Siberia and the exile system . d the village. As weascended, the whole magnificent amphitheater of snow-cladmountains at the head of the Bukhtarma valley opened onour right, and a long line of sharp white peaks that we hadnot before seen appeared on the southern side of the Bukh-tarma along the boundary line of Mongolia. Everywhereto the northward and eastward snowy mountains werepiled on snowy mountains until there seemed to be no pos-sibility of crossing or piercing the tremendous alpine the summit of the mound-shaped foothill, two or threethousand feet above Berel, we found half
Siberia and the exile system . d the village. As weascended, the whole magnificent amphitheater of snow-cladmountains at the head of the Bukhtarma valley opened onour right, and a long line of sharp white peaks that we hadnot before seen appeared on the southern side of the Bukh-tarma along the boundary line of Mongolia. Everywhereto the northward and eastward snowy mountains werepiled on snowy mountains until there seemed to be no pos-sibility of crossing or piercing the tremendous alpine the summit of the mound-shaped foothill, two or threethousand feet above Berel, we found half a dozen KirghisJiihitkas, pitched here and there among immense glacialboulders and surrounded by flocks of Kirghis sheep andgoats. As the summer advances and the vegetation beginsto dry up in the lower Altai valleys, the Kirghis are accus- 212 SIBERIA tonioil to drive their floeks and herds to the crests of thefoothills wliere the p-ass is still fresh and green. In thelatter part oi Jnl\-, tluMvfore, they may be found encamped. high up in the mountains, and often in the most beautiful,picturesque, and commanding situations. From the aiil ofthe Berel Kirghis we could look out over a perfect ocean offoothills and could trace the snowy range of the Great Altaifor a distance of a hundred miles. BEIDLE PATHS OF THE ALTAI 213 After stopping for a few moments at the Kirghis encamp-ment and making some inquiries with regard to the con-dition of the trail from there to the Rakmanofski hotsprings, we tightened our saddle-girths and plunged intothe wilderness of steep foothills and wild ravines that liesbetween the headwaters of the Biikhtarma and the head-waters of the Katun. The northern slope of the mountainupon which the Kirghis encampment stood was much barer,bleaker, and more rocky than the slope that we had as-cended. The yellow flowers that had given a sunny andcheerful glow to the latter suddenly disappeared, and theirplaces were taken by a star-like purple blossom growing inlong
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectsiberiarussiadescrip
