Liv. 21.37.1Tandem nēquīquam iūmentīs atque hominibus fatīgātīs castra in iugō posita, aegerrimē ad id ipsum locō pūrgātō: tantum nivis fodiendum atque ēgerendum fuit.At last, after men and beasts had been exhausted to no purpose, camp was pitched on the ridge, the ground having been cleared even for that with the greatest difficulty: so much snow had to be dug out and carried away. Liv. 21.37.2Inde ad rūpem mūniendam, per quam ūnam via esse poterat, mīlitēs ductī, cum caedendum esset saxum, arboribus circā inmānibus dēiectīs dētruncātīsque struem ingentem lignōrum faciunt eamque, cum et vīs ventī apta faciendō ignī coorta esset, succendunt ārdentiaque saxa īnfūsō acētō putrefaciunt.Then the soldiers were led off to make a way through the cliff, by which alone a road was possible, and since the rock had to be cut, they fell and lop huge trees round about and make an enormous pile of timber, and when a strong wind suitable for kindling a fire had also sprung up, they set it alight, and by pouring vinegar on the burning rocks they make them crumble.
Liv. 21.37.3Ita torridam incendiō rūpem ferrō pandunt molliuntque ānfrāctibus modicīs clīvōs, ut nōn iūmenta sōlum sed elephantī etiam dēdūcī possent.Then they open up the rock, scorched by the fire, with iron tools, and ease the slopes with moderate zigzags, so that not only the pack animals but even the elephants could be led down. Liv. 21.37.4Quadrīduum circā rūpem cōnsūmptum iūmentīs prope fame absūmptīs;Four days were spent around the cliff, and the pack animals almost perished from hunger; Liv. 21.37.4nūda enim ferē cacūmina sunt et, sī quid est pābulī, obruunt nivēs.for the peaks are almost bare, and if there is any fodder, the snows bury it. Liv. 21.37.5Īnferiōra vallēs aprīcōsque quōsdam collēs habent rīvōsque prope silvās et iam hūmānō cultū digniōra loca.The lower parts have valleys and some sunny hills, and streams beside woods, and places now more fit for human cultivation. Liv. 21.37.6Ibi iūmenta in pābulum missa, et quiēs mūniendō fessīs hominibus data.There the pack animals were sent out to pasture, and rest was given to the men, worn out with road-making. Liv. 21.37.6Trīduō inde ad plānum dēscēnsum iam et locīs molliōribus et accolārum ingeniīs.From there in three days they came down to the plain, where now both the country and the character of the inhabitants were gentler.