Southern Tibet : vol.4 / Page 503 (Color Image)

0503	Southern Tibet : vol.4

we saw 12 more. Still nearly all Tibetans asserted that the greatest numbers of
sheep were grazing in the north, though we passed large flocks every day. The
inhabitants of the tents were generally women, old men and children; the men were
said to be absent with the flocks up in the north, where the grass was better. So
much was sure, at any rate, that we had not met with so many nomads, tents and
flocks farther north as here.

Our route goes between the base of the western hills and the bed of the brook,
partly filled with rotten melting ice. The bed is very winding and there is some
grass on its bank. Kyangs are very numerous in spite of the nomads. Of course
I have only mentioned such tents as we saw. There are many others which were
hidden in valleys and behind hills of which we only heard. Now, for instance, a
man was seen coming to the brook with 20 yaks.

The eastern hills are not high. From the western, a projecting spur forces
our direction to the S. S. W. At its southern side, three tents were pitched and
beyond the brook, two. Farther on, seven tents were passed in three camps. Very
large flocks of sheep were grazing at different places and sometimes yaks. The
valley is here as broad as a plain, perfectly even to the eye. The Sha-kangsham
is now out of sight. The ground is hard clay, with scarce grass.

We cross the brook at the point where the height was 4,580 m. Its direction
is here S. S. W., but it may turn more to the S. W., and the deepest depression of
the region may easily be situated west of our route. A short distance S. 20° W.
of this point, we made Camp CCCLXVIII, in the vicinity of a lonely tent. There
was a frozen spring and some grass. Dung of tame yak and of kyang is abundant
everywhere. The name of the place was Nila-yung-karpo. In the course of the
day we had passed several manis and cairns.

Pan. 448A, B and C, Tab. 83, shows the landscape all around the horizon. It
gives a clear idea of the general habitus of the mountains in this region, flat rounded
hills everywhere with no high peaks rising above the rest. To the right of S. 20° W.,
is the continuation of our valley which we had to follow the next day. To the north
is a perspective of the part of the valley by which we had come in the day.

Here we were told that in two days we would reach a lake Chunit-tso, along
the western shore of which our road continued south. A few days south of it, we
would reach a river Buptsang-tsangpo, a name that we now heard for the first time.
Four of the districts of the province of Bongba were mentioned: Bongba-changma
or Northern Bongba, Bongba-sherma or Eastern Bongba, Bongba-hloma or Southern
Bongba, and Bongba-numa or -nubma, Western Bongba. Later on we would hear
the names of several other districts belonging to the same province.

On March 31st, we continued S. S. W. and S. W. for 10.7 km., now again
rising 193 m. from the last camp to Camp CCCLXIX, where the altitude was

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