Page 24 - 2007 AMA Summer

tered our first Shepard, bring­ ing his sheep in for the night. Guarding the flock was a pack of vicious dogs and we felt vindicated in our decision to cut our BFPs. Unsure whether or not to mount a picket to guard us against creatures of the night - fatigue eventually decided it wasn’t necessary.
For the next tw o days, the route religiously followed the ridge. The scenery was spec­ tacular and the topography really not unlike that of the Breacon Beacons. We were blessed with good weather meaning despite sun tan lotion being liberally applied - everyone burnt anyway. Even though the sun shone, there was still plenty of snow - which we used to fill our water bottles up with. Within the group was a broad spec­ trum of abilities, experience and fitness. Early on it was necessary to redistribute weight amongst the group in order to properly balance the
speeds people were walking at. We camped in the lee of the wind downhill off the ridgeline. As soon as the sun set, the temperature really plummeted. We believe it was this that saved us from being devoured by Vampires.
On the fourth day, the scenery began to change on our approach to the summit, becoming more severe - a bit like Snowdownia. After some long hard climbing we reached the roof of Romania - Mount Moldoveanu at 2544m. The final 400m to the summit was a gentle scramble for some - or a terrifying ordeal for others. Needless to say, we all made it safely, though our BFPs did come in handy for assisting some group