国立情報学研究所 - ディジタル・シルクロード・プロジェクト
『東洋文庫所蔵』貴重書デジタルアーカイブ

THE TRANSIIIMALAYAN PASS ANGDEN-LA.

Near the little valley Page-lungpa there is a living rock of quartz-porphyrite, -- elsewhere living rock is very rare. The ground is soft material, fine gravel and dust, here and there covered with moss. In the beds of water-courses the ground is treacherous, sinking under the feet of the animals. Tanglang-chu joins the valley of Serchen and several other tributaries, and goes down to Tsargam. At one of the tributaries Camp 154, Sabuk, has a height of 4 947 m. The snowy mountains to the west from which the Serchen comes, are called Rong-serchen-kang.

The valleys of Sabuk and Tsechung join the Tsargam-tsangpo; both are full of ice at this season. The road follows the hills between them and crosses the pass Bäng-la, 5 237 m high. The rock in the neighbourhood is quartz-porphyry. Although Bang-la is secondary and without any importance, it affords a magnificent view to the north, especially over the mighty Targo-gangri, its glaciers and snowy summits; • to the right of it is seen the deep, broad valley of the Targo-tsangpo; the Dangra-yum-tso is hidden, but the mountains on its eastern shore appear in rose colour descending to the lake; Shuru-tso is hidden by hills; to the N.N.W a snow-covered mountain is called Gablung-pu. In the mountains to the west are the deep valleys of Tanglang and Changchung. Southwards the ground rises to the heights of Angden-la.

South of the Bäng-la we enter a round arena-valley, surrounded by relatively low, partly snow-covered ridges, sending several brooks down to the Sabuk. Camp 155, Angjum, is at a height of 5 186 m. From here the slope becomes steeper; the hills are pierced by many deep ravines; from the west comes the valley Lungchang, with high snowy mountains in the background. The ground is very soft and swampy, with grass and moss, everything hard frozen; gravel is rare; in protected places the snow lies two feet deep. The last bit is a stiff climb in the bed of the brook which comes from the pass.

Angden-la has a height of 5 643 m, and is marked by a Hunt cairn with flags. The living rock on the northern side of this flat pass is quartz-porphyrite, quartz-conglomerate, and some greatly weathered schistous rock. The pass is situated on the continental water-parting, and in the same range as Sha-la, Chang-la-Pod-la and Sela-la; to the west this range seems to be connected with the Kanchung-gangri ; northwards the water runs to Shuru-tso, southwards to the Raga-tsangpo.

The view from Angden-la is fascinating, though much is hidden by the sporadic snow-mountains, rising especially in the west and east, above this hopeless confusion of ridges, ranges and ramifications. To the south the northern range of the Hima-

laya is clearly seen with its innumerable flat, snow-covered peaks, all apparently of about one and the same height, and north of the gigantic range is the great valley of the Tsangpo. To the north the whole Shuru-tso is visible, whereas the Dangra is hidden behind the Targo-gangri which dominates the whole northern horizon. To

the N. 61° E. we recognise the peak Do-tsänkang.

A second threshold close by is only some 1 o m lower than the principal one.

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