Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
wall,anditwouldbeimpossibletocrossanimalscomingintheoppositedirection.Ihavebeen
told of incidents in the Andes when two riders happened to have met in such narrow places,
and when the man who shot first was the one who saved himself, for neither turning back nor
crossing each other would have been possible in these traps. Once I had a few anxious mo-
ments when a mule train caught us unawares in a narrow place, but generally the Indians and
mule drivers halt when they come to such a passage, and one of them goes ahead on foot to
see if the trail is clear and to give possible arrivals on the other side the necessary warning.
The few pack trains that passed us mostly carried spirits to the interior. The strong alcohol
is carried in goat skins, one on each side of the pack animal, and sometimes a third on top.
Nativessaythattheseskinsareuselessandwillcrackunlesstheunfortunategoatsareskinned
alive!
My travelling companion was very much worried by the mosquitoes, and although I
warned him not to do so, he constantly scratched where the bites were irritating. I offered him
the use of my gloves and the black mosquito net that fitted over the hat like a veil, but he re-
fused to use them on the grounds that they made him feel too hot. Within a few days nasty
infections had set in in both his hands and face, and as time went on his condition became
worse and worse. Luckily I had a supply of bandages and disinfectants with me; without them
there is no knowing what might have happened.
Wealwayswentalonginsinglefile,andoneday,whilstwewereslowlymovingalongone
ofthosegiddytrails,Gatosteppedtooneartheedge,andsomelooserocksgavewayunderhis
hindleg.Helosthisfootingandshotoverthesideandwentslidingtowardstheedgeofadeep
precipice. For a moment I watched in horror, and then the miracle happened. A solitary sturdy
treestoppedhisslidetowardscertaindeath,andoncethehorsehadbumpedagainstthetreehe
had enough sense not to attempt to move. I took off my spurs and climbed down towards him,
and as soon as I had reached the trembling animal I began to unsaddle him with the utmost
care,forshouldhemoveandfall,Iwouldatleastsavemyfewpreciousbelongings.PoorGato
had scented danger, and was pitifully neighing to his companion, who was above in safety. It
was not his usual neigh - it had in it a note of desperation and fear.
Once unsaddled I made sure that he could not move from the spot until preparations were
made to assist him from above. When all was ready the horse was hauled back to safety, but
haditnotbeenforthefactthatGatospreadouthisforelegslikeafrog,hewouldhaveoverbal-
ancedbackwards,andthechanceswerethathewouldhavesweptmewithhim,forIwasguid-
ing the salvage operations from below. My heart was palpitating so violently that I thought it
would burst, but once both of us were safely back on the trail that now looked like a paradise
to me, I looked through the saddlebags to see if there was a drop left to celebrate the mira-
culous escape; however we were out of luck in that line and had to wait until we came to a
spring, where we washed down the fright.
After crossing the Apurimac River we came to the roughest and most broken country ima-
ginable. Little bridges spanned deep canyons and ravines, and the trail led over high passes
