JD-0121
Descending to Basecamp, Kok Shaal Tau Mountains, Tien Shan Range, Xinjiang Province, China
© 2000 Jerry Dodrill

The day was sunny and glorious. Fresh snow covered our tracks from five days before. We slept in and rested at high camp, eating and rehydrating after our long and difficult climb then descended in the afternoon. The snow was still settling. Now and then the terrain around us would go "whump!" and settle 3-5 inches as the snow slab broke beneath our weight. There was no wind and no sound except for periodic avalanches which tumbled from the heights. If our route had been steeper, we too would have been riding the white horses.