From the east, hot currents of air rose to meet the icy atmosphere at the snow line, which lay at between 14,000 and 16,000 feet. At the same time, the cyclonic winds which blew in from the Pacific roared up the valleys from the west and grappled in their turn with the hot and cold currents from the other side. If a plane was caught in such turbulence, it could be blown around like a leaf in a gutter.
