like hills. The country assumed more and more the character of an undulating high plateau, with bigger mountains rising above it like islands here and there, all completely covered with snow. To the north-west appeared a broad passage, with lofty mountains in the background.
On this undulating surface we soon hit upon a shallow watercourse full of ice from a spring close by. This ice we left at Jagbe-pulu, and climbed up to a sort of platform swelling between fairly defined watercourses. There we found the ground excellent; the snow lay only in thin strips. A little bit farther on a broad glen opened out towards the N. 72° E.; through it cornes the Dapsang road, which traverses the already mentioned glen of Morgo-rung. This is the road we should have had to follow, had the Kitschik-kumdan prevented us from advancing by the route that we did use. The pass of Dapsang on this route is said to be especially difficult, and the detour altogether very trying to the patience.
Farther to the south-east we perceived a more important mountain-mass called Dorat-bi. After travelling for a short distance east, we again turned north and north-west, making our way up the glen of Balti-pulu, where the Dapsang route unites with ours, after running for a space close beside it. At the apex, between two watercourses, stands a little stone hut. Around it the ground was literally covered with the bones and skulls of dead animals. This glen contained neither water nor ice, and is bordered by gentle slopes and low hills. Of grazing there was not a trace, and as for water, the traveller has to make shift with snow. The ground in this region, which is known as Tschader-jilgha(or Tschajos-jilgha), consists of fine gravel; hard rock is absent on this lofty swelling, just as it so frequently is in the interior of Tibet. The altitude was 5290 m., so that we were not far from the pass.
On 23rd April we at length crossed over the Kara-korum. The day was anything but favourable: a snowstorm was raging and it was twilight. It was now that I first felt any inconvenience from the great altitude, namely a headache and nausea. The caravan started at 7 a.m. and I followed it two hours later. The road proceeded up the glen to the north-west. Again the snow increased in quantity, and in the bottom of the glen it was soon so deep that we were unable to ride through the snow-drifts, but had to keep to the slopes on the left of the glen; this however was irksome enough, because the substratum very often gave way and we were in danger of sliding outwards. Owing to the blinding snow it was difficult to form any idea of the configuration of the country; all we could see was the nearest heights. Our animals were now beginning to feel the ascent; they were breathing heavily, and every score paces or so they stopped to recover breath. The side-gullies, which kept incessantly breaking through the slopes, were especially disagreeable, being filled with snow to the depth of a meter or more, so that we were in imminent danger of having our horses down. The acclivity increased in steepness. I overtook the caravan where the road turns to the right, that is to the north, northeast, and east, close under the pass. I found that they had had all their work cut out to force their way through the increasingly deeper snow. The horses kept falling again and again, and had to be unloaded and helped up, so that our progress was painfully slow. Had it not been for the snow, the pass itself would have been a mere trifle, apart of course from the stupendous altitude. In winter
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