274 



NA TURE 



[July 17, 1890 



whole mass of the fresh-fallen snow sweeps with the 

 velocity of the wind from off the slippery surface beneath. 

 That is a Windsbrcti, or Windlahnj so called, not that it 

 is caused by the wind, but that in its headlong passage 

 its velocity creates a storm wind which in its turn commits 

 ravages and devastation far beyond the range of the falling 

 avalanche. 



I had many opportunities, while at Kolm and on the 

 Sonnblick, of witnessing those terrible avalanches. 

 During the night of February 4-5, a Windsbrett fell 

 from Bucheben, filling the whole valley beneath for a dis- 

 tance of two kilometres with 13 feet of snow. The 

 avalanche itself could not force its way up the side of the 

 opposite mountain, but the wind caused by it unroofed 

 a farmhouse, 650 feet above the valley, and blew in the 

 windows. 



The day I started for the Sonnblick, a Windsbrett 

 parted from the Hoch Narr Glacier, causing such a 

 terrific gale of wind in Kolm that the people were in 

 terror of their lives. The next day we looked down from 

 the Sonnblick on the snow-field whence the avalanche 

 had parted, and Rojacher and his assistant, Peter 

 Lechner, estimated its length and breadth at 650 feet, 

 and depth 13 feet, representing a fallen mass of at 

 least 160,000 cubic metres. 



One peculiarity of wind avalanches, that makes them 

 such a special danger to tourists, is that it is so easy to 

 start one unawares. On an inclined, slippery surface of 

 hardened snow, there lies a thick superstratum of fresh- 

 fallen snow, ready, so to speak, to slip away at any 

 moment. It often requires but the weight of one man, 

 and there are generally at least two, to produce the slight 

 pressure that sets loose the avalanche. In such a case 

 there is heard a dull thundering crack, immediately after 

 which, either the mass of snow starts, in which case the 

 men are borne down on it with the swiftness of the wind, j 

 seldom to be seen again ; or, after the first crack, the 

 mass remains stationary, the Windsbrett has " settled," 

 and the travellers proceed scatheless on their way. 



I underwent such an experience during my ascent of 

 the Sonnblick, not without considerable alarm, I must 

 confess. Not far from the miner's lodge, at about 

 7550 feet of altitude, we had to cross a snow-field on 

 a considerable incline. There were fifteen of us, with 

 Rojacher and myself. Arrived at the middle of the 

 incline, we heard a terrific muffled crack. We had 

 started the Windsbrett. For a moment we knew not 

 whether to go on or go back, the next we found that 

 we had escaped with the fright — the avalanche had 

 "settled." 



It is not easy to say what are the causes that hold back 

 an avalanche once started. It seems as if the " settling " 

 of a Windsbrett only occurs when passed along at its top- 

 most end ; at any rate, prudence suggests that it is the only 

 safe path to cross one ; for, in the event of its giving 

 way, the best hope of safety is to be on the highest point of 

 the faUing mass; there is, at least, the possibility of being 

 able to obtain a foothold above, and thus of not being 

 crushed by the on-coming snow. Should the Windsbrett, 

 after being started, remain stationary, it is in all prob- 

 ability due to the fact that the lower part of the snow- 

 field is too massive to be set in motion by the unsettle- 

 ment of the upper portion, and therefore does not partake 

 in the movement. Thus the former " settles." 



The account above given of Windsbretter will explain 

 why the inhabitants of the regions where they are to be 

 met with maintain that it is next to impossible to escape 

 with life from them. Once hear the fatal crash, the 

 avalanche is upon them, and there is no escaping from it. 

 Their advice is, to throw oneself prostrate, with hands 

 outstretched, if possible behind some rock or boulder ; 

 there is the chance that the Windsbrett may pass over 

 him, and if buried in the snow, one would be in the 

 most favourable position to breathe, and therefore stand 



NO. 108 1, VOL. 42] 



the best chance of being dug out alive ; while to 

 stand upright would be, to a certainty, to be carried with 

 it. There were many such cases among Rojacher's people 

 during my stay on the Sonnblick. This and similar talk 

 made the time pass agreeably enough while I was waiting 

 at Kolm. 



While thus employing ourselves, Rojacher spoke 

 through the telephone from time to time to his men in 

 the station (Berghaus), 7870 feet above, asking if some 

 thirteen or fourteen of them could venture down to take 

 up my cases. For the first four days, the invariable 

 answer was that there was too great danger of^valanches 

 to undertake the descent ; on the fifth day at noon they 

 decided to venture down upon their Knappenrossen} 

 Barely an hour after we saw them come tearing down the 

 declivity behind the Kolm house, or rather saw but a thick 

 cloud of snow coming towards us, amid which an 

 occasional hat, or alpenstock, was discernible. After the 

 men had well warmed themselves, and had invigorated 

 themselves with draughts of hot wine, my traps were 

 distributed among them, and at 3 o'clock we started for 

 the station. Our ascent was effected by means of snow- 

 shoes, we keeping carefully to the rut made by the men 

 on their passage down. There were no deviations, the 

 snow had so completely filled up all uneven places, 

 covering rocks and stones with its thick mantle, that it 

 was one straight path. Our ascent was comparatively 

 easy, and in three hours we had reached the Miner's House 

 {Kftappenhaus) , after having, as already related, had a 

 considerable panic from a Windsbrett some twenty 

 minutes before. 



The weather, which had, so far, been tolerably favour- 

 able, had changed for the worse during the night, 

 and I expressed my fears to Rojacher in the morning, 

 that we should be snowed up there for some days. But 

 his calm reply was, " Once so far, we must reach the 

 Sonnblick before dusk, cost what it may." To my ob- 

 jection that we might run the danger of avalanches, he 

 laughingly said, experience had shown him that they had 

 no love for him. It would be an unheard-of thing for one 

 to travel his road. His confidence reassured me, and I 

 made no further demur to continuing our route. 



Rojacher, however, added other ten men to our escort, 

 whose duty was to go first and tread down the snow on 

 the way to the plateau, where he expected to find the fall 

 had been much less heavy, and where the extra men could 

 then load themselves with the store of wood, already 

 stacked, for the use of the house on the Sonnblick. 

 Our party now assumed a somewhat droll appearance, 

 marching along in Indian file, across the vast snow-fields. 

 During the whole way to the top we were enveloped in a 

 dense mist ; and our ascent through the stupendous 

 masses of fresh-fallen snow, was a very slow one. The 

 first man, the pioneer, sank up to his hips at every step, 

 despite the snow-shoes ; in five minutes his strength was 

 exhausted and he fell out, taking his place as the last but 

 one ; I always remaining the twenty-fifth man, which 

 made the ascent comparatively easy to me. As each 

 man placed his left foot exactly in the left foot-print 

 of the one who preceded him, and his right foot in 

 the right foot-print, I, as last man, had firm ground 

 to tread, my one care being to plant my feet well 

 into those spaces, and thus I reached the summit but 

 little fatigued. We had taken four hours to make the 

 ascent ; and it had enabled me to form some idea 

 of the incredible bulk of snow that can collect on the 

 Hochgebirge. Even on the upper plateau, the snow of 

 the last four to six days had reached a depth of ten feet. 

 This was proved to us, on coming up to the wood-stack. 

 It had been carried up before the last snow-fall, and 

 stacked to a height of about ten feet. Fortunately the 

 men had had the foresight to mark the spot by an upright 

 pole ; without this landmark we should never have found 



' Miner's sledges, formed of stout boards on runners. 



