National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

THE VAKJIR PASS.

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usually clear weather. As a rule the river is so big in summer that it can be crossed only with difficulty. During summers when the river is very big, all the Kirgizes live on the right or southern bank. The winter grazing is regarded as particularly good in this region, and many signs of winter camps were seen.

On August 14th our march was 2 7.6 km. to the west, S. W. and west, rising from 4,082 to 4,606 m., or 524 m., being a rate of I : 53.

At 10.30 a. m. the main river had a temperature of 5.3° ; Tegirmen-su 5.8°. Both had dwindled considerably and their water was nearly clear. At the confluence the tributary forms a large delta. The first two tributaries from the south were called Yelang jilga and Kona yelang jilga; they are high and steep and without importance. The same is the case with Kara-kokde from the north. To the south the Kalik represents a broad and mighty tributary with large brook; to the left is the Kalik Pass, to the right a glacier and a road joining the one in the next jilga, and proceeding to h ósh-bel.

Beyond the northern tributary, Balta-aling, we cross the river which here was 32 m. broad and at the most 0.45 m. deep, with a very gravelly bed. At the point where our direction becomes S. W. we pass the large left tributary Kok-turuk, which from the north receives the tributary K ipchak jilga. The first leads to Kok-turukdavan, said to be high and full of gravel (korumluk). To the south we see the tributary Kosh-bel with a brook and a road to the pass Kosh-bel by which h'anjut is reached. In the mouth of h ósh-bel there were several erratic blocks and flattened moraines.

Again we cross the river. Kamar-utuk is a place with sheepfolds of stone. Here a little granite knoll crops up. There was a grotto in the mountain, obviously a place where shepherds live in summer. From the south the large Chong- jilga enters; it has a brook coming from glaciers, and eternal snows are visible on the ranges in the background. From the north comes a nameless valley with a glacier in its upper part. Again turning S. W. we camp on a meadow. South and S. E. of this place there are several hanging glaciers with rills and small brooks.

Farther up in the valley and to the left a large glacier is visible and the Vakjir Pass seems from here to be very easy. The valley is the whole way up broad and rich in grass, only occasionally interrupted by gravel and erosion terraces. Swamps are numerous. The most common animal we saw was hare. Wild sheep and wild goats are rare, and so is also the wolf. Bear is fairly common. The ular is said not to be found in this part.

On August 15th we crossed the Vakjir Pass. The direction is S. W. and W. S. W. From the camp we had 8.3 km. to the pass, the altitude of which is 4,936 m., or 33o m. above the camp. The rise is I : 2 5. To the next camp, Duldul-achar, we had 19 km. and descended, from the pass, 8 13 m., as the height of the camp was 4,123 m. Here the rate of fall is I :23.4.