After two days of rest, they crossed the Alpine meadow and entered the rocky slopes of the higher Alps. With each passing hour, the trail grew steeper and the vegetation thinner.
On the second morning out of the Alpine camp, they awoke to an icy wind blowing off the glaciers above. The elephants’ coats were unrolled and fastened with straps beneath their bellies, then their boots were put on and laced tight. Progress was slowed as the lead elephants struggled against a cold wind flecked with snow.
That night, they camped on a scree of rocks and granite boulders. With no firewood, they ate a cold supper of jerky and bread. They had no way of staking their tents down in the rocks, so the men and women of the Seventh huddled together on the lee side of a boulder and slept in fitful naps. Li
