CLIMBING BELUKHA 206 



Then I began to crawl, the ice-axe serving to drag 

 me along, while with the disengatged haiid I managed 

 to secure a hold of any protuberance that offered, 

 however small. In this manner I advanced slowly, 

 foot by foot, well aware all the time that if I wals 

 so unfortunate as to start that avalanche on its down- 

 ward career once more I would most certainly be 

 precipitated on to the ice below and killed. In spite 

 of every care, however, my knees slipped on a smooth 

 piece of ice and I felt myself gliding again. To save 

 myself I threw myself flat and lay for a second, 

 until I could get a better hold with the axe and 

 scramble to my knees again. I now remembered my 

 knife, so I got it out and opened the short blade 

 which I used for opening tins. This was a great 

 help, and, with its aid and that of the axe, I managed 

 to regain the ridge ; but it seemed to take about 

 two hours to accomplish the distance, which seemed 

 to be about 60 feet . It is probable, however, that 

 I was wrong both in my estimate of the distat^ce 

 and of the time it took me to cover it . On regaining 

 the ridge, I scraped the snow as well as possible from 

 my neck, but it melted and gave me a cold bath. 

 After my pockets were cleared and clothes shaken 

 out, I felt quite thoroughly wet and very cold. To 

 keep up the circulation, more than with any idea of 

 climbing the ridge, I decided to cut as many steps 

 as possible and return the next day to complete the 

 step -cutting. I had cut the second step much more 

 quickly than the first one, at the risk of breaking my 

 ice-axe, but while I was engaged in cutting a third 

 one a strong wind sprang up from the north and 

 forced me to abandon all further work for that day. 

 Although cutting the step had restored the circulation 

 to my limbs, the fierce northerly wind chilled me to 

 the marrow and absolutely made me beat a retreat. 

 My clothes seemed to stiffen upon me, and at one time 



