CHAPTER X 



HUNDACE OR HUNDES : THE LAND OF THE HUNS 



The sixty Bhotia carriers, hardy, strong, well clad moun- 

 taineers, all wearing thick gray woollen clothing with good 

 native-made shoes or Hunia boots, grouped under rocks 

 round the tents, had lighted fires, and were cooking strips 

 of burrhel meat and boiling coppers of rice. The yaks 

 and ponies were grazing close by on the short grass, and 

 Jussoo was at the tent door discussing the chances of 

 our crossing on the morrow without being obstructed by 

 the Hunias. They had given out that the sahibs were 

 gone into Nepal to shoot. Soon all the men, tired with 

 the weight of their loads, wrapped themselves in their 

 thick goats' hair blankets and lay all round the tents. At 

 early mom we were on the move, and soon got on to snow, 

 the last ascent being steep but by no means difficult. 

 The yaks were driven on ahead along the face of the snow 

 slopes, an old cow leading. She smelt her way on the 

 safest and most solid snow, by instinct choosing the places 

 where the surface was sound, and the others followed in 

 her footsteps. By the time these heavy animals had 

 passed there was as fine a flight of solid steps cut in the 

 snow as could be made by the best ice-axe man, and no 

 one sank in or even got wet feet. The difficulties of 

 Alpine climbing as usually described by mountaineers 

 are thus very much simplified. 



No one had crossed the Tinkar Pass this year, and the 



