Peking to Lhasa : vol.1 / Page 336 (Color Image)

0336	Peking to Lhasa : vol.1

252 PEKING TO LHASA

20,000 feet high. At 131 miles he reached the

pleasant grass valley of the Shara Chu, a tributary

of the Li Chu. It was about half a mile wide,

and the river itself was 25 yards wide and 1

foot deep. Here for the first time for four days

there were signs of life. There was a Wa-shi

nomad camp of several black tents and three

white tents (for a Lama), and near by were some 600 yaks and 300 sheep and goats. Pereira halted half a mile farther up at an elevation of 13,450

feet. His yaks since the first day had gone very

well and were, he considered, the finest he had

seen. The weather had been good—being mostly

sunny and warm.

Only a very short march of 3/ miles was made

on October 10, as the yaks needed a rest. They

cannot go for more than five or six days without

a halt. So Pereira stopped for the day near a

Wa-shi encampment. He was still on the " small "

Litang road, but on the next day's march it

crosses to the right bank and later runs down

the Li Chu valley.

On October 11 Pereira marched 144 miles to

Rei-mu Chu camp. The pleasant grass Shara Chu

valley was from three - quarters to a mile wide, lying between grass-covered hills from 400 to 600

feet in height. At 31 miles he struck north over

a rolling grass plain with low hills. Here he saw

many gazelle. Away to the north-west was a fine

snowy range forming the watershed on the far side

of the Li Chu. At 91 miles he forded the Li Chu

(Litang Ho), here 25 yards wide and 1 foot deep,

and emerged on to the Mo-nia plateau, 14 mile

wide and running for some 10 miles by the Li Chu,

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