FOLLOWING A LATITUDINAL VALLEY. 141
N. 2 9° E. we have a fairly broad opening between the mountains; to the N. E. is a narrower valley by which the river was said to flow. Here the region was called Rinek-türgiit. To the N. 70° E. is a more considerable mount called Karbung or Karvung, and in the same direction, though much nearer is a blood-red mount called Lamar. Directly east and near our camp is an apparently conical mount, which later on proves to be a ridge stretching W.-E. The region to the S. E. was called
Seri j5eri, and the plain, Seri -eri yang. The mountains to the N. 55° W. were called Tage-ring po. The section of this panorama that falls between the east and S. 9° W. may be checked by comparing it with the two accompanying photographs, of which the second is in direct connection with the first. At the right margin of the second one, a cut-off branch of the river is visible, covered with ice and with a well-developed, though low erosion terrace. Large flocks of sheep were grazing on the plain, and four black tents were in sight. The sky was clear, but a strong S. W. wind was blowing.
On December wilt we made 9 km. to the east. The ground ascended only 44 m. from 4,652 (Camp LXXXIII) to 4,696 M. (Canift LXXXI IV), or at a rate of 1:205. We proceed towards the mount to the east, visible on the panorama and photograph taken from Camp LXXXIII. At the base of the mountain there are several springs, forming a brook which soon freezes into large ice-sheets. To the left we leave the bed of the river and its ice-filled branches on the level ground which by a little terrace is bordering upon the edge of the very flat scree from the isolated mountain. The river soon disappears and we slowly rise. To our left, there are several ice-sheets which may be small lakes or pools, but more probably are patches of flat land which is inundated at the highwater season. We follow a latitudinal valley with slowly rising ground. To the north, between and along the bases of the small detached mountains, we see winding ice-sheets, but it is very difficult to determine the real course of the river, as it is impossible to distinguish between the river bed and the inundations. So much seems certain: that the Bogtsang-tsangpo winds its course north of the isolated Lamar Group. The soil is hard gravel and sand, nearly barren; at such places there are no rabbits. The mountains on both sides of the latitudinal valley are interrupted, irregular and capricious, resembling crenelated walls, with naked rock along the crests and more or less steep screes along the base. They form several parallel ridges and small ranges stretching east and west, as can be seen through the openings of the transverse valleys. In several of these valleys and on the slopes of their tributaries, which also stretch east and west, ice ribbons are visible, showing the existence of springs. In the middle of a large transverse valley, which comes from the Seri -eri region, there is a continuous ice bed reaching down to our road. The ground becomes more even and finally falls slowly towards the Karlung-tso.
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