour was very great. Early in the afternoon we 

 turned to come back, and on our way saw the fresh 

 tracks of a bear. These we followed as long as we could, 

 but in the cedar wood on the lower slopes there was no 

 snow, and we lost the trail. 



On the 6th the camp was sent up to the top of the 

 eastern ridge which bounded the nala we were in, while 

 I, with the usual three men, went up the stream to see if 

 we could find certain ibex which had been noticed the 

 previous evening on our way back to camp. An hour's 

 walk over the rocks forming the bed of the little river, 

 brought us within sight of the herd, which was grazing 

 close to the place in which we had perceived it the day 

 before. There were two males and three females, one of 

 the former appearing to have a fair head. So we started 

 for the stalk. 



The herd was not very far up the hillside, and was 

 grazing in a hollow just below a moderately high ridge 

 to its north. As the wind was blowing from the herd 

 across this ridge, we went up under its shelter, and when 

 about high enough to be level with the game, moved up 

 to the top. Here we found that a smaller ridge, covered 

 with snow, now intervened between us and the herd, and 

 waiting until all the heads were down grazing, we made 

 a rush, and reached the rise without being detected. 

 Climbing cautiously up this with the .'^o^i in my hands. 



