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

ACROSS THE VAKJIR PASS TO CHAKMÀKTIN-KUL.

66

(4,02

(»Feuerstein-See»), in 3,995 m. Höhe   franz. Gen.-St.-K.), findet eine Bifurkation

(4,023

eines Baches statt, der einerseits nach S. W. zum Wachan-darja, anderseits nach N. O. zum Ak-su abfliesst. This is the version of the English and Russian maps. In a note SCHULTZ adds : Die französische Generalstabskarte I : 1,000,000 stellt die Bifurkation nicht dar, sondern zeigt W.-lich des Tschakmaktin-kull einen Riegel, der auf einem 4,230 m. hohen Pass übergangen werden soll. W.-lich von diesem Riegel sammeln sich dann erst die von der Wachan-Kette abströmenden Bäche, um sich nach 8 km. in den Quellfluss des Pändsh, Wachdschir, zu ergiessen. Die Darstellung der Bifurkation auf der russischen Gen.-St.-Karte I :420,000 halte ich für richtig.

The Russian and English maps, therefore, agree with one another. The Russians seem, however, to have had this view even before the Anglo-Russian Boundary Commission, for on a rather simple map on the scale of 4o versts to an inch,

,Jopozi-catt Kapma 1 ypicecmaucacaio 6oeuuazo oxpyia, for 1893 , the hydrography of Chakmaktin-kcal is drawn exactly as on the English map of i 896. The Burguí-uya is there with its bifurcation to the lake and to the Vakhan-a'arya or Upper Panj, and from the N. E. end of the lake the Ak-saa has its origin.

In the days of HÜAN-CHUANG, some 1,300 years ago, the situation may have been different insofar that the bifurcation then probably was easier to see, for the precipitation may have been greater than nowadays. The lake cannot have been much larger, as the valley is nearly flat. But if it has been larger, it may have delivered a direct effluent to the Panj, and the bifurcation would thus have taken place in the lake, and not as now in the Burgul-uya brook.

On August I7th we continued 8.s km. N. E. along the northern shore of Chakmaktin-kul. The colour of the lake is a beautiful greenish blue. The ground is mostly soft and level with sparse grass ; sometimes it consists of coarse sand. Occasionally low undulations hide the view of the lake. A few granite blocks are seen. Somewhat more than halfway we crossed a little brook from the valley Gäsä, which on the English map has no name. The shore-line forms a few capes into the lake where also a little island is seen. Wild geese were not seen here but they appeared in considerable numbers in the lake. The camp of the day was pitched near an aul of three tents and a karaul a short distance from the N. E. end of the lake. Here a brook comes down from the northern side of the valley. Its name was said to be Ak-sai-echkele. On the English map this valley is called Ak-sai, and is, not far from the lake, joined by another valley called Ichkele. Some distance up in the western valley, the Ak-sai, the living rock was some kind of granite in 60° N. 30° W. The lake is said to get the largest quantity of water from the Burgul-uya, though here the greatest part of the water also was regarded as coming from springs. This year, 1895, the supply of water was less than usual. Other years the lake has been larger. By the Burgut-uya one reaches, across a difficult pass,