INTERVIEWER: What was the weather like?

CHARLES: It got us right from day one and we were pretty taken aback really to find that it rained on quite a number of days,and so we were forced to start re-planning our route almost from the outset.One of the obvious problems is the heavy snow which blocks the mountain passes,so you have to make considerable detours.When we were on the way to Imilchil,for example,the snow forced us into a northern bypass which was new to us,but anyway,either way we would have been rewarded because we fell upon amazing,high meadows,huge gorges and wonderful snow-capped mountains.The scenery was as fine as any we saw on the trip and that was how it was every time-having to take another pass was never a disappointment.