We crossed a stream today that flowed uphill, or at least that was how it looked with all the trees beside it windswept and growing at an angle. A rather windy storm today demonstrated how this is possible. The winds sweeping over the mountains are mostly dry, but strong. Tora’Sor said the winds probably lose their moisture while passing over the mountains, which is why this area is also a desert. I don’t know much about how weather in other parts of the world might affect this part of the world, but it leaves me wondering why more of Etnyben with the many mountain ranges isn’t a desert, or why the Kiremo Desert without any known mountains sheltering it from the sea is a desert.
It turns out Hungry is quite adept at killing birds. Since birds seem to be the predominant form of wildlife in this area, we’ve resorted to eating them on a steady basis. The difficulty is obtaining enough birds for all of us. The best is when Hungry kills large waterfowl from nearby streams, but if all Hungry can find are songbirds, there won’t be much more than bones and feathers for any of us. I still hope we can kill a few larger animals. I thought I saw what appeared to be an antelope far up the side of a cliff a few days ago, but it was too far out of range to use my bow, and quickly disappeared. We haven’t seen any of them since then, so I doubt they come down to the flatter terrain we prefer. Hibimage managed to skewer a large spider with a stick, and suggested it might be edible, but none of us consider eating spiders a serious option. If Krista’Mil were here, she, perhaps, might be interested in eating spiders.
It is technically winter down here in the Southern Hemisphere, but the days are warm. We’re traveling toward the equator, and haven’t had a cold day in several weeks. Boktoseethet said the usual temperature here is about what he was accustomed to having in Habbar. The major difference is it’s even drier here. Crops acclimatized to harsh conditions grow well in Habbar, but I doubt they’d grow here.