After much deliberation, we finally decided that we would follow a small riverbed that had eroded a meandering path through the velvety tundra like grass that blanketed the lower slopes of Chukung Tse. It was noon and we had already lost three valuable hours due to a wrong turn crossing the glacier, and the clouds were rapidly moving up valley towards the rock face of Lhotse, the fourth-highest mountain on Earth. There were fleeting moments of sun, but the day was dominated by shades of gray and radiant greens."