Notice these expressions in the text. Infer their meaning from the context.

• ducking back

• manoeuvres

• billowed

• swathe

• cairn of rocks

• careered down

• salt flats

ducking back: quickly going inside and then coming out

manoeuvres: military exercises involving a large number of soldiers, ships, etc.

billowed: filled with the air and swelled out

swathe: literally: a long strip of land of something; contextually: a land stretched with snow

cairn of rocks: a pile of stones that mark a special place such as the top of a mountain or a place where somebody is buried

careered down: descending the slope

salt flats: thatched roofed houses covered with snow