Southern Tibet : vol.4 / Page 239 (Color Image)

0239	Southern Tibet : vol.4

covered by heavy clouds going very near the earth's surface and hiding the higher
parts of the mountains.

Pan. 79, Tab. 12, shows the eastern half of the horizon from *Camp LXIX.*
Here we see the continuation of the open valley between S. 33° E. and S. 24° E.
which, at a considerable distance to the S. S. E., is bounded by low mountains.

On *November 24th* our direction is again S. S. E. for 11.8 km. The ground
falls 95 m. as *Camp LXX* has a height of 4,904 m.; the slope is, therefore, as 1 : 124.
During the march a little secondary threshold of 4,965 m. is passed. The con-
figuration of the country remains, on the whole, the same as during the two previous
marches. The ground is level or slightly undulating and favourable for the caravan.
We slowly approach the foot of the comparatively low range of hills which borders
the great valley to the west; to the east of the valley the mountains are higher,
particularly one part of them, which according to the description given by the last
Tibetans, must be *Goro-lebre.* At its foot there is a little depression, the bed of
which is brownish red and is now without water; it is the recipient of the water-
courses from the neighbouring mountains. On the southern side of the little secondary
pass of 4,965 m. the ground slopes down to the upper mouth of a very narrow
gorge between steep mountain walls. As ice was to be found here, we camped
at the entrance to the gorge, where the grass was rather poor. Fireplaces and
dung of sheep were numerous. The farther southwards we advanced the more common
became the traces of human visits. During the last few days, since *Camp LXVI,*
we had, however, not met any natives, neither hunters nor nomads, and, of course,
no gold- and salt-diggers, whose work is impossible during the winter. Many of the
gold-diggers are said to be inhabitants of *Lhasa.* It would be of great interest,
though still very difficult, to mark on a map the principal comparatively regular
wanderings of the Tibetans during the different seasons of the year. The most irre-
gular and, therefore, most difficult to follow would be the wanderings of the hunters.
They advance farther north. They wander, as a rule, alone or at the most two or
three tents together, and they are more independent of good grazing grounds than
the nomads. Some of the latter undertake, as we found, very extensive annual
wanderings, coming the whole way from *Gertse* to the regions we have just crossed,
and after having passed the winter there again return to *Gertse.* During these
journeys they always camp at places where good grass is to be found, and they
are never in a hurry. Even the wandering itself is a part of the care they take
of their flocks, and sometimes they stop several days at the same place to give their
sheep a good rest, which, of course, always is chosen at places where the grass is
particularly good. The nomads we had met thus undertake their long wanderings
in search of better grass than is to be found at *Gertse.* It was by mere chance
that we had met them on our way. But if we had continued farther east in the
15. IV.

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

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

Citation Information

OCR Text

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