176 SPORT IN THE HIGHLANDS OF KASHMIR chap. 



frightened them, probably a snow leopard prowling near. 

 We stayed quiet for a time, and after an hour or so the 

 herd lay down. 



Then we started to go down the hill towards the 

 grassy slope, so as to have a shorter distance to travel 

 when the herd came down, as they were bound to do 

 later on, to feed. But we found that we could not go 

 far without exposing ourselves, and accordingly stopped 

 where some large rocks and a few cedars gave us cover. 

 Here I had breakfast, the fire being lighted beside a 

 rock which sheltered us from the ibex. Snow came on 

 while I was at breakfast, and continued fairly persist- 

 ently till three o'clock, when the sun once more 

 appeared. 



The ibex then began to move downwards, and we 

 made a laborious stalk. It was a troublesome climb down 

 to the snow bridge, and a difficult job getting up on the 

 rocks beyond. By that time the herd was grazing on 

 the grassy slope, and we lay flat on the rocks immedi- 

 ately above, and wriggled our way on. But the ibex 

 evidently suspected something, for they shortly began to 

 graze away from us, and by the time we were able to let 

 ourselves drop on to this slope, they had got back to the 

 foot of the crags by which they had descended. We 

 worked our way slowly on, and just as the goats were 

 getting up on the rocks, reached a spot some 300 

 or 400 yards from them. Abdulla was evidently 

 sick of the herd, and wanted me to fire on the off-chance, 

 but I knew that as long as I refrained from doing so the 

 ibex were unlikely to leave the nala, and I might get 

 within range another day, whereas if I fired and missed, 



