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

and Tangir where Rāja Pakhtūn Wāli, an exile of the Khushwaqt family of Yāsin, had for
some years past established a chiefship of his own. The mountain tracks over which we were
taken under his protection crossed a series of high passes and offered great advantages for
survey operations. We were fortunately allowed full freedom to use them.

A number of triangulated points on the high ranges to the south and north helped to
control the half-inch plane-table work, and, thanks to Lāl Singh's devoted exertions, a
fortnight's hard travel sufficed to map some 1200 square miles of ground distinctly difficult
in parts and hitherto wholly unsurveyed. The mapping then accomplished awaits separate
publication in the Royal Geographical Society's Journal, and the briefest mention of it must
suffice here. ¹

Subsequently we crossed the Indus-Gilgit river watershed and the Darkôt pass to
Journey across
Hindukush.
the headwaters of the Chitrāl river. This route allowed me to see
ground of distinct historical and geographical interest. From here we
made our way past the glaciers feeding the Karambār river and across
the difficult Chilinji pass into uppermost Hunza, where we picked up Muhammad Yakūb,
the second surveyor, with the heavy baggage. Finally we gained the Chinese border on
the Ming-taka pass by September 7th.

The journey down to Tāsh-kurghān allowed the main Sarikol valley to be re-surveyed
Survey resumed
in Sarikol.
on a larger scale than before. From it we followed for a couple of days
the usual caravan route through the mountains towards Kāshgar over
the Chichiklik pass. Beyond the Tangitar gorge our routes divided. ²
Lāl Singh moved off by rapid marches via Yārkand and Khotan in order to reach the main
K'un-lun range near Kapa from where I was anxious to extend our triangulation of 1906 as
far eastwards as climatic and other conditions would permit. Afrāz-gul, in charge of the
heavy baggage, executed a plane-table traverse to Kāshgar by the usual route via Ighiz-yār
and Yangi-hissār.

I myself set out for the same goal with Muhammad Yakūb by a new route leading
Route down Kara-tāsh
valley.
due northwards across the Merki pass and down the valley of the
Kara-tāsh or Besh-kan river. ³ Owing to special difficulties this
important valley, in which most of the eastern drainage of the great
glacier-clad range of Muz-tāgh-atā finds its way into the plains between Yangi-hissār and
Kāshgar, had never been explored in its whole length. During spring and summer the big
floods from the melting snow and ice of the range render the extremely narrow gorges of the
Kara-tāsh river in the north quite impassable. By the time the waters subside in the autumn,
heavy snow on the Merki and Kara-tāsh passes closes the approaches from the south. In
the spring of 1906 I had sent Rām Singh to descend the valley, but the flooded river had
obliged him to abandon the attempt.

We were more fortunate this time. Exceptionally early snowfalls had stopped the
Difficult river gorges.
melting of the glaciers just in time to allow of a passage while the
Buramsāl pass (14,940 feet), though under deep snow, could still be
traversed with laden yaks. Nevertheless the descent through the
extremely confined gorges of the river below Chimghan proved very difficult and in places
risky. The constant crossings of the river tossing between precipitous rock walls could not
have been effected without the help of hardy local camels secured from Kirghīz camps higher
up the valley. The trials attending these marches showed that Muhammad Yakūb, if not
equal to my other surveying companions in experience and general aptitude for independent
work, was anyhow not wanting in pluck.

After emerging from the last of those gloomy defiles, two marches across fertile tracts
Preparations at
Kāshgar.
brought us to Kāshgar by September 21st. Once again Sir George
Macartney's unfailing help greatly facilitated the organization of my
caravan at the ever hospitable British Consulate General, and by