Part 6 (1/2)
On the left hand, above the road, there was not a trace of verdure in the ravine; but just below the road a small spring burst out from the stony ground. For three or four yards the banks of the little streamlet were quite bare, but at about that distance from its source they were fringed with luxuriant marsh plants, _Veronica Beccabunga_ and _Anagallis_, rushes, and several kinds of gra.s.ses, which gradually increased in abundance. Within a hundred yards of its origin a thicket of willows bordered the stream, and a rich vegetation grew under their shade. From this it would appear that the barrenness of the country cannot be ascribed to any fault of temperature or of alt.i.tude, but solely to the deficiency of moisture.
[Sidenote: ASCENT TOWARDS THE RUNANG Pa.s.s.
_August, 1847._]
On the next ridge beyond this little green spot, the ascent continued steep, over loose s.h.i.+ngly soil, among scattered trees of deodar, and occasionally a fine tree of _Pinus Gerardiana_; a spinous _Astragalus_, and several species of _Artemisia_, formed almost all the scanty vegetation. Higher up there was, in one place, a good view of the Sutlej to the south-east, with a very lofty snowy mountain beyond. A little further on, the pines ceased to grow, and no tree but juniper was seen, the vegetation becoming more and more wretched in appearance, though the same _Astragalus_ and _Artemisiae_ predominated.
Above 12,000 feet, two or three alpine species made their appearance; these were a _Polygonum_, a _Mulgedium_, and a little shrubby _Potentilla_. Except these, however, not one of the numerous alpine forms observed on the Werang pa.s.s two days before were to be seen.
We encamped at an elevation of 12,500 feet on the north-east slope of the ridge, overhanging a deep wide valley, in which there were several patches of cultivation still green, at an elevation which I estimated at about 1000 feet below the level of our tents. By this wide valley, (in the lower part of which, on its east side, is the village of Kanam,) we were still separated from the central range on which the Runang pa.s.s is situated. The hills all round had a desolate aspect.
They were rounded in outline, and appeared quite smooth and dest.i.tute of herbage, excepting large dark-green patches of juniper, by which they were mottled. A single stunted tree of _Pinus excelsa_ stood within a short distance of our encampment, and four or five hundred feet lower was a small grove, apparently of birch. During the afternoon a furious west wind blew without intermission. The morning had been quite calm, but before noon the wind had begun to blow, and gradually increased in violence till late in the afternoon; after dark it became calm.
The next morning was clear, with scarcely any wind, but the mountains above us were partly shrouded in mist. For the first time during our journey we had _Zobos_ furnished for the conveyance of our tents.
These animals, which are mules between a Yak bull and Indian cow, are intermediate between the two, having most of the peculiarities by which the Yak is distinguished, though in a much less degree. Their colour varies much,--black, white, and iron-grey being all common.
They have coa.r.s.e long s.h.a.ggy hair, much shorter than in the Yak, a stout rounded body, and the tail has a small tuft at the end, quite similar in miniature to that of the Yak. These mules are exceedingly common in Upper Kunawar and Hangarang, and are much preferred as beasts of burden to the Yak, being more docile, and less sensitive to climatic influences.
[Sidenote: THE RUNANG Pa.s.s.
_August, 1847._]
The first half-mile of the ascent to the pa.s.s was very gentle, till we pa.s.sed round the hollow of the valley which lay below our encampment.
The hill-sides were covered with stones, among which grew a few tufts of thyme, a large-leaved saxifrage, a yellow _Scorzonera_, a curious _Polygonum_, and an _Oxyria_, the same in appearance with that of the Alps of Europe. Two or three little rills of water trickled across the road, but their margins had no trace of green. The remainder of the ascent was more rapid, but nowhere fatiguing, and I reached the top about 9 A.M. Nothing can be conceived more dreary and bare than the aspect of the pa.s.s and the mountains all around. The hills, which at a distance appeared smooth and rounded, were now seen to be covered with loose stones piled upon one another, in the crevices of which a few plants found an attachment for their roots. The elevation was about 14,500 feet, but there was no appearance of snow. To the north-east a wide and straight valley ran from the crest, at the end of which, far below and perhaps eight miles off, was seen the village of Sungnam, beyond which another lofty range of equally rounded mountains, apparently smooth, ran parallel to that on which I stood. On this range, at a level, to the eye sensibly the same as that of the Runang pa.s.s, an evident track indicated the pa.s.s of Hangarang, over which lay the continuation of our journey.
[Sidenote: VEGETATION.
_August, 1847._]
I spent a considerable time on the top of the pa.s.s, and by close searching, in the crevices of the stones, especially on the hill which rose to the south-east, I succeeded in collecting a considerable number of species of plants, though very much fewer than on the Werang pa.s.s two days before. From our morning's camp to the top of the pa.s.s the whole number of species which I met with was only forty-six, not half of which were observed on the summit. The number gathered on the former pa.s.s was nearly three times as great. It must not be forgotten, however, in comparing the two ranges, that the Werang pa.s.s is 1300 feet lower than that of Runang, and ought therefore, independent of climate, to be more productive. The species which were observed for the first time on the summit of the Runang pa.s.s were not more than six, and were all forms which I have since found to be abundant throughout the higher parts of Tibet. A little willow, creeping among the stones, and scarcely more luxuriant than _Salix herbacea_, was the only shrubby plant. The others were _Oxytropis chiliophylla_, _Biebersteinia odora_, a _Draba_, _Lamium rhomboideum_ of Bentham, and a species of rhubarb, of which I found only a few leaves and one or two panicles, from which the ripe fruit had nearly fallen away.
The descent from the pa.s.s to Sungnam was even more barren and desolate than the other side. The valley was open and almost straight, and the slope gradual. Till nearly half-way not a drop of water occurred on the road, and for miles almost the only vegetation on the hill-sides was an erect branched _Polygonum_, never more than a foot in height.
At an elevation of about 10,000 feet, a few deodars occurred, all miserably stunted in height, though often with trunks of considerable diameter. Gerard's pine, and the ash of Tibet, also appeared a little lower, but in very small numbers. During the greater part of the descent, the white houses of Sungnam were in sight, to all appearance at the end of the valley down which we were proceeding; but when near the bottom, we discovered that we were still separated from them by a wide and level plain, that of the Ruskalan river. On the opposite side of this plain, on the side of a hill just sufficiently high to terminate the vista down the valley by which we descended from the pa.s.s, stands the town of Sungnam; while the cultivated lands, which form a wide belt, scarcely higher than the level of the river, were entirely out of sight till we arrived close to the precipitous bank parallel to the river. Here the descent was abrupt to the bed of the Ruskalan. The bank was alluvial, with enormous boulders, and was covered with tufts of _Ephedra_, a remarkable leafless plant with rod-like branches, which is abundant in every part of northern Tibet, especially in the driest and hottest exposures. It extends also occasionally into the partially rainy district, being found in Kunawar nearly as far west as the bridge of w.a.n.gtu.
[Sidenote: SUNGNAM.
_August, 1847._]
Sungnam is one of the princ.i.p.al places of Kunawar, dividing with Kanam, which we did not visit, the claim to be the princ.i.p.al seat in the Sutlej valley of the Buddhist religion. It contains numerous temples and monasteries, with also a considerable industrial population. Cultivation occupies a great part of the valley, and extends up the course of the stream to a considerable distance. The level tract along the river has in many places a breadth of nearly a quarter of a mile, and the town occupies a ridge on the mountain side, to which a gently-sloping road leads from the bridge by which we crossed the Ruskalan.
The elevation of Sungnam above the level of the sea is 9000 feet.
Still the vine thrives well, the steep slopes facing the river being covered with vineyards: the grapes were not yet ripe. The princ.i.p.al fruit-trees are apricots and apples. Willows and poplars are also frequent in the village; a new species of the latter being for the first time observed, with leaves white and downy underneath, which appears in no way to differ from _Populus alba_, the common white poplar of Europe.
FOOTNOTES:
[5] I have carefully compared, since my return to England, a great many specimens of the Himalayan _Picea_, and am sorry to be obliged to dissent from the opinion of their distinctness, which has been expressed by many excellent observers. Great variations occur in length of leaf, which is either green on both sides, or very glaucous below. All have notched leaves, but the notch varies much in depth and form. There are also differences in the form of the cones and the shape of the scales. The long green-leaved state is that of the moist Himalaya; in the driest regions the very short glaucous-leaved form occurs. There are, however, among the specimens collected by Wallich, Strachey, and myself, so many intermediate forms of leaf, that I feel satisfied that all must be considered states of one species, varying, like most _Coniferae_, with climate and other accidental circ.u.mstances.
[6] I have now no doubt that the whole of this descent was over an ancient glacier moraine, but I was not at the time familiar with glaciers or their moraines by personal experience; and though on this and other similar occasions my notes show that I was much puzzled by the numerous transported blocks, the idea of this explanation did not suggest itself to me till I had an opportunity of seeing the connection of such phenomena with actual moraines.
CHAPTER IV.
Hangarang ridge separates Kunawar from Piti -- Ascent to Hangarang Pa.s.s -- Alluvial deposit -- Steep ascent -- View of valley -- Limestone rocks -- _Caragana versicolor_, or _Dama_ -- Camp at 14,000 feet -- Top of pa.s.s -- View from pa.s.s -- Vegetation of summit -- Descent to Hango -- Cultivation round the village -- Luxuriant wild plants -- Road to Lio -- _Crambe_ -- Ravine of Piti river -- Lio -- Bridge over Piti river -- Ascent to Nako -- Nako -- Cultivation of the village -- Buddhist temple -- Transported blocks -- Chango -- Changar -- Stopped by villagers on Chinese frontier -- Natural bridge -- Kyuri -- Alluvium -- Clay deposit with sh.e.l.ls -- Lari -- Ramifications of mountain ranges -- Alluvial platforms -- Pok -- Dankar -- Lara -- Rangrig -- Upper part of Piti -- Climate -- Saline exudations
The Hangarang ridge, as we may conveniently call that mountain range on which the pa.s.s of Hangarang is situated, forms the boundary between the districts of Kunawar and Hangarang. As this range terminates at or close to the point where the Sutlej is joined by the Piti river, this division is geographically convenient. It has also a marked physical signification, forming the absolute limit of the deodar and Gerard's pine; and indeed, if we except the juniper, of all tree vegetation.