The Snow Leopard

Someone with a visual imagination, someone who converts words into pictures, who appreciates poetry, would enjoy this more than I did. For me words become thoughts and feelings, and too many of those were irritating: it didn't work for me as science writing, nor nature nor travel nor self-discovery nor, really, any level. I didn't care for the narrator: angry, misanthropic, seeking inner peace but in a ritualistic way, going through the motions. (Perhaps I disliked him because I've been him. That bears thinking about but not in this medium.)

There are beautiful passages here and there, evocative or insightful; but overall I found it disjointed and tedious. Then again, some books I'm just not smart enough for.

DNF

Ok, I admit after the first chapter I considered not carrying on reading. At this point around a third of the content was religious philosophy - which is not for me. However the third of the book that was the hiking expedition and the third that was about the flora and fauna was great, and I am glad I persisted.
Despite a few more forays into the spiritual journey, the expedition and scientific research parts of the book are much more heavily featured in the following chapters.

The book is Matthiessen's account of his two months in Nepal, in 1973. He was invited along by field biologist George Schaller on his expedition to study Himalayan Blue Sheep and to perhaps catch a glimpse of the elusive snow leopard. The destination is the Crystal Mountain in the remote Inner Dolpo region of Nepal, which was formerly a part of Tibet. It was an area difficult to obtain permission for, and that permission was often not enough to stop the local police turning travellers back.
They commence the trek in at Pokhara, “Two white sahibs, four sherpas, fourteen porters”, heading west to Dhorptan, then north. It takes a little over a month to reach Shey, a very small village consisting of a locked Monastery and a handful of houses, empty for the most part. The expedition is timed to allow Schaller's research of the Blue Sheep or Bharal(Pseudois nayaur), and be present at the rut. This valley at the Crystal Mountain is particularly suitable as the Lama at the Monastery has prevented any hunting in the area for the many years. The sheep are therefore much tamer that those regularly hunted.
The two sahibs basically do their own thing, which for Matthiessen is climbing each day to observe a flock (or two flocks which have combined temporarily), and their behavior. There are interludes of wolf, snow leopard, various birdlife, yeti and the interactions with the Tibetan / Nepalese passing through, and with Schaller and the sherpa, all of which make fascinating reading.
The journey out has them heading further west, to Jumla, near the Indian border, from where they can fly back to Kathmandu.