is of trees or rocks, which, if
examined carefully, usually show some sign of life. I remember being
snubbed by an ardent Ski-er because I ventured to ask "What are those
black birds?" "Who wants to know about birds when he is ski-ing?" was
the answer. I did want to know, and I found out that they were Alpine
choughs and I still want to know when I see the inhabitants of the
mountains or their tracks.

Most of the wild animals use old Ski tracks as highways now, even
finding it worth while to follow the zigzag of an uphill traverse.
Foxes, hares and roe deer all use them, the roe deers' feet showing so
much tinier than the chamois, who leaves a deep rough track as they
usually run in each other's footsteps. The hare's track when running
is two holes abreast and then two single ones. The fox runs rather
like a dog. The squirrel hops two feet at a time, often leaving a
slight ruffle on the snow as he swishes his tail. Among the cembra
trees in the Engadine the snow may be sprinkled with the nuts out of
the cones. They are delicious eating, being very like the Italian
stone pine nut, or pinelli, and they attract the squirrels as much as
they do the nutcracker bird.

Martens and pole cats leave distinct footmarks. Weasels, also, and
these are easily recognized as they usually start from a hole under a
bush or a rock. One day when a party of us were silently traversing a
slope above Muerren a tiny brown ball came rolling down, which, when
picked up, proved to be the warm dead body of a mouse. Looking up we
saw a weasel peering out of his hole anxious as to the fate of his
dinner. A mouse's track also usually starts from a tiny hole and the
two feet go abreast, while the tail leaves a line all the way.

We nearly always see chamois and roe deer when ski-ing in the woods
at Pontresina as it is a protected area and they are not shot and
therefore become very tame. The chamois are driven down into the woods
in search of the lichen which hangs like a beard from the branches of
the cembra trees. On Muottas Celerina this winter we saw four chamois
below us in the wood. Without a word our guide, Caspar Gras, dashed
down the slope after them and very nearly caught one round the neck,
as they were surprised, and knowing there was a precipice beyond the
scrub below them, they could not make up their minds which way to go.

The roe deer scrape away the snow below the trees in search of
alpenrose or bear berry leaves or dry blades o