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

river, and immediately above it the mountains rise; a part of these mountains was
called Sabget-la. The road consists of several paths more or less parallel with each
other, and fairly deep cut by traffic. From the south enters the valley Tsoo. Yung
or Shung is surrounded by great cultivated fields, in uninterrupted connection with
those of Rungma. To the south is a peak called Garpo-basang.
The cultivated ground now comes to an end, the ground is gravel and sand
with some steppe-vegetation; the limit between the gravel and sand slope and the
summer-bed of the river is very sharply drawn. The Tsangpo again is within sight,
divided into two branches. To the left are the villages of Tsookung and Urgen-
dsong, with small valleys from the north; Dsong-chöte is a monastery; Goyang is a
village in a valley from the south or right, Pooshan and Lungpa-shär valleys from
the north, Deva-lungcha a village, Siglung a valley at the same side. Mani-rigmos
and chortens are often built along the road. The living rock is mica-quartzite.
The valley of the Tsangpo now becomes narrower. The river sweeps im-
mediately along the foot of the mountains at the northern side of the valley. During
the summer one has to take a rather uncomfortable zigzagging road over the rocks;
now a laid road of blocks along the foot of the rocks could be used, and only a
little spur of the cliffs had to be crossed. This road was only 1.3 m. above the
surface of the Tsangpo, and from water-marks one could see that the water-level used
to be about 1½ m. higher in summer than now. This passage is called Lamo-tang.
From the height of the little spur the view is splendid; one has the great river
below one's feet, very broad and with half of its surface covered with drifting ice,
though the view is much hidden by the westerly gale and sand-drift; the valley is
framed by compact mountains. Going down from the spur we see the summer-road
joining our path, and provided with a rough stone balustrade. Where the road
again reaches the bottom of the valley the river makes a bend to the south and
disappears for a while.
From the north or left side enters the valley Logong near the village of Chinde;
on the southern side are the villages of Chebling and Ma. Chinre-metong then
enters from the north. The promontory Pama-tseble consists of mica-quartzite. The
level plain beyond it is called Tseble-tang. The ground is sandy. The Nap-chu
tributary enters from the south.
Finally follows the largest of all the northern tributaries we pass between Karu
and Shigatse, namely, Ta-nakpo with its brook divided in several branches over a
gravelly fan, Ta-nakpo-chu, containing some 8 cub.m. a second, and coming, as the
natives said, from Chang-la-Pod-la, which means the water-parting between Pod or
Pö, Tibet Proper, and Chang or the northern plateau-land without effluence to the
ocean. The name of the valley and of the comparatively well populated district
below its mouths is generally pronounced as Dana or Tana, i. e. Ta-nak; one also
hears the name Ta-nak-pu or the upper valley of the black horse. Chügü is said
to be a tributary in its upper reaches. Not far from our road, but still in the Ta-