ere down under, the volatile days of summer are a receding memory, and the gentle mildness of autumn is settling in. The first frosts are crisping the high country, gardens are splashed with the warm tints of turning leaves, and fireplace smoke hangs in the valleys. Meanwhile, over in the Nepal Himalaya, the spring climbing season is well underway. Multiple guided expeditions have crowded into the 8,000m peak base camps. For lucrative wages (relatively speaking), hard-working teams
