Every now and then, the leading Sherpa would take a break from making a path through the waist-high drifts with his footsteps, allowing one of his teammates to take over for a while. He would then fall to the back of the line until it was his turn to head the charge once more, while the rest of us matched his prints in the snow, which made for fairly easy work. This was a technique I would come to know as trailblazing and with his selfless industry, the lead Sherpa was helping the expedition party to follow a much smoother route upwards. I respected the effort that every guide was making.
