The place might have passed for the head-centre of
a band of brigands.
The mountain on which we were encamped forms part of the western side of
a long valley, at the bottom of which, quite 2000 feet below us, is a
magnificent trout-stream. The sides of this valley are clothed with
dense forests, with broken cliffs obtruding in places. The height of the
Carpathians in this part of the range must not be taken as a gauge of
the scenery, which quite equals in grandeur the higher Alps in many
parts of Switzerland and the Tyrol. Comparisons are dangerous, for the
lovers of Switzerland will silence me with glaciers and eternal snow;
these advantages I must concede, still contending, however, for the
extreme beauty and wildness of the Southern Carpathians. The
characteristics of the scenery are due to the broken forms of the
crystalline rocks, the singular occurrence of sharp limestone ridges,
and the deep forest-clad valleys, traversed by mountain torrents, which
everywhere diversify the scene.
[Footnote 11: The Ibis, vol. v., 1875. The Birds of Transylvania. By
Messrs. Danford and Brown.]
CHAPTER XI.
Chamois and bear hunting--First battue--Luxurious dinner 5000 feet
above the sea-level--Storm in the night--Discomforts--The bear's
supper--The eagle's breakfast--Second and third day's
shooting--Baking a friend as a cure for fever--Striking camp--View
into Roumania.
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