WIND-RAPIDS ON THE HEIGHTS 81 



down upon me with such force that it could not 

 be endured. 



Thus far above the limits of the trees not a living 

 thing had showed itself, but in crawling along the 

 edge of an icy snowdrift I came upon a number of 

 ptarmigan. Many were sitting in little nests 

 just the size of their bodies, which they had made 

 in the hard snow. A few were bravely feeding. 

 Squatting low, they grabbed at weed seeds and 

 other edible objects that came sifting down over 

 the snow. Though in a sheltered place, one of 

 them was occasionally bowled over by the wind. 

 On regaining its feet, it struggled back into its 

 nest. But not one risked opening its wings. Ap- 

 parently they considered me as harmless as a moun- 

 tain sheep. With curious eyes, they allowed me 

 to crawl by within three feet. 



The wind met me with violent dashes, with 

 moderate movements, and with occasional inter- 

 vals that were almost calm. In many of its rushes 

 the wind rolled forward like a stormy breaker, with 

 invisible, unbroken wave front in a sustained roar. 

 At other times, this great wave was broken into 

 wild maelstroms, terrific spirals of various diame- 

 ters and tilted at every angle. Sometimes a wave 

 went forward with long, bouncing leaps, bounding 

 entirely clear of the earth for long distances, then 

 striking heavily to roll and break, like a breaker 

 on the beach. Occasionally, over a small space, 

 there was an explosive effect that sent dust and 



