Our gipsies were full of fun. Zachariah put up an impromptu tent with two of our tent raniers and an Alpine stock, to shade Ole from the sun, and he at once fell asleep. Then Zachariah contrived one for himself, which was taken possession of by Noah, after a mimic battle. Esmeralda put the things away, and all took their siesta, while we made two sketches and entered up our diary. At twenty minutes to four our party were again en route down the valley.
The donkeys were quickly loaded. Over rough uneven ground we descended the valley until we were below the picturesque Storbeatind and its singular glacier.[96] Ole said it was so called, and that the Utladal Elv derived its source from the Gravdal Vand. The river from this singular glacier branched into many streams. Between two sterile steeps the glacier narrows in its course and falls abruptly into the valley.
Above the almost straight line of glacier wall we saw an isolated, lofty, peculiarly-shaped mass of ice, which put us in mind of one of the ice cliffs in the Glacier des Bossons at Mont Blanc, so well represented by Coleman in his “Scenes from the Snow Fields, or the Upper Ice World.”[97] The glacier seemed to overhang the narrow valley. The approaching night added to its picturesque effect.[98]
Ole crossed the river at some rocks below. Noah, Zachariah, and Esmeralda crossed with the donkeys. They all had to stand a thorough drenching of their legs and feet in the ice cold-water fresh from the glacier. Esmeralda stood it manfully. We went a short distance below, and, taking off our trousers, boots, and stockings, waded through. The cold was intense. As we came up with our party, they had just seen a reindeer; it was coming towards them, and was quite close before it perceived our party and turned again. Zachariah gave chase; but it slowly made its way among some loose rocks, and he lost sight of it.
ICE CLIFF, STORBEATIND GLACIER.
The track was now extremely rugged, tortuous, and steep at times. We had several streams to cross, and made our way with difficulty. In crossing one narrow brook Zachariah’s donkey, which was very sure footed, slipped back, and part of its load, containing Ole’s things in a pig’s bristle bag, and the pocket containing Noah’s blankets, and our kettle bag, got slightly wet before we could get it out.
There was no time to lose; on we went, and at length we came to a very interesting steep mountain way between red rocks. Here we had the Red Sandstone formation suddenly appearing near mountains of gneiss. The gipsies had hard work of it. Each of the donkeys had to be carefully led, and the loads steadied. Sometimes the loads, in going down a steep descent, would slip forwards, and in ascending would get nearly over the animal’s tail; so that the load had to be readjusted. We did the best we could with Ole’s impromptu cruppers. It was hard work for Esmeralda; but we relieved her as much as possible. Ole was ever at hand when a difficulty occurred.
We must say that our gipsies stuck to their work bravely. It was not long after we had come to the Red Sandstone rocks, that the Puru Rawnee slipped backwards into some deep boggy ground. It was impossible to avoid at times such mishaps. We had sometimes no choice, and on we must go. Noah, Ole, and Zachariah, at last, by pushing and lifting and dragging, got it out.
Mephistopheles, whose loud laugh rang amongst the rocks, was ever gay; but his laughter became wonderfully like poshavaben (gip., false laughter), when Ole said, in joke: “Master Zâkē], we shall have to cross the river just now.”