412 THE TCHEREK VALLEY. 



US wortliy to be compared with tlie views from such Alpine 

 summ.its as the Gomergrat or Mggischhom. Immediately 

 at our feet, looking south, lay an immense glacier, the 

 source of the Dychsu, fed by an accumulation of neve, 

 filling two great basins, separated by a rocky ridge which 

 projected from a noble ice-crowned mountain opposite. 

 Far away to the right, above the western bay of the 

 glacier, rose a tall peak culminating in a slender point of 

 snow, which, though not corresponding exactly in posi- 

 tion with the Koschtantau of the map, we assumed must 

 be that great mountain, 17,095 feet in height. Looking 

 eastwards, the snout of a glacier pushed round the corner 

 of a cliff that concealed the whole of its body, and formed 

 part of a great snowy buttress of the main chain, dividing 

 the two heads of the Tcherek valley. The ridge over 

 which our pass to the Uruch was to lead us closed the 

 eastern glen, above which a noble rock-peak shot boldly 

 into the air, sending down from its flanks a small highly- 

 crevassed glacier. 



The extraordinary feature of the view was the steepness 

 of the chain ; the peaks and the gaps between them 

 seemed equally difficult of access, and cut off from the 

 lower snowfields by long slopes of glistening ice and 

 unscaleable walls of crag. The only object we had expected 

 to see, and could not discover, was Dychtau, the com- 

 panion of Koschtantau in all distant views. After a dis- 

 cussion whether it would be better to descend on to the 

 glacier, or to climb higher, it was determined that I should 

 remain and endeavour to make some outlines of the 

 surrounding peaks, while Fran9ois and my two companions 

 went off to try and get a view of Dychtau. They so far 

 succeeded as to catch a glimpse of his peak, the rest of the 

 mountain being cut off b}' lower ridges. We loitered 

 away some hours on the flowery pasturage, supplied with 



