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ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF
THE MUSTAGH

Mt. Chogo, 21,500 feet, and Mt. Lungma, 22,568 feet, ascended by Authors, August i2TH, 1903.

ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF
THE MUSTAGH
AN ACCOUNT OF TWO SEASONS OF PIONEER
EXPLORATION AND HIGH CLIMBING,
IN THE BALTISTAN HIMALAYA
BY
FANNY BULLOCK WORKMAN
Offlcier de V Instruction Fublique de France, Grand Medalist of the Club Alpin
Frangais, Meuibre d'Honncur de la Societe de Geographie dc Nancy, Charter
Member American Alpine Club, Fellow Royal Scottish Geographical
Society, Member Royal Asiatic Society, Corresponding Member
Brootilyn Institution Arts and Sciences, Corresponding Member
Appalachian Mountain Club, Corresponding Member
A merican Geographic Society, Member French,
German-Austrian, and Italian Alpine Clubs
AND
WILLIAM HUNTER WORKMAN, M.A. M.D.
FeUotv Royal Geograp/iical Society, Corresponding Member .Appalachian Mountain
Chtb, Charter Member American Alpine Club, .Member .Alpine Club

AUTHORS OF
' through TOW.N' and jungle, ' " IN THE ICE WORLD OF HIM.\L.^ V.\," " SKETCHES
A-WHEEL IN FIN ]:>E SIECLE IBERIA," " ALGERIAN MEMORIES "

WITH TWO M.iPS AND ONE HUNDRED .4ND SEVENTY
ILL USTRA TIONS

LONDON
ARCHIBALD CONSTABLE & CO. Ltd.
10 ORANGE STREET LEICESTER SQUARE W.C.
igoS

BRADBURY, AGNEW & CO. LD., PRINTERS,
LONDON AND TONBRIDGE.

'; _ ef C6 . '\ 0 'L.

PRESS NOTICES OF "THROUGH TOWN AND
JUNGLE," BY SAME AUTHORS

"The letterpress accompanying the illustrations consists of a brightly-written
account of the authors' journeys, and history and descriptions of the various
buildings. The last, ho-wever, are not so long or technical as to weary those who
have no particular knowledge of architecture ; while the legends which are told
of many of the spots visited are of all kinds, from the gruesome and romantic to
the comical. ' ' — Daily Graphic.
" No book which has been published in modern times gives a more vivid and
overwhelming impression of the ancient splendours of India than does this
narrative of two modern tourists cycling with their cameras, from temple to
temple, and visiting in the depths of the jungle, or at some point remote from the
present centres of population, the colossal temples that are at once the evidence
of the genius of the people who constructed them, and the melancholy testimony
to the degeneracy of the races that centuries ago held sway in India." — Morning
Post. " "We must not suppose that the book is restricted to'architecture. The illus
trations record, the authors describe, many incidents of everyday life, dwelling
now and then on the historical associations of the buildings. The volume is full
of incidents, grave and gay, both past and present. It is attractively written,
and admirably illustrated." — Evening Standard.
" A clear and vivid impression is given of India as it appears to the intelligent
visitor. The result altogether is that Dr. and Mrs. "Workman have produced
another fascinating book of travel. It would be difficult to find one giving equal
satisfaction to the reader, who seeks general impressions supported by a fair
volume of relevant information." — .^in'rfce/i Free Press.
' ' There is no book with which we are acquainted which gives so close, so
accurate, so fair and truthful, and so satisfactory an account of all parts of
strange and varied India as this. The illustrations would in themselves make a
volume of rare interest, and when to these we have excellent descriptions and
frank and good-natured accounts of the people, we have a book of incomparable
excellence and value upon a. country ot unexcelled beauty and charm." —
Watchman. "Throughout the writers evince their acquaintance with the best archi
tectural authorities, but they do not hesitate to differ from them on occasion.
They display a discriminating and well-founded enthusiasm which is admirable.
The book is one which we can heartily recommend to our readers as a vividly-
written narrative of travel, the main object of which was to see and depict the
wonderful architecture of India." — Scottish Geographical Magazine.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER I.
Difficulties to be overcome by Private Explorer — Spring in Vale of
Kashmir— Routes to Baltistan— Dras and Indus Valleys— Oases and
Irrigation— Camping Places— Water-Erosion— Reception by Raja of
Tolti . . ... . ... pp. 1—22
CHAPTER II.
At Skardo — Ascent of Kock of Skardo — A Thirsty Day of Waiting on
Summit — Sand-Diines — Bird-Music in Shigar Valley— Camp at Mango
— Ascent of Buspar ...... . pp. 23 — 34
CHAPTER III.
Voyage on a Zak — Basha Valley — A Reconnaissance of Ganchen — Tents
— Recalcitrant Coolies — Ascent of Mount Rachel — Caught in a
Thunder-Shower — Rock-climbing at High Altitudes . . pp. 37 — 66
CHAPTER IV.
At Arandu — Selecting Coolies — Arandu Lambardar — Arandu Women —
Start for the Chogo Lungma Glacier — Glacier and Mountains — Life
at Riffel Camp — Paying Coolies — Outlook from Riffelhorn pp. 69-93
CHAPTER \'.
Coolie-Panic among Seracs — Serac Camp — Ascent of Cornice Peak — Trial
of a Sledge — Ascent of Upper Chogo Lungma — Deserted by Coolies —
Tiresome March — A Mighty .-Avalanche — Foggy Camp — Retreat to
Serac Cai-iip — A Sixty-hour Snowstorm-- Another Coolie Desertion pp. 94-118
CHAPTER VI.
Up Haraniosh Glacier — Estiinalion of Distance, .Altitude, and Obstacles —
Ascent of Haramosh Col in Storm— Camping by Night — X Wily
Balti. PP- 121— 136
CHAPTER VII.
Basin Glacier— Heat at Crevasse Camp — Adventurous Ascent of Bhaya-
kara Col— A Narrow Escape — Moraine Glacier — Its Trefoil Basin —
Glorious .Morning ends in Storm— Over Ganto La to Rendu — A Jhula
Bridge— Trongo Pir and return to Srinagar . pp. 137—167

viii CONTENTS.
CHAPTER VIII.
Chogo Lungma objectively considered — Arandu Terrace — Tippur Glacier
—First Section and Tongue of Chogo Lungma— Recession of Glacier
— Maidans at Sides of Glacier— Second Section of Medial Moraines
— Third Section of Ice, Snow, and Seracs — Ice-Lakes— Water Dis
tribution — Movement- Measurement — Tree-Growth — Snow Line
pp. i68 — 194
CHAPTER I.X.
Starting again for Mountains — Engaging Permanent Coolie-Corps — High
Sun-Temperatures — Through Braldoh Valley to Vale of Desolation —
Terminal Moraine of Hoh Lumba— Recession of Glacier — Up the Hoh
Lumba — At Camp des Aiguilles— First Ascent of Col des Aiguilles —
A "Wonderful Cornice — Topographical Discoveries — Exploring Sosbon
Glacier — Remarks on Glaciers .... pp. 195 — 247
CHAPTER X.
At Arandu again — Providing Coolie-Rations a Serious Problem — More
Stormy Weather at Riffel Camp — Crevasse Glacier — Bad Snow-Con
ditions — Heat at High Altitudes — Effects of Heat — Sun-Temperatures
— Traverse of Riffelhorn . . pp. 248 — 277
CHAPTER XI.
Difficulties of High Climbing in Chogo Lungma Region — Start for Three
Pioneer Ascents — Basin Glacier and Pool Camp — Intermediate
Camp — Coolie-Revolt — Highest Camp — Sleeplessness — Ascent of
Mount Chogo — On Summit Mount Chogo — Mount Lungma — Pyramid
Peak. . . . ... pp. 278—326
CHAPTER XII.
Farewell to Chogo Lungma- The Bolucho Glacier— Caravan ascends a
Virgin Pass — Passage of Dangerous Cornice— Coolies glissade a
Thousand-Foot Wall— Propitiating Mountain Gods by Food-Offerings
— Goats and Sheep prove Good Mountaineers . . pp. 329—348

CHAPTER XIII.
Down the Kero Lungma— Hucho Alcbori Glacier— First Bear Camp-
Gurkha and Lambardar arrive— A Floral Carpet — Second Bear
Camp— Ascent to Head of Glacier— Ice-Fall Camp— Alchor Col proves
to be a Cornice— Hoped-for Passage not found- Cols of Karakoram
Watershed— Coolies thwart our Plans— Return to Arandu— Over
Bannok La to Astor and Srinagar . . hh. 3 = 1  3q=

CONTENTS. ix
CHAPTER XIV.
Coolies as a Factor in Himalayan Mountaineering — Relations of Employer
to Coolies — Differences in Coolies — Capabilities — Sliikaris — Dilemma
in which Explorer is placed — Management of Coolies . pp. 396 — 408

CHAPTER XV.
Importance of Altitude - Measurements -Mercurial Barometer — Hypso-
meter, Uses and Limitations — Aneroid — Liable to Index -Errors —
Useful when properly Checked — Experiments with Watkin Aneroids —
Shut-off Feature of Questionable Value — Different Aneroids develop
Different Index-Errors ....... pp. 409 — 421

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
PAGE
MT. CHOGO, 31,500 FEET, AND MT. LUNGMA, 22,568 FEET, ASCENDED
BY AUTHORS, AUGUST I2TH, 1903 . . Frontispiece
MOUNTAIN AT SONAMARG, SIND VALLEY .
MRS. BULLOCK "WORKMAN IN D.ANDI, INDUS VALLEY
INDUS VALLEY NEAR TOLTI ......
ROSE TREE AMONG ROCKS
OASIS IN INDUS \'ALLEY . . ...
PART OF TOLTI OASIS, INDUS VALLEY .
-WATER-^^'ASHED CLIFF, INDUS ^•ALLEY
RAJA's PALACES, INDUS VALLEY .....
HOUSE OF RAJA OF TOLTI, INDUS VALLEY
THE ROCK OF SKARDO .
MT. KOSER GUNGE FROM SHIGAR VALLEY
SAND-DUNES ABOVE SKARDO .
DR. W. HUNTER WORKMAN, WITH SHIGAR PONY
CAMP AT MANGO, SHIGAR VALLEY
ON SUMMIT MT. BUSPAR, 14,974 FEET
CROSSING BRALDOH RIVER ON ZAK
OUR BEARER AND KHANSAMAH ...
MILLET-FIELD, BASHA VALLEY
VILLAGE OF DOKO, BASHA VALLEY
MTS. HIKMUL AND GANCHEN AS SEEN FROM HULDERO
COOLIES PASSING STONES FOR PAVING TENT-TERRACE
SNO-W-LINE CAMP, 15,096 FEET, ON FLANK OF GANCHEN
ASCENDING SNQ-W-FIELDS OF GANCHEN
PEAKS NORTH-WEST FROM SNOW-LINE CAMP
UPPER SNOW-FIELDS TOWARDS GANCHEN .
SUMMIT MT, HIKMUL IN CLOUD
MT. RACHEL, I7,6oO FEET, TELEPHOTO FROM ARANDU
MILES DISTANT
ON SUMMIT OF MT. RACHEL, 17,600 FEET, BASHA VALLEY
LAMBARDAR OF ARANDU AND WIFE .
ARANDU WOMEN
ARANDU WOMEN, REAR VIEW
BURTSA CAMP, 11,499 FEET, CHOGO LUNGMA
ASCENDING SECOND SECTION OF CHOGO LUNGMA
INDUS NAGAR WATERSHED PEAK, NO. 4, 22,8lO FEET, W ITH CATHEDRAL

3
7

9

II

12
14
16
19
21
25
29
31
32
33
35
facing page
36
39
40
41
44
47
49
51
54
55
59
U TWELVE
63
65
67
71
73
75
77
PEAK AND RIFFELHORN
81
8485

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

RIFFELHORN AT JUNCTION OF HARAMOSH AND CHOGO LUNGMA
GLACIERS . . ... . facing page 82
AL FRESCO LUNCH, RIFFEL CAMP
INDUS NAGAR WATERSHED PEAK, NO. 4, TELEPHOTO
SUMMIT OF RIFFELHORN, 15,337 FEET, WITH CAIRN . • §7
SECTION OF ICE-LAKE IN CENTRE OF CHOGO LUNGMA . 9^
INDUS NAGAR WATERSHED PEAK NO. 4, 22,8lO FEET, NORTH FACE . 95
CARAVAN AMONG SEKACS ON CHOGO LUNGMA . . . facing page 96
FURROWED PEAK WITH CORNICED SKY-LINE. TELEPHOTO . . 99
CAIRN ABOVE SERAC CAMP ... ... lOI
ON SUMMIT CORNICE PEAK, 17,814 FEET . .... I03
GLACIER CAMP, 17,483 FEET, CHOGO LUNGMA . I07
THREE MILES FROM CHOGO COL AT HEAD OF CHOGO LUNGMA . IO9
FOGGY CAMP, 18,994 FEET, AT HEAD OF CHOGO LUNGMA . . II3
s£rAC camp, 15,096 FEET, AFTER SI.XTY-HOURs' STORM . . . II5
STORM LIFTING AT SERAC CAMP  117
HARAMOSH GLACIER FROM RIFFEL CAMP TO MT. HARAMOSH AT UPPER
END. LENGTH ELEVEN MILES ... . II9
ON THE FACE OF A SERAC ......... 122
SECOND HARAMOSH PEAK, 21,930 FEET, NEAR HEAD OF HARA.MOSH
GLACIER ..... . . . 123
WALL OVER 20,000 FEET IN ALTITUDE AT JUNCTION OF HARAMOSH
AND CHOGO LUNGMA GLACIERS .  127
BRANCH OF HARAMOSH GLACIER . ...... I3O
MT. HARAMOSH NORTH FACE, 34,370 FEET, AND UPPER FIVE MILES
OF HARAMOSH GLACIER. TELEPHOTO  I3I
ON HARAMOSH La, 17,412 FEET . ..... I34
ICE-FALL IN WHICH BASIN GLACIER DESCENDS TO CHOGO LUNGMA . 139
VIEW FROM IBEX CAMP SOUTH OVER HIGH LANDSCAPE . 143
THE BHAYAKARA COL, 19,260 FEET . . . . . 145
THE BHAYAKARA COL FROM FLANK OF MOUNT CHOGO, WITH LINE OF
.VSCENT ... . . ... 147
PEAK ABOVE BASIN GLACIER ADJOINING BHAYAKARA COL facing page I48
JUNCTION OF MORAINE GLACIER WITH CHOGO LUNGMA . . 150
MORAINE GLACIER, WEST HEAD . . . . . 151
HUMMOCK CAMP, 15,204 FEET, MORAINE GLACIER . . . . 155
NORTH-EAST HEAD, MORAINE GLACIER ...... 157
ICE-FALL AT NORTH-EAST HEAD OF MORAINE GLACIER . . . I58
ICE-GENDARME, MORAINE GLACIER . . . ijg
PERPENDICULAR CREVASSES ON ICE-FALL, MORAINE GLACIER . . 161
JHULa BRIDGE OVER INDUS AT RONDU . . 163
TRONGO PIR, ABOUT l6,000 FEET . . 166
TONGUE OF TIPPUR GLACIER OVERTOPPING HIGH MORAINE . 169
FIRST SECTION OF CHOGO LUNGMA ONE MILE ABOVE 'FONGUE . . 172
TONGUE OF CHOGO LUNGMA WITH CULTIVATED FIELDS . 175
PRIMARY' AND SECONDARY LATERAL MORAINES ... . . 177

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. xiii
PAGE
BLACK ICE-SLANT ON SIDE CHOGO LUNGMA DEPOSITING MORAINE . I78
SECOND SECTION CHOGO LUNGMA, WITH PYRAMID PEAK . . 180
JUNCTION OF SECOND AND THIRD SECTIONS, CHOGO LUNGMA . 183
SERAC NEAR RIFFEL PROMONTORY .... . . 186
BIRDSEYE-VIEW RIFFEL CAMP, SERACS AND ICE-LAKE FROM RIFFELHORN 187
PHOTOGRAVURE PORTRAIT OF MRS. F. BULLOCK WOKKMAti facing page I90
PHOTOGRAVURE PORTRAIT OF DR. W. HUNTER WORKMAN facing page I92
OUR PARTY LE.AVING SRINAGAR, I903 ..... . 196
RAJA OF SKARDO, THREE BROTHERS, AND PIPE BEARER . . . I97
THUMB-MARK SIGNATURES OF COOLIES TO CONTRACT . . . . 20I
COURT MUSICIANS OF RAJA OF SKARDO . . ... 205
CAMP AT NANGMA TAPSA, 11,590 FEET ... ... 207
ANCIENT TERMINAL MORAINE, HOH LUMBA GLACIER . . . 2O9.
EXTREMITY OF RIGHT LATERAL MORAINE, HOH LUMBA . . . 211
BORDER LAKE, HOH LUMBA  ... 313
SNOW-HILLOCK CAMP, 14,171 FEET, HOH LUMBA .... 213
EREE BRANCH, HOH LUMBA . . ... 2l5
CARAVAN ASCENDING SNOW-HILLOCKS, HOH LUMBA . . . . 217
ON HOH LUMBA GLACIER THREE MILES BELOW COL DES AIGUILLES 219-
CAMP DES AIGUILLES, 15,780 FEET, HOH LUMBA  223
SPRAY OF PEAKS IN MIST, HOH LUMBA . . .... 323
ON COL DES AIGUILLES, 18,331 FEET, HOH LUMBA .... 335
MOUNTAIN-WALL SEPARATING COL DES AIGUILLES FROM HISPAR
GLACIER ... ....... 329
PEAKS ON WEST SIDE OF HOH LUMBA BELOW COL DES AIGUILLES . 233
ROCK-AIGUILLES ABOVE CAMP DES AIGUILLES, HOH LUMBA . . 235
CAMP SOSBON, 15,091 FEET  . . 239
PETIGAX AND SAVOYE COL, 17,000 FEET, HEAD OF SOSBON GLACIER . 24I
GNEISSOID ROCK IN FIVE FRAGMENTS IN CENTRE SOSBON GLACIER . 243
AIGUILLES OPPOSITE CAMP SOSBON .... . . 345
OUR GURKHAS  . . . 350
RIFFELHORN WITH OUR ROCK-CAIRN ON SUMMIT. TELEPHOTO . . 353
SNOW-CAPPED ICE-GENDARME NEAR RIFFEL CAMP . . ... 255
ON SNOW-SHOES . . .... . . 257
SECTION OF ICE-FALL AT JUNCTION OF CREVASSE GLACIER Vi'ITH
CHOGO LUNGMA SHOWING n£vE STRATIFICATION . . . . 258
ASCENDING ICE-FALL ON CHOGO LUNGMA  259-
BROUGHT TO A HALT AT TOP OF ICE-FALL . . . 261
THE NEXT MOVE . ... .... 263
HIGHEST-TEMPERATURE CAMP, 17,332 FEET, CREVASSE GLACIER . . 267
RIFFELHORN, NORTH SIDE, ASCENDED AUGUST, I903 . . . 271
ASCENDING SOUTH AR^TE OF RIFFELHORN . .... 375.
PYRAMID PEAK, 24,500 FEET, ASCENDED TO BLACK POINT ON SKY
LINE, AUGUST 12, 1903. TELEPHOTO ... . . 279-
StRACS OF BLACK ICE ON ICE-FALL OF BASIN GLACIER . . . 283
POOL CAMP, 16,351 FEET, BASIN GLACIER  28s

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE

SCHRUND AT ABOUT l8,000 FEET WITH ICICLES . . • 387
VIEW OF TWENTY MILES DOWN CHOGO LUNGMA FROM INTER.VIEDIATE
CAMP, 18,811 FEET • • 291
HIGHEST CAMP, 19,358 FEET, AT BASE OF CONE OF MT. CHOGO . 295
ON SUMMIT MT. CHOGO, 2I,500 FEET, AT 7 A.M. . . . 399
NEARING SUMMIT OF MT. LUNGMA . . ... 3OO
SUMMIT, MT. CHOGO, 31,500 FEET, AS SEEN FROM ALTITUDE OF
23,300 FEET ON MT. LUNGMA .... . 3OI
ON SUMMIT MT. LUNGMA, 32,568 FEET . . 3O3
VIEW SOUTH FROM NEAR SUMMIT MT. LUNGMA OVERLOOKING
MOUNTAIN CRESTS . ... 306
PYRAMID PEAK, 24,500 FEET, FROM NEAR SUMMIT OF MT. LUNGMA . 307
TRIO AT HEAD OF CHOGO LUNGMA, SOUTH SIDE . . 3IO
SUMMIT MT. LUNGMA, 22,568 FEET, SEEN FROM ALTITUDE OF 23,394
FEET ON PYRAMID PEAK . 3II
COOLIES GLISSADING ON FLANK MT. CHOGO . . . . 315
MT. CHOGO AND MT. LUNGMA FROM BASIN GLACIER . . 319
CREVASSE GLACIER, UPPER BRANCH OF CHOGO LUNGMA . . 323
INDUS NAGAR WATERSHED PEAK NO. 2, 24,470 FEET, CHOGO LUNGMA . 327
STONE CAIRN AT RIFFEL CAMP, 17,067 FEET . 329
JUNCTION OF BOLUCHO GLACIER WITH CHOGO LUNGMA . . . ;^^0
CHOGO LUNGMA AND BRAN{-H FROM HARAMOSH GROUP . 33I
VIEW- OF LOWEST TWO MILES OF BOLUCHO GLACIER AND ITS JUNC
TION WITH CHOGO LUNGMA FROM RIVULET CAMP . . 333
ASCENDING TO BOLUCHO COL, 7 o'cLOCK A.M. . . 337
ON THE BOLUCHO COL, 17,031 FEET . 34O
RESTING ON ASCENT TO BOLUCHO COL . . . 34I
PANORAMA OF WEST SIDE OF BOLUCHO GLACIER FROM BASE OF
BOLUCHO COL . . . . . . . 345
OUR LIVESTOCK ON BOLUCHO COL, 17,021 FE];T ... . 349
RIBBED PEAK ON KERO LUNGMA OPPOSITE JUNCTION OF ALCHORI
GLACIER. TELEPHOTO . . . 353
ROCK-NEEDLE ON SOUTH SIDE ALCHORI GLACIER. TELEPHOTO . 355
HIGH MORAINE AT JUNCTION OF ALCHORI AND HOH LUMBA GLACIERS
\\-ITH TENT . ... 358
PEAK ON SOUTH SIDE ALCHORI GLACIER. TELEPHOTO . . . 359
NORTH BRANCH OF ALCHORI GLACIER . . . . . 363
NORTH-WEST BRANCH ALCHORI GLACIER . ... 365
UPPER END ALCHORI GLACIER . 367
ICE-COULOIR AT HEAD ALCHORI GLACIER ASCENDED . . 371
ICE-FALL CAMP, 17,002 FEET, AT HEAD OF ALCHORI GLACIER . 373
ON ALCHORI COL, 17,622 FEET, AT 6.3O A.M. . 375
GLACIER JOINING HISPAR . . 37(3
VIEW DOWN ALCHORI GIACIER FROM I&E-FALL CAMP . . 377
SECOND BEAR CAMP, 14,283 FEET, ON MAIDAN OF ALCHORI GLACIER . 379
VIEW DOWN KERO NALA ACROSS TONGUE OF CHOGO LUNGMA . . 381

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. xv
PAGE
WAZIR OF KATSURA . . ...... 382
APPROACHING THE BANNOK LA . . . ... 383
SUMMIT NANGA PARBAT, 35,520 FEET. TELEPHOTO FROM BANNOK
LA TWENTY-FIVE MILES WEST . ...... 385
VIEW WEST DOWN HARPO NALA TOWARDS NANG.V PARBAT . . 387
VILLAGE OF ASTOR ........ 389
THE BARBER OF ASTOR . . . . . . 392
THE LEADERS OF THE EXPEDITION  393
HEAD OF BASIN GLACIER FROM FLANK OF MT. CHOGO . 397
BALTI INSTRUMENT COOLIE AGAINST HILLSIDE COVERED WITH PURPLE
ASTERS .... ... . . 401
COOLIES DESCENDING A SERAC ...... . 405
PEAKS ON KERO LUNGMA OPPOSITE ALCHORI GLACIER. TELEPHOTO 4II
MT. KOSER GUNGE, SHIGAR VALLEY, 21,000 FEET . . 415

All Illustrations arc from Photographs taken hy the .Authors.

The large map of the Chogo Lungma and adjacent region explored by the
Authors is based on a theodolite survey by Mr. B. H. M. Hewett,
corrected and supplemented by the Authors from actual ob.servation
and photographs.

PIONEER EXPLORATION AND
HIGH CLIMBING IN THE
MUSTAGH RANGE.

CHAPTER I.
Difficulties to be overcome by the Private Explorer — Spring in Vale of
Kashmir — Routes to Baltistan — Dras and Indus Valleys — Oases and
Irrigation — Camping Places — Water-Erosion — Reception by Raja of
Tolti.
The adage, "Too many cooks spoil the broth," is as true in
exploration and mountaineering as in cookery. The fewer the
leaders of an expedition, the more complete the unit}' of pur
pose, the less the danger of dissension and the greater the
chances of success. Without doubt, on many accounts, the
best number of leaders is one, if that one can endure
the loneliness of the situation and the weight of care and
responsibility thrown upon him. If he cannot, the next best
number is two, provided there be sympathy and agreement of
aim between them. Beyond this, divergence of views and
consequent paralysis of effort, leading to failure, are likely to
increase in proportion to the number involved.
It must be borne in mind, that a private expedition under
taken by one or two persons implies a greater amount of
mental and physical exertion on their part, than falls to the lot
of the head of an expedition sent out by a government or
society, inasmuch as in the latter case, in addition to the
M. B

2 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
authority behind the expedition, which makes the question of
ways and means an easy one for the participants, the com
mander is assisted by a staff of men trained in their own lines,
who relieve him of the labour of attending in person to the
details of the different departments.
In a private expedition, the leader or leaders have to furnish
the means, provide all outfit and supplies, establish and main
tain a commissariat service, get together, support and direct,
assistants, servants, coohes or porters, put up with their
idiosyncrasies, look after them in sickness and health, like so
many children, take, them over difficult paths, encourage them
when faint-hearted, and do a thousand things which make him,
or them, the servant of all, besides taking observations, study
ing out routes, photographing, and enduring the hardships
presented by circumstances. All this, without an\' authority
inherent or delegated, and often in the face of adverse con
ditions, tries their patience to the utmost, and constitutes a
task which no one who has not been placed in such a position
has any idea of.
These difficulties are more accentuated in case of those who
lead an expedition among the ice-clad peaks of the higher
Himalaya, than of those who devote their attention to the
lower, more or less inhabited regions, on account ofthe special
hardships incident to life in the snow at high altitudes, and the
absence of supplies of any kind, including wood, and, above a
certain height, even water.
The explorer of Himalayan heights, besides possessing
initiative, must be resourceful and have some inventive talent,
for he is constantly called on to create something out of
nothing, and to apply various implements to uses for which
they were never intended. Finally, he must have the grit
and perseverance to complete his toilsome preparations and
undergo much trial and hardship, knowing that there are
many chances against his efforts being crowned with success.

SPRING IN VALE OF KASHMIR. 3
As we entered the Vale of Kashmir in the early days of May,
1902, we found it in one of those brilliant, blooming moods,
that cause one for the moment to forgive the poets their gush
ing rhapsodies anent this much overrated valley. The Pir
Panjal, in August as devoid of snow and as commonplace in
contour as the walls of a second-class Tirolean valle\-, now rose
from a bed of softest green, a shining white range feigning
worthily eternal snows, which lost itself in the blue depths of
a perfect sk}-.
Spring was flagrant in the " river'd meadowland," speaking
from the budding hedgerows, flaunting multi-coloured wands of
glory from peach, apple, cherrj', and plum trees, and tingeing
the lights and shadows, that moved over hill and dale, with the
subtlest of Grecian blue.
The 4th May found us once more at Srinagar, with outfit and
supplies, and arrangements practically completed for a second
expedition to that part of the Karakoram or Mustagh range
lying in the north of Baltistan. The Mustagh range has been
popularly regarded as belonging to the Himalayan system, and
is often mentioned as the " North-\\-est Himala}-as." Property
speaking, this is not the case, the Mustagh being a separate
snowy range situated considerably north of the western end of
the Himalayan, though connected with it by an intermediate
mountain system. In the stricter sense, the term Himalaya is
applicable only to the great snowy chain extending along the
northern border of India and through Nepal, Sikhim, and
Bhutan, beyond the Indus on the west, and the Brahmaputra
on the east, and to the lower mountains and foothills running
from it to the Indian plain. As, however, the conditions obtain
ing in the Mustagh and Himalayan regions are practically
identical, we shall in this volume, in accordance with
general custom, for convenience apply the term Himalayan to
them both.
Our object on this occasion was to explore the great Chogo
B 2

4 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
Lungma glacier, which ends just above the village of Arandu,
at the head of the Basha valley, in lat. 35° 52' N. and long.
75° 2^' 40" E. This glacier has a length of thirty miles, the
upper half of which, together with over fifty miles of large
branches, had never been visited by civilised man.
In 1862 Colonel Godwin Austin, while surveying for the
Government of India, went up the nala in which it lies about
twelve miles, but did not venture on the glacier itself. A few
years later Frederick Drew followed the footsteps of Colonel
Godwin Austin, and, getting upon the glacier, reached a point
on it which, from his description, appears to have been about
fifteen miles above its end, although he estimated it at twenty
miles. Since that time sportsmen have occasionally ascended
the nala for a few miles.
In the autumn of 1903, Major Max Schlagintweit published a
statement in the " Mitteilungen," that his brother, Adolf
Schlagintweit, was the first to explore the Chogo Lungma
region in 1856. A careful examination of the writings of the
brothers Schlagintweit in the library of the Royal Geographi
cal Society in London and in the Konigliche Bibliothek in
Munich, as well as in the library of the D.O.A.V. in Munich,
failed to discover any mention of the Chogo Lungma, or of
Arandu, at its termination. Further, neither the Chogo Lungma
nor Arandu is indicated on the maps which accompany the
large work of the brothers Schlagintweit. Major Max
Schlagintweit afterwards withdrew the statement, having found
it to be erroneous.
To reach the district indicated it is necessary to go to Skardo,
the chief town of Baltistan, and thence up the Shigar and
Basha valleys. Of the two most direct routes to Skardo. the
shorter, in twelve marches from Srinagar over the 12,000 to
13,000 feet high Deosai plains, was unavailable at this season
on account of snow. This route is usually open only from the
middle of July to the middle of September.

ROUTES TO SKARDO. 5
The longer, more disagreeable, but more convenient and
generally used route, which is open the greater part of the
year, leaves the Leh route a short distance beyond Kharbu, and
passes down the Dras and Indus valleys to Skardo. From
Srinagar to Skardo by this route there are eighteen and a half
official marches, but the distance can be covered in twelve to

MOUNTAIN AT SONAMARG, SIND VALLEY.
fourteen daj-s by making double marches. For details as to the
length of the marches the reader is referred to the Kashmir
Guide of Lieutenant-Colonel Duke, the much smaller one of
Dr. Neve, and the Route Book by the late General De Bourbel.
The last of May, Dr. K. Oestreich, who was to act as
topographer, arrived, and on 5th June Mattia Zurbriggen and
Giuseppe Muller, -who had been engaged as guide and porter
for the mountain work. After consultation with Zurbriggen, we
decided to send our supplies to Skardo by the Indus route, and

6 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
ourselves, although it was early in the season, cross the
Alampi La, a snow pass north of the Deosai Plains, command
ing a view of the Haramosh range, which we thought might
offer a chance for an ascent later in the summer.
The Alampi path leaves the Gilgit road at a point a little
more than half-way between the Burzil Chowki and Astor. The
pass is not far from 16,000 feet high, and is said to be covered
with snow at all times. It is a rough route, practicable only for
coolies, who must be provided by the explorer with food carried
by still other coolies.
Accordingly preparations were made to carry out this plan.
A large quantity of rice was purchased, which, by the kind
assistance of the late Major Bretherton, then in charge of the
Gilgit Transport Department, was forwarded to Gurais, from
^\hich place coolies were to be taken. Major Bretherton
supplied pon}' transport to Gurais.
Arrangements having been completed, the supplies and spare
equipment were despatched via the Indus valley in charge of
John Methuselah, a Madrasi well known in Kashmir, who
understands managing nati\'es better than any other Indian
we have employed, and who performed this service to our
satisfaction. We were to start on loth May. On 9th, we cycled from
the hotel to our camp at Munshi Bagh to attend to some last
details. As Mrs. Bullock Workman was dismounting on the
grass her right foot turned on a small rolling stone, causing a
severe and painful sprain of the ankle. This accident delayed
our departure for a week, and caused a radical change in our
plans. The Alampi route, with several days of rough walking
and two of serious, rather steep snow-work, \\-as not suited to
a person with a sprained ankle.
It was therefore arranged, that Zurbriggen should follow the
original plan and cross the Alampi La to the Indus valley,
beyond which he was to penetrate the region lying under the

%y^<^

1 I-'. ,7-'-.' ,,

nj'^-

i.., .-.'. ¦ , ¦ Mf.- ¦fit

iMMtMlliliiHlkikiMJ

OVER THE ZOJI LA. 9
Haramosh range as far as possible, study the peaks, particu
larly Haramosh itself, and rejoin us at Skardo or in the Shigar
valley. On I2th May he set out, attended by a camp servant, and on
the i6th we left Srinagar to go to Skardo by the Indus valley
route, Mrs. Bullock Workman, who was unable to walk, being

.^^

INDUS VALLEY NEAR TOLTI. PATH ON RIGHT.
carried in a dandi by four kahars, and ponies furnishing trans
port for the remainder of the party and the luggage. At the
Zoji La the tree-clad slopes of the Sind valle}- were left behind,
and we descended the wet and disagreeable east side of the pass,
still covered with snow, to the cheerless vallc}' of the Dras and
the brown, treeless plains of Ladakh.
At Dras the Kashmiri caravan was exchanged for one of
Ladakhi ponies and pony-walas. On this occasion, as on the
several others that we have travelled over this route, it was

10 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
a great relief to shake off the officious, noisy, garrulous,
irritating Kashmiris, and take on the quieter, good-natured
Ladakhis. The contrast was soothing, and we marched with
lighter hearts and greater enjoyment of Nature around.
A few miles beyond Kharbu, which is a march beyond Dras,
the Skardo path leaves the smooth, well-kept Leh route, and,
passing over a stone-strewn plain, descends a steep and broken
ancient moraine to a bridge, by which it crosses to the left
bank of the Dras river, which it follows to the junction of that
river with the Indus, and thence down the left bank of the Indus
to Skardo.
From the point of its divergence to the left bank of the
Dras river till it reaches Skardo, a much wilder region
has to be traversed, and the marches are more arduous.
Hardas, one march from Kharbu, is the last village where any
transport ponies can be obtained, and here only a few, so that
from here onward coolies have to be relied on for transport.
The Dras and Indus valleys are dreary and desert, being
walled in on both sides by high mountain barriers of scarred
and gullied clay, crumbling granite and shale, without vegeta
tion, except here and there the aromatic shrub called burtsa,
and wild rose trees, which will flourish where nothing else will
grow, and which often bear such a profusion of blossoms as
to hide their stems entirely from view. They flash up in the
stony wilderness like marvellous colour-gems, each tree or
group brilliant with every shade of mauve, from palest pearl
to deepest crimson. They often grow luxuriantly among
boulders where no soil is observable, or high up on the faces
of perpendicular rock-precipices, the colourless surfaces of
which they relieve in a most fascinating manner.
The path here is narrow and rough, running up and down
steep, ragged inclines, across gorges swept by mountain torrents,
through stretches of soft sand, and over narrow ledges
projecting from perpendicular rock-walls, which overhang the

OASES IN INDUS VALLEY.

II

rushing rivers beneath. Every five or six miles, usually at
the entrance of side valleys, the landscape is varied by oases

ROSE TREE AMONG ROCKS.

perched on the mountain flanks, or nestling at the bottom of
the valley by the river bank, beautiful in their bright spring
green, or later, with their golden harvest, in striking contrast
with the brown, barren surroundings. The eye, wearied with

12 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
the dull monotony of the chaos of rock and debris through
which one has been passing, rests with delight on the terraced
fields of waving grain bordered by a profusion of mulberry,
apricot, pear, walnut, poplar, and willow trees.
In the centre of the oases stand villages of a size proportioned
to each, by the industry of whose inhabitants these gardens in

OASIS IN INDUS VALLEY ; WATER-CANAL AT UPPER EDGE COMING
FROM GORGE.

the desert are created. Everj' available bit of alluvium among
the rocks is cultivated, and good-sized terraces bearing excel
lent crops are seen, the alluvium of which has been brought
in baskets from wherever it could be found in the neighbouring
wilderness. These oases are of artificial creation. The land on a sloping
surface is built up in terraces, one above another, retained by
stone walls. A mountain torrent near by, which furnishes a

IRRIGATION OF OASES. 13
never-failing supply of water, is tapped at a point above, and
a canal constructed from it to carry the water along the upper
side of the land to be reclaimed. Openings are made in the
canal-walls at desired points, and the water is distributed as
required over the whole series of terraces from top to bottom.
Separate canals are not provided for each terrace. The upper
most one is flooded with water to the top of its enclosing
barriers, and the overflow from it floods the next lower one,
and so on, till the whole oasis is irrigated.
The oases of these tv>'o valleys are typical of those which
form the homes of the greater part of the population of
Himalayan valleys. They depend for their existence entirely
on irrigation. Were the artificial \\-ater-supply cut off, the)'
would become as arid as the desert wastes around them. The
semi-barbarous Himalayan valley-dwellers, who in their habits
are but little above their domestic animals, are experts in the
art of irrigation, and have nothing to learn in regard to it
from Western civilisation. Their implements are simple,
their methods of construction rude, but they apph- the means
at their disposal to the desired end in a manner absolutel}^
scientific, and the results show their skill to the confines of the
oases. It is marvellous to see what crops are obtained from land that
is often stony and sandy. Such luxuriant grain-fields we have
seldom seen elsewhere. At first one is surprised at such results,
when one considers that these lands have been constantlj' under
cultivation probably for thousands of years, that the cultivators
have not at their command manure and other fertilisers such
as are used in Western lands, and that the}- har\'est their grain
by pulling it up by the roots, thus leaving nothing in the ground
to nourish future crops.
A little observation reveals the secret of their success. The
sediment brought down from the mountains in the water of the
streams is a potent fertiliser, which is kept constantly applied

14 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
to the crops from the time they are planted till they are ripe for
the harvest, so that the ground is continually enriched rather
than exhausted.

PART OF TOLTI OASIS, INDUS VALLEY.

As every part of the oasis is devoted to the cultivation of
grain, with here and there a few vegetables, and as turf is only
exceptionally seen, comfortable camping places are rare. Many
a time we have been obliged to camp on loose sand, or in

WATER EROSION. 15
ploughed fields after the grain was harvested, or on ground wet
from irrigation, or in the middle of villages on places used for
the deposit of refuse, that were sometimes in a condition
resembling ill-kept stable-yards. On this expedition the only
available camping place at one village was a dilapidated, dust-
covered burial-ground, where the tent-pegs found a precarious
hold in the thin crust of earth covering the graves, into the
hollows of which they penetrated. In Himalayan travel one
becomes accustomed to almost anything.
Much, if not most, of the work in the fields is done by the
women, who, although not fair to look upon, appear to be
hardy and retain their activity and suppleness to a surprisingh'
advanced age. We have seen grey-haired, wrinkled women run
as nimbly as children after coolie trains leaving villages, to
supply their equally grey-haired husbands with rations for the
day's march.
The children, left to their own devices, learn at a ver\- earl\-
age, like the young of animals, to take care of themselves and
imitate their elders. At a village in the Dras valley, a child, not
over two years old, was seen to shoulder deftly an infant of
about four months and walk away with it.
One of the most interesting features of the Dras and Indus
valleys is the evidence of water-erosion everywhere seen. Not
only near the present level of the rivers, but at all elevations,
even to the mountain-tops several thousand feet above, the
granite rocks are smoothed, rounded, eroded in every con
ceivable manner, and dented with pot-holes, showing that at
some distant period they were subjected to the action of moving
water carrying stones. Boulders of various sizes are strewn
about at all levels, honeycombed in a most remarkable wa}-,
some being mere shells, eroded both outside and inside.
From the shapes and positions of the pot-holes and erosions
it is evident, that the direction of the currents that produced
them was about the same as the flow of the two rivers at the

i6 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
present time. The erosions are seen mostly on the left banks
of these rivers, or west sides of the valleys, which slope away
from the rivers much less precipitously than the right or east

WATER-WASHED CLIFF, INDUS VALLEV.

sides. The explanation of this, as well as of the question,
\\-hether the erosions M'ere made at the levels where they now
are by water flowing thousands of feet above the present rivers,
or at or near the river levels and afterwards pushed up with the

A RUSE TO OBTAIN MONEY. 17
mountain masses, we leave to those better equipped with
geological knowledge than ourselves. Whatever may have
been the conditions under which these effects were produced,
it is certain that they existed very evenly over a large
district. At one of the Indus valley villages where transport coolies
were changed, an instance of the demoralising effect of the
contact of the modern civilised traveller with the untutored
native presented itself. The lambardar brought to us a stupid-
looking child, perhaps three years of age, who held out a
folded paper for our inspection, which proved to be a chit
written and signed by a member of an expedition to Baltistan,
which had preceded us by a few weeks, stating that the child
had lost its parents, that the writer considered him a very
worth}' child, that he had given him two rupees, and that he
commended him to the charity of other travellers.
The question naturally arose in our minds, whether here was
not a ruse to obtain money, similar to that often employed by
coolies to escape further service, who in most out-of-the-way
places would suddenly receive news of the death of a parent,
usually their mother, which made their return imperative. In
none of our expeditions did we ever lose a coolie by death, but
their service with us was responsible for the death of a
considerable number of mothers. In this case the bait was so
unsuspiciously swallowed by our predecessor that encourage
ment was given to offer it again with his written endorsement,
on the first opportunity, which happened to be afforded by our
arrival. Before leaving Srinagar, we received parwanahs from the
English authorities and from the Maharaja of Kashmir request
ing the head-men of Baltistan to give us all needed assistance
as to transport and supplies. In addition to this. General Sir
Amar Singh, brother of the Maharaja, and the late Captain
Le Mesurier, British Joint-Commissioner for Ladakh and
M. c

i8 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
Baltistan, sent letters to the Tehsildar of Skardo directing him
to ask his subordinates on our route to help us in every -\\ay.
As a result transport was promptly furnished, and we were
everywhere met by the lambardars and the local Rajas, who
made us such presents as lay at their command, viz., bouquets
of flowers, baskets and large plates of mulberries, or, failing
these in the higher villages, nuts and dried apricots. On our
return journey in September, delicious fresh apricots took the
place of the dried fruit, which, after our long sojourn in regions
producing nothing but snow and ice, were much appreciated by
all members ofthe expedition.
On reaching Tolti, a picturesque Indus valley village over
hung by imposing rock-cliffs, the Raja, his brother, and
attendants, accompanied by the Court-band, consisting of several
musicians armed with tom-toms, cymbals, long shawms, and
other wind instruments, came out to greet us. As we
approached, the Raja stepped forward and grasped our hands
with both of his, while the band saluted us with a tremendous
chorus of, to our untutored sense, uncouth sounds, which, if
volume was any criterion, testified to the cordiality of the
welcome. When we entered the village with the Raja, the chief men
took the places of the hired coolies who were bearing the
dandi of Mrs. Bullock Workman, and, a procession being
formed, with the musicians at the head, we marched to the
camping ground, a grass-covered meadow adjoining the polo
field, bordering a rushing mountain-torrent, shaded by fruit-
trees and flecked by great boulders fallen from the cliffs above.
We hailed this camping ground with delight, as it was the
first really good one we had found since leaving Srinagar. We
always prefer to camp near a noisy river or mountain-torrent,
as it serves the double purpose of supplying water and of
deadening the sound of the disagreeable voices of villagers,
coolies, and camp servants.

C 2

EXCHANGE OF CIVILITIES.

21

When camp was established, the Raja, who had left, returned
with his brother and suite, including that indispensable official.

HOUSE OF RAJA OF TOLTI, INDUS VALLEY.

the hookah-bearer, bringing as presents flowers, a sheep, and
white and red cherries on large copper plates. After a further
exchange of civilities, in the course of which we made him

22 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
presents in return, he arranged to supply us with provisions
and coolies for the next day's march and departed.
The following morning he appeared with thirty coohes, and
himself accompanied us to Parkutta, the last village in his
jurisdiction, fourteen miles distant, to see that we were properly
provided for at that place. On the route he dismounted twice
from his pony, and walked for some distance beside the dandi,
chatting with the bearers like one of themselves. His advent
among them created no stir, and no ceremony between him
and them was apparent. Here seemed to be an example of a
democratic autocracy. In crossing a torrent, which came
down in several streams, he again dismounted and waded
through the water, which was waist deep, holding one side of
the dandi to steady it.
A larger band of musicians than that at Tolti received us on
arrival at Parkutta, where, owing to the Raja's orders sent on
the previous evening, a fresh supply of coolies was awaiting us.
At half past one p.m., after an hour's rest, having taken leave
of the friendly Raja and his suite, we started on our second
march that day of twelve miles to the vigorous, but not
harmonious, thunders of the village band.

CHAPTER II.
At Skardo — Ascent of the Rock of Skardo — A Thirsty Day of 'Waiting on
the Summit — Sand-Dunes —Bird-Music in Shigar Valley — Camp at
Mango — Ascent of Buspar.
Skardo is situated in an amphitheatre among the mountains,
at the point of entrance of the Shigar into the Indus river, and
is surrounded by imposing peaks. It is the most important
town in Baltistan, being the seat of residence of the Tehsildar,
and possessing a post-office, telegraph office, sub-treasury, dis
pensary, and bazaar. The Government maintains a meteoro
logical station, with mercurial barometer, thermometers, and
other instruments, the readings of which at 8 o'clock a.m.
are daily forwarded to the Meteorological Office at Calcutta.
During both our expeditions to the Chogo Lungma and
adjacent glaciers in 1902 and 1903, this served as our lower
station for the calculation of altitudes, and we arranged with
the Government official to keep a daily record of barometric
and thermometric readings at 8 a.m., 12, and 4 p.m. for us,
while we were away. This service he performed faithfully, and
we were thus supplied with a complete table of readings for
comparison with our own at all points reached during the
expeditions. On arrival at Skardo on 27th June, we found our man John,
who knew how to make himself comfortable, snugly settled at
the dak bungalow, the stone floor of his room well covered with
durries borrowed of the Tehsildar. Our provision boxes, over
which he kept jealous guard, were neatly arranged in rows in
another room. For us, knowing we never used bungalows when
we had our tents, he had secured a private bagh near by, shaded
by apricot trees and enclosed by a stone wall, where we could

24 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
be safe from intrusion. In this camp was soon pitched. We
remained at Skardo two days to perfect arrangements for the
further journey.
Three weeks having now passed since Mrs, Bullock ^^'orkman
had sprained her ankle, she decided to test its condition by
attempting the ascent of the so-called Rock of Skardo, a rock
elevation, the steep, verdureless, pathless slopes of which rise
behind the town to a height of about 1,200 feet. Zurbriggen
had not yet joined us, so she had to depend on the assistance
of the porter Giuseppe, who had never before been on a pathless
mountain. They started at 7 a.m., intending to return by noon. They
picked their wa}' slowly up the sharp shoulder, now and again
coming to large smooth slabs, which had to be traversed by
such crevices as nature had rent in them, for no Society of
Guides provides the rocks of Baltistan with convenient rope
and iron aids for hands and feet. Near the top two
chimneys nearly conquered them, as they had neglected to
take a rope. With care these were finally surmounted, and
at eleven o'clock the summit, a chaos of boulders, was
reached. The ankle had now become painful from the rough work to
which it had been subjected, and it was evident, that the descent
could not safely be made by the sheer route taken in the ascent.
The porter was despatched to find an easier way down. He
returned in half an hour with the information that he could
find none.
Mrs. Buhock Workman thought there must be an easier way
known to the natives, so she told the porter to return to camp
as speedily as possible, report, and bring back a coolie who
could guide her down. One water-flask being empty and the
other only half-full of tea, and having but two biscuits,
she reminded him not to forget to bring plenty of tea and
some luncheon also. After objecting somewhat to leavin-- her

THIRSTY HOURS ON SUN-BAKED SUMMIT. 27
there alone for hours, the porter shouldered the empty flask and
started down.
The noonday sun blazed fiercely upon the naked rocks, which
had become so hot that the hand could scarcely bear to touch
them. There was not a cloud in the sky to mitigate the fervour
of its rays. The whole summit reflected the heat like a fiery
furnace, which caused the skin of the climber to tingle and
her head to become giddy. It seemed as if her mind were
oozing away to join the heat waves that chased one another
over the Skardo plain.
She sought a shady spot among the boulders, but they
glistened with sunlight from top to bottom. After one o'clock
one great boulder cast a small shadow on the burning surface at
its base. Here she lay down with her head at least in the
shade, and tried to sleep, but without success. Thirst became
excessive. Every half-hour she indulged in two small
swallows of warm tea from the small stock in the heated
flask. By three o'clock only half a cupful remained, so she refrained
from further dissipation, and solaced herself with the thought
of the three quarts she had ordered the porter to bring up.
To pass away the time she made signals of distress to natives
working in the fields below, but they did not see, or paid no heed,
to her gestures.
About 4.30 p.m. she heard a shout, then a second. Her
throat was so dry she could not answer. Standing up, she saw
Giuseppe and a coolie scrambling up the wall. When they
arrived, she seized a two-quart flask of tea and drank cup after
cup until it was empty. Giuseppe looked at her in surprise,
as if he thought she had lost her mind, but he had not been
thirsting a whole day in a temperature of 90" in the shade and
160" in the sun. After a short lunch, the coolie leading the
way, they started down.
They crossed to the rear of the peak, and descended on its

28 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
north side to the wide plateau. Before reaching easy slopes an
old ruined fort clinging to a perpendicular scarp of rock had to
be passed. Around the outside of the wall there was no
foothold. The wall itself was in such a rotten, crumbling con
dition, that the coolie, who had the strength of a giant, was
able to knock a hole through it at a fa\-ourable point. Through
this he dropped about ten feet to a fairly substantial screes-
slope, where he waited. Giuseppe's woollen putties were then
tied securely together and used as a rope, held b}' which Mrs.
Bullock Workman descended through the opening. The coolie,
bracing himself on the shelving surface, supported first her feet
emerging from a cloud of dust, and then her body, till she
secured a firm footing. AMien a coolie undertakes to help a
person in a precarious position, he ma}' do so clumsily, but his
hold is sure and his assistance efficient.
The remainder of the descent was made over screes and
deep sand to a village on the Indus. Quenching their thirst
here again, the party returned to Skardo after thirteen hours'
absence. The experience was certainly an efficient test of the
condition of the ankle, which the next day was no worse for the
adventure. On 30th June, having arranged with the Tehsildar all details
for the supply of coolies and provisions, and with the post
master to forward our mail by dak-coolies, whom we should
send to him, we left Skardo for the further journey. A short
d'stance above Skardo the Indus was crossed in a flat-boat to
a large basin several miles in diameter, surrounded by moun
tains and deeply covered with sand. This basin had to be
crossed in order to reach Shigar.
The wind-storms which rage here almost every afternoon
have driven the sand into a series of remarkable sand-dunes.
These take the shape of long, elevated ridges and hillocks,
surmounted by sharp aretes and curling crests, some of which
strongly resemble snow-cornices. We could not perceive that

SAND-DUNES.

31

these actually overhung the perpendicular, though they probably
do -when formed in damp weather, the overhanging portions
afterwards crumbling and faUing when dried by the burning
sun, for loose sand was seen on the leeward slopes just below
the sharp edges.
The sand acts like snow under the influence of the wind,
and the result here was an exact counterpart of a high snow-

SAND-DUNES ABOVE SKARDO.
region exposed to strong winds. The tops of the highest of
these hillocks and ridges must have been three hundred feet
or more above the general level of the basin. They were
composed of fine white sand, while the lower slopes consisted
of coarser sand driven into wavelets three or four inches deep,
and from three to twelve feet in length.
The splintered rock-barrier forming the northern wall of
this basin having been passed, the wide Shigar valley is entered.

o^2 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
with its constant succession of villages surrounded by fruit-trees
and grain fields situated on fertile alluvial fans, which radiate
from the openings of gorges cleaving the mountain-barriers on
either side. The Shigar valley is renowned for the quality of
its apricots and mulberries, which are delicious, as \\-ell as for
the abundance of its grain. The village of Shigar is the principal
grain-depot of this region.

.a

':!

DR. W. HUNTER WORKMAN, WITH SHIGAR PONY.
In this valley the earliest glimmering of dawn was ushered in by
a full chorus of bird- voices, great and small. Prominent among
these were those of the sparrows, whose insistent twittering
pierced the air in ever}- direction with millions of fine needles
of sound, that formed a setting for the more melodious notes
of other species. By half-past five, when dawn had brightened
into daylight, the chorus ceased, and only the music of scattered
song-birds was heard.

AT MANGO.

33

The mountain-wall enclosing the Shigar valle}' on the east
terminates at its northern end, at the juncture of the Braldoh
and Shigar valleys, in a rock-peak called Buspar, formerly used
by the Indian Survey as a trigonometrical station. W'ishing
to ascend this peak to obtain a \-iew of the mountains on the
north, \\e marched from Yuno, near the northern end of the
Shigar valley, to the tiny village of Mango, situated a few

CAMP AT MANGO, SHIGAR VALLEY.

hundred feet above the valley on the flank of Buspar, at an
altitude of about 9,300 feet.
Mango, which has onl}' a dozen houses, could furnish no
supplies. Our servant John, or John Sirdar, as the natives
called him, who had preceded us, had a terrace large enough
for two tents banked up and levelled-off under a wide-spreading
walnut tree. He also had a cow brought up to supply milk,
and a sheep, fowls, and eggs, so that we were able to make
a comfortable camp on the only level spot in the place. This
ser\-ed as our headquarters for several days.
M. D

34 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
Here, on 4th July, Zurbriggen rejoined us, having returned
over the Ganto La from the region south of Haramosh. He
reported the south side of that and the adjacent peaks to be
rock-bound and very precipitous.
On 7th July, the weather being fine, we moved our camp
up the steep stone and silt-covered slope of Buspar to a grassy
maidan at the base of its rock-cone at an altitude of 13,800 feet.
The next morning, leaving camp at 7 o'clock, we climbed
to the summit, 14,940 feet on the Surve}- map, 15,200 b}- our
measurement, which was reached at 9.30, after some interesting
rock-work. The last thousand feet consists of a mass of splintered
granite blocks and boulders with grassy bits interspersed. The
sharp summit is a pyramid of granite seamed with perpendicular
fissures. A grand view is obtained from this peak of the Shigar,
Braldoh, and Basha valleys, and of the mountains beyond
them. On this occasion it was marred by the presence of
many clouds, especially concealing Ganchen and its neigh
bouring peaks, ^^¦hich more than any others we wished to stud^'.
After remaining three hours on the summit without obtaining
a view of these last, we returned to camp, and the next da^-
descended to Mango.

tf

ON SUMMIT MT. BUSPAR, 14,974 FT.

CHAPTER III.
Voyage on a Zak — Basha Valley — A Reconnaissance of Ganchen — Tents
— Recalcitrant Coolies — Ascent of Mt. Rachel — Caught in a Thunder-
Shower — Rock-climbing at High Altitudes.
The Shigar, like the Nubra river, consists of a network of
rushing, mud-laden streams, which anastomose with one
another throughout the whole extent of its broad valie}--bed,
enclosing islets of stones and sand brought down by floods
from the mountains above.
It is formed by the union of the Braldoh and Basha rivers.
The Braldoh, emerging from the Braldoh valley, di\'ides, one
large branch crossing the broad head of the Shigar valley to
join the Basha river coming down on its western side, while
another, sweeping around the base of Buspar, pursues its
course along the eastern side, till it unites with other wander
ing branches below Yuno. The courses of the various streams
are constantly changing.
There are no bridges in the Shigar valley, and the larger
streams have to be crossed by means of a primitive, apparently
frail, but really staunch craft, called a zak. This consists of
pig or goat skins, usually twenty-four in number, inflated and
attached by woollen cords to six or eight slender poles placed
parallel to one another. The skins are so arranged that the
legs project upwards, and they are inflated by blowing with the
mouth into the open end of one of the legs, which is securel}-
tied as soon as the skin is filled with air.
The zak is buoyant, and breasts the \\-aves of the most
turbulent streams in safety. It is managed b}- a crew of four
men, armed with willow or poplar poles about eight feet long,
with which they push it with considerable skill across the rapid

38 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
currents. It is so light that its crew can easily carry it to any
desired point, and the skins can be deflated, detached from the
poles, and packed for transport in a short time.
As it has no floor except the skeleton of poles, the passenger
must be careful where he treads, or he will find himself stepping
through into the water. He stoops so as to keep the centre of
gravitv low, balancing his feet on two poles, while he grasps
two others with his hands. The water often splashes over the
craft when well laden, wetting his feet to the ankles ; but this
is an incident he does not mind, so that he gets safely over the
river. The embarkation is made at a point hundreds of feet
above the landing-place on the other side to allow for the
rapidity of the current, which carries the zak swiftly downward.
As only five or six persons can be carried at one time, several
hours are required to get a large caravan over a river.
Intending to cross the two main streams to the west side of
the Shigar valley at a point opposite Mango, we sent an order
to Shigar to have the zak ready at the appointed place early on
the morning of the gth. It did not, however, arrive until too
late to get our large caravan over in time to reach a proper
camping ground on that day.
We accordingl}- decided to go down to Yuno, where the river
was less rapid and the crossing easier, to spend the night. The
caravan was despatched on foot, while we, with the guide and
porter, descended the river on the zak.
It is with something of a sensation, even when accustomed to
the rough-and-ready vicissitudes of exploring life, that one finds
oneself afloat on the troubled waters of a Himalayan mountain-
torrent on such a frail bark, with only the thickness of a goat
skin between one and destruction, borne irresistibly downward
at the rate of fifteen miles an hour, dancing up and down on
billows, of which Himalayan rivers can furnish tolerablv good
examples, whirling round and round in miniature maelstroms, in
spite of frantic movements of the four poles in the hands of the

DESCENDING RIVER ON ZAK.

39

crew, shooting now to one side and then to the other, diving
suddenl}' forward at redoubled speed as rapids are encountered,

OUR BEARER AND KHANSAMAH.

or scraping along the river-bed in shallow spots, with uncanny,
grinding, creaking, tearing sounds unpleasantly suggestive of
rents in the goat-skins, total collapse of the craft, and precipita
tion of its load into the seething waters around.

40 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
All this and more we experienced on that ride to Yuno.
Twice we ran fast aground, and only got off into the stream
again by dint of much pushing and hauling on the part of the
crew, who jumped into the water to lighten the zak. Thanks
to their zeal and skill, and to the fact that the stony pavement
of the river-bed, having become smoothed by long attrition.

MILLET FIELD, BASHA VALLEY.

caused the collapse of onl\- one goat-skin, we escaped shipwreck,
and reached Yuno long before the caravan, with wet feet, but
otherwise none the worse for the perilous journey.
The next morning the zak was again brought into use to take
the caravan over the large branch of the river directl}' beneath
Yuno. We then marched two miles across an intervening,
barren, rock-strewn tract, to a second large branch near the
western side of the valley. Here another smaller zak, which

THE BASHA VALLEY. 43
could only carry two persons at a time, was waiting. On this
we crossed the second river, and, leaving the coolies to follow
as fast as they could get over, made our way over sand and
boulders to the path leading to the Basha valley.
Below Tisser this path winds up and down over the face of
a rock-precipice overhanging the river, forming what in
Switzerland would be called a " mauvais pas." Ascending the
steep incline in a series of narrow steps, it descends again,
passing over four perpendicular drops by means of ladders, and
over two scaffolds, each formed by a long, slender tree-trunk
supported only at the ends, directh- overhanging the river at a
distance of about three feet from the face of the precipice.
We reached Tisser, at the entrance of the Basha valley, at
3 p.m., and camped in a clean, grassy meadow half a mile
beyond it.
The Basha is one of the richest valleys we have seen in
Himalaya. It is considerably narrower than the Shigar valle}-,
and its general trend is about a thousand feet higher than
corresponding parts of the latter. It has a large amount of
arable land, which is extremely fertile, and culti\ated to its
utmost capacit}-. Enormous crops of wheat, rye, oats, buck
wheat, millet, peas, maize, and other grains are raised, and the
fruit-trees, including apple, pear, and walnut, which grow in
profusion over its lower half, rival those of Shigar in size and
productiveness. Both sides of the river are dotted with
flourishing villages succeeding one another at short intervals.
Of these Doko, lying high, commanding a fine view of the
valley to the south, and surrounded by imposing rock and snow-
peaks, is the most picturesque. Its houses, like those of the
other Basha villages, neither attractive nor interesting archi-
tecturall}', are merely enclosures made of stones, wattles, and
mud, with flat roofs, intended to shelter sheep, goats, pigs, and
fowls, as well as human beings.
From Tandoro, a small oasis three hours' march above Doko,

44

ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.

we ascended a spur of Mount Sencho to a sloping plateau
called Huldero, where we camped at an aftftude of 13,500 feet.
Directly opposite this spot above the east side of the valley
towers the wild, snowy crest of Mt. Ganchen, 21,200 feet,
the highest Basha peak, of which we had an unobstructed \-iew,
as weU as of the somewhat lower snow-peak of Hikmul. The

Ganchen.

MTS. HIKMUL AND GANCHEN AS SEEN FROM HULDERO.
lower, rough rock-slopes of Ganchen fall precipitoush- to the
Basha valley. They are practicall}' unscalable. The main peak
above can only be reached from the Basha valle}- through a
steep, narrow nala, three miles to the north, running up behind
the outer ramparts of the massif.
Ganchen is an interesting-looking mountain. As there were
several days at our disposal before it was necessary to be on the
Chogo Lungma, we decided that a closer reconnaissance might

AT SESKO. 45
be useful and instructive, should we care to attack this mountain
at a later time. Accordingly, the next morning, descending
again to the valley, and rejoining the main caravan, we crossed
a jhula bridge spanning the Basha river, and soon reached
Sesko, lying at the base of Ganchen on the east bank of the
river. Sesko is the largest of the Basha villages, and its lambardar
is the highest official in the valley. The only place available
for a camp was a small bagh in the centre of the village, the
soil of which was boggy from the irrigation to which it had
been treated a few days previously, and which had recently
served as a pasturage for sheep. It was infested with flies and
insects, that settled in myriads on one's face and even crawled
into one's eyes. In one respect they resembled the mosquitos
of the Deosai plains. At sunset they took flight, and ceased to
make one's life miserable.
The lambardar supplied thirty-five coolies, who agreed to go
to the high regions above and remain with us as long as they
should be needed. Our servant John was ordered to remain at
Sesko with the bulk of the luggage, to send us supplies and
rela}-s of coolies if required, and we left on loth July to ascend
the left bank of the river over the sloping tali to the nala seen
from Huldero.
The lower end of this nala was occupied by an exceedingly
steep fan, scored by numerous dry, stone-strewn water-courses,
above which rose a high, still steeper, alluvial wall. After a
fatiguing ascent of about two thousand feet, we reached at
2.30 p.m. the top of the wall, a bleak wind-swept ridge bounding
a deep basin enclosed between it and two mountain flanks.
.\t this point we appeared to stand at the mouth of a cul de
sac, which would put an end to further progress, but we dis
covered a narrow path leading around the basin on the pre
cipitous left flank. We followed this for perhaps a mile, when
it ended at the opening of an arid side-ravine, through which

46 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
coursed a foaming torrent issuing from the snout of a much-
broken glacier.
We ascended this ravine, crossed the snout, and a short
distance further on reached, at 4.30 p.m., a grass-covered alp
rising at a sharp angle, on the top of which stood a dilapidated
shepherd's hut, occupied temporarily by three shepherds in
charge of sheep brought up from below to this summer
pasture. A shepherd in any country usually appears to be a
person of low intelligence, but the Himalayan shepherd is the
personification of primitive and unintelligent man, scarcely
higher in his habits than the animals under his care. These
shepherds were t}'pical of their kind.
Having gone as far as was possible on this day, we looked
around for a place to camp, but not a level spot large enough
for even the smallest of our tents could be found. The only
thing to do was, what we have often done under similar circum
stances, to have the coolies excavate terraces in the hillside.
Armed with our ice-axes and their own mountain-sticks, they
set to work hacking and punching at the soil, which was well
soaked by rain fallen the night before and during the day.
When it was loosened, they used their hands as shovels to move
it away and bank it up. In the course of the work two good-
sized boulders were encountered, which, after the removal of
the earth around them, were rolled away bv the united efforts
of all who could lay hands on them.
It is surprising how much can be accomplished without
adequate tools M-hen men really work with a will. By six
o'clock two level terraces were completed, each large enough
to hold a tent, but their surface was so muddy that they did
not offer inviting resting-places. Fortunately the dry bed of
a stream was discovered near b\-, covered with flat stones. The
coolies were formed in line between this and the terraces, and
the stones passed along from one to another till they were
deposited on the terraces, which were soon paved.

COOLIES PASSING STONES FOR PAVING TENT-TERRACE,

SNOW-LINE CAMP.

49

Tents were pitched in the deepening twilight, and the neces
sary furniture moved into them by lantern-light. About 8.30
the khansamah served a meagre dinner, after which we went to
bed with rain pattering on the canvas.

SNOW-LINE CAMP, 15,096 FEET, ON FLANK OF GANCHEN.
The next morning, leaving this place to its ooze and mud, we
continued the ascent up steep, wearisome slopes of grass and
rock, and finally over patches of neve, to an inclined plateau.
bordered by the first snow-fields of Ganchen. Here, at an
M. E

50 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
altitude of 15,096 feet, we established a camp, named Snow-hne
Camp, which was occupied for ten days. The place was not an
agreeable one. The snow had onl}- just melted, leaving the
ground, scantily covered with the matted and bedraggled
remains of last year's grass, wet and cold. The new vegetation
had not started.
A plan was adopted similar to that of the preceding day, and
tent-terraces were built \\ith stone slabs, which lay scattered
about. These lifted us above the wet, but \\-ere not conducive
to warmth, as the cold wind entered the tents freely through
the crevices between the slabs, which it was impossible to close.
Air circulating freel}- through the tents at temperatures never
above 45° F. at noon, and often below the freezing point at night,
made them anything but comfortable quarters. We suffered more
from cold at this camp than at any other during the whole
expedition, not even excepting snow-camps.
Our ordinary tents, supported b}- two poles and a cross-bar,
\\-ere made without any openings, except in front, where they were
closed with double flaps lapping over each other from either
side. The}- were all lined with putto, or with soft cotton. They
also had a border tweh-e inches wide around the whole lower
edge, including the fiaps, which, when turned in and weighted
with stones or other heav}- articles, effectually excluded the
-wind, when the tents stood on firm ground or on snow. In the
present case this device was useless.
Tents thus arranged were perfectly comfortable with ground-
sheets or durries, on glaciers or on snow, and, wherever they
could be carried \\e preferred them to Mummery tents on
account of their more convenient size. This class of tent we
have found it advisable to have made in India, as being cheaper,
lighter, and easier to handle than those made in Europe. .\
tent, eight b}- six b}- se\-en feet, with light bamboo poles, made
of white American drilling, lined with soft cotton, can be got
for about 2/. lo.s., which will be water and wind proof, weighs

E 2

VARIETIES OF TENTS USED. • 53
with poles only thirty-five pounds, and stands, with ordinary
care, at least three seasons of constant use. If something more
expensive be desired, khaki drill, or green jean, said to be
water and rot proof, can be used, but these are somewhat
heavier. We have found tents with side-walls more con
venient than those running down in one slant to the ground,
and also with the rear end rounded to offer less resistance to
the wind.
For high snow-work we have used tents of the Mummery
pattern modified to suit our needs. These have been from four
to five feet high, made of green jean lined with grey flannel,
with ground-sheets sewn in, with side-walls twenty inches high
and double flaps, spanned over two light bamboo poles by end
cords and by three cords on each side. We tried a regulation,
unlined, Willesden-canvas Whymper tent during our first
Himalayan season, but soon discarded it as being too heavy, too
difficult to set up, too cold, and of inconvenient shape. In
using a tent with ground-sheet sewn in, on an exposed
mountain-side, one feels a bit nervous in regard to the impossi
bility of escape, should the tent be carried away by \\-ind
and hurled into depths below. The fastenings of such a tent
should always be well secured. With larger tents a double fly
may afford some protection from the heat of the sun, but its
efficiency in this regard is slight, and, where transport facilities
are slender, it is a luxury that may well be dispensed with.
Silk tents, which have the advantage of being light, are not
sufficiently warm and substantial for the conditions existing in
high Himalaya.
Before the tents were fully pitched a snow-storm broke upon
us, and, for the next three da}-s, the sky was heavily obscured
and snow was falling most of the time, which prevented an}-
outside work, and kept us shivering under shefter. The camp
was a good distance above tree-growth, and the only fuel avail
able was short, scrubby brushwood, mostly sappy, and all of it

54 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
so wet as to be useless. Part of the coolies were, therefore, sent
down the mountain daily to fetch wood.
The fourth day being fine, advantage was taken of the sun
shine to visit the snow-fields abo\'e the camp to look about and

PEAKS NORTH-WEST FROM SNOW-LINE CAMP.
photograph. Mrs. Bullock Workman and Zurbriggen ascended
a rock and snow-summit of 16,500 feet, which was named
Practise Peak. The snow had softened on the return so that
we sank into it to the knees at every step.
On 2ist July, at 6.45 a.m., we left Snow-line Camp, with thirty
coolies, to make a reconnaissance ofthe snow-region leading up

MOUNT GANCHEN. 57
to Ganchen, and, so far as possible, of that peak itself. We
ascended several long snow-slopes and shoulders, reaching in
two hours a large, gently inclined, but considerably crevassed
snow-field lying between Ganchen and its sister-peak Hikmul.
No great difficulty was experienced in crossing this. Leaving
Hikmul on the left, we made directly for Ganchen, which seemed
to rise from its eastern end.
This proved not to be the case, for when, early in the after
noon, we reached a long, curving, snow-ridge, ending above in
a broken, jagged, rock-arete covered with granite slabs, some of
which projected from its edge, we found this marked the rim of
a large snow-basin several hundred feet deep, the walls of which
dropped perpendicularly from the arete, and fell awa}- in a slant
of 60° from the snow-ridge. Bordering the edge of the ridge
near the arete was a depression, where we camped in soft snow
(Camp Ganchen) at an altitude of 17,217 feet.
From the depths of the basin and forming its wall on the
other side, shot up the snowy main peak of Ganchen, in a
series of castellated ice-precipices, terraced one above another,
tremendously massive, yet gracefully ethereal and apparently
inaccessible, as it stood silhouetted in wondrous majesty against
the cloudless sky.
Were an ascent to be attempted from the side where we
were, it would be necessary to descend the sharp snow-slant to the
bottom of the basin and scale the glittering, broken wall for two
or three thousand feet to a break, where two or three Mummery
tents might be placed. From here, up steep inclines of rock and
snow to a lower bosse-like summit, and then over easier slopes
to the final peak, an alluring snow-cone.
A band of trained mountaineers might, perhaps, be able to
accomplish this, but it would be a difficult task, which,
certainl}-, could not be done with coolies. As in cases of
some other snow - mountains, the intermediate portion
between Camp Ganchen and the spot where a final bivouac

58 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
might be made would be by far the most difficult part of
the ascent.
After our tents had been pitched, the coolies, disdaining to use
their tent, betook themselves to the shelves and recesses of the
arete, now well warmed by the sun, where the}- seemed as
much at home as a troop of monkeys, roosting in the most
unceremonious manner upon projecting slabs, in positions the
mere sight of which made one shudder. Tea and tobacco
were served out to them, of which luxuries they eagerly availed
themselves. The next morning when the}- were called they did not
respond readily, which excited our suspicions as to their
intentions. After a while two-thirds of them came out of their
lodging-place, and took a direction which would lead them
down the mountain rather than to our camp. We headed them
off on the only path the}- could escape by, and soon persuaded
them to go to their loads. Zurbriggen now went up to the
arete and found ten more hiding among the rocks. Four of
these fled while we were busy with the main body, and made
for the lower camp without waiting to learn where we intended
to go on that da}-, bearing with them the rations of their
compatriots. Had we proposed to move higher up, the attempt
would have been in vain, as not a coolie would have gone a
step further.
As if in accord ^vith the mood of the coolies the brilliant
weather of the previous da}- changed, and by 7 a.m., as we
started downward, the sky became heavily overcast, all signs
indicating an approaching storm. We returned to Snow-line
Camp, to be housed again by driving snow.
About a mile north of Snow-line Camp a heavily seamed and
broken glacier, somewhat more than half a mile wide, sweeps
down from the icy side of Hikmul towards the Basha valle}-.
On the northern bank of this glacier and rising up sharply
above it is a mountain-spur terminating above in several pointed

ASCENT OF MT. RACHEL. 6i
rock-peaks. We decided to attempt the highest of these, and
accordingly left camp at 7 a.m. with guide, porter, and one
instrument-coolie. Our enjoyment of this, as of all special
mountain and glacial work, was much enhanced by the fact
that we were free from the droning band of luggage-coolies,
whose presence was always a threat to the success of a da}-'s
expedition. We ascended over the snow-fields above the camp and then
descended to the glacier, through the intricacies of which
a way was found. At ten o'clock the base of the highest peak
on its further bank was reached. The peak towered some t\\'o
thousand feet directh- above the glacier. This, like others in
the region, is composed of granite, its side rising at angles of
45° to 60°, being much broken and covered with boulders,
slabs, and splintered fragments, which rendered the ascent
arduous, footholds in places being difficult to find. Here and
there large loose stones had to be dislodged from our path, which
started stone avalanches, that crashed downward to the glacier.
At mid-da}- a short col, connecting the two narrow wedges
which formed the main and lower summits, was reached, where
we took tiffin. Warily traversing this col we attacked the face
of the highest wedge, composed of a series of narrow and
steep but substantial ledges. Just below the top two formidable
gendarmes were propitiated, and at two o'clock we stood on
the top at an altitude of 17,600 feet, or rather took turns in
standing there, as it was a knife-edge, falling away in precipices
on three sides, where there was room for only two persons at a
time. The downward view to the north was startling. A clean
sweep of fifteen hundred feet of black rock ended in a wide
bergschrund followed b}- a long snow-slant that would greet a
climber with defiance. On the west, beneath us, rose a series
of rock-needles, which looked ready to impale anything that
might fall from where we stood. Toward the south, Mustagh

62 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
giants loomed impressively. On the east, dark thunder-clouds
were rolling towards us from Ganchen, so, after exposing a few
plates, taking readings, and leaving our names in a glass jar,
serious attention had to be given to the descent.
Progress was slow, and, before the narrow col was reached,
peal after peal of thunder reverberated among the peaks, and a
heav}- shower of rain and hail beat down, wetting us to the skin.
Few things are more trying to the mountaineer than the descent
from a steep rock-summit in a thunder-storm. There is impera-
ti\-e necessity for haste and equally for the utmost caution ;
consequenth- the dilemma is obvious. This was the severest
thunder-storm we had met with during four seasons in Himala}-a,
where they are rare.
B}- the time the glacier was reached we all needed a short
rest to restore our strained nerves. The storm had passed, but
the jagged glacier, left by it slippery and in its worst condition,
now remained to be passed. B}- the exercise of care and patience
this was effected, and we arrived at camp after a fourteen
hours' absence. The conquered peak was named Mt. Rachel.
The subject of rock-chmbing at over 18,000 feet does not
appear to have been discussed b}- the few alpinists who have
visited the Asiatic mountains. As our lantern views of the
magnificent, many times magnified, Grepons and Cervins of
Himalaya have been thrown on the screen in various parts of
the world, alpinists present have remarked, " What wonderful
mountains ! What aiguilles ! If these are climbable, what
opportunfties for rock-work the Karakoram offers!" "Yes," we
answer, "if climbable": for rock-gymnastics on ' the great
castellated granite-massifs and cathedral-spires rising along the
course of the Biafo, Chogo Lungma, Hoh Lumba, and other
glaciers, to a height of 20,000 to 23,000 feet, present quite a
different kind of task from those offered by Swiss mountains.
.\ rock-face of five hundred feet in the latter assumes a pro
portion of two thousand feet on an Asiatic colossus ; a gendarme

MT. RACHEL, I7,6o3 FEET. TELEPHOTO FROM ARANDU TWELVE MILES DISTANT.

ROCK-CLIMBING.

65

of fifty feet that of five hundred ; and a chimney, in its formation,
perhaps, no worse than a Swiss one, becomes formidable on
account of its height, so that an ascent that on a smaller scale

ON SUMMIT OF MT. RACHEL, 17,600 FEET, BASHA VALLEY.
and at a lower altitude might be easily handled by an expert
climber, would, on a peak of 20,000 feet, become an exhausting
and impossible grind.
To these difficulties must be added the rapid and extensive
M. !•¦

66 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
weathering of the exposed rocks, rendering them rotten and
dangerous ; the verglas, which may quickly disappear in mid
summer on peaks like the Dent Blanch, but clings more
persistently to the surface of the storm-tortured Himalayas ; and
the rarefaction of the air at great altitudes, which, however well
a person may endure its effects, makes measured movement and
frequent halts for breath a necessity. In difficult situations the
breath could not be held long enough to make the exertion
required to o\-ercome an obstruction, nor would it suffice to
support a series of quick movements which might have to be
made.

LAMBARDAR OF ARANDU AND WIPE.

F 2

CHAPTER IV.
At Arandu — Selecting Coolies — Arandu Lambardar — Arandu Women —
Start for the Chogo Lungma — Glacier and Mountains — Life at Riffel
Camp — Paying Coolies — Outlook from Riffelhorn.
Fearing, if we remained longer, that the jarring elements
might interfere with the main work of the summer, we beat a
retreat from the fascinating Basha uplands, and went to Arandu
(9,519 feet), the last and highest village in the valley, a compact
nest of houses nestling in the midst of cultivated fields, a final
dot of irrigation-nurtured green poised between the converging
tongues of the Tippur and Chogo Lungma glaciers.
We headed a long, though it could not be said merry, band of
coolies and chief men, as we passed through the village on 25th
July in a drenching rain on the way to a small, grassy, willow-
shaded bagh, some sevent}''-five feet higher up on the slope.
The rain-soaked grass and grain overhanging the narrow path
waist-high creaked as we plunged through, deluging our limbs
and feet with a continuous shower.
The villagers offered us a hut as a protection against the
inclement weather, but we declined the offer, preferring a camp
on the wet grass of the bagh to the risks involved in exposing
ourselves to the nameless discomforts of a native habitation.
Besides two Wasirs, or head-men, from Shigar, who came with
us, a Government chaprassi, and several Basha lambardars met
us at Arandu. While the weather was righting itself, we spent
a day selecting coolies from a large number collected for our
inspection. Although there was little choice, we picked out the
strongest, best clothed, and least stupid-looking of the motley
crowd, rejecting those who had no woollen clothing, as well as
several affected with diseases of the eyes and skin. On account

70 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
of the nature of the service required of them the question of
clothing was a matter the importance of which neither coolies
nor lambardars seemed able to grasp. On more than one
occasion, later on, coolies, that were sent to replace those who
had given out, presented themselves in the snows far up the
glacier clothed only in a cotton shirt, their legs being bare.
They were, of course, of no value to us, and after being fed were
sent back as soon as possible.
It was desirable to take one ofthe Basha lambardars with us
in charge of the coolies, to keep them in order and distribute
their food, which was provided by us at considerable trouble
and cost. The only one of the lambardars who had sufficient
backbone to be willing to undertake this service was the
lambardar of Arandu. The others, as we afterwards learned to
our cost, were a craven, worthless lot, who, having promised
to render all possible assistance, could not be depended on even
to furnish the supplies for which they were paid.
The Arandu lambardar accompanied us both in igo2 and 1903.
He was a pretty fair mountaineer and by no means a coward.
There was something in him to which one could appeal, which
is more than can be said of many of his race. His moral code
was not modelled after the strictest Christian ideals, but the
results of its practical application were not very different from
what one sees in Christian lands.
Though we never felt sure of his loyalty, through a judicious
mixture of coaxing, threatening, and promises of a good
bakhshish, he was induced to remain tolerably faithful to us,
and proved really useful in keeping the coolies up to their
work. In comparison with the nine other Basha lambardars
we came to regard him almost as a friend and as a pattern of
Balti moralit}-. When the cowardice and moral obliquity of
the rest are considered, his shortcoming must be regarded
with lenienc\-.
Arandu is a small village, having at that time onlv thirty

ARANDU WOMEN. 73
coolies. Twenty of these v^ere enrolled among our force for this
expedition, and later all of them were in our service. The}- were
the best clothed, and proved themselves the most active and
reliable of the Basha coolies, standing by us on two occasions
when others deserted.
While we were at Arandu, at different times, the chief women

ARANDU WOMEN (REAR VIEVV).
of the village paid visits to our camp, bringing offerings of
rancid w-alnuts and dried apricots. They had on all their finery,
which consisted chiefl}- of bead-necklaces and circular flattened
metal-discs worn on the breast. Just beneath these bunches of
keys were suspended by thongs from their garments. These
were not the keys of chests containing evening gowns and

74 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
jew-el-boxes, but the}- opened the doors of pig-sties, chicken-
coops, and sheep-pens. They were not worn for ornament
only, but also for securit}- when the owner w-ent abroad, lest
some friend might effect an entrance and carry off a sheep w-orth
a rupee. The wealth and importance of the owner were also indicated
b}- the number of keys carried. The lambardar's wife had four
bunches, and the two women next in importance three. These
women, like those of Ladakh, give special attention to dressing
their hair, which hangs in many small braids from the side and
back of the head, reinforced by a generous quantity of dark w-ool,
to below the waist, where it is gathered into one plait, which,
reaching nearly to the ankles, ends in small tufts or tassels.
This arrangement is so elaborate and requires so much time to
complete that it is said to be renewed only a few times in a
year. On the morning of the 28th July our caravan, consisting of
ourselves, guide, porter, fifty-five coolies, fifteen goats and
twelve sheep, left Arandu to ascend the glacier. The sheep
were taken for food, to be killed as needed, the goats to supply
fresh milk for the guide and porter. The Himalayan goat is
a smaller, more graceful animal than the European, its odour
is far less strong, and its milk more palatable. We never used
the last ourselves, preferring condensed milk, but the guides
liked it and had great faith in it as an article of diet. At all
camps below the snow-line the sheep and goats were able to
find plenty of food among the various forms of vegetation.
The lambardar said he had been up the nala along the side
of the glacier for about two marches. Beyond that distance he
knew nothing of it. The start was delayed an hour by the
necessity of hunting out a number of unwilling coolies who had
hidden themselves.
We crossed the dirt}- tongue of the glacier, here about a mile
wide, to the left bank, and ascended for eight hours in the

AT BURTSA CAMP. 75
moraine-strewn space between the glacier and the mountains
left by the recession of the ice, when we came to a narrow-,
torrent- washed, side-nala, about eight miles above Arandu -

BURTSA CAMP, II,5O0 FEET, CHOGO LUNGMA.
The onl}- level spot in this nala was a small sand^- maidan just
at its mouth, which was occupied b^- a sportsman, who had
preceded us by a few days from .Arandu. He was the last
European w-e saw- in ten weeks.
The remaining surface of the nala w-as uneven and covered

76 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
with debris and rocks washed down from above, among which
flourished a strong growth of willows, poplars, and the aromatic
burtsa. After some search a reasonably flat place was found,
about which, after some clearing away of stones and bushes,
tents could be scattered. This was named Burtsa Camp. Its
altitude was 11,500 feet.
We were detained here three days by bad weather. On the
first of these, to occupy the coolies, the lambardar and thirty
of them were sent further up the side of the glacier to collect
all the wood the}- might find for future use. Judging from
European standards, one would say that thirty men could cut
and gather enough wood in a day to keep us in fuel for some
time. Towards midday, strolling out ourselves for exercise, we
came on the whole company, about two miles above camp,
sitting idle on the hillside, not having cut a single stick. We
set them at work immediatel}-, and the following day sent
the porter out with them with instructions to see that they
accomplished what they were ordered to do.
After Burtsa Camp was left the path became rougher, the
glacial walls and lateral moraines higher, rising above the line
of march by seventy-five to one hundred and fifty feet, so that
for long distances we could not see the upper surface of the ice.
At 5.30 p.m. we camped on a sandy maidan covered at one end
with a scanty growth of grass. Between Burtsa Camp and this
camp the hillsides for several hundred feet above the glacier
were dotted with cedars of moderate size, standing singly or
in groups of two and three. Many of these were shattered by
lightning or storms. Even below Burtsa Camp the quantity of
wood growth was scarcely greater, and of forest, as ordinarily
understood, there was none.
On this day's march we passed a number of prostrate cedar
trunks much larger than any of those now standing, which,
though they had evidently been lying for many years, were still
sound. The positions of these were noted, as from them our

ASCENDING SECOND SECTION OF CHOGO LUNGMA. LARGE MORAINE BEHIND FIGURES IS IN CENTRE

ON THE CHOGO LUNGMA. 79
season's fuel-supply would have to be obtained. Both these
and the growing cedars ceased at about the place where this
camp was placed, so we named this Last Wood Camp. Its
altitude was 12,679 feet. From here the upper part of the
great ice-river comes into full view, its white surface banded
with dark moraines, running man\- miles to the west, becoming
more arctic in character as it rises among the towering snow-peaks
in which it takes its origin.
Leaving Last Wood Camp on 4th August we traversed a
stretch of rough moraine falling from the tongue of a large
receding branch-glacier, which no longer reached the Chogo
Lungma, climbed several hundred feet over a mountain shoulder
to avoid passing under a dangerous, perpendicular, stone-packed
clay-cliff, and then took to the glacier itself a short distance
below the Bolucho branch.
Getting on the glacier was not so easy as it might appear,
for the ice for a quarter of a mile from the bank w-as broken
into huge, irregular masses separated by wide crevasses unspanned
by snow-bridges. We led the caravan in a serpentine course
through these to the middle portion of the glacier, which,
though striated by giant medial moraines and elevated ridges
intersected by large crevasses, afforded a safer path, which
was followed upward in the glacial axis. In this white wilder
ness, now- visited by man for the first time, squads of coolies
could be seen throughout the day resting or plodding along
\\-ith tents, bags, and boxes.
As we advanced, of a sudden, w-e w-ould be brought up standing
on the brink of a deep, blue ice-chasm, at the bottom of which,
to judge from the roar, a hundred ice-blocked streams were
meeting in anger. How graphically the word moulin describes
this phase of glacial life and energy. It is not the mill of
enterprise grinding away for human progress, but the mill of
Nature sounding tirelessly by day and night, helping to bring
about manifold changes of advance and recession, turning into

8o ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
crevasses and splitting into seracs the apparently inert but
really ever-changing glacial mass.
The Chogo Lungma, which widens as it ascends, here attains
a width of over two miles. Twenty miles above the tongue it
makes a bend to the south-west, forming a large basin, into
which projects a rock-promontory, the end of a spur sent down
by a cluster of mighty serrated peaks piled over one another in
chaotic grandeur, and rising above the glacier with spectacular
effect. The highest of these is a beautiful snow-needle, towering
nine thousand feet above the glacier, fixed from afar by the
Indian Survey at 22,810 feet, and known on its records as
Indus Nagar Watershed Peak, No. 4. This is one of the
personalties of the Chogo Lungma, being with one exception
the most prominent landmark, visible from most points on its
upper half and upper branches, as well as from heights from a
long distance.
One might imagine the great ice-stream, which to this point,
though receiving several tributaries, sweeps upward with
unbroken contour, to be cleft in two by this rugged wedge
thrown out by these monarchs of rock and snow, for here it
divides into two arms, one of which, turning to the right,.
ascends north-west as the prolongation of the glacier, while the
second runs south-west to the north wall of Mt. Haramosh.
The end of the promontory, where it falls away to the
glacier, was free from snow and clothed with grass and low
bushes. These circumstances, together with its central position,
rendered it the most desirable, and indeed the only suitable,.
place in the region for the base-camp. The pressure caused by
the meeting of the tw-o glacial arms off its point had broken
up the ice and raised it in a fringe of huge seracs, separated by
deep crevasses, which barred the approach on both sides. The
guides were occupied for two hours in cutting a passage through
this barrier, so that coolies and animals could pass.
When all were safely landed, we established our camp, on

INDUS NAGAR WATERSHED PEAK NO.

4, 22,810 FEET. IN FRONT CATHEDRAL PEAK, AND AT END OF SPUR
THE RIFFELHORN.

AT RIFFEL CAMP. 83
the afternoon of 4th August, on the slope about a hundred feet
above the glacier, at an altitude of 14,067 feet, building out
terraces for the tents to stand on. This was named Riffel
Camp. It served as our base for a month, and from it all our
explorations of this neighbourhood were conducted.
Here all supplies and outfit were collected. Here the coolies
built huts for themselves in the crannies of the rocks with slate
slabs, which covered the ledges, and a busy village soon sprang
up on a spot never before trodden by the foot of man. Gangs
of coolies were sent down to the hillsides below to cut and
bring up firewood, and to fetch provisions for us and themselves
from Arandu, where the\' w-ere delivered from the other villages.
Here also our mail was brought by dak or post-coolies in our
employ, who were kept constantly on the route between the
camp and Skardo, the last post-village seven marches distant.
Here we experienced various phases of mountain-life, shiver
ing through days of pelting snow-storm, basking on the slope
when the sun shone, resting after arduous glacial and mountain
work, and, taking the bitter with the sweet, living a glorious
untrammelled mountain-existence, to be found nowadays onl}-
in the unexplored corners of the world.
The goats and sheep seemed to regard the place as their
natural habitat. By da}- they roamed at will o\-er the grass}-
slopes under the watchful eye of a goatherd, and at nightfall,
or in bad weather, retreated to shelters built for them by the
coolies. They were happ}- enough except when, as happened
once or twice, so much snow fell that they could not burrow
through it to get a nibble at the grass beneath.
Time at this camp never hung heav}- on our hands, even
when we were storm-bound, as was the case for days together ;
for there was always plent}- of work to be done in taking
observations, writing up notes, developing negatives, making
repairs and preparations for further movements, and looking
after the thousand and one matters that pertain to the
G 2

84 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
organisation of a mountaineering and exploring expedition
that emplo\-ed from eighty to one hundred coolies.
The coolies sent down the glacier for provisions and -wood
soon learned to find their way alone through the jagged seracs,
w-hich, encircling our air}- perch with a barrier of ice instead
of fire, con\-erted it into a kind of Brunnhildaberg that we

AL FRESCO LUNCH, RIFFEL CAMP.
W-ere the first to storm. In spite of repeated warnings, how
ever, they persisted in using as a passage from the seracs to
the smooth ice below, a deep furrow formed at the line of
junction of the two glaciers, which, though the shortest and
easiest route, w-as exposed to danger from falling stones.
One da}-, as a number of coolies laden with wood were coming
through this furrow, a large stone loosened by the sun's heat

INDUS NAGAR WATERSHED PEAK NO. 4, 22,8lO FEET. A MILE IN FRONT CATHEDRAL
PEAK. (TELEPHOTO.)

SUMMIT OF RIFFELHORN, 15,337 FEET, WITH CAIRN.

INCIDENTS AT RIFFEL CAMP. 89
fell from the ice fifty feet above, striking one of them on the hip
and knocking him senseless. There was a great outcry among
his companions and an uproar in the camp, as the lambardar
and numerous coolies rushed down to the aid of their injured
comrade. They brought him up, his head, arms, and legs each
supported by a coolie, singing a dismal chant as the}- came.
The khansamah said it was a death-song, for they thought he
was dead.
When they arrived he was unconscious, and his e.xtremities
were cold, though no bones were fractured, and, in spite of
blankets and such measures as could be taken, he remained in
this condition till the next morning, when coolies were detailed
to take him down to Arandu. We never learned whether he
recovered or died. He was the only coolie injured while with
us on any of our expeditions.
At this, as at other camps, coolies often came to us complain
ing of illness and asking to be discharged. They were carefully
examined, and if found to have fever, gastric disturbance, or
other symptoms of illness, were paid off and permitted to depart.
Otherwise they were told there was nothing the matter with
them. It was seldom they feigned illness a second time.
Pay-days at this camp were busy days. A list was kept of
the names of each coolie, of his father, and of the village from
which he came, to distinguish him from others bearing the same
name, the variety of names not being great. Also the date w-hen
his service began and on which he was last paid. The coolies
were all ranged in line by the lambardar, who brought them up
one b\- one. The amount due to each was given to the lambar
dar, who counted it and handed it to the coolie in our presence.
This furnished a guarantee that the coolie was paid. His name
being checked, the next was brought up. At the time of pay
ment the lambardar gave the coolies the whole amount paid,
deducting nothing for himselfi Whether he afterwards collected
his dastur from them, w-e did not learn. When sixty to eighty

90 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
coolies were to be paid, considerable time had to be devoted to
the process.
The weather here was cool and often stormy. The tempera
ture during August at 6 a.m. ranged from 27° to 37*" F., and at
noon from 47'" to 55° F. in the shade. It was seldom that a
sun temperature at noon could be taken on account of clouds,
but on one of the few occasions when this was possible the black-
bulb thermometer registered 163° F. The next year the sun
temperatures greatly exceeded this figure. The lowest minimum
at night was 20° F. As the camp was surrounded on all sides
by ice and snow, the wind was cool, from whichever direction
it blew, which made al fresco meals out of the question, but
occasionally we were able to take tiffin in the open.
From the promontory two sharp rock summits rise, one of
w-hich, directly above our camp, so strongly resembles the
Riffelhorn at Zermatt as seen from the Corner glacier, that we
christened it the Asiatic Riffelhorn. Although a pigmy in com
parison with the peaks around it, it is a giant as compared with
the Zermatt peak, having an altitude of 15,337 feet to the latter's
9,617. It is peculiar in that a wide band of black slate is
superimposed from bottom to top on the grey granite of which
it mainly consists.
The morning after arrival at Riffel Camp being pleasant, we
ascended the Riffelhorn with guide, porter, and a coolie to carry
instruments. This gave us a stimulating rock-climb varied by
a chimne}- a short distance below the top. The top is small,
having only room for four persons to rest comfortably on at the
same time ; but from its position, standing out like a sentinel in
the centre of the vast amphitheatre of the upper Chogo Lungma,
it commands a scene of unrivalled glory. From it were revealed
to us in a moment the trackless ice-fields and peerless summits
among which we were to live and sleep for several weeks.
Directly beneath us the steep, mottled, grey-and-black wall
we had just ascended fell away to the sloping plateau dotted

SECTION OF ICE-LAKE IN CENTRE OF CHOGO LUNGMA WITH REFLECTION

GLACIER AND LAKE. 93
with tents, coolie and sheep huts. Beyond this the great seamed
and riven glacier, its surface like a frozen white-capped stretch
of ocean, descended to the east for tw-ent}- miles until lost to
view- among an infinitude of peaks, and rose sharpl}- on the west
nine iniles to its snowA' source at 20,000 feet, bordered on both
sides by peaks of varied outline towering from 22,000 to nearly
25,000 feet, a veritable stairway ofthe gods.
Opposite Riffel promontory in the middle of the broad expanse
nestles in ic}- setting an exquisite lake, reflecting like a crystal
not only the deep blue of the sky but also the bold needles of
the peaks beyond. To the south-west the full course of a
splendid crevassed glacier catches the e}-e, running straight
aw-ay eleven and a half miles to the base of Mt. Haramosh,
which, like a white eagle with spread wings, hovers over a weird
glittering world of rare beauty.
Such a point for observation and photograph}- is rarely found.
We returned to it several times to study the topography of the
region, and the moods of the mountains so varied and so almost
human under the quickly-changing aspects of a Himalayan
summer sky. We built a stone-cairn on the top, which can be
seen for a long distance, in which notes of the summer's work
were left, and later of a traverse of this peak.

CHAPTER V.
Coolie-Panic among Seracs — Serac Camp — Ascent of Cornice Peak — Trial
of a Sledge — March to Upper Chogo Lungma — Deserted by Coolies —
Tiresome March — A Mighty Avalanche — Foggy Camp — Retreat to
Serac Camp — A Sixty-hour Snow-Storm — Another Coolie Desertion.
After affairs at Riffel Camp had been put in working order,
leaving the lambardar and all weak and insufficientl}- clothed
coolies behind, w-e set out with fift\--five of the strongest, carry
ing camp-outfit, pro\isions, and wood, to explore the upper part
of the Chogo Lungma, which stretches awa}- nine miles to the
base of the snow-wall in which it takes its origin.
For a mile above Riffel promontory the glacier is broken into
great seracs separated by wide and deep crevasses. We had to
pass through the labyrinth formed by these, and, as no investi
gation of its mazes had been made before starting, considerable
time was spent in finding a route adapted to the mountaineering
powers of the coolies, and cutting steps up and down the ice-
slants. We went ahead with the guide and porter, roped, the coolies
following well enough with some assistance at difficult points,
till we came to a large serac cut off from the glacier above by
wide crevasses, which barred further progress in that direction.
The caravan was halted and the four Europeans w-ent ahead to
seek an outlet.
After a time, as none was apparent and there were signs of
uneasiness among the coolies, we unroped and returned to them,
leaving Zurbriggen and the porter to continue the search. In
difficult positions it is fatal to gi\-e coolies much time to reflect.
Every band of them includes a glib-tongued individual possessed
of oratorical powers, who is sure to seize the opportunity to set

'^

('\R.\\-,\N AMONi; .Skk.vcs o\ Ciiih-.h I.unc.m.v.

A COOLIE-PANIC. 97
them all by the ears. It was so in this instance. By the time
we reached them the orator had wrought them into a panic, not
one man being open to reason.
Had the moment not been a critical one — for had we yielded
then, there would have been an end of glacial investigation — the
scene would have been most amusing. The howling mass of
humanity, some with loads, some without, were jumping about,
gesticulating, pointing to their feet and up and down the glacier,
w-hile several entirely beside themselves were sprawling like
frightened beetles prone upon the ice, frantically clawing it with
hands and feet. The khansamah and a village head-man were
showing their contempt of these last by belabouring them \-igor-
ously with their bergstocks, which castigation had the effect to
partially recall them to their senses.
As a last resort the ringleader made a fervid appeal to the
Memsahib, begging her to return. He had no suspicion that she
was the most obdurate person in the party, so far as returning
was concerned. Zurbriggen now appeared and reported he had
found an easy exit near at hand.
Finall}', through the united efforts of the Sahib, khansamah,
and village head-man, order was restored, and the coolies,
shouldering their loads slowly followed the guide, the orator,
under the supervision of the Sahib, heading the line.
The serac- belt was succeeded b}- about two miles of fairly
smooth ice, after w-hich came a terraced ice-fall extending across
the glacier. Having partly ascended this, we followed the
terraces over to the north bank, where quite a large spot on
the mountain-flank was free from snow, the last bare spot
found. This w-as reached earl}- in the afternoon. Here we
decided to make a secondary base-camp for the work higher up,
which would also ser\-e as a camp of refuge in case w-e w-ere
driven down by storms.
It could not be called an ideal camping ground, being so
slanting that luggage and boxes had to be propped up with

98 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
stones when placed on the ground, to prevent them from rolling
dow-n the mountain-side. It took three hours for the coolies
under our supervision to dig aw-ay the soil and build terraces for
the tents.
The situation w-as magnificent. Above the camp precipices
and snow-slopes towered towards the sky. At our feet lay the
glacier broken into thousands of pinnacles, which swept upward
for a long distance in a broken and confused mass. Across the
glacier immense snow-peaks shot up like ghostly sentinels.
One of the most singular and beautiful of these was a sharp thin
crest, rising in the centre to a point, the whole sky-line of which
was fringed with snow-cornices, from projecting points of which
rock-ribs ran down over its steep, broad, snow-covered face, the
spaces between them being gullied in a hundred places by
avalanches, giving the w-hole a peculiar channelled appearance,
from which we named it the Furrowed Peak.
Peaks of this order, surmounted by overhanging cornices,
which send down frequent volleys of avalanches to score their
snow-w-alls, we have seen only in the Karakoram, where a number
have been met with.
This camp, the altitude of which was 15,096 feet, was named
Serac Camp. We built a substantial stone cairn two hundred
feet above it on a projecting point, in which was placed a record
of the interesting explorations made from this camp.
The next da}- we ascended a snow-summit rising from the
wall above the camp. The first 2,400 feet gave us more hard
grinding work than we remember to have had on any peak of
similar height. We had to encounter, not an interesting rock
face, but a succession of rotten rocks interspersed with broken
shale and screes-covered slants rising at angles, as shown by
clinometer, of upwards of 50°, the ascent of which w-as very
fatiguing. After a four-hours' scramble up this part, the base
of a very steep snow-wall, about three hundred feet high, was
reached, which, happily for us, was still at eleven a.m. in a

FURROWED PEAK WITH CORNICED SKYLINE, UPPER CHOGO LUNGMA
(TELEPHOTO.)

H 2

PASSING A CORNICE.

101

condition for step-cutting. This was surmounted b}- a wide,
projecting, dangerous-looking cornice.
Leaving all superfluous kit and the instrument-coolie, who
declined to venture up the wall, we attacked it, and in due time
stood beneath the cornice. Three of us braced ourselves for

CAIRN ABOVE SERAC CAMP.

holding on, while Zurbriggen, letting out a good length ot rope,
proceeded to breach the cornice at its thinnest part with his
axe, and tread out a passage through its defiant front.
Presently he reached a safe position above, and w-e followed
one by one through the chimney he had made, until all, after a
tussle with an ic}- edge, were safely landed on the border of

102 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
the upper snow-plateau, from which the remaining snow-fields
to the top were soon covered. The top, a rounded snow-dome,
w-as reached in just five hours from camp. We named it
Cornice Peak. The h\-psometric readings compared with
corresponding ones at lower station place its altitude at
17,814 feet. The temperature in the shade at noon (7th
.\ugust) w-as 54° F.
This climb added much to our knowledge of the topo^raphy
of the region. We had an unobstructed view of nearly the
whole of the Chogo Lungma glacier, and a splendid vision of
its enclosing peaks and of the glittering coronet of Haramosh and
its snow\- sister-peaks. To the north, separated from us b^- a
wide gap, rose three magnificent summits, which were destined
to be the scene of part of our work the following year. Their
flanks gave birth to an important tributary of the Chogo
Lungma, of whose existence we had thus far known nothing,
which sweeps down to the north of and directly beneath Cornice
Peak. This was explored b}- us to its head some da}-s later.
The view suggested plent\- of additional work, and we all
agreed that Cornice Peak was worth the candle, in spite of the
fact that its technical difficulties had proved greater than its
height. Descending, we passed with more measured tread through the
crestfallen cornice, especially as the upper snow-world under
the heat of the noonda\- sun had now softened to its most
tender liquid mood, and small sizzling avalanches were already
grooving the \vall beneath. Thus w-arned, we took this last
straight, lest otherwise we might start a larger avalanche, which
w-ould carry us down with it. The shale-slopes were treated
more summarily than in coming up, when we slid back two
feet for ever}- three of advance. Now, digging in our heels, w-e
glissaded down until brought up by some rock obstruction.
The following morning, the weather promising fair, we
decided to lose no time in pushing further up the glacier.

Mt. Cho>io, Mt. Liingiiiii,
21,500 feet. ^~oGy feet.

Pyramid Peak,
24,500 feet.

ON SUiMMIT COKNICE PEAK, 17,^14 FHI'-.T.

TRIAL OF A SLEDGE. 105
We left camp at 7.30 with sixteen coolies carrying light outfit,
and for the first two hours followed the slanting snow-beds on
the mountain-side, till a point was reached above the seracs,
opposite which the crevasses, though still large, diminished in
number and the surface between them promised a convenient
passage. We now struck off on the glacier, which from here
ascends quite sharply.
We brought with us from Europe a pair of Norwegian skis
to serve as runners for a light sledge which we had made in
detachable sections. This idea was suggested by Sir Martin
Conway, who used a sledge in his ascents in the Bolivian
Andes. This was the first opportunity offered to us to test its
value. As the glacial surface here appeared favourable to its
use, we put it together, and piled upon it the loads of seven
coolies, who were instructed how to manage it. They obeyed
orders, but did not take kindly to the work and had to be
constantly supervised.
We were now at 16,000 feet. The ice was covered by a light
layer of snow, which increased in depth as we ascended. At
first the sledge ran fairl}- well, but by the time the snow
became four, then eight, then twelve inches deep and thoroughl}-
softened by the sun's heat, the breadth of the ski runners did
not prevent them from sinking deepl}- into it, while this same
breadth caused the resistance of the snow to become so
great that the combined efforts of the seven coolies and of
Dr. Workman could only move the sledge a few- yards w-ithout
a rest. The coolies, who were carrying loads, in spite of the slowness
of their movements and frequent stops, gained greatly on the
sledge, and it became evident that the use of the latter only
served to tire the coolies and retard the march. It was
therefore left in the snow, and the coolies, to their great rehef,
resumed their loads.
A sledge might be used to good advantage on ice or hard

io6 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
snow in ascending or descending, where the gradients are not
steep, but the resistance offered by soft snow more than
neutralises any advantage it might otherwise possess. In any
case, it is better to have the runners narrow. In marching over
even fairly smooth glaciers or over snow, coolies carrying their
loads according to their custom are likely to accomplish more
than they would by using sledges.
By noon we were abreast of a large branch-glacier entering
the Chogo Lungma from the south-west, the last and highest
feeder on that side, w-hich will be described later. All were
sinking into the snow wdth every step so deeply that the coolies
became discouraged and asked to return. This we absolutely
refused to do, and told them they must go on. We suffered
much from the sun's heat, which at noon registered i8o^ F.
The coolies struggled slowly along under our urging, resting
ever}- twent}- steps till about three o'clock, w-hen they refused
to go farther. They certainly had made a fair march, con
sidering the circumstances, so we had them tread down the
snow to make places for tents, and camped on the middle of
the glacier at an altitude of 17,483 feet. This was named
Glacier Camp.
After tents were pitched, we turned our attention to melting
snow and boiling water over our primus stove for tea, with
which to quench our thirst, which, after the heat and exertion,
was excessive. Considering that it takes several times as long
to bring snow to a boil as it does water, the process of satisfying
our thirst was a prolonged one.
We were now well up toward the head of the glacier in a
great ice basin covered with a thick mantle of perpetual snow-
and surrounded on all sides by ^-ery abrupt peaks, which w-ere
continually sending down avalanches on one side or another
with a roar which could be heard for miles.
The next morning, at six o'clock, leaving the luggage-coolies
behind, we started with guide, porter, and instrument-coolie, to

AT THE HEAD OF THE CHOGO LUNGMA. 107
ascend to the base of the great white wall, in which the glacier
takes it origin. This last reach of glacier rises sharply in a
series of great rounded hillocks towering one above another,
interspersed here and there with numerous ice-chasms, the blue
icicle-fringed depths of which could not be sounded b\- any
means at our disposal. The ascent was fatiguing, being

GLACIER CAMP, 17,483 FEET, CHOGO LUNGMA.
comparable to that of a stiff snow--mountain. Still, as the
snow was hard and we were not held back by unwilling coolies,
we pressed steadil}- upwards, and by eight o'clock reached our
destination, the highest part of the glacier proper, which lies at
an elevation of somewhat over 19,000 feet.
The snow-wall above it, which we estimated to be from 800
to 1,000 feet high, was steep, seamed with bergschrunds, and
broken into an ice-fall ; .but w-e judged it could be climbed if

io8 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
attacked earl}- in the morning before its surface became softened
by the sun. If we could reach its top we should be able to see
what lay beyond, and perhaps to determine whether a passage
existed to known regions to the west.
After having examined the surroundings and taken hypso
metric and thermometric readings, we decided to descend and
move the camp up to this point, so as to be able to start
directly up the wall at dawn. By nine o'clock, when w-e began
to return, the sun had softened the snow, so that we sank into
it to the knees, which made the descent more fatiguing than the
ascent. On reaching camp we found the khansamah and coolies
depressed in spirits, though not one of them appeared any the
worse for their journey of the previous day. We told them w-e
would remain here until the next morning and then move up
higher. On hearing this some of the coolies complained of the
cold and refused to stay. We now learned they had been too
lazy to bring with them a warm woollen ground-sheet, -which
we had placed at their disposal for use in their tent. We offered
to double their wages if they would remain.
Eight of them promised to do so, but at 3.30 that afternoon
all but two deserted, saying nothing to us, and returned to the
lower camp, leaving us helpless in the snow. The porter was
immediately despatched to fetch others to replace them, while
we proceeded to make ourselves as comfortable as possible in our
snow-bivouac till he should return.
At nine o'clock ne.xt morning he reappeared w-ith seventeen
new men warmly clothed. When we saw them coming we
packed our kit, struck tents, and got ready to move on their
arrival, before they had time to indulge in an}- seditious
deliberations. The khansamah and tent-servant, looking rather
ashamed, said they would like to return to the lower camp. We
consented, and at 9.30 o'clock left with the ignorant coolies,
who had no idea of rendering us the least personal service, to

A CHOUGH. Ill
follow our route of the preceding day. Camp at the highest
point we must, co-ute que coute.
The difficulties of this climb will be long remembered. The
snow was soft when we started, and grew softer hour by hour.
The higher we got, the deeper we sank in, and the greater was
the exertion. The coolies stopped to rest every two minutes
in spite of constant encouragement and admonition on our
part. We had to make detours to avoid avalanches that were
sweeping the glacier, and the glare and heat of the sun reflected
from the driven snow were enervating.
Not far from the top we saw what we had never seen before,
nor have since in such a place. On a snow-hummock in the
centre of the glacier a solitary black bird, with orange beak and
feet, about the size of a crow, was perched. When we drew
near it flew off composedly toward a snow-peak, as it might
have done to a tree lower dowm, and lighted on an ice-pinnacle
of a hanging glacier far above. Its presence made an uncann}-
impression on our minds, and served to accentuate the almost
terrifying desolation and loneliness of the place.
This was at over 18,000 feet, and for many miles on every
side lay only peaks and glaciers. What could the bird find to
live upon in that snow world ? It was a chough, which lives at
high altitudes, and is said to descend seldom as low as 6,000 feet,
and then only in the depth of winter. This was the only bird
of any kind we remember to have seen on the upper two-thirds
of the Chogo Lungma.
We had to clamber over t'ne debris-strewn beds of two large
avalanches, which had swept down over the glacier to beyond
its median line the preceding day, a fatiguing task. As we
passed over the upper one, not liking the appearance of the
snow-ramparts above it, we made a considerable detour, and
tried to hurry the coolies, whose movements, as usual, were of
the most leisurely character. They gave little heed to our
admonitions, and would not quicken their pace.

112 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
The width of the glacier at this point is about a mile, the
surface strongly undulating, and the mountain walls extremely
steep. The last coolie had passed the danger point by only ten
minutes, -when we were startled by an ominous roar behind.
Looking around, we saw what seemed to be the whole mountain
side in motion. The huge curling cornice, that had graced its
brow and excited our fears, had broken loose. Vast masses of
snow and ice were sliding downward, rolling over one another,
leaping through the air, and smashing themselves against the
rocks w-ith hissings, growlings, and crashings, as if all the
demons of the infernal regions were venting their wrath on that
mountain-wall. Thick clouds of snow-dust were thrown
hundreds of feet in the air.
As the mass struck the glacier it seemed to hesitate a
moment, then gathering head, with a high, seething front, at
least half a mile wide, it shot across the glacier, regardless of
undulations and gradients, with a roar such as might be
produced by fifty railwa}- trains running abreast at high speed,
leaving in fts path a chaos that must be seen to be appreciated,
till it finally expended its force well over towards the farther
side of the glacier. The cloud of snow-dust raised by it rolled
majestically onward till dissipated on the opposite heights.
The forces of Nature among these great mountains, when
dormant, pass unobserved, but when roused to action, be they
those of air, water, rock, or snow, the effects are indescribably
sublime and awe-inspiring.
The top of the glacier was reached, much to our relief, after
four hours of stiff work, during the last hour of which we felt
doubtful whether the coolies would hold out to the end. Two
of them assisted in pitching the tents, but the rest threw them
selves flat on the snow-, not offering to help in an}- w-ay. They
were doubtless exhausted, but certainl}- not ill, and the next
morning were in good condition.
The conquest of the Chogo Lungma was completed. It had

CHOGO LUNGMA AND BIAFO COMPARED. 113
given us much hard work and some exciting adventures. This
was, however, only one stage of our exploratory programme,
and much more remained to be done. The Chogo Lungma
has about the same length as the Biafo glacier, which we
ascended in 1899. The tongues of the two glaciers end at
approximately the same altitude, but the Chogo Lungma rises
some 3,000 feet higher than the Biafo, and its upper fourth is

FOGGY CAMP, 18,994 FEET, AT HEAD OF CHOGO LUNGMA.
more deeply snow-covered. Its surface is much steeper and
more broken ; the enclosing mountains of its upper half are
higher, more snowy, overhang it more abruptly, and send down
avalanches that sweep over it, which last cannot be said of any
part of the Biafo. It is, therefore, a good deal more difficult,
and certainly more dangerous, to explore than the Biafo.
Our tents were pitched in sugary snow about twenty inches
deep, which could be broken up, but could not be trodden into
M. I

114 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
a smooth surface. It would be hard to find a more arctic
camping ground than this at 19,000 feet, backed by immense,
cheerless, snow-walls, that rained down avalanches at all hours
of day and night. We considered it to be wfthin the limits of
safety, but it is by no means certain that an unusualh- large
avalanche might not have come down and overwhelmed us, as
the one we had so narrow-1}- escaped had swept over the glacier
below. This was named Foggy Camp. It lay some 200 feet
below the base of the snow wall in which the glacier has its
origin, and its altftude worked out at 18,994 feet. The col at
the top of the wall we call Chogo Col.
During the afternoon we made preparations to attack the wall
at daylight, and Zurbriggen trod out steps for three hundred
feet up to the base of its ice-fall. Alas for our plans ! In the
early hours of the morning snow and sleet were heard pelting
on the tents. When we got up at five o'clock, in a tempera
ture of 20° F., the skv was overcast and thick mist was
rolling over the col and down the wall, which last, although we
were so near it, was soon entirelv lost to view. The barometers
fell rapidl}-. The reservoir of a high glacier is not a safe place
to be caught in by a severe storm, such as we judged from
appearances was now about to break, so we hurriedly packed
our kit, struck our ice-coated tents, and began a retreat to our
camp of refuge six hours below on the mountain-side.
We could not see the mountains on either hand, but fortu
nately had our track to follow, till later the air cleared some
what, so that landmarks could be distinguished. Bv ten o'clock
snow was falling fast and thick. At one we reached Serac
Camp, and pitched tents in four inches of snow on the stone
terraces previously built. That storm lasted sixty hours, during
which time \\-e were kept busy clearing aw-a}- the snow from and
about our tents.
The inter\'als in this occupation we spent without fire under
the canvas darkened by the rapidly accumulating layer of snow

I 2

A SIXTY-HOUR SNOWSTORM.

117

outside, in a temperature varying from 40° to 30" F., trying
to keep warm by wearing our thickest clothing, with feet
encased in felt Gilgit boots, heads in thick Jaeger caps, and
hands in fur gloves. Whenever the tent-flaps were drawn open for
a moment, a cloud of snow swept in and swirled through the
interior, covering everything with crystal flakes. At night, as
we lay in our sleeping-bags listening to the creaking of tent-

STORM LIFTING AT SERAC CAMP.

cords and flapping of the canvas walls, we could not repress a
feeling of anxiety, lest the next gust should wreck the whole
frail structure, or an avalanche born of the snow-storm over
whelm and carry us awa}-.
Those not used to camping on snow can scared}- realise w-hat
it means to be imprisoned in a small tent during a storm of such
length and severit}-, when the snow increases foot by foot in
depth, in spite of efforts to remove it, and the tent, unless

ii8 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
cleared often of the load accumulating upon it, is likely to
collapse upon you as you sit within.
The morning after our arrival the fifty-five coolies, having
wasted the slender wood-supph- in cooking chapatis for them
selves throughout the night, deserted en masse, leaving us with
the camp -servants to weather the storm. The fact that they
left during the height of the storm, with the driving snow-
shutting out all landmarks, to descend the broken glacier, shows
how little the}' appreciated the danger to which they exposed
themselves, and their ability to find their way under such
circumstances shows how little ground they had for their
panic six days earlier. After two days and a half the storm
ceased, and the mist lifted from our frigid perch, disclosing the
most wintry landscape it is possible to imagine.
Two days later, as the last stick of the wood brought w-ith us
was being burned, a relay of forty coolies sent up by the
lambardar to our rescue arrived. Striking tents we marched
down to Riffel Camp, revelling in the blazing sunshine after the
dark days of hardship and privation on the great glacier.
A winter storm in Europe is but a bagatelle in comparison
with one in the Himalayan ice-world, and the grandest view in
the Alps on a fair day is a mere nothing to the radiant, sunlit
scene on the upper reaches of the Chogo Lungma.

HARAMOSH GLACIER FROM RIFFEL CAMP TO MT. HARAMOSH, 24,270 FEET, AT UPPER END.
LENGTH ELEVEN MILES.

CHAPTER VI.
Up Haramosh Glacier — Estimation of Altitude, Distance and Obstacles —
Ascent of Haramosh to Col in Storm — Camping by Night — A 'Wily
Balti.
A BEAUTIFUL ice-stream descends from a broad snow-covered
ice-defile at the base of the northern face of Mt. Haramosh in
a sweep eleven and a half miles long to its junction with the
Chogo Lungma opposite the point of Riffel promontory. Its
surface is seamed with transverse crevasses from beginning to
end. Its gradient is less sharp than that of the upper Chogo
Lungma, the rise being 3,400 feet in eleven and a half miles,
while that of the latter is 5,000 feet in nine miles. Still, as we
looked backward from its upper parts on the course we had
followed, we realised that we had been ascending.
This glacier, coming from one of the most icy regions of this
part of the Karakoram, is active, and presses strongly on the
main stream of the Chogo Lungma, making its influence felt for
a long distance after its junction with the latter.
It is something over three-quarters of a mile wide at its lower
end, and holds this width for a long distance up, widening out
where it receives two short branches, opposite each other, about
four miles below its upper end, and narrowing again as it
approaches Mt. Haramosh. It is enclosed on both sides by
massive ice-bound walls of over 20,000 feet, culminating in
Mt. Haramosh, 24,270 feet.
On i6th August, we left Riffel Camp, with fourteen coolies, to
ascend this glacier. We also took a village headman named
Rustum, who had attached himself to the expedition, to super
intend the coolies. Descending the steep rocks below the camp
we soon found ourselves in a sea of large seracs, through which

122 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
we had to find a path. We then crossed the glacier to its south
side to avoid the cre\'asses with which its central portion was
seamed. Here no serious obstacle presented itself, and steady
upward progress was made.
On this part of the glacier there were quite a number of

ON THE FACE OF A SERAC.

glacial tables, some of them of large size, the ice-shafts supporting
the stone-tops being of considerabl}- smaller diameter than the
latter, and varying from five to ten feet in height. There w-ere
also shafts standing alone from which the stones had slid off.
The weather, fine at six, became uncertain as the day wore
on, thick mist hanging over the mountains at times and then

SECOND HARAMOSH PEAK, 21,930 FEET, NEAR HEAD OF HARAMOSH GLACIER.

INDIVIDUALITY OF MOUNTAINS. 125
disappearing. Now and again we were enveloped in passing
snow-squalls, in the intervals of which Haramosh, throwing off
its misty veil, loomed nearer and grander as we advanced. It
has a sister-peak fixed by the Indian Survey at 21,948 feet, which
at a bend in the route burst into full view, flaked near the top
with feathery cloud.
Mountains, like people, have their individuality. Some are
alwa}-s commonplace, no matter how high they tower, but this
mountain is remarkable, in that, on this side, it rises in tumbled
masses of glittering ice from the glacier to the base of its final
cone. It seems strikingly tall and graceful from here, as well
as when view-ed from farther afield. It has three summits, the
highest, a slender, perfectly proportioned p}-ramid, being the onh-
one seen from the high peaks farther north.
The new snow deposited by the late storms told on our speed
as we got higher, and the caravan no longer moved with ease
over a frozen surface, but was ankle-deep in -wet snow. At noon,
having accomplished just half the length of the glacier, w-e sat
down on our mackintoshes and ate a cold tiffin mixed w-ith
snowflakes. The coolies settled themselves in the snow as if
they never intended to move again, each making a raid on his
supply of chapatis.
During this noon-halt the clouds gave w-a}- to blue sky and
sunshine for a time. The head of the glacier appeared quite
near. The question of leaving the coolies where they were and
of our tr}-ing to reach it that afternoon was mooted by Zurbrig
gen, who estimated it to be onl}- an hour and a half distant, and
said if we started at once we could reach it and return before
darkness set in. He strongl}- advised attempting this, lest the
weather should be worse the next day. Not agreeing with him
as to distance, we finall}-, against our judgment, consented to tr}-
it. We have alwavs found it advisable in Himalaya, where
distances are ver}- deceptive, to camp as near the objective point
as possible, and to start early in the day to reach it. One

126 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
seldom has too much time, and in any case too much is better
than too little.
There are two factors in Himala}-an climbing which it is
difficult to determine with any degree of exactness at the
beginning ofthe ascent, viz., distances and obstacles. This is
true to some extent of lower mountain regions, but to no such
extent as among these Asiatic giants. The pigmy dimensions
of the Alps and other lower ranges afford no adequate training
ground for him who would judge of Himalayan distance.
Persons accustomed to European standards, be they guides,
porters, surveyors, or others, when first thrown among these
greater mountains are liable — if not almost certain — to estimate
distance, both horizontal and vertical, at less than it really is.
Their standards are inadequate to the task. This fact is
accounted for by the much greater altitude and dimensions of
the Himalayan snow- world, and by the wonderfully clear
atmosphere, which causes distant points to appear near. The
mind is also dazed and overwhelmed by the immensity, and
fails to comprehend it.
On the contrary, when a course has been completed or a
height attained, the mind of the inexperienced is so impressed b\-
the length of time taken to accomplish the task that there is a
tendency to swing around to the opposite extreme and over
estimate the distance covered, and particularly the altitude
reached. The opinion of a person on his first visit to Himalaya as to
the size or altftude of one of its great mountains, when viewed
from near its base, is not of much value. The power to estimate
these as well as horizontal distance is gained only by experience,
by an intimate acquaintance with mountain, glacier, and plain,
acquired by ascending and exploring them, not by viewing them
from afar.
Such estimate can be made more accurately during a second
season and still more so during a third. One must live among

ESTIMATION OF DISTANCE AND OBSTACLES. 129
them summer after summer, absorbing something of their
atmosphere to acquire the ability to form a proper conception
of their vastness and awful unconquerableness.
Even the most experienced do not find it always easy to
estimate distance correctly. In examining a high, mountain
from below, aretes are fore-shortened, and features w-ideh-
separated appear near together. It is difficult to judge of the
size of a large snow-basin, even when one is standing on its
edge, and the same is true of extensive snow-fields unbroken b}^
rocks that may serve as landmarks for comparison.
Experience aside, ability to estimate distance varies greatl}-
with different individuals. Some persons can estimate distance,
both vertical and horizontal, with a close approximation to the
reality, while others, no matter how much experience they ma}^
have had, can never judge of the same with any degree of exact
ness. This is shown by careless statements confidently made,
and is seen on maps of little known regions, where estimated
distances form a not inconsiderable part of the work. Hence
the impropriety of placing estimated altitudes against those
that have been measured by one of the methods recognised by
science. Still more difficult is it to determine in advance the obstacles
that may be encountered on a high mountain. However gentle
its declivities may appear from a distance, some of them on
nearer approach may develop into impassable precipices.
Dangerous galleries may present themselves which could not
be detected on reconnaissance. Its apparent snow-slopes may
be found to be ice of too steep a gradient or in too precarious
a condition to be attempted. Certain passages which must be
traversed may be swept by avalanches of stones or snow, or
further progress may be cut off by crevasses or bergschrunds.
In view of this it is vain to assert that an untried Himalayan
peak, towering thousands of feet above the valley-level, can be
climbed. The most that can be said is, that the appearance
M. K

130 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
ofthe visible slopes warrants an attemjDt. The issue alone of
the attempt can give a probable or decisive answer to the
question. Time and again in the course of our Himala}'an exploration
we have found distance deceptive both on mountains and
passes, especiall}- snow-passes, and on exer}- one of the con
siderable number of high peaks of which w-e have made first

BRANCH OF HARAMOSH GLACIER.

ascents, obstacles have been encountered which were not
discoverable during previous reconnaissance.
The present occasion was a case in point. After a hasty
lunch we continued on, leaving the coolies to await our return,
who were soon shut out from view by the mist. The new snow
became deeper as we ascended. We had seldom seen it in
worse condition. It balled up on the soles of our boots in
great masses, so that we could not advance without knocking

•Jf

jJKJ^j^ibi^iL. -'^...^-

• C' ^•-^»*^,

,-jagrsin»>.

^'S-

MT. HARAMOSH NORTH FACE, 24,270 FEET, AND UPPER FIVE MILES HARAMOSH GLACIER. TELEPHOTO
FROM RIFFEL CAMP ELEVEN MILES DISTANT.

ASCENT OF HARAMOSH COL. 133
it off every few steps wfth our axes. Squalls again swept over us,
and after three o'clock no further breaks in the weather occurred ;
it snowed steadily.
It is difficult to conceive why we kept on. Probabl}- the
motive that influences many mountaineers, not to turn back
except from sheer necessit}-, governed us. Later there was
no question of knocking snow from our boots. It became so
deep and its lower layers so cold that it ceased to ball. By
four o'clock its depth measured two feet seven inches, but we
still plunged along, dragging one leg laboriously after the other.
Fortunately the gradient was steep only in a few places, in
getting up which we had the exciting pleasure of sinking into
the snow up to the shoulders. It was not climbing, but rather
wrestling with the pass.
Zurbriggen's hour and a half had lengthened into four when
we saw a large ice-ridge ahead. Pressing forward with all our
remaining strength through the heavy snow we surmounted
this, and at five o'clock reached what might be called a col
at the head of the glacier, at the entrance of a long, desolate
ice-defile, about a mile wide, cleft at short intervals by tremendous
crevasses and heavily covered with snow. Its broad surface
reminded us of the Hispar pass, with the difference that the
Hispar, when we stood upon it, was one vast sw-eep of driven
snow unbroken by a single crevasse.
After a little the mist, which for three hours had covered
mountain and glacier with a thick pall, lifted, and Haramosh
was seen towering up just ahead, a solemn, awesome snow-
massif against the colourless sky. Other peaks unshrouded
themselves, torn and ragged, encased in shaggy masses of ice,
which, seamed b}- enormous chasms, rolled down from their
shoulders in frozen cascades. The long glacier we had plodded
up fell aw-a}- behind, a furrowed w-inding sheet of snow. Not a
rock relieved the monoton}- of white. The scene w-as not
beautiful ; it was impressively weird, unearthly, ghastl}-.

134 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
During the break in the mist we obtained a view through the
defile which forms a pass or la. This glacier, here making a
turn to the west, runs under the wall of Haramosh, and drops
steeply down to a valle^-, wooded in its lower part, leading to
the Indus in the direction of Gilgit. The readings give the
altitude of the col as 17,412 feet. We named this pass the
Haramosh La.

ON HARAMOSH LA, 17,412 FEET.
The day was too advanced to permit of our remaining long
in the deep snow on a pass of over 17,000 feet, so at five-thirty
we started to return. It was growing cold, but our efforts to
escape from this upper wilderness before nightfall prevented
our feeling this, ^^'ith the deepening twilight the sk}- cleared,
and, as we ploughed our way over the trail made in ascending,
star after star appeared, pulsing solemnh- above our lonely
path. It was a long and w-ear}- pull, for we w-ere well-nigh
exhausted. At eight-thirty we came upon the coolies, sitting much as

A WILY BALTI. 135
we had left them at noon. Rustum had had the forethought
to have one tent put up, but no other preparations for our
comfort had been made. Had a properly arranged camp
welcomed us, we should not have minded the weariness or the
freezing temperature. On an occasion like this small matters
assume gigantic proportions, and the search for candles, lanterns,
primus stove, and provisions, with shivering limbs and aching
fingers in the icy wind was a heavy task, and the pitching of
two frozen tents a still heavier one.
B}- ten-thirty we were housed, and snow was melted and
boiled for a hot drink, which has a most soothing effect in such
cases. This camp at 15,960 feet was named Haramosh Camp,
and the glacier Haramosh Glacier after its dominating peak.
At six o'clock the next morning the glass indicated 13° F.
The day being fine, we went two hours up the glacier again to
photograph, and returned to Riffel Camp in the afternoon.
The wiliness of the Balti was often brought home to us
during this and the following season. He w-ill sometimes make
a trying march and endure hardship at high camps without
complaint, but a day or tw-o later he will feign illness, and
ask to be discharged. Another ruse, alread}- mentioned, which
may -work successfully with the uninitiated, whose tender
sympathies it is calculated to arouse, was now tried on us by
Rustum. His trip up the glacier and night at Haramosh Camp, though
matters of no hardship to him, had apparently satisfied his
desire for exploration. The day after the return to Riffel
Camp he received word of the death of his mother, and asked
to be allowed to depart immediatel}-. .\s wireless telegraph}-
had not pt;netrated to that remote region, and no one had come
up from Arandu to the camp that day, the story of his bereave
ment was transparent. .As it was evident, being dissatisfied, he
w-ould no longer be of use, and his influence with other coolies
might be bad, he was paid off and told he might leave at once.

136 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
We took the precaution to make him deliver up the nailed
boots and socks which had been loaned him for the glacial
work. But he proved himself a clever rascal, for, having been
paid, he appeared in no hurry to go, and remained until the
next morning. Meanwhile, in the night, he \'isited the box
where the boots were kept, and took them away -with him. On
our return at the end of the season, as w-e went through his
village, we saw him wearing the boots thus appropriated.

CHAPTER \II.
Basin Glacier — Heat at Crevasse Camp — Adventurous Ascent of Bhayakara
Col— A Narrow Escape — Moraine Glacier — Its Trefoil Basin — Glorious
Morning ends in Storm — Over Ganto La to Rendu — A Jhula Bridge —
Trongo Pir and return to Srinagar.
We next turned our attention to the glacier discovered from
Cornice Peak, which forms the uppermost tributary of the Chogo
Lungma on the north side. It originates in the walls of the
highest and dominant peak of the region, and, running south
east, makes a wide bend to the south near its end, and tumbles
into the Chogo Lungma above Riffel promontory in a large,
much shattered ice-fall three quarters of a mile long. This
glacier is seven miles long and three quarters of a mile to a mile
wide throughout its course.
On the morning of 19th August it was snowing hard at five
o'clock. At six the storm apparently cleared, and at seven-forty
we left camp with nineteen coolies and crossed the Chogo
Lungma to the base of a steep grass and rock slope forming the
ea-tern barrier of the ice-fall. While crossing the glacier the
storm broke upon us again with redoubled force, and from eight
to ten o'clock the air was so filled with snow as to shut out the
mountains on both sides completely from view.
Ascending the steep slope for two hours, w-e reached a point
several hundred feet higher than the head of the ice-fall, on a
shaly arete overhanging the new glacier, at the edge of a snow-
field where we camped. On the slope we saw some twenty
ibex, which fled as we approached, and innumerable traces of
others. This suggested a name for Ibex Camp. Its altitude
was 15,110 feet. Here we built a stone-cairn.
From Ibex Camp there was an unobstructed view- of the whole

138 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
length of the glacier, which, spreading out into a broad basin
above the ice-fall, runs straight away without a branch to the
great snow\- p^-ramid-peak at its head which gives it birth. It
is further fed from the precipitous snow-walls by which it is
bounded on both sides, and from w-hich several beautiful rock-
crests rise on the north-east side. We called this Basin Glacier.
Ibex Camp also commanded an equally clear view down the
Chogo Lungma for twenty miles.
The night was fine. The minimum temperature was 20° F.
Starting the next morning at seven, we descended to the glacier,
the surface of which was in good condition, and found a con
venient passage with a gentle rise up its first half The gradient
then became increasingly steeper and crevasses more frequent,
until at last they seamed the glacier in all directions, ready to
serve as pitfalls for the caravan.
The day was oppressively hot. The high walls enclosing the
glacier shut off all breezes, and the sun burned with fiery fervour
through a film of cirrho-stratus cloud. Its heat reflected from
the dazzling whiteness of the newly-fallen snow struck us like
the radiation from a blast-furnace, blistering our faces, already
burned to a deep copper colour, from chin to forehead under
our sola topis. The temperature in the sun at one p.m., even
through the clouds, as registered by the solar thermometer, was
183° F., sufficiently high to cause great discomfort, though by
no means one of our highest temperatures.
By one o'clock we had reached practically the head of the
glacier, where it ascends sharply to join the neve covering the
mountain slopes, about as far as it was safe to go. Leaving
the coolies to follow under the direction of the porter, we went
over to the east side with Zurbriggen to select a place to camp.
A spot was found on one of the snow-covered, rising ice-hillocks,
surrounded on three sides by wide crevasses, into w-hich
numerous smaher ones entered, that appeared safe from ava
lanches, though we could not have moved man}- yards from our

ICE-FALL IN WHICH BASIN GLACIER DESCENDS, TO CHOGO LUNGMA.

ASCENT OF BHAYAKARA LA. 141
tents with safety after dark. We trod down the snow and
seated ourselves in the singeing sun and breezeless air to await
the arrival of the coolies, meanwhile occupying the time in
taking hypsometric, aneroid and thermometric readings.
At two o'clock the caravan arrived and camp was immediately
pitched. It was called Crevasse Camp. Its altitude was 17,500
feet. The mountains rose around us in tremendous unscalable
precipices. There was only one point where anything resembling
a col could be seen, and this was at the top of a very steep
avalanche-scored wall, where two small depressions, one on
either side of a sharp quartzite-crest, which might be called
cols, existed. They did not appear likely to afford a passage
to the other side of the ridge, but might afford a view of what
lay beyond it. Therefore we determined to accept the gauntlet
which this wall threw down and attempt its conquest.
The night was clear and cold, the minimum temperature
being 12^ F., which was favourable as it hardened the snow.
On account of the danger from crevasses we waited till daylight
of the 2ist August to start.
Our path at first lay over the rapidly-ascending crevassed
glacier, then up the still steeper debris of a recently fallen,
avalanche, where for a few steps the foothold would be firm
and for the next half-dozen we would flounder waist-high in soft
snow. Above this came a wide bergschrund, over which only
a single insecure snow-bridge was found. This passed in safety
we had before us the ice-wall, which was steep from first to last,
varying as measured by the clinometer at different points a few
degrees either way from 60°. It was covered to a greater or
less depth with snow, which was now hard-frozen and remained
so till nearly noon, as the wall, running north and south on the
east side of the valley, did not feel the force of the sun's rays
till after eleven o'clock. Hence on the ascent every step had
to be cut from bottom to top.
A series of rocks projected through the ice at intervals of a

142 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
few hundred feet, and we laid our course from one to another of
these. After tw-o and a half hours we reached the last rock,
after w-hich we had before us only the blank ice-slope, w-hich
stretched several hundred feet upward to the foot of the
perpendicular crest above. We had intended to strike directly
from the last rock to the right-hand col, which, though not so high
as the other, was much nearer our route ; but we found the slope
at this point to be of smooth ice of 60° incline, thinly covered
w-ith fresh snow and too dangerous to attempt.
We therefore decided to turn to the left, w-here the snow was
deeper and the foothold better, gain the base of the rock-crest,
and, with what handholds it might offer, traverse the upper
edge of the ice-slant where it joined the rock-face, and thus reach
the left-hand col.
After another hour and a half of laborious step-cutting we got
to the base of the rock-crest, which was found to consist of rotten
and crumbling impure quartzite so weathered as to afford but
few handholds, and these had to be used with the greatest
caution lest they should scale off.
The upper edge of the ice did not lie close against the rock,
but was separated from it b}- an interval or schrund varying
fiom six inches to three feet in width and of unknown depth.
The steps cut along this edge, which was more or less brittle,
made a more precarious path even than those on the slant below,
and in the absence of handholds progress was necessarily slow.
To add to the difficulty transverse crevasses existed at intervals,
some of them covered with snow-, into which there was danger
of falling. It was a most uncanny path over which we cautiously
pursued our wa}- for more than two hours.
At one o'clock we reached the col, a sharp edge with a
drop on the farther side, steeper than the wall by which we had
ascended, ending in a precipice which overhung a large glacial
ice-fall. It overlooked a vast trefoil basin surrounded b}- massive
jagged mountains, which cut off all view beyond and sent down

Haramosh Peak, 2,
21,930 feet.

Indus Nagar Watershed Peak, 4,
22,810 feet.

\'IE\V FROM IBEX CAMP SOUTH. WHuLE LANDSCAPE ABOVE lG,00O FEET ALTITUDh:.

ON THE BHAYAKARA COL.

145

a complex of glaciers and ice-falls to form a large branch of the
Chogo Lungma, which we afterwards explored almost to the
top of its highest ice-fall. To anyone inclined to vertigo the
downward view on our side would have been appalling — a sheer
sweep of almost 2,000 feet of precipitous wall to the abyss

Col.

THE BHAYAKARA COL, ig,25o FEET.
where clung our Mummery tents like green locusts snared in a
snow}' lair.
There was barely standing-room, and no opportunity to take
hypsometric readings, so we had to rely on those of our Watkin
aneroids, which had been checked the previous afternoon at
Crevasse Camp by the boiling-point thermometers. One of them
differed from the latter by only plus one-hundredth inch. Their
readings, compared wfth those at the same hour at Skardo, gave
M. L

146 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
the height of this col as 19,260 feet, 1,760 feet above Crevasse
Camp. For the last two hours the midda}- sun had shone upon our
path, and, crowded as we were against the rock-wall, its heat
\vas almost unendurable. The shade temperature could not be
obtained, as there was no shade except that cast b}- our bodies.
In our shadow- the temperature was 80° F., but the sun
burned like a live coal, the few fleecy clouds scudding over the
sky in no way tempering its ardour. Its ra}-s struck with savage
energy perpendicularh- on the ice-wall, and by this time had
softened its covering of snow.
We did not remain long at the col, partly because there
was no convenient standing-place, and parti}- because we were
anxious about the descent. It w-as evident to all that, owing to
the softened snow, the latter would be more dangerous than
the ascent, as the steps cut with so much care would no longer
afford a firm foothold. We soon found, our feet sank through
them from a few inches to two feet till stopped by solid ice
beneath. We returned slowly and painfully along the treacherous edge
in the pitiless heat, finding neither hand nor satisfactory axe-
holds. Every now and again someone would slip on an insecure
place. After going a short distance, Zurbriggen said, " Es ist
sehr gefahrlich. Wir kommen heute nicht hinunter." This
was the first time we had known him to lose courage. We
replied, " If we do not get down to-day we shall not get down
alive." Whatever might be in store for us on the descent, to
remain where we were would be certain death. No shelter of
any kind was to be found on that wall. There was not a place
where one could sit down to rest. We should be obliged to
stand in the narrow steps on which our feet rested till we
dropped from fatigue, which would mean a slide of nearly
2,000 feet down the avalanche-gullied ice-slope into eternity.
Could w-e manage to stand there, we should be frozen stiff in

r
Ki

THE BHAYAKARA COL F

ROM FLANK OF MT. CHOGO. DOTTED LINE SHOWS UPPER -IWO-THIKDS OF KuUIE.

'/xAi.-n'

Z^-£ez^s.6&^ i!3^^^^Zl4.6a!y¦ ^n/.'o-T-z^/i^

A NARROW ESCAPE.

149

our tracks before morning, as the temperature would drop to
zero. As a German friend remarked of this descent, it required
"Todesmut " to do it, but nothing remained but to go on and
take the chances.
It was now two o'clock, and, having eaten nothing since eight
that morning, we -were becoming faint. We had been so
occupied we had not thought of lunch. We stopped in our
tracks, drove in our axes as firmly as possible, took from a
rucksack a few kola biscuits, chocolate, and a tin of pate, off
which we made a hurried meal, and then crept on again.
Shortly after this the porter, who was second in the line, lost
his footing completely and dangled helplessly on the rope.
Zurbriggen, who was last and somewhat above, having his axe
secure in a narrow crevasse and the rope round it, was able to
hold firmly, while the other two, though by no means secureh-
placed, by the aid of their axes prevented themselves from
being pulled off. The porter, being thus supported at both
ends and sternly admonished by Zurbriggen, soon regained his
feet. We had a narrow escape, and after this redoubled our
caution. When we came to the place where our track left the rock
face and led diagonally down the snow-covered slope, prudence
suggested we should not follow it further for fear of starting an
avalanche. We went straight down backward in order to avoid
this mishap. Zurbriggen fixed his axe firmly, and wound the
rope round it to hold us in case of accident. The porter then
taking the lead went down as far as the rope would permit,
treading out steps. When he had braced himself, Nos. two and
three followed in like manner, and lastly Zurbriggen descended
and secured himself anew. Yard by yard the great slope rose
above us, as, like snails, we made our way toward lower level
and safety. At last we reached some rocks, from which our
spoor was again regained.
It was now five o'clock and we saw with delight the sun fall

150 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
behind the w-estern peaks, and the shadows, which meant
better snow--condftions, spread rapidly over the glacier and
aslant our wall. The snow soon stiffened, so that we were able
to resume the forward position. On turning we beheld the
coolies gazing spellbound at our, to them, strange actions.
Although we still sank knee-deep in the snow at every step

JUNCTION OF MORAINE GLACIER WITH CHOGO LUNGMA.
we reached the burgschrund without accident. Here the snow-
bridge Was found so soft that we did not venture to use it, but
jumped the schrund into the sno^v below. We reached camp at
six o'clock, having had twelve hours of continuous mental and
physical tension w-ithout a single rest.
Thus ended this adventurous ascent to a col, which we
named the Bhayakara Col, from the Sanskrit word for perilous ;
Zurbriggen called it the most dangerous one he had ever made.

MORAINE GLACIER. 153
The temperature fell during the night to 9° F. The next
morning, none the worse for the climb, except for bruised hands
and burned faces, we descended over Ibex Camp to Riffel Camp.
The next five days were spent at Riffel Camp, the first two
being occupied with some arrangements which had to be
attended to, the others being stormy, so that it was not till 28th
August that we were able to start to explore the next highest
north branch of the Chogo Lungma, which enters the latter
directly opposite Riffel promontory.
' The three high glaciers already explored had been entirely
of ice and snow, without moraines and carr}'ing little or no
visible rock-debris ; but the whole width of this one, about half
a mile, was occupied by three well-marked median moraines, of
which the most easterly was composed of black slate and shale,
the central of grey quartzite, while the westerly one was grey on
its east and black on its west side. We called it Moraine Glacier.
The main trunk was rather free from crevasses, and w-e
ascended it without difficulty on smooth ice in the furrow
between two of the moraines. About noon, after rounding a
wide curve, we came to a point at the entrance of the large
trefoil basin already mentioned as seen from the Bhayakara Col,
where the glacier divides into three branches, running into the
three divisions of the basin, one to north-east, one to north, and
one to west. After this division the ice becomes much broken,
stretching out in continued reaches of seracs and ice-falls till it
ends in neve.
The basin is enclosed by high, jagged, riven mountains, the
sides of which collect a large amount of snow and send down
vast quantities of detritus, which mingles with and covers the
ice in a most intricate manner, forming e.xtensive moraines,
which only assume an orderly arrangement on approaching the
head of the trunk-glacier. Such a chaotic mixture of detritus,
boulders, seracs, ice-falls, and moraines we have nowhere else
seen.

154 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
The west and north divisions of the basin being so spht up
as to be apparently impenetrable, and ending in cul-de-sacs
without any openings in the mountain walls, that we could see,
w-e followed the north-east one, at the top of which a passage
or col between two peaks existed, though its character could
not be determined from here.
We ascended a rough and steep moraine, rising in great
hummocks along the side of the ice-fall and lying partly upon
it, and after two hours came to a boulder-covered spot more
level than the rest, at an altitude of 15,204 feet, where camp
was pitched. To make places for the tents, stones had to be
rolled awa}- and hollows filled up with others. This w-as named
Hummock Camp.
The next morning we were up early. The sky was cloudless,
promising a fine day, except for a narrow stripe of thin haze just
above the extreme southern horizon. During the monsoon we
found the existence of cirrho-stratus clouds, even of extreme
tenuity, whether over the whole sky or at the horizon, to be an
unfailing sign of approaching storm. When these were seen, a
storm was sure to break within tw-ent}--four, generally within
twelve, often w-ithin six, and sometimes within three hours.
After the monsoon ceases these clouds are less significant.
In view of the suddenness with which Himalayan storms may
develop, and the savage and broken character of the region,
this sign of bad weather made us hesitate about starting, but
we finally concluded to do so and trust to luck to get back
before the storm should break.
Accordingly we left camp shortl}- after four o'clock, and
follow-ed the rough moraine, which led upward through the nala.
After giving us a tr}-ing scramble, the moraine ended at a high
snow-shoulder under the perpendicular rock-precipices of a
granite mountain, which rose above a steep ice-fall descending
between it and another equally precipitous mountain in a
beautiful cascade. Some five hundred feet above its base the

ASCENT OF ICE-FALL.

157

brow of the cascade was formed b}- three huge masses of ice
extending completely across it. These did not suggest a col,
but rather a continuation of the glacier, forming perhaps a pass,
but more probably leading into another higher mountain basin.
With the object of determining this we went on over the
snow-shoulder and descended to the ice-fall, which we crossed
to its farther side, where the ascent of it promised to be easiest.

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NORTH-EAST HEAD, MORAINE GLACIER.
We cut our way up through a labyrinth of glittering seracs and
ice-gendarmes, separated by wide crevasses reflecting from their
depths a fascinating, indescribable blue, and across the whitest
of snow bridges, to tread which seemed almost sacrilege, so
shimmering were they with exquisite virgin purity. The over
coming of each ice-pinnacle involved a physical and mental
tour de force.
By eight o'clock the hazy stripe above the southern horizon
158 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
had spread itself over the whole sk}-, and by half-past eight a
thick mist rolled down over the surrounding peaks, obscuring
the sun, but we still pressed on, though we now felt w-e should
soon be obliged to turn. At nine snow began to fall, which
added a decisive factor to the situation. Retreat was now the
only alternative, as the ice-fall, dangerous enough in clear

ICE-FALL AT NORTH-EAST HEAD OF MORAINE GLACIER ASCENDED BY
AUTHORS.
weather, would now become a network of horrible possibilities.
Stopping onl}- to take readings for altitude, we made our way
downward as fast as possible, reaching camp about noon. The
altitude attained was 17,091 feet. The storm showing no sign
of abating, we continued on to Riffel Camp, which was reached
late in the afternoon.
On 2gth and 30th August heavy snow fell on all the peaks
and spread a white mantle over the Chogo Lungma. This

ICE-GENDARME, MORAINE GLACIER.

RIFFEL CAMP ABANDONED.

ibi

marked the end of a very unsettled season, during \\'hich there
were rarely more than tw-o consecutive pleasant da}-s, and only
once did the number amount to four. As from this time on,

PERPENDICULAR CREVASSES ON ICE-FALL, MORAINE GLACIER.

with lengthening nights and cooler temperature, the snow-
was likely to increase and interfere with high work, w-e left
Riffel Camp for the last time on ist September, and headed
for Arandu. Here disbanding the coolies, and retaining only
M. M

i62 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
those needed for the next march, we descended the Basha
valley. John was sent to Srinagar via Skardo with part of the
luggage, while w-e took the route to Rondu by a nala leading
west from Hemasil to the Ganto La. The path zigzags up a
steep, parth- grass-covered alp to the pass, a rock col 15,100 feet
high, thence descending through a nala to a torrent. Two paths
lead from the Ganto La to the torrent, an upper one along the
rock-face, which requires some care, being narrow and steep,
and a low-er one easy to follow. Thence on to Haramul and
Dasso, w-hich last is two fair marches from Hemasil.
At all villages the harvest grain was being threshed b}- driving
o\-er it four to six ^-aks, which, harnessed abreast, moved in a
circle around an upright pole. The }'aks were driven by both
men and women, w-ho held them b}- the tails. They would root
up bv their noses the straw the^- were treading. The custom of
threshing grain in this manner prevails all over India, and has
spread as far westward as Spain, -where it is still employed {see
" Sketches Awheel in Fin de Siecle Iberia," p. 221). Shortly
before Dasso a lambardar met us with a present of a basket of
the most delicious apricots we have ever tasted.
Leaving Dasso with forty coolies, we marched for five hours
up and dowm uninteresting, barren hillsides bordering the Indus,
till we came to a place w-here the valley narrows greatly and is
enclosed by two high, perpendicular cliffs, the space between
which is completeh- filled by the river. At the narrowest point,
perhaps five hundred feet wide, high over the rushing, turbid,
reddish-brown stream, hangs the longest jhula bridge we have
seen in Himalaya. To reach it one has to descend the face of
the cliff on inclined ledges or shelves of granite, polished smooth
by the frequent pressure of naked feet, and connected by ladders
at the worst places, a descent better adapted to bare feet or
grass shoes than to nailed mountain boots.
The bridge was not in the best condition, many of the withes

M 2

JHULA BRIDGE AT RONDU. 165
that hold the lower foot-strands together and connect them
w-ith the upper strands being broken, so that, unless care was
exercised, one's foot might slip between them into empty space.
It took thirteen to sixteen minutes for different members of the
party to cross this jhula. Tw-ent\' minutes' walk beyond it is
Mendai or Rondu.
In all the valleys of this region for 1,000 to 2,000 feet above
the streams \vere seen signs of extensive water-erosion similar
to those noted in the Dras and Indus valleys above Skardo. Pot
holes in all sorts of fantastic forms were washed out of the solid
granite. Huge boulders as large as small houses were honey
combed, and some had holes completeh' through them. As
said of those before mentioned, the shapes and situation of these
show that the direction of the currents that produced them was
the same as that of the present streams.
It was very warm at Rondu, the temperature in the tents at
four o'clock p.m. being 88" F. From here the breezeless sun
baked Rondu nala was ascended to a side-nala leading south to
Harpo. Shorth- after passing Thursay we turned west and
followed the trail leading to the Trongo Pir, much to the
disappointment of the coolies, who preferred to cross the much
easier Harpo La, the route taken by most travellers from Rondu
to Astor.
.\fter ascending a steep grassy slope w-e descended again into
the Trongo nala, a fine partly-w-ooded high valley, at that
season co\-ered with low red bushes and patches of long-petalled
flowers, which, according as the sun feU aslant the slopes, varied
in hue from dull cranberry to deep scarlet, causing the whole
valley to appear as if carpeted with sheeny silken Bokhara
rii'^s. Following up the nala to the last \-egetation, w-e camped on
the edge of a moraine at 12,600 feet. Starting the next morn
ing we ascended a rough, boulder-strewn moraine without trace
of a path till noon. This w-as succeeded by a snow--field, up

i66 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
which w-e marched till one-thirty, when the top of the pass was
reached. The passage over it consists of a small fissure, just
large enough to admit one person, in a perpendicular rock-crest
projecting above the glacier. The height of the Trongo Pir is
probably something over 16,000 feet. Having no longer base-
station readings for comparison we took only aneroid read-

TRONGO PIR, ABOUT l6,000 FEET. DEPRESSION AT CENTRE IS THE PASS.
ings, which admit of a range of estimate between 15,600 and
16,700 feet.
The descent takes one down a steep screes-slant to a snow--
field. This passed, there is an hour and a half of scrambling
o\'er a wilderness of massive irregular blocks of granite thrown
one over another in chaotic confusion, neither an easy nor a
safe operation. We were often obliged to jump from one to
another across intervals, which, had one fallen into them, would
have proved as dangerous as glacial crevasses. Whence these

THE TRONGO PIR. 167
blocks came, or how they reached their present position in the
middle of a broad slope is not evident, for there are no peaks
in the immediate vicinity from which they could ha\-e fallen.
Then a descent over smoother inclines brings one to a grassy
marg far above tree growth, intersected by a shallow pebbly
stream of clear water. When we came to this at four p.m. its
brilliant autumn-tinted carpet of vegetation flashing in the
slanting light of the afternoon-sun made it seem like a haven of
rest after the rough and dreary passage of the Trongo Pir.
Here we camped, and could have spent a week with pleasure
in its quiet seclusion had time permitted.
From the Trongo nala over the pass and for some distance below
this camp no path exists, and the pass is seldom crossed. Farther
down a path was found which joins that from the Harpo La in
the Harpo nala. Without further adventure we reached Astor,
whence following the Gilgit road to Gurais, we returned to
Srinagar, reaching it on 28th September, thus ending a season
of three and a half months of successful exploration.

CHAPTER VIII.
The Chogo Lungma objectively considered — The Arandu Terrace — Tippur
Glacier — First Section and Tongue of Chogo Lungma — Recession of
Glacier — Maidans at Sides of Glacier — Second Section of Medial
Moraines — Third Section of Ice, Snow, and Seracs — Ice-Lakes —
\\'ater- Distribution — iSIovcment- Measure — Tree-Growth — Snow-Line.
The village of Arandu lies at an altitude of 9,500 feet on an
alluvial terrace directh- in front of the converging tongues of
the Tippur glacier on the south and the Chogo Lungma on the
west, in an apparentl}- dangerous situation, as a decided advance
of or a heavy flood from either glacier would overwhelm and
destroy it. This terrace differs from the other fertile oases in
the valley below in that it has no fruit trees, producing onh-
grain and a few vegetables. It belongs to the Tippur slope
rather than to that of the Chogo Lungma. It may be an
alluvial fan washed out at some distant period from the Tippur
nala, its upper portion having since been covered with high
moraines by the Tippur glacier ; but it seems more likely to be
the termination of the talus sloping down from the mountain,
which forms the opening wall of the Tippur nala on the west.
This talus is continuous with the Arandu terrace, and, for
several hundred }-ards above it, is covered with grass and other
vegetation. The Tippur glacier comes dow-n through the gorge betw-een
precipitous rock-mountains high above Arandu and extends its
serac-covered tongue to within 1,846 feet of the village. It has
evidently been advancing for several if not man}- years, for it
has built entirely around the part outside the" gorge a high and
massive terminal moraine, abo\e which the ice tow-ers from fifty
to a hundred feet, and against w-hich it crowds, overhanging it

TONGUES OF TIPPUR AND CHOGO LUNGMA. 171
in many places. At the extreme end and at one other point the
ice has broken over its moraine barrier, and a line of seracs
projects half-way down the side of the latter.
The top of the moraine at the nearest point to the village is
415 feet above the latter. The glacier is adding to the moraine
at a rapid rate, discharging upon it constant showers of boulders,
rocks, and sand, with a thunder which resounds through the
air day and night. In short, this glacier may be considered, at
present, to be in an aggressive mood. Formerly it reached con
siderably farther down the valle}- than now, its old terminal
moraine being covered with a thick growth of grass, shrubs,
willows, and tamarisks.
Dn-^:-he contrary, the tongue of the far larger Chogo Lungma
comes down its valte}^ -without fuss or noise to w-ithin 1,184 fset
of Arandu, where, on a level with the latter, -sliel^-ing aw-a}- to a
thin edge, it dies out like a spent wave almost imperceptibh- on
the river-bed.
The Chogo Lungma glacier runs a winding course nearly
north of west from Arandu for a distance of thirty miles to
its source in a col nearly 20,000 feet high. In these thirt}-
miles it rises from a height of 9,500 feet at Arandu to 19,000
at the base of the col. Its width varies from about a mile
at its lower end to over two miles at its upper-middle portion.
For convenience of description it ma}- be divided into three
sections, according to the distinguishing characteristics of
each. The first or lowest section extends from the end of the tongue
nine miles upward to a point above the first bend. The surface
of this section is broken up into a confused mass of pointed
hillocks, highest along the median line, sharp ridges, and deep
ravines. It is so thickh- covered with mud, sand, granite,
conglomerate, and shaly detritus of every size from small frag
ments to huge boulders and slabs, that ice is scarcely seen, and
where it does appear it is black and smutty. Placed suddenl}-

172 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
upon it, one could imagine oneself in a desert of torn and
splintered rock rather than on a glacier.
What becomes ofthe immense mass of debris that covers
this section to its very end, ft is difficult to conjecture. One
might suppose that its accumulation would long ago have
blocked the wide valley below with a wall hundreds of feet

FIRST MiCTKiN OP CHOGO LUNGMA ONE MILE ABOVE TONGUE.
high, and buried the village of Arandu deep out of sight ; but
little evidence of such accumulation is seen, and the fair fields
of .Arandu still lift their luxuriant burden of grain to the breezes
unharmed by the threatening monster above. There is no
terminal moraine worth mention, only a few insignificant stone-
heaps, just beyond the edge of the tongue, left by the receding
ice — a great contrast to the huge moraine enveloping the tongue
ofthe neighbouring Tippur glacier.
Mr. Douglas Freshfield suggests that " the absence or rarity

ABSENCE OF TERMINAL MORAINES. 173
of great terminal moraines may best be accounted for by the
action of floods in carrying away all but the heaviest blocks "
(see the Geographical Journal for March, 1905, p. 267, comment 3).
In the present case the conditions at the lower end of the Chogo
Lungma do not bear out this view. There are no large blocks
nor boulders to be seen on the river bed between the tongue
and Arandu. Moreover, had a large moraine existed at any
time before the recession of the tongue, or been formed during
that process, to remove it would have required the action of a
powerful flood descending the Chogo Lungma valley on both
sides of the glacier or completely covering the latter, or of one
almost as great poured out from the Tippur gorge against the
tongue itself; in either of which contingencies the Arandu
terrace, elevated but a few feet above the river bed and lying
directly in the path of either flood, must have been swept
away bodily. Floods, even of moderate dimensions, leave their
scars upon a landscape. No traces of an}- flood in recent times are
to be found on the Arandu terrace, the cultivated fields of w-hich
slope upward to the mountain directly in front of the Tippur
gorge. Further, it is not necessary to account for the absence of
terminal moraines by supposing that they have existed and been
carried away by floods, for glacial tongues do not, b}- an}-
means, alwa}-s build large terminal moraines, even w-hen advanc
ing, and when receding, as the tongue of the Chogo Lungma
appears to have been doing since 1862, they seldom, if ever, do.
The tongue itself projects from the glacier-bed between the
mountains like a gigantic whale, its naked, sloping, glistening,
black flank at first over two hundred feet high, tapering down to
a small point. Some distance up on its side, near where it leaves
the right lateral moraine, a good-sized river flows out from
under it, which follows its edge nearly to its end, and then turns
across the stone-strewn interval towards Arandu, beyond w-hich
it joins the stream coming down on the opposite side from the
Kero Lunsma to form the Basha river.

174 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
This section of the glacier has dwindled greatly from fts
former volume. Colonel Godw-in Austin says that in 1862 the
ice was encroaching on the Arandu terrace. Now it nowhere
touches it, and has receded to a point 1,184 feet w-est of the
village. The signs of recession below the end of the tongue are
so faint that one could not judge from them that more than a
slight diminution in its actual length has occurred in recent
years, but immediately one ascends the glacier the evidence is
more pronounced. A quarter of a mile above the end the side
of the tongue has receded more than two hundred feet from the
high right lateral moraine.
On account of the broken and crevassed surface of the lower
section of the glacier, and the steepness of the mountain-walls
on the right bank, the only w-ay to ascend it is to cross over
it from Arandu to the left bank, and for the next fourteen miles
follow the detritus-strewn space between the former lateral
moraines and the present ones. Here the recession is very
marked. The ice now lies at distances of fifty to six hundred
feet from the original bank, consisting of the mountain-flanks,
which are banded by large primary moraines.
Between these and the moraines adjacent to the ice is a
system of more or less parallel secondary moraines, separated
from one another by considerable intervals. At one place six
parallel moraines of this kind ^vere counted. From these it
may be inferred (i) that the shrinkage has been going on for
a long time, as is shown b}- the fact that the primary and some
of the secondary moraines are covered w-ith vegetation and
trees ; (2) that there have been periods of arrest in this pro
cess, when the glacier was stationar\- or slightly advancing,
during which the secondary moraines were formed ; (3) that
the glacier is still retreating, as the ice slants sharply back, and
in some places has melted entirel}- aw-a}- from the moraines last
formed. Just below the upper end of this section a well-marked

' ¦ I. ^*C-'" ' '' ^ ^ - **¦ *

v,-^ • V,' ¦¦•
4;J.'-i*rt . »¦ '' •
ft. /' ::i'.^M . .' '
RECESSION OF GLACIER.

^11

moraine rises on the shoulder of a mountain-spur more than a
hundred feet above the ice opposite. To build this moraine
the surface of the glacier must have been from a hundred and
fifty to two hundred feet higher than at present. This
represents an important diminution of the glacier in thickness

Glacier.

Secondary.

Primary.

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY LATERAL MORAINES.
as well as in width. At no point in this section -was it advancing
or crowding its left lateral moraines, but everywhere receding
from them.
At one place in the lower part of the second section, for a dis
tance of more than 1,500 feet, the ice, which in 1902 had receded
from the lateral moraine, in 1903 was pressing hard against and
overlapping it, owing doubtless to the increased thrust of a
large branch opposite sent down from the Haramosh range.
The great accumulation of snow in the reservoir of this branch
M. N

178 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
during the storm}' winter and spring had evidently caused a
more than usually rapid advance of its whole trunk, with
sufficient force to push the Chogo Lungma bodily over to the
opposite side.
At some points the lateral moraines are high and massive, at
others small. The height of one was measured at a hundred

BLACK ICE-SLANT ON SIDE CHOGO LUNGMA, DEPOSITING MORAINE.
and fifteen feet on the shorter side ne.xt the mountain, and
others must have been a hundred and fifty feet or more. In
se\eral places moraines were being formed along the sides of
huge ice-walls, the process being similar to that of the
formation of tali at the base of mountain-precipices. In these
cases the debris near the edge of the glacier being set free b}-
the melting of the ice, and, falling down the sloping side,
accumulated as moraines at the base. These moraines, though
not very large, were of typical shape, and there was no evidence

MAIDANS. 179
that their formation was in any degree due to the pressing out
of the ground moraine-material from beneath the glacier.
Here and there along the left bank of the first and second
sections examples occur of the sand, grass, flower or bush-
covered maidans often seen at the sides of Himalayan glaciers.
These are level or gently inclined meadows l}-ing between the
mountain slopes and the lateral moraines. They are found at
places where the slopes recede from the glacial bed, at the
entrance of side-valleys, and at the confluence of glaciers,
where the lateral pressure is not great enough to force the
glaciers against the mountain-walls. The enclosing moraine-
barriers usually run in a straight line, except at the junction
of glaciers, where pressure may cause them to be formed in a
curve. The maidans are, as a rule, free from stones, and, if at the
entrance of side-valleys, may have small clear streams running
through them, hence they make safe and convenient places for
camps. In those we have examined no moraine-deposits have
been found on the mountain-slopes at the foot of which they
lie, and which themselves are often covered with grass and
flowers continuous with those of the maidan. Nor has such
deposit been found upon or in the rich alluvial surface of many
of the maidans or the sandy surface of others. The first
evidence of moraine deposition is seen in the sharply-defined
enclosing moraines, which overlie the maidan-surface as
extraneous structures.
These facts, together with the important one that the
maidans may be covered with a luxuriant growth of grass,
flowers, or bushes, while the enclosing moraines may be destitute
of any vegetation, point to the conclusion that the maidans
were formed like any other terraces at a time antecedent to the
formation of the moraines, and that the latter were super
imposed on their edges at a later period, probably curtailing
their area to a considerable extent. These maidans must not
X 2

i8o ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
be confounded with the spaces stre-wn with rock-debris lying
between primary and secondary lateral moraines.
The second section extends upward for thirteen miles to a
mountain w-all above the entrance of the Haramosh glacier,
where the Chogo Lungma makes a short turn to the south
west. This may be called the section of medial moraines, of

SECOND SECTION CHOGO LUNGMA PYRAMID PEAK IN BACKGROUND.
NOTE MEDIAN AND LATERAL MORAINES.
W-hich there are six well-marked ones, some of the larger
presenting several distinct ridges, which, if counted as separate
moraines, w-ould swell the number to between fifteen and
twenty. At the beginning of this section white ice first appears in
the shape of a vast white tongue extending downward from
above along the middle of the glacier. This is flanked by dark
medial moraine-bands bearing the detritus already mentioned.

THE HARAMOSH GLACIER. i8i
Opposite the peak Kupultung Rung, owing to some cause
which is not apparent, the moraines, which in places rise from
sixty to a hundred and fifty feet above the white ice, sink to
the general level and lose their identity, joining together to
form the chaotic structure seen lower down, the white ice
disappearing from view.
As the glacier is ascended, two bands of white ice appear,
separated by a huge moraine, the second originating in the
Haramosh glacier, the largest branch of the Chogo Lungma.
Throughout the second section the edges of the glacier are
much broken and crevassed, owing to the entrance of branch-
glaciers on both sides, the crevasses being comparatively short
and running in various directions according to the pressure.
To find one's way from the bank through the labyrinth of
resulting seracs to the white ice in the middle requires con
siderable mountaineering skill. But once gained, the latter
being smooth and free from large crevasses, affords a safe
passage to the end of the section.
The bend of the glacier to the south-west forms a good-
sized basin, into which open five large feeders of the great
stream, bearing somewhat the relation to it that the spread
fingers do to the palm of the hand. Four of these we explored
to their sources.
The large Haramosh glacier sweeps dovvn nearl}- at a right
angle upon the Chogo Lungma, with a thrust so great that the
latter is pushed over towards its left bank, and the Haramosh
turns to the right in a wide curve and crow-ds itself in on the
right of the main stream, forming thenceforth nearly half the
width of the glacier and preserving its identit}- to the middle of
the second section.
The detritus borne along on the left edge of the Haramosh
glacier forms at the line of junction with the Chogo Lungma
a large moraine in the middle of the glacier, which is pushed
high up above the surrounding level by the lateral pressure of

i82 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
the two streams. Where the glaciers first come together the
moraine is not very pronounced, but it becomes more so as
they descend. The granite of which it is composed has a
reddish colour from the iron it contains. About a mile below
the junction of the two glaciers another medial moraine of black
debris springs up by the side of the former w-ithout traceable
origin, and, after a short distance, increases in size and
height, rising a hundred and fifty feet or more from the
general level, until it quite overshadows the Haramosh moraine,
though it nowhere reaches more than half the width of the
latter. It is cleft by enormous transverse crevasses. Below the
Bolucho branch these two moraines coalesce and present a
uniform dark colour, sinking nearly to the level of the white ice.
The detritus on the right side of the Haramosh glacier with
that from the tributaries below forms a wide, right medial
moraine-belt with several moraines, while that from the left
side of the basin and left tributaries forms a left medial moraine
much narrower than the belt on the right. The greater part
of the detritus of the left moraine appears to be cast out
on the side to form, or help to form, the giant lateral
moraines there seen, but sufficient is left, with that of the
right central ones, to conceal the ice of the lowest section
entirel}- from view.
The medial moraines mark the course of the ice-currents
caused b}- the entrance of tributary-glaciers and the conforma
tion of the bed of the main stream. These currents are compli
cated, and much time would be necessa.-y to determine their
course. Above Riffel promontory one black moraine originating
under a mountain on the right bank pushes diagonally across
the glacier some three miles, and joins the left latero-medial
moraine. The third section of the Chogo Lungma comprises the
remaining nine miles to the col. In this distance the glacier

Indus Nagar Watershed Peak :
24,470 feet.

Pj'raniid Peak,
24,500 feet.

RESERVOIR OF CHOGO LUNGMA. 185
rises 5,000 feet, from 14,000 to 19,000, and is walled in by
impressive mountains from 21,000 to 24,500 feet high, whose
ice-clad sides rise sharply from it. Here moraines and rock-
debris cease to be prominent, their place being taken by a broken
surface of seracs and ice-falls, and higher up by neve and driven
snow. The seracs begin at Riffel promontory and continue
for about a mile, spreading half-way across the glacier. They
are largest and most broken near the right bank. Two
other series occur above, the first rising so steeply as to con
stitute an ice-fall. Wide crevasses of unmeasured depth exist
over the whole of this portion, in some places in great numbers,
in others more scattered. These crevasses do not run trans
versely from bank to bank, as at one place on the Biafo glacier,
but take every direction, often ending in huge ice-caverns. This
indicates irregularity of the glacial-bed.
This is the reservoir or formative basin of the glacier, an
elevated, savage wilderness of ice, rock, and snow. Here the
snow collects with every storm throughout the year, till it lies
many feet deep on the solid ice beneath, to which it freezes and
whose volume it helps to swell. Large hanging glaciers pour
down their ice-contingent in tumultuous confusion to add to the
masses below, while the precipitous mountain-flanks hurl down
snow and ice-avalanches of enormous size, with a force which
causes the earth to tremble and a thunder which is heard for
miles. Avalanches here are constantly falling, and constitute
an element of danger which has to be reckoned with in every
move that is made.
The last five miles of this section consist of a series of vast
rounded ice-hillocks, slanting sharply up to the mountains at
the sides and rising steeply over one another, their surfaces
broken with yawning ice-caverns and deeply covered with snow.
At the top, above all, rises a massive ice-wall, its continuity
broken by bergschrunds and ice-falls, which culminates in a col
nearly 20,000 feet above sea-level.

i86 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
The Chogo Lungma has fourteen glacial branches, some of
which have been and others w-ill be described. The northern
branches of the middle section have receded greatly, two large
ones, the Bolucho and Kilwaru, no longer connecting with the
main stream, and several former branches having entirely

SERACS NEAR RIFFEL PROMONTORY.

disappeared ; w-hile the southern branches, apparently, are not
receding. Opposite Riffel promontory a large depression occurs in the
body of the glacier a short distance above the line of junction
of the Haramosh with it, at an altitude of about 13,700 feet.
In the centre of this depression there is a good-sized lake
several hundred feet long, of irregular shape, enclosed by per
pendicular ice-walls and with streams running into and out of
it. This presented the same appearance in 1903 as in 1902,
and will probably continue to exist till the movement of the

¦^I.

^¦'¦X V<-.'*--:^" ^^¦.•--'¦•""'¦' ¦-''.¦'^''

--^

'c^.^-

HS^

c^i^i^

BIRD S-EYE-VIEW OF RIFFEL CAMP. SERACS AND ICE-LAKE FROM RIFFELHORN.
GLACIER HERE TWO MILES WIDE.

GLACIAL LAKES. 189
glacier or some other cause opens an outlet in its bed. A mile
north of this, opposite the entrance of Moraine glacier, was a
border lake, and two and a quarter miles east of this, at the
entrance of an unnamed glacier, three small surface-lakes. No
lakes were seen on any of the branches, except on Basin glacier
in 1903, -where a number of small surface-lakes or water-pools
were met with.
At various places along the left or north bank of the Chogo
Lungma border-lakes have evidently existed which have been
drained dry. Drew mentions having seen one at the time of
his visit. At Last Wood Camp, situated behind the stretch of
moraine against which the ice was mentioned to be pressing in
1903, we witnessed the process of emptying of a sub-glacial
lake, enclosed by the moraine and the ice towering above it.
The lake was fed by sub-glacial streams, the ice covering it
being much broken.
Late in the afternoon, when the lake became filled to the
upper edge of the moraine, water began to flow over the latter
in two small rivulets, which, washing out the finer particles of
detritus, soon cut channels into its substance. These channels
gradually increased in width and depth, until at last two large
sluices were discharging an ever-increasing amount of water
from the reservoir behind, which about midnight became
emptied, or, at least, so far reduced in volume that no more
water flowed from it. The discharge was so well graduated
that the natural streams below took care of the w-ater without
any great increase of volume.
In 1899 we found only one lake on the Biafo glacier, a border-
lake about a hundred and fifty feet long, on its western edge,
three-quarters of a mile above the tongue. At its upper end,
where the Biafo widens out into Snow Lake, we encountered a
surface sheet of water, some four inches deep, through which
we waded for three miles. Much more water was met with on
the Biafo than on the Chogo Lungma, running in streams.

190 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
some of them large, which cut deep channels in the ice
and finally plunged into crevasses or caverns, to be seen
no more.
The Chogo Lungma rises more sharply than the Biafo, and
to an altitude more than 3,000 feet higher. Its upper third is
much more arctic in character, and melting does not take place
to nearly the same degree. Its surface is so broken and fissured
that there is not the same chance as on the Biafo for streams
to form. What streams there were -were chiefly in the middle
or second section. The upper third was free from running
water for two reasons : — (i) The part from 14,000 to 16,000 feet
was so broken that all surface water ran directly down into the
crevasses ; (2) Above 16,000 feet, where soft snow began, no
water was seen in sufficient quantity to form streams. But
little water flows on a glacier above the snow line, the soft
snow absorbing and retaining any that may be formed by melt
ing, which is again frozen as soon as the sun sets. Such water
as does result from the sun's heat thus assists in converting the
soft snow into neve and true glacial ice. Shade temperatures,
even if considerably above freezing, count for little as a factor
in converting ice into water on the higher parts of a glacier as
opposed to the cold contained in the ice itself. The chief agent
in this process is the direct heat of the sun.
Many pockets were found in the ice, at altitudes of 14,000 to
16,000 feet, from six inches to two feet in diameter and from
one to three feet deep, filled with water of crystal-clearness,
which furnished excellent reservoirs from which to fill our
water flasks. At the bottom of each was a flat stone or a
quantity of fine, dark-coloured detritus, suggesting that the
pockets are formed by the melting of the ice beneath the
stone or detritus by the heat absorbed by the latter from the
sun's rays.
Measurements were made by Mr. Hewett at two stations to
determine the movements of the glacier. The first station was

MOVEMENT MEASUREMENTS. 191
on the north bank, fifteen miles above the tongue. The
movement in twenty-four hours—

At a point 1,583 feet from the station was found to be 1-59 feet
2-40

1,902
2,828 4,084 5,021
5,094

3-29 2-453-08

The second station was on the south bank, three miles higher,.
just below the entrance of Haramosh glacier. The movement
here in twenty-four hours —
At a point 1,302 feet from the station was found to be 1*40 feet.
1,502 „ „ „ 1-83 „
3,140 „ „ „ 2-42 „
3,305 „ „ „ 2-69 „
These observations were not carried sufficiently far to permit of
any extended deductions being made from them. They show
that, at certain points on two lines running transversely across
the glacier, the ice was moving at different rates, varying from
511 to 1,153 feet per annum, which indicated the existence of
different ice-currents moving at different speeds. How far the
speed observed for a given point would be preserved is uncer
tain. Could the same points be identified farther up or dowm
the glacier probably their rates of movement, both actual and
relative, would be found quite different from those observed.
The first set of figures are so irregular among themselves
that no conclusion as to the movement of the glacier as a
whole can be drawn from them. Probably some, if not all, of
these currents corresponded w-ith the ice-streams contributed
by the branches to form the main trunk, which often preserve
their identit}- for a long distance. The velocit}- with which
these streams move would be determined by the action of

192 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
several forces, that are difficult to estimate, and would act
unequally at different points, viz., pressure from above on
each column in its own axis, lateral pressure of each column
on its neighbours, and the force of gravity modified by the
nature and direction of the bed beneath.
On the contrary, the points on the upper or second line have
an increasing rate of movement from the station towards the
centre of the glacier, showing that tffey were moving on the
radius of a curve, which represents just what was happening,
the station being situated where the Haramosh glacier sweeps
around in a great curve to force itself in on the right of the
Chogo Lungma.
The tree growth in the Chogo Lungma nala is scanty, con
sisting chiefly of willows and cedars, and those are found only
on the north or left side. Willows cease at a height of about
II, 600 feet, while cedars are scattered over the mountain slopes
to about 12,800 feet. We found, cut up, and used for fuel
many cedar trunks, which had lain prostrate for an unknown
period, larger than those of most of the trees now growing.
Besides trees there is a species of bush, the name of which
w-e did not learn, which is found to an altitude of 14,400 feet,
though stunted above 13,000 feet. This at its best attains a
height of 10 to 12 feet. Its wood is hard, and it makes a
much better fuel than willows and cedars. Grass and some
Alpine flora are found to about 15,000 feet in favoured spots.
Above this is the domain of rock and ice.
The determination of the snow-line is difficult in a region
like that around the Chogo Lungma, split up, as it is, into
irregular, ragged, towering peaks and deep tortuous valleys.
Many of the mountains far above the snow--line have such
sharp slants and perpendicular faces that snow- will not lodge
on them, and these remain bare of snow at all times, while
snow accumulates in their ravines at comparatively low altitudes
to such an extent that the heat of half a dozen summers would

SNOW-LINE. 1^3
not melt it. Snow-beds of this character are not infrequently
seen lying exposed to the sun throughout the summer as low
as 12,000 feet.
Glaciers, deep snow-beds, and perpendicular rock-faces have
to be eliminated from the problem, and its solution sought on
even regular slopes, where the depth of snow represents the
average snow-fall. Such slopes near the snow-line are not
easily found on the Chogo Lungma. But where they do exist,
the snow-line varies with the exposure, being higher on
southern than on northern slopes, and it also must vary with
the character of the season, being considerably lower after
severe winters with great snow-fall and in cold, stormy summers,
when snow covers the hills during every storm to points far
below the actual snow-line. The snow-line is highest about
the end of August.
In August, igo2, in ascending the south side of a mountain
of 17,814 feet, with a broad, snow-capped top, we first
encountered snow at 17,400 feet. The north side of this
mountain was covered with snow as low as 16,000 feet. On
another peak, not far from the Chogo Lungma, of 17,600 feet,
we found in July no snow, except in small patches, till the
top was reached, and then only on the north slope, where it
extended downward in a large snow-field. On the same dates
in 1903, after a severe winter and stormy spring, both these
peaks were snow-covered on their south sides for a distance of
1,500 feet below their summits. The snow-line must there
fore be considered indeterminate, var}'ing according to
exposure, weather, and temperature from about 16,000 to
17,500 feet or over.
,\s to snow on glaciers, on the Chogo Lungma and its larger
branches, soft snow began to be met with at about 15,500 feet
in August, growing deeper with increasing altitude. Much of
this was new snow from the repeated summer monsoon-storms,
and it was impossible to judge of the quantity that might have
M. o

194 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
existed had the season been more favourable, but its lower
limit would certainly be considerably higher in a pleasant
season. Our thanks are due to Mr. John S. Flett, of the Geological
Survey and Museum, Jermyn Street, London, who kindly
examined a dozen specimens of rocks brought from the Chogo
Lungma region, and reported as follows : —
No I. Granular crystalline limestone with grains of dark
green augite (" coccolite ") and veins of quartz and yellow
epidote. Nos. 2 and 3. Granular crystalline w'hite dolomites. They
have a close resemblance to marble, but prove to contain much
carbonate of magnesia.
No. 4. Hornblende schist.
Nos. 5 and 6. Garnetiferous mica schists.
Nos. 7 and 8. These are hornblende granulites, which contain
dark green blades of hornblende and small red garnets in a
finely granulitic matrix of quartz.
No. 9. Quartz and chlorite.
No. 10. Grey limestone and green actinolite.
No. II. Granular cr}'stalhne limestone with green chlorite.
No. 12. Hornfils with divergent surface-markings which have
some resemblance to fossil plants, but are really a kind of
concretions or knots produced by the action of hot intrusions of
granite or other similar rocks on impure masses of shale
around them.

CHAPTER IX.
Starting again for Mountains — Engaging Permanent Coolie-Corps — High
Sun-Temperatures — Through Braldoh 'Valley to Vale of Desolation —
Terminal Moraine of Hoh Lumba Glacier — Recession of Glacier — Up
the Hoh Lumba— At Camp des Aiguilles — First Ascent of Col des
Aiguilles — .\ Wonderful Cornice — Topographical Discoveries — E.xplor-
ing Sosbon Glacier — Return to the Chogo Lungma.
In May, 1903, we returned to Srinagar, where on the 20th
we were joined by the well-know-n exploring guides, Joseph
Petigax and Cyprien Savoye, of Courmayeur, and Laurent
Petigax fils as porter. These guides, whose efficienc^- as
experts in snow and ice-craft it gives us pleasure to recognise,
were engaged and sent out to Kashmir by the kindness of
Signore Francesco Gonella, then President of the Turin
Section ofthe Italian Alpine Club, and Signore Ettore Canzio,
of Turin, to whom we are greatly indebted for their prompt
and friendly assistance. A few days later Mr. B. H. M. Hewett,
of London, who was engaged to accompany the expedition as
topographer, arrived.
Four years previously, w-hen ascending the Biafo glacier,
being impressed with the character of the peaks seen to the
west of it, and persuaded that the region lying between the
Biafo, Hispar, and Chogo Lungma glaciers would prove w-orth
investigating, we determined to explore it should opportunity
offer. The present seemed a fitting time to carry out this
plan, so we left Srinagar on 26th May with the intention of
making the Hoh Lumba, the nearest glacier west of the Biafo,
our objective.
The march to Skardo, as in 1902, was made by the Indus
valley route, and that village was reached on 8th June. Here
o 2

196 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
we met the Kashmir Joint Commissioner for Ladakh and
Baltistan, w-ho had been promoted to this position from that of
Tehsildar at Skardo, which he held in 1902. He arranged for
our entertainment a polo game, in which the Raja of Skardo
and his four brothers took an active part. We were impressed
not onl\- b^- the equestrian skill of the players, but also by the

OUR PARTY LEAVING SRINAGAR, 1903.
agility of the small mountain ponies, and the clouds of dust they
raised in scurrying over the ground. Polo was followed by a
weird slow nautch performed b}- mountain men from a remote
nala, during which the Raja's band played its loudest strains.
Amusements at Skardo are of a simple character, in keeping
with its primitive civilisation and rugged environment.
Not having found the Basha coolies wholly satisfactory the
preceding summer, and with a view to avoid some of the

ENGAGING COOLIE CORPS. 199
difficulties then experienced, we decided to try to get thirty
picked men at extra wages, who would agree to go with us for
the summer, to form the nucleus of a transport corps, on which
some reliance might be placed. On the march from Dasso to
Rondu the preceding September, we had a set of fine large
fellows, who shouldered their loads as if they were of no
account, and strode ahead up the hills so fast that we could
scarcely keep pace with them. These were the men w-e sug
gested as the material from which to select the picked corps
desired. The Resident of Kashmir, with the consent of the State
authorities, kindly requested the Skardo Tehsildar to have thirt\-
coolies from this district meet us at Skardo. When we arrived
they were waiting for us, but they were not men of the stature
or calibre of those whose work had been so satisfactory the
season before. They were undersized and unprepossessing
in appearance, and were collected from villages other than
Dasso. As time was of value, and we could not wait to have others
got together, we decided with many misgi\-ings to try them.
After the Tehsildar had spent the better part of two days
haggling w-ith them, they finally agreed for double the customar}-
wages and their food to go w-ith us for the season wherever we
wished, and to forfeit half a month's pay in case the}- broke
their contract. A contract in writing w-as then drawn up by
the Tehsildar, their names all inscribed under it, it was read to
them, and each put his thumb mark opposite his name, the whole
being duly witnessed. Haifa month's wages w-as then advanced
to them, the other half to be paid at the end of the month, and
they entered our service.
The first march to Shigar showed their animus. Seizing the
lightest loads they could secure they loitered and dragged com-
plainingly along, reaching Shigar two hours and a half after the
local coolies, a serious handicap, when we needed our kit to

200 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
pitch camp with. This continued for two weeks, when, having
camped for four days on snow, and in a measure become
accustomed to it, the}- came in a body to our tents, declared
they would leave, and demanded payment for the remainder of
the month. They then left, much to our relief, for their influ
ence on the other coolies was pernicious. So failed an attempt
to secure faithful service from coolies by large wages and
written contract.
During the week from loth to 17th June the sun-temperatures
in this region were unusually high. Some of them were —
June loth. — Skardo, i p.m., sun 201° F., shade 80°; 4 p.m.,
sun 180"^, shade 76*^.
June I2th. — Camp three miles from Shigar, altitude 8,000 feet ;
I p.m., sun 195°, shade 82°.
June 13th. — Same place, 12 noon, sun 198°, shade 81° ; i p.m.,
sun 202°, shade 83° ; 1.30 p.m., sun 203.8°, shade SG'*
June 14th. — Same place, 12 noon, sun 201°, shade 76° ;
12.25 p.m., sun 206'^.
June 15th. — Same place, i p.m., sun 198°, shade 76°.
These figures speak for themselves. No sun-temperatures
during the summer in the plains of India approached them.
This subject will be referred to later.
After leaving the Shigar valley we turned eastward around
the base of Buspar into the Braldoh valley, and, crossing the
Braldoh river on a zak, marched up the valley twelve miles to
the village of Hoh, which lies at the entrance of the Hoh nala
at an altitude of 9,165 feet. Here on i8th June the caravan
was reinforced by Hoh coolies and a lambardar, which brought
the total number up to seventy. The next day, leaving a munshi
from Srinagar to look after our interests at Hoh, w-e started to
ascend the Hoh nala, taking as livestock sixteen goats and eleven
sheep in charge of a goatherd, and a good supply of fowds, which
were carried by the coolies.
A narrow, rough path, rather difficuft to follow-, here and

V, ¦ r^ .

w?". 'y^''*
(#/*^>/

y7,«/'%'Pi' t

THUMB-MARK SIGNATURES OF COOLIES TO CONTRACT.

THE HOH NALA. 203
there interrupted by fallen rocks, winds upwards in the nala
along the precipitous flanks of nude mountains overhanging this
confined gorge, through which the noisy, khaki- coloured Hoh
torrent fights its tortuous way over and around huge boulders
with hissing roar, gullying through clay and sand-banks, bent
on forcing its rapid course to the more placid Braldoh below^
The nala is filled with old glacial debris several hundred feet
deep containing many boulders large and small, through which
the torrent has cut its way. After running for some distance
high above the river, the path finally descends to it. At this
point the bottom of the nala w-as choked by a large winter-
avalanche, its snow mingled with trees and black detritus,
which completely covered the river, that had tunneled a channel
through it. This passed, the path skirted upward again, in
places losing itself in angry side-torrents, over which we leaped
as best we could. At one spot a few white birches and burtsa-
tufts were struggling for existence on the arid flank. Otherwise
the nala was devoid of vegetation, grim and lifeless, without a
note of colour. Some call Ladakh routes dull and monotonous,
but that land is full of ever-changing beauty and picturesqueness
compared with the vale of the Hoh, held, as it is, in the acme of
desolation. Four miles above Hoh is Pirnar Tapsa, a small grazing-ground
shaded by a few birches and cedars. Be}-ond this the narrow
trail ascends again into desolation. But consolations come to
those who seek long enough for them in Himalaya, as we found,
when, rounding a bend of the barren mountain, we emerged
on a w-ide green maidan dotted with trees, among which cattle
were grazing or drinking at musical rivulets. This was Nangma
Tapsa, at 11,590 feet, nearly 2,500 feet above Hoh. Here camp
was pitched directly in front of the tongue of the Hoh Lumba
glacier. Rain and snow fell that night, and it snowed till nearly noon
of the 20th, showing how true were the reports of the late

204 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
winter in the mountains. As this was the last camp at which
wood could be obtained— indeed every camp above this was to
be on snow — we occupied the coolies on this day in carrying
wood a thousand feet up the mountain-side for use at higher
camps. The limit of wood-growth here is at about 12,000 feet.
Above Nangma Tapsa, between it and the glacier, is a hill
above five hundred feet high extending across the space from
mountain to mountain. Examination shows this to consist
entirely of moraine-material, and to be in fact the giant terminal
moraine of the Hoh Lumba. This moraine is interesting in
several ways (i) on account of its great size, being not only
some five hundred feet high, but at least half a mile wide, and
over half a mile in depth from its front face. It is the largest
terminal moraine we have anywhere seen, the Hoh Lumba
distinguishing itself from the far larger and longer Chogo
Lungma, w-hich has no terminal moraine at all, by building one
of this size. From what we were able to observe on the snow-
covered glacier above, it would appear that it brings down
nearly the whole of its debris to be excreted at its end, leaving
comparatively little for the formation of lateral moraines higher
up. (2) On account of its age. The greater part of it is covered
by a growth of rather large cedars, showing that it must have
existed to almost its present extent for a very long time. The
tongue of the glacier has evidently been slowly retreating,
probably for centuries, piling up this monumental moraine as it
went. The low-er moraines behind it, running back another half
mile to the ice, are of more recent formation. These are
destitute of vegetation, except where they join the older part,
where there is some small scrub.
(3) On account of its formation. It will be noticed in the
illustration, that the moraine-hillock is divided into two portions
separated by a furrow, and that these two portions correspond
to two ice-streams above, also separated by a furrow, w-hich is

TERMINAL MORAINE OF HOH LUMBA. 207
continuous with that dividing the hillock. It is therefore
evident that the two portions of the hillock were formed b}- the
two ice-streams composing the glacier, which have preserved

CAMP AT NANGMA TAPSA, 11,590 FEET.
their separate identity during all these ages. Four miles above
the present tongue of the glacier two glaciers of almost equal
size and length come together to form the main trunk of the
Hoh Lumba, and the two ice-streams thence derived move

2o8 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
downward side by side without actual union, and deposit in one
spot at the end moraine-detritus gathered from two entirely
distinct basins.
On 2 1st June we started to explore the glacier. To reach it
we ascended the steep hillside above its right bank for about a
thousand feet. The shoulder of the hill is crowned by a massive,
but not very long, stretch of lateral moraine rising fully a
hundred feet above the slant on which it stands. Resting
squarel}- on the top of this moraine is an extraordinarily large
granite boulder, the form and dimensions of which are repre
sented by a cube with a side of fifty feet. A short distance from
it is another not much smaller. We judge these boulders were
brought down upon the surface of the glacier and deposited in
their present position after the moraine was formed, as their
angles and edges are not rounded off and their surfaces do not
show markings from friction, as might be expected had they
been transported in the glacial bed and been extruded upon the
moraine by pressure. Moreover, had boulders of such size been
pressed out from beneath the glacier they would have made
deep channels in the side of the moraine in reaching their
present position, and would have been somewhat deeply
embedded in the moraine itself, neither of which effects are
apparent, the boulders standing on comparatively narrow bases
on the sky-line of the moraine. Surely Titanic forces must have
been at work to have deposited such mementoes of Nature's
power in this position.
From the ridge of this moraine a good view is obtained of the
glacial tongue below and of the glacier itself for a distance of
several miles. It was easy to see that the glacier has receded
not only in length, as shown by the hillock and the moraines
behind it, but also in width, as the moraine itself most con
clusively testifies. Its top is fifty feet or more above the present
height of the ice, which also has shrunk a considerable distance
away from it. To have built this moraine, and especiall}- to

M.

RECESSION OF GLACIER.

211

have deposited such huge masses of rock on its top, the ice
must have crowded upon and towered a good deal abo\'e it.
The side of the glacier also is now separated by quite a wide
interval from the smooth and rounded surface-rocks below the
moraine, though there is no reason to doubt that the ice
formerly reached to and partially covered them. We found no

EXTREMITY OF RIGHT LATERAL MORAINE, HOH LUMBA GLACIER.
MORAINE ABOUT EIGHTY FEET ABOVE ICE.
striation marks upon them, but this is not surprising, as such, if
they ever existed, would have been effaced long ago by the
weathering they have undergone. Several small moraines
between these rocks and the side of the tongue show the periods
of recession at this point. The stream flowing from the glacier
being turned aside by the high terminal moraine has cut its wa}-
through the interval between it and the mountain.
Before leaving the moraine w-e took counsel with map and
p 2

212 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
compass regarding a problem which confronted us. Some
three miles above, at the base of a mountain promontory, the

BORDER LAKE, HOH LUMBA GLACIER, JUST ABOVE JUNCTION WITH
SOSBON.
main glacier was seen to divide into two equally large branches,
which ascended in different directions. This was quite a

snow-hillock CAMP, 14,171 FEET, HOH LUMB\.

ASCENT OF HOH LUMBA. 215
different topography from that denoted on the Survey map,
which shows one long glacier with side feeders. Which of
these branches represented the main glacier ? Having finally
decided to follow up first the left-hand one, which corresponded
most nearly -with the direction of the long glacier laid down on
the Survey sheet, we descended to the ice.
Before doing so, as it was evident that the further journey
would be through a snow-bound region, the goats and sheep
were sent back to Nangma Tapsa, the latter to be killed and
forwarded as needed. The only animal w-e saw- that seemed
adapted to this environment was the ibex, numbers of -which
were feeding on the few- bare spots of the mountain-sides.
Late winter, as well as newdy-fallen snow covered e\-erything,
the glacier with its seracs, crevasses, and moraines, and the
lower mountain spurs, where usually in summer patches of earth
or uncovered rock-ledges are found for tents, and grass and
vegetation for goats and sheep, as high as 14,000 to 15,000 feet.
Only a jutting rock broke here and there the deep white
mantle that still held the middle mountain world iu the sleep
of winter.
About half a mile above the moraine we had just left, a large
branch a mile wide enters the Hoh Lumba from the w-est.
This sub-divides into three smaller branches, of w-hich the
middle one springs from the snows of Mt. Ganchen. The
Chaltoro, another branch, enters on the east side just opposite,
and again on the west side shortly above, tw-o others, making
four branches in all. We marched up the glacier over a
succession of large ice-hillocks separated by wide furrows, and
about noon reached the point of divergence and struck into the
left-hand or w-est branch leading north-west. Just above the
dividing point there was a good-sized lake in the glacier, its
surface frozen over and partially covered with snow. The
weather now changed. Heavy clouds rohed over the sky, and
by three o'clock snow was falling so briskly that w-e could see

2i6 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
nothing five hundred feet distant. Looking around for a
favourable place to camp, we found a flat snow-surface near a
glacial w-ater-pool for our tents, and some rocks below to
shelter the coolies, who take to rocks as a rat does to a hole.

EREE BRANCH, HOH LUMBA GLACIER.

Here we proceeded to make ourselves as comfortable as
circumstances allowed. This was named Snow--Hillock Camp.
On this occasion it w-as not necessary to melt snow for
water. All w-ater buckets w-ere speedily filled, lest the reservoir
should freeze over in the lowering temperature. The coolie-
tents proved insufficient for the number of coolies, and, much
to our regret, we were obliged to loan them one of ours.
Loaning a tent to coolies, even for a night, is the ruin of that

HOH LUMBA SCENERY. 221
tent, so far as the further use of it for oneself is concerned, as
those who know coolie-humanity can well imagine.
It snowed and blew the greater part of the night, but cleared
towards morning. At 6 a.m., when we wished to strike tents,
the pegs were frozen hard into the snow, and had to be loosened
with an axe. Water in buckets inside the tents was converted
into ice, and the glass indicated 10° F. This, though it was
-only at 14,171 feet, was as cold as we had had it at above
17,000 on the Chogo Lungma in July the preceding summer.
Just above Snow-Hillock Camp the third and last tributary
>of the west side, the Free glacier enters the Hoh Lumba. It
is something over two miles long, and, when we saw it,
presented an unbroken snow-surface, no crevasses being visible.
It runs up to a beautiful snow-peak, one of the most con
spicuous on the glacier, which was measured by the topographer
at 20,859 feet.
By eight o'clock we were again on the march. Bright sun
shine ameliorated the temperature, and soon we were glad
to discard warm coats and Jaeger caps and replace them by
light clothing and topis. The scenery at the camp was
magnificent, and increased in grandeur as we ascended. Three
miles above this camp the glacier, bending north, widens into
.an elongated basin, encircled by granite needles, which at that
early season, their knife and sword-like forms dashed with fresh
snow wherever it could lodge, presented one of the most bizarre
and impressive mountain landscapes we have met with. The
Grepon, Dent du Geant, or other aiguilles of the Mt. Blanc
range, transplanted here would be but the veriest gendarmes
of these massive heights, which, rising in giant towers and airy
pinnacles, reminded us of the Ogre and Mt. Meru of the Biafo.
Our route wound upwards over high snow-hillocks rising in
wavy undulations, which partially concealed from view the
splendid peaks ahead, so that their full majesty burst upon us
only when the upper part of the glacier -was reached. Owing

222

ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.

to the heavy covering of snow it was difficuft to judge of the
conformation of the glacier, or of its moraines. Lateral
moraines, so far as w-e could judge, were slight or wanting, and
medial moraines, if they existed, were so covered with snow-
that they could not be distinguished.
Good progress was made throughout the morning, the snow-

CAMP DES AIGUILLES, 15,780 FEET, HOH LUMBA GLACIER.
remaining hard till one o'clock. As we approached the head
of the glacier only one depression in the vast cirque of
enclosing mountains could be discovered, a snow-col betw-een
two peaks, which overtops a high, much seracked and
dangerous-looking ice-fall, and forms the ultimate source of
the Hoh Lumba. If we could reach that col a glimpse of the
beyond, so alluring to mountaineers in unexplored regions,
might be obtained. To reach its base would take the coolies

SPRAY OF PEAKS IN MIST, HOH LUMBA GLACIER.

ON COL DES AIGUILLES, 18,331 FEET, HOH

WAITING FOR COOLIES. 227
at their waning pace still an hour and a half. We therefore
pushed on with the guides, leaving them to follow.
Below the ice-fall, at a point safe from avalanches, we had
tiffin and discussed the chances of an ascent the next day. An
hour passed and not a coolie appeared in sight ; but at length
the khansamah and two servants came up, and said the coolies
would not come higher, as some were ill and there were
neither rocks nor water where we wished to camp. It w-as
indeed an inhospitable place, not a sheltering rock in sight,
nor water, only the great snowy expanse stretching below, and
the stern, pitiless mountain-sentinels watching above. Still
the chances were the khansamah spoke quite as much for
himself as for the coolies.
Camp there we must if the col was to be reached the next
day, so Dr. Workman and the guides descended to encourage
and urge on the coolies. Airs. Bullock \\'orkman waited with
the khansamah and servants, who soon fell asleep in that
supreme isolation of snow and rock, where the silence of
overawing Nature becomes at moments more oppressive and
nerve-straining than a constant booming of artillery. This
silence was broken now and then b}- the roar of an avalanche.
which could be seen starting like a snow}- ri\ulet from a sharp
slant and increasing in size and force as it rushed downw-ards,
until far below in rolling white masses it crashed upon the
glacier, throwing up a mist that filled the air for a long distance.
Here, at the height of Mt. Blanc, at 2 p.m., a sun
temperature of 170° F. \\as taken ; not so ver}- high for the
altitude, but sufficient!}- so to make the reflected heat in that
enclosed, windless basin oppressive. At last the coolies, ha\-ing
been persuaded to advance, arrived, some of them nearly
snow-blind because they would not use the glare-glasses
furnished them, others affected with mountain sickness, or
pretending to be. When all had deposited their loads, they
were set at work to trample down the soft snow to make tent-
Q 2

228 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
terraces. The camp here, established at 15,780 feet altitude, was
called Camp des Aiguilles. The sun left the camp at 4 p.m.,
and by five it was freezing hard, a strange contrast to 170° in
the sun three hours earlier.
To make a fire in these snow-camps a rough fireplace has to
be improvised w-ith at least four good-sized stones. As none
were at hand, the coolies having neglected to bring any from
below, we had to content ourselves with melting snow for
water and heating tinned provisions for dinner over a primus
stove. Before turning in at night we called up the shivering
khansamah and told him to see to it that a good dinner with
hot soup and roast mutton should be ready the next evening
when we returned from the mountain above. He grumbled
somewhat, sa}ing he could not make a fire. " Send coolies
down for stones; there will be plenty of time to-morrow," w-e
replied, tying the tent-flaps against the ic}' blast. One must
not be too lenient with a Kashmiri khansamah, even at snow-
camps. The guides called us at three-thirty, and in an hour -we five
stood under a starlit sky, with a temperature of 12° F., adjusting
the rope for the start to the col. We hoped to find a way up
the broken ice-fall, but on reaching its base the seracs were
found too formidable. We therefore changed our course,
skirted a rock-wall to the right, crossed a large bergschrund,
and traversed a series of steep (60°) snow--covered ice-slants,
perched above perpendicular precipices on the abrupt flank of
a Cervin-like peak at the right of the col : a route which did
not prove much easier to negotiate than the ice-fall would
have been. By the time the last of these slants was behind
us, and we had reached the upper part of the ice-fall, where
there was standing room, we found it necessary to eat, for we
were thoroughly chilled notwithstanding the exercise. The cold
seemed harder to bear than when we left camp, and the sun
w-ould not strike our path for another two hours.

North Wall, Hispar.

South Wall, Hispar.

MOUNTAIN-WALL SEPARATING COL DES AIGUILLES FROM HISPAR GLACIER

COL DES AIGUILLES. 231
After a kola biscuit and some congealed meat, we were off
again over the steep slopes leading up to the final one beneath
the col. Absolute silence reigned on the rope, broken only by
the sharp click of the axe on the frozen surface. On w-e went,
higher and higher, sometimes traversing, sometimes straight
up a snow-arete, catching now and again glimpses of our tents
poised like flies on the glacier 2,000 feet below. The strain of
several hours on the precarious slants was at last relieved,
when a small plateau was reached, where a halt was made
before attacking the final thousand feet to the top. This last
was a trifle less steep, but the heat now became as oppressive
as the cold had been earlier in the morning, and we felt the
effects of rarefied air somewhat, which some of the party
accounted for by the fact that we had come up within a week
from the steamy Braldoh valley.
These annoyances were all forgotten when, at ten-thirty, on
completing a wearisome slope, we realised that the top of the
col was reached. The ascent had occupied six hours. Great
peaks loomed ahead from the Hispar side, and we were pushing
forward to see them better when Petigax called, " Halte ! C'est
une corniche." We stopped instantl}-, realising, as we glanced
around, that we were standing on a huge, curling cornice over
hanging a terrific precipice. This rounded ice-tongue projected
well beyond the mountain-brow-, and, ha\-ing no support, might
break aw-ay and disappear into the ab}-ss below at an}- moment,
carrying us with it. It is never safe to trust to the strength of
a cornice, however massive it may appear, as we had had
occasion to note in case of some of the avalanches we had seen.
We moved cautiously back to a point w here the snow- was
firm. Then, held securely by us all, Petigax advanced slowdy
upon the cornice to where he could look over. Having made
his observations, he returned, and the rest of us, each in turn,
similarl}- supported, went out to have a look over this wonderful
ice-edge. The sensation was extraordinary. One stood alone

232 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
on the glittering shelf, suspended as it were in mid air. In
front rose a mighty world of unexplored summits, and some
4,000 feet directly beneath swept a placid glacier, separated
from the Hispar by an unbroken granfte wall towering at
intervals into imposing peaks. Standing on that relentless
monster-cornice, where a few steps forward would precipitate
one into eternity, was a never-to-be-forgotten experience. As
every mountaineer knows, such moments are stupendous, more
awesome, yet filled with keener enjoyment than are months of
ordinary existence. Truly one lives a hundred years in a
moment of such supreme exaltation.
Returning to a safe position, although the wind having risen
was blowing half a gale and the temperature was 30" F., we
turned our attention to photography, readings, and studying
the glorious sweep of the Hoh Lumba and its magnificent peaks.
Toward the north, through a notch between two peaks of the
w-all above mentioned, a snow-pyramid was visible, rising on
the north side of the Hispar glacier. This was recognised as
one of the peaks we saw and photographed from the Hispar
pass in 1899. The glacier running beneath the cornice and
discovered from it is a narrow enclosed glacier, originating in
a col, which separates it from the Biafo, and ending, probably,
beneath the mountains enclosing the Alchori glacier on the
east. Its origin in the col was later seen from the head of the
Sosbon glacier, but its western end could not be seen from the
cornice we were on. If it has an outlet on any large glacier it
would be on the Hispar, east of the Alchori glacier. Sir Martin
Conway assures us that when he ascended the Hispar he saw-
no glacier entering it in this region. We named it Cornice
glacier. The col was named Col des Aiguilles or Needle Col.
Calculations based on the readings give it an altitude of 18,331
feet. Its ascent was of value, in that it settled the question in
the negative of a direct passage from the Hoh Lumba to the
Hispar glacier, as is .shown on the Indian Survey map.

PEAKS ON WEST SIDE OF HOH LUMBA BELOW

COL DES AIGUILLES.

ROCK-AIGUILLES ABOVE CAMP DES AIGUILLES, HOH LUMBA.

DESCENDING HOH LUMBA. 237
We descended to a lower and more protected place for tiffin.
This over, the descent was continued, as the dangerous aretes
and slopes had to be retraversed in the softening snow, and w-e
knew that in the afternoon they would not be safe from
avalanches. By constant attention to every movement all went
smoothly, even over a place we called "le lit des avalanches,"
and soon after three o'clock we reached safe snow, and saw- our
tents assume larger proportions than those of the flies they
had represented \vhen we were higher up. On reaching camp,
highly satisfied with the da}-'s work, the inner man was appeased
by the khansamah's offering of a dinner of soup, roast mutton,
and custard pudding, showing that he had after all succeeded
in making a fire amid the icy surroundings of the Hoh
Lumba. The ascent had been made just in time, as was so often the
case during this and the preceding season. The ne.xt day, as
we were descending the glacier, the weather changed, and by
9 a.m. all mountains were veiled in cloud, and soon after
snow was falling. Reaching the junction of the other large
glacier which unites with the Hoh Lumba, w-e turned into it.
This glacier, which the natives called " Sosbon," makes a turn
to west and then runs in a curve nearly parallel w-ith the Hoh
Lumba. We followed it up for about three miles, when the storm
increased to such an extent as to shut out all \-iew-, and w-e were
forced to camp at 15,019 feet. This w-as Camp Sosbon. It
w-as here that the Dasso coolies, as before mentioned, surrounded
our tents in the storm and insisted on leaving. We did not try
to detain them, as the}- had shown themselves so incapable and
insubordinate, and we still had forty Hoh coolies, who could
get us out should the storm become dangerous. Further, fore
seeing this action on their part, we had sent to Askole for others,
who were shortly expected. The}- left, and on their return to
Skardo, instead of forfeiting two weeks' wages as per contract.

238 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
they tried to sue us through the Tehsildar for half a month's
wages not due. This shows how above keeping a business
agreement Balti coolies may be, and how unreliable above the
snow-line. Contract, high wages, food, tents, tea, and tobacco,
all of which were theirs in this case, make no impression, and,
after a few- days' snow-camping they cease to be the debonair,
helpful individuals often depicted by the Anglo-Indian valley
pounder. The next morning we awoke to the fact that we were snow
bound for at least another day. The storm, with now and then
a slight break, lasted for fort}--eight hours. When it ceased,
and the clouds rolled away revealing the deep vault above, we
discovered that the spot where Nature had stalled us in one of
her fiercest moods w-as perhaps the most beautiful of the many
we had camped at in Himalaya. A long line of vertical
aiguilles bounded the glacier below, and above the camp a
magnificent snow-mountain w-ith a peculiar curled top peered
out of the vanishing mist. It is quite 22,000 feet high. We
gave it the name of Mt. Sosbon. It is the striking personality
of the glacier. From above, from below, from every part of the
glacier it catches the eye and holds it, and even as far away as
the Braldoh its snowy top is seen forming a background to the
Hoh nala.
After the storm had ceased, allowing a day for the snow to
settle somewhat, w-e ascended the glacier with the guides.
Towards its upper end it widens considerably, and, making
a bend to the north around the flank of Mt. Sosbon and at last
rising sharply, ft ends, or begins, in a snow- col similar in position
to the Col des Aiguilles. The ascent to the col was not difficuft,
though the snov/ became waist high before the top was reached.
This col, named after the guides, Petigax and Savoye Col, lies
at an aftitude of 17,00c feet. It is corniced, has a precipice
beneath the cornice falling to Cornice glacier, and affords no
passage to the Hispar. As already stated, something over a

CAMP SOSBON, 15,091 FEET, AT BASE OF MT,

OF MT. SOSBON.

CURIOUS GNEISSOID BOULDER.

241

mile to the east we could see Cornice glacier rising to a col,
on the other side of which lay the Biafo slope.
In descending, about four miles below the col, we came upon
a slender mass of gneissoid rock, eight feet in diameter b}-
twenty-three high, standing upright near the centre of the
glacier, its upper third being split into five distinct fragments.
Col.

PETIGAX AND SAVOYE COL, 17,000 FEET, HEAD OF SOSBON GLACIER.
which have kept in place without dislocation. This rock must
have fallen from a peak at the head of the glacier, and it is
remarkable that it should have landed in the upright position
and retained this during all the glacial vicissitudes and the
unknown period of time required to transport it to where it
now stands.
Owing to the deep covering of snow- deposited by this and
preceding storms, much that would have been of interest both
on this and the Hoh Lumba glacier was concealed from view-.
M. R

242 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
The glacial surface was rigid and undulating, but we saw no
seraces, crevasses, nor moraines. Three well-defined, longi
tudinal ridges extended down the glacier, which probably carry
medial moraines. Two circumstances favour the supposition
that the glacier bears a large amount of detritus under the
snow — (i) the existence at several points of masses of rock,
including the one just mentioned, protruding from the snow;
and (2) the size of the moraines already excreted and in process
of excretion by the tongue. Except for the depth of snow the
glacier was easy to ascend.
Some observations were attempted to ascertain the movement
of the glacier. These were made with difficulty owing to the
depth of surface-snow, the stormy weather, and danger from
avalanches on the steep slopes at the sides of the glacier. The
only practicable point for making observations was on the west
bank of the Hoh Lumba, a short distance below Snow-Hillock
Camp, just above its junction with the Sosbon, where the
inclination was 2^ 32' from the horizontaL Here, at 440 feet
from the bank, the movement was twenty-six one hun
dredths foot in twenty-four hours. At 734 feet it was twenty-
one hundredths foot. Better results were obtained on the
Chogo Lungma.
The length of the Hoh Lumba from the top of the Col des
Aiguilles to its junction with the Sosbon is eight and a half
miles, that of the Sosbon seven and a half miles. The total
length of the Hoh Lumba, assuming this to be the main glacier,
is to the present end of the tongue twelve miles. Its width
varies from a half to one mile ; that of the Sosbon is somewhat
less. Fortunately, by the time we were ready to descend from
Camp Sosbon, thirty new coolies arrived from Askole, so that
we were able to take all equipment with us. On 29th June,
leaving Mr. Hewett on the Sosbon to complete some work,
which he was after all unable to finish on account of continued

GNEISSOID ROCK IN FIVE FRAGMENTS STANDING IN CENTRE OF SOSBON GLACIER.

R 2

RETURN TO HOH. 247
storm and accumulating snow, we returned to Nangma Tapsa,
and on ist July reached Hoh, having had bad weather during
the downward march. The only two fine days during the
whole time were those on which the two cols -were ascended.
We next proposed to return to Riffel Camp on the Chogo
Lungma to complete the survey of the upper part of that
glacier and, if possible, to climb one or more of its high peaks.
Leaving Hoh on 2nd July, we marched rapidly down the
Braldoh valley and over a pass to Thurgo, where we crossed
the Basha river on a zak to Chutrun, thence marching up the
Basha valley to Arandu, which was reached on 5th July.

CHAPTER N.
At .A.randu again— Providing Coolie-Rations a Serious Problem— More
Stormy Weather at Riffel Camp— Crevasse Glacier— Bad Snow-Con
ditions—Heat at High Altitudes— Effects of Heat— Sun-Temperatures
—Traverse of the Riffelhorn.
We found a hundred and fifty coolies waiting at Arandu,
collected from the Basha villages by order of the Government.
The day after our arrival these w-ere all marshalled in line near
the camp, and we selected eighty-five of them to go with us,
and several more to serve as dak-coolies and special messengers.
Among those present were a number whom w-e recognised as
fomenters of dissension among the coolies the preceding season.
These, although they officiously put themselves forward as
volunteers, were promptly relegated to the ranks of the un
desirables, and told they might depart at once. The names
of tliose chosen were listed, as w-as done the preceding summer,
and the date of engagement.
Besides the Arandu lambardar several other Basha lambardars
w-ere on hand. Not wishing to impose two summers' work on
the Arandu lambardar, we proposed that one of the others
should assume charge of the coolies, but not one of them was
willing to do so. Indeed not one of them appeared to possess
the backbone or the moral courage to go on such an expedition.
We w-ere therefore throwm back on the Arandu lambardar, w-ho
immediately expressed his w-illingness to assume the responsi-
bilit}-, which he did and performed his part, in the main, to our
satisfaction. Profiting by the experience of the preceding season, we
determined to leave nothing to chance in the matter of food for
the coolies, but to provide ata for them at our owm expense, so

METHODS OF PILFERING GRAIN. 249
that lack of food might not be urged as an excuse for neglect
of duty. When passing through Shigar, the grain centre of
this region, we arranged with the Kotwal, who had orders from
the Tehsildar to supply us with all the ata needed, to send us
the required amounts at regular intervals, for which he was paid
in advance. He promised to do this, and to deliver the ata in
full weight under seal.
The first lot, which was despatched under our supervision,
reached Arandu in proper time, but later, as may always be
expected in Kashmir, the service was very irregular, both as to
time of delivery and quantity delivered. We never knew- when
the ata would arrive, and five or seven maunds would be received
where twenty-five were expected. Our movements were conse
quently hampered at times, and failure to deliver promptly
nearly caused a famine among the coolies on one occasion. We
had several times to send down special messengers to hasten the
transport. The ata was forwarded in skin sacks, most of which were old
and rotten, having numerous holes which were insecurely stopped
with rags or tufts of wool. These holes, besides permitting of
the escape of the ata in a natural manner, furnished convenient
channels by which the carriers could supply themselves with
food en route. In some of the sacks, otherwise sound, small
clean cuts w-ere found near the tied ends, through which the
contents had been deftly coaxed out to the amount of several
pounds from each. As a result, the ata, if the sacks, which
were entirely innocent of seals, w-ere properly filled when
despatched, showed a shrinkage of fully twenty per cent, in
weight. Some of the sacks were less than half full when
received. In other parts of Kashmir, where grain is carried in
gunny bags, the coolies insert a small tube or a stick into the
meshes of the gunny, and in this manner extract any desired
quantity from the bag. When the tube or stick is removed, the
fibres of the gunny return to their proper posftion, leaving no

250 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
trace of the place through which the robbery was effected. In
any case the traveller in Kashmir, who provides food for his
coolies, may rely on the disappearance of a substantial portion
of it en route.
We had with us on this expedition two Gurkhas, who were

OUR GURKHAS.

procured through the kind assistance of Arthur Grey. Esq., of
Lahore. They had served their time in the army and risen to
the rank of Subadar. \\'e employed them as higher servants,
and gave them a tent to themselves. Being Hindus, they pre
pared their own food, and held themselves somewhat'apart from
the other servants. They carried no loads, and did no climbing
with us, though one of them followed us in charge of supply-

OUR GURKHAS. ¦ 251
coolies to our highest camp at 19,358 feet, and later on over a
difficult snow-pass. But they assisted in pitching and striking
tents, packing and unpacking, took charge of coolies on the
march or when sent on special missions, and themselves acted
as messengers on important occasions. They showed themselves
reliable, and what they did, did well. They were good-natured
and respectful, greeting us in the morning and taking leave at
night with a precise military salute. One of them was fond of
a joke, and, although small of stature, had a stentorian voice,
which appeared to overawe the coolies, as its clarion tone rang
out in admonition of loiterers on the march.
We remained at Arandu seven days to complete arrange
ments, of which the four days from 7th to loth Jul}- inclusive
were remarkable as being cloudless, no such interval of fine
weather occurring again for a month, when five consecutive
days were fine. The remainder of the time till the end of
August was stormy, with only an occasional clear da}-.
On 10th July, Savoye, the lambardar, and thirty coolies, w-ere
despatched up the glacier to cut and collect a supply of wood,
and on 13th we followed with the remainder of the coolies and
kit, including goats, sheep, and fowls. We marched in rain,
which continued, with few intermissions, for four days. Even
at an altitude of less than 12,000 feet we had to traverse large
snow-beds, in places over twenty feet deep, where the previous
summer no snow was seen. These were the remains of snow^
deposited during the severe and late winter. There w-as also
much snow on the glacier for a long distance below Riffel
promontory. Arrived at this last, which in 1902 was free from snow, we
found it mostly covered, our old camping ground being buried
many feet deep. The only bare spot was on the edge of a
sloping shoulder soaked with snow-water, w-here, a hundred
feet above our former camp, we constructed terraces for our
tents, Below, on the rock ledge, where the coolie-village of

252 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
the previous summer stood, the sun had also melted away
the snow^ so that the coolies could soon make themselves at
home.
As we pitched our tents we saw the stone cairn w-e had built
on the summit of the Riffelhorn, 1,300 feet above, peering
down upon us. Then it disappeared in mist, a mist of fog,
rain, and snow, which was destined to veil the whole mountain-
world for days. Our position was not exactly a protected one
on the exposed shoulder of the mountain, upon which the pre
vailing west wind swept down with full force from the icy wall
of the Chogo La over nine miles of glacier.
It stormed and stormed, not monotonously, but with all the
variety a turbulent Himalayan bad-weather period can offer.
A night of quietly but steadily accumulating snow would be
followed by a dreary morning of rain. At noon, perhaps, a
break would occur, when the shifting mists would disclose miles
of snow-covered glacier overtopped by virgin peaks half-suc
ceeding in casting off their burden of cloud, their airy tips
sunshot for a few minutes with golden mauve.
Tantalising moments those, when we forsook tents and paced
the wet slope, seeking warmth in the fugitive gleams of sickly
sunshine, to be driven in again speedily by incoming fog and a
renewed flurry of snow. When the elements were tired of
venting snow and rain on the mountains, they treated us to
wind, from erratic gusts to a steady blow, when the canvas
shook, the tent-cords creaked, and we amused ourselves by
holding the quivering poles as one might chng to the masts of
a sinking ship.
The goats and sheep, which in good weather could find
slender grazing on the small area of stunted grass which had
shaken off the mantle of winter, groped disconsolately about,
nosing out holes in the snow in the attempt to find means of
subsistence. The meals, which the bearer, dripping with sleet
and rain, served, would not have tempted an epicure. Chops

RIFFELHORN WITH OUR ROCK-CAIRN ON SU.MMIT. (TELEPHOTO.)

MOUNTAIN STORMS.

255

were singed and blackened by the smoky flame of the
khansamah's unruly fire of wet wood, and the custard pudding
was of swimming consistency, because it refused to bake over

SNOW-CAPPED ICE-GENDARME NEAR RIFFEL CAMP.
the miserable nomad-fireplace. These minor tribulations of
high camp-life we cared little about, if the weather w-ould only
clear and give us our peaks and glaciers. But it did not
immediately, and for nine days the above described conditions

256 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
continued. Such were the storms in higher Baltistan, that in
days of ceaseless rain in Kashmir inaugurated the great Srinagar
flood at the end of July.
On 25th July the sky cleared, and the sun once more shed
its warming rays upon us, sending the mercury in the solar
thermometer up to 190° F. at i p.m., the shade temperature
rising to 60°. The bright sunshine caused the new snow- to
settle considerably. The next morning with twenty coolies and
light tents we started at 6.20 to ascend the Chogo Lungma to
have a look at its upper south branch. We waded through
snow more than knee-deep over the sharp mountain-side be}-ond
the camp, till the glacier was reached on the west side of Riffel
promontory. Here we plunged in among the seracs, made our
way directly through them, and ascended the glacier on its
south side, a more direct route than that followed the previous
year. At first it was invigorating -work climbing over w-ell-
bridged crevasses and up the sides of hard-coated seracs, and,
as long as the surface remained frozen, the coolies followed w-ith
composure if not satisfaction. But when the smoother snow-
covered upper trend was reached, the sun, so pow-erful at these
heights by nine o'clock, caused the outer crust to soften, and
sinking in was then the order of the day.
We and the guides put on snow-shoes, which helped us
greatly, and we sped forward briskly for some time, until we
realised that the coolies were falling behind. We halted to wait
for them, and at last they came up, sinking in above the ankle
at every step. When opposite the place where Serac Camp
had stood we looked in vain for its site. The w-hole slant was
snow-bound. On our return, crossing over the glacier we
marched down the slant to where it had been, but found neither
tent-terraces nor stone-cairn. If these still existed, they lay
deep under the dfebris of snow and ice-avalanches, that had
swept the whole slope and doubtless destroyed every vestige of
our handiwork. By noon the snow- w-as knee-deep. We

ON UPPER CHOGO LUNGMA.

257

continued on till 2 p.m., not urging the coolies very much, as w-e
knew it was hard work for them. We had then reached a flat
place on the main glacier opposite the entrance of the branch
we were heading for, so we camped here at an altitude of

ON SNOW-SHOES.

15,766 feet (Border Camp), having covered the inspiring
distance of five miles.
Here the Chogo Lungma widens out into a large basin formed
by the entrance from the south-west of its highest southern
branch, a glacier as large as the Haramosh, which breaks into
the Chogo Lungma in a great, much-fissured ice-fall, full of
large crevasses and abysses. The walls of these afford beautiful
M. S

258 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
examples of neve-stratification, presenting layer above layer of
ice, each sharply defined from its neighbours, the product ofthe
snows of successive seasons.
The next morning at daybreak the guides and ourselves made
a reconnaissance upon the snow-wall to the north of the camp,
to see whether it might be used as an approach to the high

SECTION OF ICE-FALL AT JUNCTION OF CREVASSE GLACIER WITH
CHOGO LUNGMA SHOWING NEVE-STRATIFICATION.
peaks abo\-e, which we afterwards ascended, but we found it
so covered w-ith avalanche-debris, overlaid by deep soft snow-,
that, after climbing 1,300 feet, we saw ft would prove impossible
for coolies. Returning to camp we started at nine o'clock to
force our way as far as possible up the branch-glacier. On this
day the snow condftions were worse than before. The higher
we went the deeper became the snow. We followed up the
middle of the ice-fall, abo^-e which the glacier was seamed in

¦^li.

».¦¦'<

'H^

"%..

ASCENDING ICE-FALL ON CHOGO LUNGMA.

S 2

BROUGHT TO A HALT AT TOP OF ICE-FALL.

ASCENDING CREVASSE GLACIER. 265
all directions with small crevasses under the snow, into which
someone was constantly stepping. The caravan struggled on
for four hours, covering two and a half miles, when at i p.m.,
the coolies being spent, we camped in two feet six inches of
soft snow.
During this season so much snow had accumulated above
17,000 feet, that loaded coolies could not march on it with
advantage on clear days after nine to ten o'clock. During the
night it froze so that it would bear the weight of a man, but
soon after the sun struck it, it became soft. As it was dangerous
to start out before daylight, now after six o'clock, on account
of crevasses, the time when marching could be profitabl}- done
was short.
At 6.30 a.m. we started with guides and porter, all the party
on snow-shoes, to examine the glacier above. We pushed on
for three hours, sinking in somewhat in spite of snow-shoes, till
we came to an ascending plateau with large transverse crevasses,
one immense one extending entirely across the width ofthe glacier.
Above this the glacier was strewn with blocks of ice, the debris
of avalanches, which, falling from the steep walls on either side,
sweep its whole width, making its ascent a risky undertaking.
It stretches away two and a half miles further with a steady
rise to a beautiful snow-col, which we estimated to be at least
19,000 feet high, whence it undoubtedly descends to join the
Haramosh glacier, as the latter falls towards the Indus. AVe
did not attempt to go beyond the great crevasse, w-hich w-ould
have involved crossing the glacier and ascending the dangerous
slopes above its ends. The snow here was so deep that our
axes could be thrust into it up to the blades, without encounter
ing any resistance. By trampling down a standing-place we
were able to get a hypsometric reading, which gave the altitude
attained as 18,008 feet.
We now retraced our steps and reached camp about noon.
The sun on this day burned with great vigour. We felt it

266 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
very much by eleven o'clock, and at twelve it seemed as if one
could not endure the heat, that through a thin veiling of cloud
poured down from above and was reflected with as great
intensity from the white surface around and beneath. At one
p.m. the sun-thermometer registered 204° F., the shade being
56°. From this circumstance the camp was named Highest
Temperature Camp. Its altitude was 17,322 feet.
As we approached the camp, the tents presented a peculiar,
wilted appearance, resulting from the loosening of the pegs
by the heat, thus permitting the cords to relax and the tent-
walls to collapse. In such a case there is no use in attempting
to span the tents anew until after sunset, when the snow
freezes again. Before that not a peg will hold. If one
indulges in the luxury of sitting on a camp chair, either in
the shade of the relaxed canvas or outside, for the purpose of
taking an observation, the chair-legs are certain to slump
suddenly, perhaps to the detriment of the instruments in hand.
The only seat that has any stability, until the snow freezes, is a
box or a mackintosh.
It might be supposed that at altitudes of 16,000 to 20,000 feet,
in a region covered with ice and snow, where the shade tem
perature rarely exceeds 55° F. at noon, and at night ahvays fafls
as low as 20° F., and sometimes to the neighbourhood of zero,
one would not suffer from heat. The reverse is, however, the
case. On clear and partially cloudy days, as soon as the sun
appears above the mountains, the heat of its rays becomes
quite sensible, and after nine o'clock one feels as if one were
in a fiery furnace. The more snow there is — at these altitudes
everything except perpendicular rock-faces is usually covered
with snow— and the fresher and whfter it is, the greater the
heat. The reflected heat is as hard, if not harder, to bear
than the direct heat of the sun, and shielding oneself from the
direct rays of the latter affords no relief, so long as one is
exposed to th(; reflection from the snow. With new snow the

EFFECTS OF HEAT. 269
heat by noon becomes intolerable, and together with the altitude
may cause headache and lassitude.
The effects of the reflected heat on the skin of Europeans
are more severe than we have ever seen at sea-level or at low
altitudes. The hands and face are soon burned to a deep
copper red. The skin of the face becomes swelled, vesicated,
and even blistered. The lips likewise swell, and become
covered with exceedingly painful herpetic eruptions, which
require a month to heal. In fact, one becomes so disfigured
as to be almost unrecognisable. The submaxillary glands
enlarge and become tender in sympathy with the facial
inflammation. The pain, especially from the lesions of the
lips, is referred to the dental nerves, and the explorer often
comes to doubt the integrity of teeth, with which he has never
before had occasion to quarrel. We tried to protect our faces
by wearing white linen masks, but in spite of apertures for
nose and mouth, we found they interfered with respiration
to such a degree that they were cast aside as useless. More
over, they were uncomfortable, the reflected heat burning
strongly through them. In any case, to be really effective,
the white linen should have a lining of black or red, which
combination has been found in the tropics to afford the best
protection against the sun's heat.
As a comparison with the effect of heat on the skin in the
Indian plain, we may state that, in the course of our extensive
cycle-journey of 14,000 miles in India, we were exposed day
after day for weeks together from morning till night to the
full blaze of the Indian sun, in shade temperatures reaching
above 100° F., with no protection to our faces except sola
topis, and our faces were never burned so as to be in any
degree painful.
The lighter the complexion the more one suffers from the
heat, both direct and reflected. The darker-skinned coolies
and servants with us were not affected at all, while some with

270 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
blue eyes, brown hair, and moderately dark skin showed slight
reddening of nose and cheeks, but nothing more. The Europeans
of the party shed the cuticle of their faces every three or
four days. This suggests a reason why the application
of burnt cork to the face may prove to be an efficient pro
tection, as has been asserted to be the case. We tried this
after our faces had been painfully burned, and thought the
skin felt cooler for it ; but we did not persevere sufficiently
long in its use to be able to express a decided opinion as to
its merits.
The actual temperature of the sun's rays may be judged
from the following figures, some of which have already been
given. The maximum temperatures taken with the black bulb
solar thermometer on the only ten available clear days between
i8th July and 17th August, 1903, were : —

Date.

Altitude.

Time.

Sun Temperature.

Shade
Temperature.

1 8th July

14,067 ft.

I p.m.

183.5° Fahr.

66° Fahr.

25th „

?) 5)

,,

190°

60° „

28th „

17,322 ,,

n

204°

55° „

29th „

14,067 „

,,

183.5° -,

56° „

30th „

,, ,,

,,

186°

55° „

6th Aug.

,, ,,

,,

184° „

58° „

7th „

J) n

12.30 p.m.

196°

52° „

Sth „

)) ))

I p.m.

183°

52° „

loth ,,

18,811 ,,

,,

192°

55" .,

17th „

14,067 ,,

'-

192°

59° „

The maximum temperature on these days, as on others when
the weather was such that comparative temperatures could be
taken, occurred between noon and one p.m., generally, though
not always, nearer the latter time, as was also true, of the
high maxima in the Shigar valley. High temperatures
approaching the above were also observed on different
occasions at eleven a.m. and two p.m., when clouds or other
causes prevented observations at twelve and one ; but as

RIFFELHORN, NORTH SIDE, ASCENDED IN AUGUST, I903, BY MRS. BULLOCK WORKMAN
AND GUIDES.

COMPARATIVE SUN AND SHADE TEMPERATURE. 273
temperatures at these times do not represent the real maxima,
we do not quote them.-'-
Compare these with the highest sun and shade temperatures
recorded during the summer of 1903 at two stations not much
above sea-level in the plains. The figures were kindly furnished
by Sft John Eliot, M.A., F.R.S., K.C.S.I., Meteorological
Reporter to the Governm.ent of India and Director-General
of Indian Observatories. At Alipore, near Calcutta, the
highest sun temperature was 161.9° f". on 22nd Ma}-, the shade
temperature being 106.2° F. At Lahore the highest sun tem
perature was 172.6° F. on 31st May, the shade being 113° F.
The highest recorded sun temperature of the whole summer at
these two representative stations in the plains w-as 10.4° F.
lower than the lowest maximum above 14,000 feet, and 31.4° F.
lower than the highest.
The above figures show that at high altitudes, w-here the air
is much rarefied and freer from moisture, the sun burns w-ith
greater power than near sea-level, where a considerable part of
its heat is absorbed by the denser and more vapour-laden air
before reaching the earth's surface ; but in the former case the
heat brought by its rays is quickly dissipated by rapid radiation
and cooled by contact wfth the great quantity of snow and ice,
so that the shade-temperature remains low, while near sea-level,
in the absence of these coohng agencies, it is raised to a high
point. The temperature of the sun's direct rays at high
aftitudes may be almost unendurable, and yet ice and snow
may remain hard frozen in deep shadow near by. Almost
immediately the sun leaves a snow-surface freezing begins, the
cold contained in the ice asserting its power.
It will be noticed that the highest shade-maxima do not
always coincide with the highest sun-maxima, any more than
1 Temperatures considerably in excess of any of those above quoted
were met with on a later expedition, the consideration of which will be
reserved for the full report of that expedition. T
M.

274 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
they do at lower altitudes, \-arying undoubtedly under similar
meteorological conditions. The temperature of 204° F.
registered at 17,322 feet was not abnormallj' high, being
exceeded by the temperature of 206° F. recorded in June in
the Shigar valley, and being equalled b}- a record at the same
altitude in 1902. Could observations have been taken at high
altitudes during the heated term in June, when the sun tem
perature reached 203.8° and 206° F. in the Shigar valley, at
an altitude of 8,000 feet, in all probability still higher readings
would have been obtained. The thermometer used was com
pared and found to correspond with the most reliable one at
the Government station at Lahore.
The obvious deduction from these figures, and also from the
physiological effects stated above, is, that the higher the
altitude and the thinner the air, the greater the energy with
which the sun's rays strike the earth. Also the sudden change
from great heat by day to severe cold at night is undoubtedly
an important factor in the rapid disintegration, which is taking
place in the exposed rocks of these high Asiatic mountains.
Nearly all the surface rocks of the mountains we have climbed
in Baltistan have been found rotten and crumbling, the con
stituents of the sandstones and quartzites in particular having
often so lost their cohesion that they could be rubbed to sand
betw-een the fingers.
We discussed the advisability of reascending the glacier.
Aside from the danger involved it would be necessary, in order
to reach the col, w-hich alone would make the attempt worth
the whfle, to move the camp up through the deep snow at least
to the large crevasse, a difficuft undertaking wfth coohes
without snow-shoes. We should also have to send down for
more food for them, which would involve a delay of tw-o days,
which we could ill afford, as a good deal of more important
work }'et remained to be done, and the season was far advanced.
It was therefore decided to return to Riffel Camp.

ASCENDING SOUTH AR^TE OF RIFFELHORN.

T 2

TRAVERSE OF RIFFELHORN. 277
The next ten days were spent in camp, partly waiting for
the weather to become more settled, but chiefly on account of
the non-arrival of ata, without which no radical move could be
made. We had ordered and paid for forty-two maunds a
month before this, with directions to have it forwarded imme
diately, but up to Sth August only nineteen had arrived. While
waiting for the remainder, by way of utilising weather not
sufficiently certain for high climbing, Mrs. Bullock Workman
and the guides made a traverse of the Riffelhorn. They
skirted the east flank of the mountain overhanging Haramosh
glacier, until a long arete at its rear was reached. The ascent
of this required an hour of stiff climbing over rotten shale-
rocks, so loose in many places that they had to be dislodged
and hurled down to the glacier before footholds could be
obtained. Next follov\'ed a long precarious traverse along a
narrow ledge, below which fell a sheer precipice of five hundred
feet. Before leaving this, several short but deep snow-patches
had to be crossed, which being still in shadow were fairly
secure. Another sharp arete broken by two rather shaky gendarmes
brought them to a snow-covered notch, which separates the
narrow pointed apex from the main mountain, .\fter a short
rest this w-as crossed and the final needle attacked, which
offered only scant footholds but furnished plenty of work for the
hands. After tw-ent}- minutes of this the stone-man on the
summit was reached, from exactly the opposite direction from
that in which the usual ascent had been made. This traverse
and ascent takes two and three-quarters hours at a moderate
pace, which, owing to the gradient and the uncertain material
of the mountain, cannot well be varied. After adding a note
of the traverse to the record in the cairn, the descent to camp
by the usual route w-as made.

CHAPTER XI.
Difficulties of High Climbing in Chogo Lungma Region — Start for Three
Pioneer .-Vscents — Basin Glacier and Pool Camp — Intermediate Camp
— Coolie-Revolt — Highest Camp— Sleeplessness— Ascent of Mt Chogo
— Sunrise at 21,000 feet — On Summit Mt. Chogo — Mt. Lungma —
Pyramid Peak.
The ascent of a snow-peak of over 20,000 feet in the Chogo
Lungma region is a matter of greater difficult}- than of one of a
similar height in Ladakh, Tibet, in some other parts of
Himalaya, or the Andes. Here transport has to be taken first
several marches over a long complex glacier, such as does not
exist in these other regions, and can only be compared in size
with those of Alaska. Again the snow-line here is comparativel}-
low, while in Ladakh and some other Himalayan districts it is
as high as 18,000 or ig,ooo feet, and in the Andes still higher.
Just where it will be found at an\- given time is, as has already
been stated, uncertain.
The highest camping place we were able to find, that was not
on snow, was at 15,200 feet, though some slopes were bare to a
considerabl}- higher altitude. After a good deal of observation
we placed the snow-line as low as 16,000 feet. The practical
point to be considered is, that above 11,000 feet all marches are on
ice or snow, and that to reach even moderately high altitudes
snow-camps must be made. With each successive snow-camp
the courage of the transport-coolies diminishes. Another serious
obstacle is the weather, which, during July and August, the only
high-climbing months, is affected by the south-west monsoon.
During some seasons there are onl}- one or two fine days at a time,
when of course high climbs are out of the question. During
others, w-hen the monsoon is lighter or ceases earlier, five or more

PYRAMID PEAK, 24,500 FEET, ASCENDED TO BLACK POINT ON SKY-LINE,
23,394 FEET, AUGUST 12, I903. 'tAKEN FROM RIFFEL CAMP, ELEVEN
MILES DISTANT. (TELEPHOTO.)

THREE SNOW PEAKS. 281
successive clear days occur, which opportunity should be seized
at once. Thus the climber in the Chogo Lungma district is
handicapped by ice, the low snow-line, coolies, and weather.
Soon after our arrival at Riffel Camp three splendid snow-peaks,
soaring up from the ice-clad mountain-wall separating the Chogo
Lungma from Basin glacier, attracted our attention, and we
determined, if a favourable opportunity should offer, to attempt
the conquest of at least one of them. The highest, which
pierces the sky at an elevation of 24,500 feet or over, is the
dominant peak of the region and is seen from nearl}- every part
of the Chogo Lungma and its upper tributaries. During the
first summer the weather was so continuously bad that no
attempt on the peaks themselves could be made -wath any hope
of success, though reconnaissances from the Chogo Lungma and
Basin glaciers, from the Bhayakara Col, and Cornice Peak gave
us a fairly good idea of where they could and could not
be attacked.
The first and lowest peak is, technically, the most difficult and
dangerous of the three. From its corniced summit it slopes
steeply down, broken into a succession of ice-falls with yawning
abysses, to a great rock-precipice two or three thousand feet
high overhanging Basin glacier. On the south side it sweeps
down in long snow slants, somewhat less sharp though similarly
broken and much exposed to avalanches, to the Chogo Lungma.
In fine w^eather an ascent might possibly be made from the
Chogo Lungma, though, as our reconnaissances on that side had
shown, the slopes were not in a condition favourable to the
attempt, and, in case of a storm, retreat in that quarter w-ould
not be possible. In Himalaya a good line of retreat should ever
be kept in view. The best, but by no means easy, line of ascent
runs from the top of the w-all up the south-east side of the cone.
To reach the top of the wall is in itself a mountaineering feat
of no mean order.
On 7th August, as the weather promised improvement, the

282 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
guides were sent up Basin glacier to inspect the approaches to
the wall on that side. On their return they reported the slope
steep and its ice much broken, but the}- thought a caravan could
surmount ft, also that there were pools of clear water on the
glacier at its base not far from w-here the upward route w-ould
have to be made, and some rocks where the coolies could light
their fires. Here the first camp could be pitched.
Everything was made ready. Saying nothing of mountain
intentions w-e selected tw-ent}- of the best coolies to carry our kit,
consisting of one eight by eight mountain-tent, four flannel-hned
Mummery tents, a week's food-suppl}- for us and guides, two
primus stoves, petroleum, and two coolie-tents. The coolies
were ordered to cook three days' rations for themselves, and two
extra coolies were chosen to carry these rations to the first camp.
The khansamah was instructed to send four more coolies with
additional supplies under charge of one of our Gurkhas, to
follow our track on the second morning after our departure.
On 9th August, with guides, porter, the twenty-two coolies,
and one tent servant, at 5.30 when it became light enough
to pick our way through the serac-belt surrounding Riffel pro
montory, we started for Basin glacier. The mountain-ascent
really began at Riffel Camp, since after leaving it we were
always on ice and snow, and the path was always upward. We
crossed the Chogo Lungma to the base of the great ice-fall,
three-quarters of a mile long, with which Basin glacier joins the
Chogo Lungma. As the ice-fall was impassable, steep beds of
neve bordering it were ascended to the glacier above. This
glacier leads directly up under the precipitous walls of the peak
which was our first objective. Above the ice-fall its flow was
fairly smooth and afforded a good path, e.xcept for a covering of
soft snow w-hich grew deeper as w-e ascended. We Europeans
here put on snow-shoes. If coolies had sufficient understanding
to learn their use, it might be well to supply a caravan with
them, though it w-ould be a costly undertaking. We found them

POOL CAMP.

285

of great assistance in traversing the higher parts of the glaciers,
where there was much soft snow.
At I p.m. camp was pitched near the head of the glacier in
eighteen inches of soft snow under the steep flank of the first

^' %pl^

"m:

^^- ' ^ii

t ^l^^^^>

-m I

POOL CAMP, 16,351 FEET, BASIN GLACIER.
peak. This was called Pool Camp. Its altitude was 16,352
feet. The coolie-tents were placed below ours near a fine pool
or lakelet of glacial water. We passed several similar pools on
the way up. They were not seen on this glacier the preceding
summer, but this season they had formed at intervals to a point

286 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
somewhat above Pool Camp. Snow covered their edges and
dipped dow-n into the water. Anyone w-ho has been obliged to
melt snow to obtain water for camp purposes will appreciate
the convenience these pools were to us.
At 5.30 a.m. on the loth we started directly up the steep
flank of the wall, which is here continuous with that of the first
peak, and falls in an uninterrupted series of broken ice-slopes
from summit to base. The route, as w-e made it, traversed
some of these and zigzagged up others, with frequent detours to
snow-bridges over the appalling crevasses which blocked our
way in all directions. For the first two and a half hours, the
snow being hard, good progress was made, though the coolies
wished to rest all too often. \\'e urged them constantly, telling
them it was necessary to cover as much ground as possible
before the snow softened, when work for all would become
more difficult. This information did not appear to stimulate
their climbing ardour ; in fact, a coolie's ardour is rarely
stimulated by anything except a bakhshish and a return march.
By eight o'clock a snow-ledge was reached, overhung by an
ice-wall broken by a huge schrund fringed with massive icicles
ranging from fifteen to twenty-five feet in length. Here we
stopped for breakfast. We w-ere now well above the glacier,
and the view was opening up. It was particularly fine of the
Bhayakara La just opposite. We could see very distinctly the
nature of the risks incurred in climbing it, and were glad our
path did not lie again up its dangerous slopes. The heat of
the sun, which already burned with fervour, had by this time
softened the snow appreciably, and we had been sinking in
above the ankles about every third step. In half-an-hour the
coolies came grumbling up, for they were plunging in even
deeper. Savoye here left the rope and devoted himself to the task of
encouraging and helping the coolies, while the rest of us led the
way up a steep arete, which was ascended straight, Petigax and

SCHRUND AT ABOUT IS, OOO FEET WITH ICICLES.

INTERMEDIATE CAMP. 289
the porter treading out steps in the softened snow, which soon
became knee-deep. After the recent storms it was at its worst
on the sharp inclines, and much increased the danger from
crevasses, which it concealed w-ithout being compact enough to
form available bridges over them. Here for some time we had
the advantage over the coolies in that they had to advance
steadily, there being no plateau where they could throw them
selves down and force a camp.
The long, wearisome arete merged at last into gentler inclines,
-which led to a nearly level snow expanse, where, as a good
climb was already a fait accompli, we sat down in the blazing
sun to wait for the caravan, which made but slow progress. In
about an hour its head came crawling up, impressed onward by
Savoye's cheery voice calling out constantly " Atcha rasta."
After a while the last loiterers arrived, all, as they came up,
throwing themselves down in various attitudes of distress, some
nursing their feet, others holding their heads. We had wished
to push on up another high ridge before camping, but, taking into
consideration the fact that the coolies had had a fatiguing
climb of seven and a half hours, we decided not to urge them
further on that day, the more so as clouds were coming up and
the wind rising.
The soft snow was trodden down to make a camping place,
and tents were pitched at an altitude of 18,811 feet, the camp
being named Intermediate Camp. Here, at i p.m., the black-
bulb thermometer indicated 192° F. in the sun, the shade
temperature being 55°. The site was magnificent, command
ing, in addition to a view of the great peaks immediately around,
a coup d'oeil of more than twent}- miles dowm the majestic
sweep of the Chogo Lungma, banded with the snaky curves of
its giant medial moraines, above which soared a vista of peaks
stretching in tortuous ranges into the dim distance. Shortly
after camp w-as established the sky darkened, and wild snow-
flurries shook the small tents, as if bent on tearing them from
M. u

290 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
their insecure moorings. The barometers remained high, how
ever, and the sky soon cleared. Having melted snow and
cooked dinner over primus stoves, we turned early into our
sleeping-bags. The third day at snowy heights broke clear and cold. The
tall, siher}- peak in front and far above called loudly to us in
the silent, gre}--blue dawn. We were up at three o'clock, as
we intended to start the caravan for higher regions at five. At
four the servant was sent to call the coolies, whose tents stood
behind a snow-hillock some five hundred feet distant. After a
time he brought word that they refused to get up. Our tents
being now struck, and all our effects packed ready to march, we
did not fancy standing shivering on the snow in a temperature
of i6° F., at an altitude of nearly 19,000 feet, awaiting the
caprice of the coolies. We further knew that this open dis
obedience of orders, if tolerated even for a short time, would
put an end to discipline and result in a failure'to get any ofthe
peaks. Accordingl}- Dr. Workman and Savoye went down at once to
the coolie-camp, and found the coolies snugly ensconced in
their tents, not one having stirred. Without any ceremony
the tent-pins w-ere pulled up, and, as the coolies crawled out
from under the prostrate canvas, they were commanded to put
on their boots and get ready to march. This determined
attitude had the desired effect. By six o'clock, an hour late,
they were loaded and in motion.
Our plan on this day was to pass the first peak by, and,
traversing its flank, camp on a higher plateau at about
21,000 feet, which would give access to both peaks. A long
ridge seamed with crevasses was first in order, which it took
more than an hour to negotiate. Getting the leading coolie
over a crevasse is often serious work, but once the leader has
passed the others manage to flounder over. The slopes now
became steeper. Fearing lest the courage of the coolies should

VIEW OF TWENTY MILES DOWN CHOGO LUNGMA FROM INTERMEDIATE CAMP,
lS,8lI FEET. SNOW PEAK ON RIGHT IS CORNICE PEAK.

V 2

MOUNTAIN-SICK COOLIES. 293
fail owing to the knee-deep snow. Dr. Workman and Savoye
remained with them to help and encourage them, while the
others tracked out a path some distance in front. Whilst
assisting a coolie over a crevasse. Dr. Workman's topi w-as
struck from his head by the coolie's stick, and away it bounded
down the steep slant with lightning speed several thousand feet
to the glacier below, where it probably now reposes. Possibly
several hundred years hence it may be yielded up b}- the ice at
the end of the tongue, and furnish material for surmise, as to
what kind of a tragedy has happened in the snow-s above.
Mrs. Bullock Workman had her topi blow-n off bv the wind on
the ascent of Koser Gunge in 1899, and it also, after falling
hundreds of feet, was lost in a crevasse. The snow, into which
our feet sank eighteen inches or more, w-as powdery, having
been chilled by the low temperature of the night. Our feet
tingled from its cold, and we had to stamp them constantl}- to
prevent their freezing.
By nine o'clock the advance party, having distanced the
leaden-footed coolies by a height of at least five hundred feet,
and having reached a point over 20,000 feet in altitude, from
which they could overlook the Chogo La leading westward from
the head of the Chogo Lungma, were cutting steps up the
frozen surface of a steep wall just below- the upper plateau we
were aiming for, when an imperative call from those behind
arrested their progress. On asking what the trouble was, the
answer rang clear through the limpid air, that some of the
coolies were mountain-sick and the others refused to advance.
AVith alarm they looked down and saw several coolies hing
prone on the snow. " Offer them bakhshish and tell them the
road is good, and it is only half an hour to camp." And they
waited, trembling for their peaks, so w-ithin grasp and yet so
hard to win because of unwilling coolies.
Those below offered and argued, but to no purpose. The
coolies, who were or pretended to be ill, lay as if dead, and the

294 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS, OF THE MUSTAGH.
remainder continued obdurate. There being no hope, the
advance part}- descended from the well-earned wall and rejoined
the caravan. Onl}- eight coolies were ill. The others seemed
lively enough. We now- proposed to curtail the luggage and go
on with fourteen coolies, leaving a tent for the others. A
large bakhshish was offered them, but not one of them would
go further. " Not for five rupees each," said the spokesman, to
be found in every coolie band; "we would rather cut Our
throats," accompanying the remark by a graphic gesture of the
hand across his throat. This was a common remark when the
coolies did not like the appearance of a snow-slope. The
observation has been made more than once by those whose
knowledge of coolie-humanity is confined to the exigencies of
ordinar}- travel, that coolies will do an}-thing if well paid. It
is doubtless true, in general, that coolies, like civilised men, can
be bought at a price, but there are times, and this was one of
them, when the Balti coolie cannot be induced by any rew-ard
which may reasonably be offered him to do that which fear or
some other controlling motive may make him unwilling to do.
The question of camping on a small level projection near
where w-e stood was next mooted, but a glance around showed
it not to be safe from avalanches, so we decided to retrace our
steps to a small snow-shelf somewhat lower down at the base
of the cone of the first peak, and camp there. This was done,
and our highest camp on this expedition w-as established at
19.358 feet. Here the demoralised coolies settled themselves
quite contentedly, and said they must rest a few days before
going down. The idea of making a Luftkur-station on a giant
snow-peak where a storm might gather in an hour, w-ould
certainly not have suggested itself to other than a coolie
mind. At 3 p.m. the sun temperature w-as 180° F., and shade
temperature 38° F.
It was now evident, that we had got the coolies to the
highest possible point, that no further assistance could be

RESPIRATORY DISTURBANCE— INSOMNIA. 297
expected of them, and that we must make the remainder of
the ascent of the higher peaks over the only available route
from here, up the steep broken slants of the first peak to its
summit, which route we had sought to avoid by camping
higher. The afternoon was spent in preparations for the next da}''s
supreme effort, which we were determined to turn to as good
account as possible, w-hile Savoye and Petigax fils trod out
steps in the then softened snow for several hundred feet up the
cone. We went to bed early, but did not sleep well. As soon
as w-e began to doze, and the respiratory movements diminished
in force and frequency, the tissues did not get sufficient oxygen,
and we would start up gasping for breath. All the party were
affected in the same manner. This did not tend to fortify us
any too well for the coming struggle, tired, as w-e were, by three
days of hard snow-climbing, helping the coolies, and anxiety
caused by their actions, with little sleep.
We would here call attention to the fact that, when any
cause is acting that tends to interfere with respiration, a person
can breathe better in the erect position than when hing dowm.
At this height, where we suffered w-hen lying, we breathed
perfectly -well when sitting or standing, which was also practi
cally the case at the highest altitude reached. The fact that
the whole party was kept awake b}- want of breath when trying
to sleep at 19,358 feet, points to the possibility that, in case of
an attempt on one of the highest summits, if camps could be
established at heights of 23,000 to 27,000 feet, and above, as
they would have to be, sleep might be entirely prevented or
interfered with by deficient oxygenation of the blood to such
an extent that a party would be incapacitated from this cause
alone from going any higher.^
At two o'clock on the morning of the 12th we were astir,
1 Later experience with seven Europeans, nine in all, at camps 2,000 feet
higher than the above, lends weight to this idea.

298 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
and at three, w-ith guides, porter, and two instrument-coolies,
left camp by moonlight, w-ith a temperature of 15" F.
Roping, we attacked at once the steep pyramid before us, zig
zagging up the hard-frozen slope, or traversing, as the nature
of the inclines demanded. Ow-ing to the steps trodden the
preceding afternoon, good progress was made for some time,
though the gradient was steep and broken by no mitigating
plateau. At one place we had to make a long traverse of a
slant of nearly 70 degrees, below which an appalling precipice
of 2,000 feet fell away, suggesting, should one make a mis-step,
mysterious death-traps in the silvery night.
Near the middle of this traverse two crevasses running at
right angles to our course had to be crossed, which we were
just able to jump. But little was said as we pressed steadily
upward in the sugar}- snow. A constant, gentle, cold breeze
blew down from the heights above with chilling effect. Our
feet suffered most severely, and we were anxious lest they
should be frost-bitten. One's hands are easily kept warm by
wearing fleece-lined rubber mittens, but keeping the feet warm
is another matter. Nailed boots must of course be worn, but
they are always cold. We have tried fur-lined boots, and plain
leather ones large enough to admit of wearing three pairs of
stockings, the outer pair being of Norwegian goat-hair, but
with only negative results.
It would be a boon to mountaineers if someone would invent
a certain means of keeping the feet warm at 20,000 feet. Some
of us were scarcely conscious of having any feet by the time we
reached that height, but by beating them vigorously wfth our
axes until they tingled sufficiently to denote safety, w-e were
spared the extreme exertion required in the rarefied air of taking
off boots and rubbing our feet wfth snow. Just before sunrise
the cold seemed hardest to bear.
As we went higher in the waning moonlight, great peaks rose
on every side, sharp in outline but ghastly in tone, as if belonging

SUNRISE AT 21,000 FEET.

299

to a strange, weird world of giants newly fashioned by the hand
of Nature, but as yet untouched by the breath of life. Then
broke the mauve-tinted dawn, a sudden sheaf of light behind

ON SUMMIT MT. CHOGO, 21,500 FEET, AT 7 A.M.
the peaks deepening to a rosy flare at the zenith. The moun
tains lost their ghastly, inert appearance, as the heavens, their
summits, and the whole snowy world below, became bathed
w-ith the warmth of colour that heralded the arrival of the sun.
At last King Sol came, flinging his rays aslant one great summit,

300 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
then another, and finally showing his face over a snowy cone,
flooding the endless sea of peaks w-ith gold.
This w-as sunrise at 21,000 feet. To us, who had watched
the night out on the heights, it typified the awakening of the
mountains to life by the messenger of a glorious day. For

NEARING SUMMIT OF MT. LUNGMA.
those w-ho study and love the eternal snows know w-ell what
a companionable humanity they possess, what varied human
moods, whether coquetting with clouds and shadow in mysteri
ous half-tones, or standing unveiled in the searching light of
cloudless noonday.
Feeling the lassftude unavoidable at such a height, we
climbed the last zigzag of the glittering cone, and at 7.15
stood on the summit, 21,500 feet above sea-level. The top w-as

SUMMIT MT. CHOGO, 21,500 FEET, AS SEEN FROM ALTITUDE OF 22,300 FEET
ON MT. LUNGMA. TRACK OF ASCENT IN FOREGROUND. .MOUNTAIN WALL
IN BACKGROUND ABOUT 20, OOO FEET. PEAK AT RIGHT, 21, 930 FEET.

WE ASCEND A SECOND PEAK. 305
a rounded snow-cornice, which overhung a sheer precipice of
several thousand feet, falling on the north-east to Basin glacier.
The temperature was 16° F. and there was but little wind.
To the south-east an uninterrupted view of the Mustagh kings
greeted us. Masherbrum, Gusherbrum, the Mustagh Tower,
our old friends the Biafo giants, and hundreds of others stood
out clear, as if only a few miles distant, and above these the
huge, dark, abrupt pyramid of K 2 hung above a bank of
vapour seemingly in mid-air, mighty in its role of second to
Everest, a warning to would-be climbers. To the south, just
across the Chogo Lungma, rose the snow-white needle of Indus
Nagar Watershed Peak No. 4, and beyond, above the head of
the Haramosh glacier, the towering massif of Haramosh.
The second peak lay beyond, to the north-west, rising,
apparently about a thousand feet higher, from a snow-plateau,
and separated from us by a long incline. The day was still
young, and we were still fit, though gasping somewhat for
oxygen on movement. Why not have that peak too ? Stopping
only half an hour to take food, expose some plates, and read
instruments, and leaving one of the coolies, who here gave out,
we set out for it, descending a narrow snow-arete and crossing
a second one to get upon its flank. The gradients of this were
not so sharp as those of the first peak, and its ascent was only
a question of avoiding crevasses and endurance of the effects of
altitude, and of the fatigue incident to moving upward in snow
about ankle-deep.
By ten o'clock we were within twenty minutes' climb of the
top, at the beginning of a slope, which at first descended and
then rose to the base of the third great pyramid-peak, 24,500 feet,
that towers from the same plateau still further to the north-west,
and in which the mountain-wall culminates. Here a council
was held, at which it was decided that Dr. Workman with the
two guides should keep on to a higher point on the south-west
arete of the pyramid peak, which commanded a view farther to
M. X

3o6 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
the west, while Mrs. Bullock Workman, not caring to go upon
this peak unless its top could be reached, which was on this
day manifestly an impossibility, should complete, with the
porter, the ascent of the second peak, and there wait till the

VIEW SOUTH FROM NEAR SUMMIT MT. LUNGMA OVERLOOKING
TOPS OF MOUNTAIN CREST.S.
Others should join her. She gained the summit at 10.30.
This, like the first one, was found to be a cornice curling over
towards Basin glacier. Its height, based on observations then
taken and later computed, is 22,568 feet. By this ascent she
broke her previous altftude record for women of 21,000 feet a

Kl

PYRAMID PEAK, 24,500 FEET, FROM NEAR SUMMIT OF MT. LUNGMA. SLOPES MUCH FLATTENED BY ELEVATION
OF CAMERA.

ON THE SUMMIT OF MT. LUNGMA. 309
second time on this day, and this time by 1,568 feet. On
arrival the shade temperature was still 16° F.^
The view was similar to that from the lower peak, but
grander. The crest of the latter was seen far below. It was
a day in a thousand. Not a cloud crossed the blue firmament,
and the air was still. The noon meal was a simple affair. A
bit of meat, kola biscuits, and milk chocolate, soon satisfied
the appetite, for hearty meals play but a small role in one's
itinerary at over 22,000 feet. The lack of oxygen in the air was
distinctly noticeable on making the least movement, and even
when sitting still there was an indefinite sense of uneasiness
and a desire to change position frequently.
As one sat enthralled by the wonderful prospect, the hours
passed unnoticed. Often a sudden squall or icy wind mars
one's enjoyment at the summit of a mountain, but here there
seemed to be an ecstatic pause in life, when the exigencies,
even the thoughts and desires of daily existence, fell out of
account, as one sat encircled by mountain majesty in the heart
of the illimitable silent land of Asia. The other party were
watched, as they crept slowly upward and settled like dots on
the arete they aimed for.
Man plays a far too important part among the mountains of
Europe, too often by his presence turning the grandeur around
him into deadly commonplace ; but in the glorious unexplored
expanse of Himalaya, his role is small, permitted as he is now
and then for a brief moment to penetrate and gaze upon Nature
clothed in her most regal forms. Always beautiful and satisfying
even in her lower planes, she here attains her supreme develop
ment, and in cadences of wind, light, sun, and snow, sings
through the ages her " chant of eternal beauty."
The pyramid-peak, as seen from where our party separated,
^ She has since climbed to an altitude of 23,300 feet in the Nun Kun
range, which places her with the small band of men who have reached a
height of over 23,000 feet.

310 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
w-as entirely snow-bound, its apex being formed by a pointed,
sharply-defined cornice, which soared into the deep-blue sky
like the curling crest of a m.ighty wave about to break. Directly
beneath the cornice is a tremendous precipice, while on its east
side the mountain falls in another precipice some 7,000 feet
to Basin glacier below. This is a type of many high Karakoram

ludus Nagar Watershed
Peak 2, 24,470 Feet.

Chogo Col.

TRIO .AT HEAD OF CHOOO LUNGMA, SOUTH SIDE.
peaks which end in similar cornices pointing towards the north,
and usually overhanging abrupt precipices. But little effort of
the imagination is required to make these crested cornices seem
actually in motion, and they do from time to time break away
and give rise to avalanches of incredible size and power. The
direction in which they point is due to the prevalence of south
and south-west winds.
The rising snow-plateau w-as ascended to the base of the final

SUMMIT JIT. LUNGMA, 22,568 FEET, AS SEEN FROM ALTITUDE OF 23,394 FEET
ON PYRAMID PEAK. WALL IN BACKGROUND ABOUT 2O,00O FEET. W-HITE
PEAK TOWARDS RIGHT, 21,930 FEET.

AT 23,394 FEET. 313
pyramid, one angle of which is formed by a long snow-arete,
as steep as the slopes of the first peak, which runs in an
unbroken line to the top. All unnecessary luggage being left
here, this arete was attacked, and, after some stiff work, the
spot selected was reached at 12.30 p.m. Calculations based
on the readings here taken, compared with simultaneous
reading at our lower station, give the altitude of the point
attained as 23,394 f^^f (the average of calculations by three
tables). The idea of attempting to reach the summit, some 1,100
feet higher, was not for a moment entertained. This, under the
circumstances, -would have been a foolhardy undertaking. We
had already been nearly ten hours in active motion, and had
accomplished a fatiguing and, for such an altitude, unusual
climb of more than 4,000 feet. Probably in the course of the
afternoon the top might have been reached, but the peak would
have become the mausoleum of the party, for camp could not
have been regained that night, and a night in the open at that
altitude would have meant certain death from cold, to say
nothing of the danger from fatigue. Could camp have been
made at 21,000 to 22,000 feet, the whole party would, in all
probability, have gained the summit at 24,500 feet, as the day
was windless and perfect, the finest of the whole season thus
far. Had the weather been uncertain, or had a wind of ten to
fifteen miles an hour blown against us, w-e should not have
reached the second summit. We had seized and utilised, as
far as possible, the only opportunity in two seasons.
The view, while similar to that from the two lower summits,
had grown with the altitude, and from here was indescribably
grand. Over a space of three-quarters of a circle countless
thousands of spires of every size and shape shot up in the air
as far as the eye could reach, and the high snow-basins and
winding valleys between them, some of them at over 20,000
feet altitude, lay fully exposed to view-. One could see from

314 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
the immense mass of Nanga Parbat, bounding the horizon
sixty mfles to the south-west, around to Masherbrum, the
Golden Throne, Gusherbrum, and K 2, ninety to a hundred
mfles to the east. Beneath, stretching away for thirty miles,
banded by its remarkable, winding, medial moraines, lay the
Chogo Lungma. Just across this, in the foreground, rose the
beautiful needle of Indus Nagar Watershed Peak No. 4,
22,810 feet, its apex nearly six hundred feet below us. Six
miles north-west of it stood Indus Nagar Watershed Peak
No. 2, 24,470 feet, and twelve miles to the south Haramosh,
24,270 feet. The Chogo Col, beneath our feet, at the head of
the Chogo Lungma, was seen to be the beginning of a snow--
pass 20,000 feet high, named by us the Chogo La, that runs for
some distance between snow-peaks and then suddenly drops
down to a glacier, that slopes gently away to a rock-valley
leading, apparently, towards Hispar. This route to the latter
would not be a^'ailable for travellers, on account of its moun
taineering difficulties, and no coolies could be induced to pass
the Chogo La.
After remaining half-an-hour, all the time that could be
spared, to take readings, photograph, and gaze upon such a
view as in long mountain experience none of the party had
ever seen before — the one view of a lifetime, to enjoy which
for half-an-hour was only an aggravation — the return was reluc-
tantl}- begun toward the second peak, which was reached at
three o'clock.
After a half-hour's rest, we all started to descend to camp,
w-hich had to be reached before darkness set in, as the dangerous
slopes of the first peak could be safely negotiated only by day
light. The way was fairly smooth and progress rapid till the
first peak was regained. Picking up the second coolie on its
summit, where he had sat contented the whole day, glad to
escape the higher work, we started down its abrupt flank. It
was a question which was more nerve-wearing, ascending the

DESCENT FROM PEAKS— GLISSADING. 317
dizzy frozen incline by night, or descending the same when
soft. With each downward step we plunged into the snow
above the knees, which, after the hard climbing of the day,
was most exhausting. The descent was made without accident,
and we reached camp at seven o'clock, as the short twilight was
deepening into darkness.
Hotel conveniences or a blazing log-camp-fire would have
been welcome after our sixteen hours of work, but no such
luxuries exist in the kingdom of the gods, and the tents frozen
to the snow were cheerless substitutes. Having our own cook
ing to do, we shirked it altogether, and, without troubling our
selves about food, sought sleep as soon as possible. The next
morning, the fifth at high altitude, with barometers falling and
clouds rolling across the sky, we gave orders for a speedy down
ward move. On two favourable slopes the opportunity to
hasten our pace by glissading was taken advantage of by the
whole company, including the coolies, who seemed to enjoy
immensely this, to them, new form of sport.
It was well we did not linger, for before we were half-wa}-
across the Chogo Lungma we were enveloped in a storm, which
for three days shrouded the great peaks we had won under a
radiant sky, in cloud and snow. When we came to the seracs,
which in any case would be difficult to pass in the snow-
darkened air, the bridges by which we had crossed five days
previously were found destroyed by the movements of the
glacier, and a new route had to be sought. These seracs are
the worst of any on the glacier to get through, being composed of
much-shattered ice-pinnacles, many of them knife-edges falling
on both sides to profound crevasses, rendered brittle and flaky
by the alternate thawing and freezing to which they are
subjected. The first of the two peaks conquered was named Mt. Chogo,
the second Mt. Lungma, the third and highest Pyramid Peak.
The opinion has often been expressed of late years that

3i8 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
mountain-sickness may be largely or wholly avoided by a gradual
approach to high altitudes, so as to permit the system to become
accustomed to diminished pressure and oxygen. This opinion
does not appear to be based on any very conclusive facts, and our
experience tends rather to controvert than to substantiate it.
We have climbed in Himalaya with thirteen Europeans,
making fifteen in all. Of these, twelve have reached an altitude
of 21,000 feet, seven that of 22,568 feet, six that of 23,000 feet,
five that of 23,300 feet, and three that of 23,394 ^^t. Only one
was completel}- prostrated by mountain-sickness at 21,000 feet,
so that he had to be sent back to a lower camp. One other,
previously immune even to 23,300 feet, was, after being at high
altitudes for six weeks, mildly affected by this malady between
19,000 and 20,500 feet, but was able to eat a satisfactory lunch at
the latter altitude. The rest escaped any symptoms of it. We
have ascended comparatively rapidly, usually reaching heights of
17,000 to 18,000 feet within a month after leaving sea-level.
Much of our work above that height has been done within six
weeks, and our highest at two and a half months.
In crossing the Skoro La in 1899, w^e took with us thirty-five
coolies, who had lived all their lives at an altftude of about
8,500 feet, and most of whom had crossed the 17,000 feet Skoro
La to Askole more than once. The first day they made a light
march of only three hours. The second day, at an altftude of
15,500 feet, half of them were so prostrated by mountain- sickness
that we were obliged to camp on a steep and exposed moun
tain-side. In igo2, whfle ascending the Chogo Lungma, one of our
instrument-coolies, who had always lived at Arandu, 9,500 feet,
became very ill at 12,500 feet, and continued so for two days,
after which he recovered and went wfth us to 19,000 feet with
out any further trouble. The following year, after remaining at
our base camp at 14,000 feet for two weeks, he became severely
ifl again on his first march up the glacier at 15,500 feet.

MOUNTAIN-SICKNESS. 321
On the occasion of the ascent described in this chapter, out of
twenty-two coolies from villages at altitudes of 9,000 to 9,500 feet,
w-ho were in excellent condition, having lived a life of ease for a
month at our 14,000 feet base camp, during which time they had
all put on flesh from the consumption of double the rations they
w-ould have used had they been obliged to furnish their own
provisions, eight became so ill at 19,600 feet, that they threw
themselves at full length on the snow, where they \a.v utterly
indifferent to all attempts short of actual violence to induce
them to move.
Whatever may be found to be the effect of a prolonged sojourn
at high altitude as a modifier or preventive of mountain-sickness,
it is certain that a large proportion of our coolies on these
expeditions, who had a lifelong advantage over us of 8,500 to
9,500 feet, besides that of being on their native ground, suffered
severely from this affection, while the nine Europeans engaged
in them escaped entireh-. These were all Balti coolies. It may
be that race may make some difference in predisposition, as Suru
coolies with us later, who have an admixture of Mongolian
blood, did not suffer to the same extent.
It seems to be the case with mountain-sickness as with sea
sickness, the symptoms of both of w-hich are practicalh- identical,
though the causes differ, (i) that some persons are immune to it
at an}- altitudes that have been reached and under all circum
stances, even that of extreme fatigue ; (2) that others are affected,
at given altitudes on some occasions and not on others, probably
according to the amount of fatigue undergone and the condition
of their bodily health ; (3) that still others alwa}-s suffer at
certain elevations, just as some persons always become sea-sick
on moderatel}- rough water. How far the last two classes ma^-
be benefited by living for some time at high altitudes will have
to be determined by further experience.
When we visited the Chogo Lungma the first time, we knew
that two peaks near its head had been fi.xed both for position
M. Y

322 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
and altitude by the Indian Survey. The first of these, the Indus
Nagar Watershed Peak No. 4, an important landmark, although
not charted on the Survey map and although a glacier occupies
the place that should be given to it, w-as easily identified. The
second, the Indus Nagar ^^'atershed Peak No. 2, 24,470 feet, is
shown on the map, about a mile too far east, but the cartographi
cal topograph\- for miles around it is so hopelessly at variance
w-ith the actual topograph}- that unfolded itself to our eyes, that
among several almost equall}- high peaks, we could not be cer
tain of its identity.
Before returning a second time to the Chogo Lungma we
wrote to the Superintendent of Surveys at Dehra Dun for further
information, and received the reply, that the Peak No. 2 in
question was the highest peak at the head of the Chogo Lungma.
This information was, of course, based on observations from a
distance of many miles, and not from observations on the spot.
\^'e would here acknowledge the courtesy and kindness of Col.
St. George C. Gore, R.E., formerly Surveyor- General of India,
of Lt. Col. S. Burrard, R.E., Superintendent Trig. Surveys, and
of J. Eccles, Esq., M.A., Officiating Superintendent Trig.
Surveys, in giving us, on different occasions, information and
assistance of importance to the prosecution of our work.
Pyramid Peak answering this description, and being i-n our
opinion, as well as in that of Petigax, Savoye, and Zurbriggen,
not only the highest but by far the most imposing mountain at
the head of the Chogo Lungma, we concluded it was the one
we sought. Here the matter rested and we supposed it settled,
and later believed the ascent to 23,394 feet to have been made
on the Indus Nagar Peak No. 2. \\'hen we came to construct
our map, the other fixed points having been placed upon it, the
position assigned by the Survey to the Indus Nagar Peak No. 2
fell, not on Pyramid Peak, but on another high but less con
spicuous summft four miles south by west of it on the south
side of the glacier, and it was impossible to substitute Pyramid

CREVASSE GLACIER SIX MILES LONG, THE UPPER SOU'TH BRANCH OF CHOGO LUNGMA. COL AT TOP ABOUT
19,000 FEET. FROM SUJLMIT MT. LUNGJIA.

PYRAMID PEAK AND PEAK TWO. 325
Peak for this without dislocating the topography of the whole
region. We were thus placed in the dilemma of considering either
that the Survey had miscalculated the position of Peak 2, thus
giving it a position four miles too far south, or that Pyramid
Peak is another and higher peak not seen and triangulated by
the Survey. Three circumstances favour the former view —
(i) Pyramid Peak is manifestly the highest and most prominent
peak in the region, and is the one of all others to attract atten
tion from afar. (2) The position of Indus Nagar Peak 2 was
fixed by three rays from stations thirty-seven, forty-three, and
forty-nine miles respectively, to the south beyond the Astor
river. These stations in point of longitude are very near
together, the two outside ones being only about four and a half
miles apart, so that the rays from them would cut one another
on Peak 2 at a very acute angle, and an error of position in
the north and south direction might conceivably be made.
(3) There is, apparently, nothing between the three stations
and Pyramid Peak to prevent the latter being seen from them.
These stations are situated in direct line between Pyramid Peak
and Nanga Parbat, and from the height of 23,394 f^et on
Pyramid Peak, Nanga Parbat was plainly seen through the
opening in the mountain \valls occupied by Crevasse glacier,
the highest tributar}- of the Chogo Lungma, the col at the
head of which is only about 19,000 feet. Still, as a peak
occupies practically the position assigned to Indus Nagar
Watershed Peak No. 2 by the Survey, we do not undertake to
assert that the Survey is in error, but chart P}-ramid Peak on
our map as another and distinct peak.
The height assigned to Pyramid Peak is estimated, no
measurements having been made under the circumstances to
determine the difference in height between it and Peak 2.
Higher it certainly is in the opinion of all who studied it, but,
to be within the hmit of probability, we have placed it only

326 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
thirty feet higher than the altitude assigned to Peak 2, although
it appeared to be at least three hundred feet higher. The
altitude of Peak 2, having been fixed by only two rays, may
possibly have been calculated too high, in which case the small
difference estimated ma}- really represent a considerably greater
one. From the highest point reached on Pyramid Peak the
summit corresponding in position to Peak 2 did not appear so
much higher than some untriangulated peaks near it as to
attract special attention. If Peak 2 has the altitude assigned
it by the Survey, the altitude of P}-ramid Peak is placed too
low. This shows the difficulty that the explorer ma}* have in
identifying desired features in the little knowm or unexplored
distant regions of Himalaya, w-here only a few peaks seen
from afar are placed upon the map as fi.xed points, other details
being often drawn in from imagination. It is not surprising
that numerous mistakes in identification ha\-e been made by
Himalayan explorers and mountaineers.

INDU.S N^GAR WATERSHED PEAK NO. 2, 24,470 FEET, CHOGO LUNGMA.

CHAPTER NIL
Farewell to Choga Lungma — The Bolucho Glacier — Caravan ascends a
¦Virgin Pass — Passage of Dangerous Cornice — Coolies glissade a
Thousand-Foot 'Wall — Propitiating Mountain Gods with Food-Offerings
— Goats and Sheep prove Good Mountaineers.
On the 14th, 15th, i6th, and tfll 9 a.m. of 17th August
rain or snow fell w-ith but few intermissions. A\-alanches, w-hich

STONE CAIRN AT RIFFEL CAMP, 14,067 FEET.
had fallen during the whole season much oftener than in 1902,
on account of the great quantity of snow, increased in frequency
during these four days, crashing down at short intervals from
the heights around, while every now and then some great serac

330 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
would give way and tumble over into the depths below with a
thunder which rivalled that of the avalanches.
As our work on the Chogo Lungma was now completed,
these days were spent in preparations to finally leaving Riffel
Camp for other fields of activity. Our plan was next to ascend
and explore the Bolucho glacier, the fourth large north branch

- - . * -vt
¦"«*^---.,-fi'-%

JUNCIION OF KOI.Ul HO GLACIER WITH CHOGO LUNGJIA, LOOKING UP
BOLUCHO.
of the Chogo Lungma, and seek a passage from it across the
mountains to the Kero Lungma glacier, which runs parallel
with the middle portion of the Chogo Lungma, and is separated
from it by a high mountain range, that sends dowm glaciers on
both sides to the two larger ones. Its walls fall most abruptly
towards the Kero Lungma, and its upper ridges, where broken,
are gashed b}- most eerie-looking cols.
We built a stone-cairn on the slope near our tents, in which

VIEW OF LOWEST TWO JULES OF BOLUCHO GLACIER AND LIS JUNCTION WITH CHOGO LUNGJIA FROJI
RIVULET CAJip,

DEPARTURE FROM RIFFEL CAMP. 335
a tin box was placed, containing a record of our exploration and
ascents made in that region during the two seasons. The cairn
is a massive structure seven feet high, likely to defy for a long
time both the storms of the summer monsoon and winter gales.
The next visitor, who may perchance fancy he is the first on
this ground, will have our annals to consult before continuing
on his way. The two guides with several coolies were sent
ahead to make a reconnaissance at the head of the Bolucho,
and on i8th August, with regret, we took our final leave of this
breezy, splendidly situated camp, which had been our home for
so many weeks during two summers, and from which so much
that was interesting and exciting had been accomplished, turn
ing our footsteps for the last time down the Chogo Lungma.
The day was fine, and all the well-known peaks uncovered their
heads to bid us farewell. Five tent-terraces, the coolie-huts
and a large pile of wood, as well as the cairn, were left behind
as evidences of our visit.
It was something of a venture to take a caravan of fifty-five
coolies, several servants, eight sheep, and twelve goats, up an
unknowm glacier and over a wild snow-range never before
crossed. The Arandu lambardar remarked, it would be far
easier to go dowm to Arandu and thence ascend the Kero nala.
This was true, but the route suggested was longer and for us
devoid of novelty, whereas the dash for the unknown would be
over new ground full of interesting possibilities.
We reached the junction of the Bolucho with the Chogo
Lungma at 10 a.m. As we needed three more coolies and
some supplies, the lambardar was here despatched to Arandu to
get the coolies, some sheep, fowls, and eggs. Returning he was
to bring to us three boxes now left here, and follow our tracks
till he found us. A Gurkha was also sent back to Riffel Camp
with three coolies to fetch three sacks of ata left behind for
want of carriers, and similarly follow our tracks.
The Bolucho is six miles long and averages half a mile in

336 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
width. It has no branches, being fed entirely from the
mountains enclosing its upper third. It is a decadent glacier,
and no longer reaches the Chogo Lungma, its present tongue
having receded half a mile from the latter, leaving a deep
channel from mountain to mountain covered with a vast mass
of rocks, boulders, and debris thrown together in utter con
fusion. Judging from the great lateral moraines left at this
point, the former thickness of the ice must be estimated
at over tw-o hundred and fifty feet, where none is now to be
found. The bed of the glacier w-as in such a chaotic condition and
so obstructed that it was impossible to force a passage through
it, so we led the caravan for an hour and a half up the steep,
crumbling, rather dangerous, east bank, descending to the
glacier, when the latter became sufficientl}- well marked to offer
a route over its surface. It was exceedingly rough and greatly
broken and was covered thickly with granite detritus. After a
three hours' slow and difficult scramble over it we came to a
small grass-covered spot above the west bank, where we
camped. This camp, at 14,200 feet, was called Rivulet Camp
because of the numerous singing mountain-streams that
descended on both sides. That evening the guides joined us
after two days of active w-ork. They reported there was a fine
accessible snow-col near the head of the glacier surmounted by
a cornice, which they had already partially tunnelled.
The next morning we were off at five o'clock. The col was
five hours distant, and we wished to cross it that day. After
half-an-hour of moraine we struck the hard, moderately-
ascending glacier, w-hich had but few- large crevasses and
offered an excellent surface for marching. In three hours w-e
reached the foot of the pass, where, on a snow-field just
touched by the earl}- sunlight, men and beasts breakfasted, the
sheep and goats nibbling snow as complacently as if it had been
grass. After this the guides led the w-a}- by the track they had

ASCENDING TO BOLUCHO COL, 7 O'CLOCK A.JI.

ON THE BOLUCHO COL. 339
already made up the rather steep, but not dangerous, slope
leading to the col.
With the view of snowy heights expanding on all sides, it
was a pretty sight to see the long line of men and animals
ascending for the first time the virgin pass, which on both sides
from bottom to top was an unbroken route of snow. At two
badly-crevassed places we roped, but all went smoothly until
the col, a narrow depression between two snow-hills, was reached
at ten-thirty. Here the view, like all other views in this
region, was grand, and included the giant forms of Haramosh,
Indus Nagar Watershed peaks 2 and 4, Mt. Chogo, Mt. Lungma,
Pyramid Peak, and others, untouched b}? cloud, and to the east
the peaks surrounding the Kero Lungma and Hucho Alchori.
While waiting for the coolies to arrive, which they did in half
an hour, we took readings, which fix the height of the col at
17,021 feet.
The guides meanwhile completed a passage through the
cornice, and cut steps for several hundred feet down the ice-wall
below it. This wall, which dropped for about a thousand feet
at an angle of sixty degrees and ended in easier slants leading to
a branch of the Kero Lungma, seemed at first glance to form an
impassable barrier for coolies. After heavy new snow it would
have been dangerous for experts, for its entire surface w-as
furrowed by avalanches ; but the weather was now more settled,
and the loose snow of the recent storms had been mostly shed
to the bottom, so there was no danger on that score. Moreover,
the guides had proved themselves adepts in snow and ice-craft
during the season's work, and, if the coolies could be got down
that wall, they were the men to do it.
A rope was anchored securely with an ice-axe in the snow-
above the cornice, to serve as a handhold in descending through
it to the wall. It was arranged that Dr. Workman and Savoye
should remain above to help the coolies through the cornice.
while Mrs. Bullock M'orkman, with Petigax and the porter, led
z 2

340 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
the way down the wall. The passage of a cornice may some
times be exciting. A short but perilously steep spiral gallery
had been cut from the cornice around to the main slant of the
wall. As she came to the bottom of this gallery, where, with
one foot in the air, it was necessary to face inward and take a
side-leap to the next step below on the wall, she held her breath.

ON THE BOLUCHO COL, I7,02I FEET.
for the certainty of reaching that step was not absolute, and the
dow-nw-ard vista of the wall j\-as appalling.
How true it is that " familiarity breeds contempt." The
erratic actions of the coolies obliged her to descend the gallery
twice on that da}-, and the second time it seemed so easy she
wondered wh}- she had almost shuddered on first negotiating it.
The three then descended the wall straight, keeping the rope
taut, and had gone about four hundred feet, w-hen the tw-o above

A DANGEROUS GLISSADE. 343
began to help the coolies through the cornice. With their
assistance, and that of the anchored rope, five coolies passed
safely through, and started down the wall. Mrs. Bullock
Workman's party had, meanwhile, moved a short distance
across the wall out of their immediate track, which in view of
rapidly-ensuing events, was a fortunate circumstance for them.
Petigax was cutting steps across an avalanche-scored couloir,
when the sizzle of snow sliding rapidly down the slant just
behind was heard. As they turned to see what had caused
this, a coolie dashed past at lightning speed, with arms and
legs in the air, in his flight grooving out the snow, which flew
up in a powdery mist.
A certain guide at Chamonix is noted for making descents in
fabulous^ short time, but this Balti coolie broke his record,
glissading nine hundred feet of the wall in less than two
minutes, and landing right side up, safe and sound, in the soft
snow at the bottom, which was better than the guide would
probably have done. Although instructed how to step and use
his stick, the coolie, utterl}- ignorant of snow-climbing, either
had preferred his own way of treading and lost his footing, or
had entered voluntarily on the glissade.
This episode set the coohes, who were peering over the cornice
above, to remonstrating, and, when a second one whizzed down
ward likewise, they became vociferous. The second, wfth a
tent on his back was more antic than the first, and treated us
to the spectacle of a series of somersaults, on completion of
which he landed sprawling at the bottom, while the tent,
having extricated itself from his grasp, lay an eighth of a mile
below him on the glacier. The third and fourth coolies had,
meanwhile, by careful treading, passed safely down the first
half of the wall. The fifth blundered, and rushed past wfth the
speed of the four winds. He carried a box of stores, which,
during his rapid gyrations left his back and took fts own course,
ricochetting in great curves down the ice-slant. Finally it

344 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
burst, scattering like a shrapnel fts contents of Bovril rations,
tinned meats, jams, and Huntley and Palmer biscufts in all
directions through the scintillating snow-dust.
The propitiation of the mountain gods with food-offerings
was a serious matter for us, and we began to tremble for the
remainder of our equipment. But other aspects of the case
now demanded consideration. Fortunately the ice-gully, down
which the three coolies had glissaded, had been scoured smooth
of all projections by previous avalanches, and was covered by
a la}-er of soft snow, so that they escaped unhurt. But they
evidently did not fancy the abruptness of their descent, and
called disparagingly to their confreres above, who opened a war
of words upon the Sahibs.
Mrs. Bullock Workman's party awaited the issue, standing
first on one foot and then on the other by way of resting, for
sitting on snow at an angle of sixty degrees is more fatiguing
than standing. Not another coolie appeared below the cornice.
Presently the call came from above, " All the remaining fifty
are in a panic and will not move." Petigax replied he would
return, and with the others make a new zigzag path to the
bottom ; but no, they would not hear of it. We were indeed
in a quandary. As noon was approaching and the caravan
separated, the only alternative seemed to be for all to return to
the top and enter into further negotiations. It w-as a hot climb
with the sun blazing in the zenith. When all were on the col
again we called to the five coolies below, who had one tent and
other effects necessar}- to us in camping. They replied they
could not return, but would pass the night in some rocks below
and descend the Kero Lungma the next day to meet us. We
could scarcel}- ask them to reascend the wall. If w-e could not
get the remainder of the caravan over, but were obliged to turn
back, we should be put to great inconvenience in the four days
before they could rejoin us.
The khansamah, who spoke Balti, was now sent to the coolies.

DESCENT FROM BOLUCHO COL. 347
who sat without their loads in the snow at a little distance.
We took a firm stand, saying we would go by that route and no
other. They w-ere also told the guides would remake the path,
cutting it to the base, and they were promised bakhshish.
While they were arguing amongst themselves and refusing
over and over again to go, two hours passed, during which the
guides reconstructed the entire path dow-n the wall. This
accomplished, we suggested that some of the coolies should
go down without their loads and inspect the route. Two of
the braver ones offered to do this. Having gone down some
distance, they reported favourably on their return, and, after
much parleying, persuaded the rest to take their loads and
start. Petigax led the way, while the rest of us assisted the coolies
through the cornice one by one. All passed safely, though
many coolies would not venture to go loaded. Several of the
more courageous volunteered to aid their comrades and take
their loads dowm the first third of the wall. In doing this the}-
went down and up from three to five times. With infinite
patience Petigax superintended the descent. By 3.30 all had
passed, including the goats and sheep, which jumped composedly
and with perfect security from step to step, some scorning to
use the artificial path at all.
We had felt some anxiety as to how the}- would negotiate
such a veritably high Alpine descent, but w-hen we saw them do
it, we wished that all our coolies had been goats and sheep, for
had they been, a large part of the day would not have been
spent in argument and ceaseless endeavour in the first crossing
of the Bolucho Col. Having seen all safely on their way to
the lower slope, we roped, and left the col and its cornice.
At 4.30 the entire caravan was reunited at the base of the
wall, the coolies now in the best of humour at having suc
cessfully o\-ercome the difficulties which had so greatly terrified
them. Before w-e started for the lower part of the glacier those

348 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
who had glissaded presented themselves for medical inspection,
one pointing to his ankle, another to his wrist or neck. But
there was not a serious bruise, nor a sprain, nor a broken neck
among them. All were in as good condition as when they
started. We were now on a branch of the Kero Lungma glacier,
down which we marched in twelve inches of snow for two hours.
At dusk we camped on the glacier, while the coolies settled
themselves on a moraine among some rocks, where they made
fires with wood brought from the Bolucho nala. As showing
how little they care for any comfort that may be provided for
them, may be cited the fact that they had on this tour, as on
all others, tents with bottoms sewn in to keep out the cold.
Instead of taking the slight trouble to pitch them, they remained
the whole night without shelter.

OUR LIVESTOCK ON BOLUCHO COL, I7,02I FEET.

CHAPTER XIII.
Down the Kero Lungma — Hucho Alchori Glacier — First Bear Camp —
Gurkha and Lambardar Arrive — A Floral Carpet — Second Bear
Camp — Ascent to Head of Glacier — Ice-Fall Camp — Alchori Col proves
to be a Cornice — Cols of Karakoram Watershed — Coolies thwart our
Plans — Return to Arundu — Over Bannok La to Astor and Srinagar.
The next morning, resuming our march down the glacier, we
soon reached the Kero Lungma at about the middle point of its
course. From here it ascends north-west in a not difficult
ice-fall to the Nushik La. We turned south-east and descended
its lower half. A short distance below where we joined it an
ice-fall was encountered, below which ran lines of enormous
longitudinal ice-ridges, the whole covered with detritus to a
much greater extent in proportion to its size than the Chogo
Lungma. Large boulders lay piled everywhere. At the
entrance of side-glaciers the surface was much broken into
irregular elevations separated by deep depressions. Getting
over it was difficult and progress slow. The glacier was so-
rough that, as soon as practicable, we pushed over to its right or
south side, where an easier route was found along the ridge of a
long lateral moraine rising some two hundred feet above the
glacier, which has, evidently, diminished greatly in size in recent
times. From this we crossed the great ridges and hollows to
the north side of the glacier at the point of entrance of the
Hucho Alchori, to explore which was our chief reason for
coming over to the Kero Lungma.
Sportsmen are said to have visited occasionally the lower
part of the Alchori nala, but until now the glacier, penetrating
deeply into the mountains, had not been explored nor accurate^
mapped. Its course runs east by north from its junction with

352 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
the Kero Lungma, and its length from the latter to its source
is ten miles, its width being three-quarters of a mfle. Two
large branches enter it on the north side, running dowm from the
two sides of a large snow-basin, and separated from each other
by a mountain mass.
The lower five miles of the Hucho Alchori resembles the
corresponding portion of the Kero Lungma above described.
It has greatly receded both in -w-idth and thickness, and only
half-fills its original bed, the westerly half of the latter being
occupied by high moraines overgrown with vegetation and
bushes. The ice here runs in two high, ragged ridges, separated
by a deep depression, all heavily covered with debris. The upper
half of the glacier has a rolling, rather sharply-rising, but other-
wise smooth surface, without much debris, ending in a steep,
broken ice- fall at its highest part.
Turning into the Alchori nala, we ascended the rough, ancient
moraine for two hours, when we came to a large, level maidan,
l}-ing between the high lateral moraine and the mountain,
carpeted with grass and flowers, and dotted w-ith an abundant
growth of bushes about twelve feet high, which made excellent
firewood. Tw-o rivulets of pure water ran through it. It was
sheltered from the wind, and made one of the most ideal
camping places of the summer. Here we established a base
camp at 13,150 feet, w-ith communication w-ith Arandu by way
of the Kero Lungma.
.-\.t seven that e\-ening the Gurkha, lambardar, and six coolies
arrived, having come over the Bolucho Col that morning.
The}- reported that four of the coolies had glissaded the gulh-
like the three with us, and had likewise escaped injury, landing
in the soft snow at the base. One sack of ata had been lost
and another provision box smashed, the remains of which, with
such of its contents as could be collected, they brought with
them. The poor Gurkha, who had been forty-eight hours w-ithout

RIBBED PEAK ON KERO LUNGMA OPPOSITE JUNCTION OF ALCHORI GLACIER.
(TELEPHOTO.)

M,

.\ A

ROCK-NBEDLE ON SOUTH SIDE ALCHORI GLACIER. (TELEPHOTO. ^

A A 2

WILY LAMBARDAR— FIRST BEAR CAMP. 357
shelter, blanket, or any food to speak of, and had slept the
previous night with the coolies in the snow at the top of the
col, looked much the worse for wear, but he had stuck to his
task and brought his coolies through, and came up to report,
saluting as usual. The lambardar, who was a wir\- fellow in
the prime of life, presented himself in e.xcellent condition. He
said that, of the supplies he was bringing, a sheep, several dozen
eggs, and some fowls, had been lost in the snow on the col.
When questioned as to where he obtained a new pair of fine
chaplies he was wearing, he said he had met a shikar Sahib who
made him a present of them. It came to our knowledge a few
days later that he had received of our agent in Arandu three
sheep, twenty fowls and nine dozen eggs, to bring to us. A
short distance above Arandu he met a sportsman and disposed
of one sheep, three dozen eggs and eight fowls to him,
undoubtedly receiving the chaplies as part payment for the
same. These were the supplies lost in the snow-.
As traces of bears were here seen, this was called First Bear
Camp. A large tuft of white bear-fur was found on a bush near
one of the tents, which, probably, had been lost by one of these
animals in an affray with another of his species. One of the
Gurkhas said he encountered a big brow-n bear just at dawn,
which fied on seeing him. Foxes scurried about at night, but
by day all animals kept at a safe distance. Judging from our
experience and that of sportsmen w-hom w-e have met, it seems
to us that, in Himala}-a, mountains, hard as they are to conquer,
afford a better bag to the mountaineer than do wild animals to
the sportsman.
At this camp the topographer joined us, having come around
by way of Arandu. Leaving a good part of our stores and
luggage here, w-e marched up the nala along the w-est bank of
the glacier in a hollow betw-een the high lateral moraine and the
hillsides. Both the hollow and the hillsides w-ere bright with
flow-ers. Rhubarb with brilliant red and yellow leaves and

358 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
blossoms, sorrel, large purple asters with deep yellow and orange
centres, blue forget-me-nots, buttercups large and small, grass
with large black flower, and many other flowering plants.

HIGH JIOR.VLNE AT JU-NCTION OF ALCHORI WITH HOH LUJIB.A GLACIER,
SHOW-ING RECESSION OF BOTH. ONE OF TENTS OF FIRST BEAR CAJIP,
13,150 FEET, ON JIAIDAN IN FOREGROUND.
unknown to us, of various hues, including a variety of deep
crimson orchid, grew in profusion, forming a variegated carpet
of ever}- colour of the spectrum, that reminded us of a similar
floral display in the Rangdum valley.
The mountains enclosing the lower half of the Alchori glacier

PEAK ON SOUTH SIDE ALCHORI GLACIER, (TELEPHOTO.)

SECOND BEAR CAMP— ALCHORI BRANCHES. 361
contrast with one another in a curious manner. Those on the
side we were on — the north side — have gentle slopes and are
clothed with grass almost to their tops, w-hich are rounded,
while those on the south side rise precipitousl}- from the glacier,
terminate in some very sharp needles, and have much snow on
them. After two hours and a half of flower-strewm path, the
hollow ceased, and we followed the top of the lateral moraine,
which towered far above the surface of the receding glacier. At
noon we reached the first of the two branches, which was
crossed in three-quarters of an hour. Surmounting a high
lateral moraine we descended from it to another large, gentl}--
sloping, sandy maidan, lying at the junction of the two branches
with the main glacier and enclosed between the mountain
dividing them and the semicircular moraine we had just crossed.
Several streamlets flowing from the mountain above crossed the
maidan. This furnished a safe and convenient camping ground
in the very heart of this ice-region, and was the last spot found
that was not snow-covered. Numerous traces of bears were
also observable here, which suggested the name of Second Bear
Camp. Its altitude was 14,283 feet. Both this maidan and
the one below, on which stood First Bear Camp, are perfect
examples of the maidans described in Chapter \TII. of this
book. The tw-o branches entering at this point, each about three
miles in length, are broken into steep, much-splintered ice-falls
throughout their entire course. The snow-basin in which they
rise and the jagged peaks above it are wild to an extreme degree.
There are cols, which doubtless overtop the Hispar glacier, but
they are quite inaccessible on account of the steep rock-w-alls
and terrific seracs below. At the east branch stands a stately
snow-peak, the upper slopes of w-hich would probably be climb
able did not the ice conditions lower down prohibit such an
attempt. The main glacier, instead of running due east as on
the Survey map, shortl}- above this camp makes a decided turn

362 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
to the north, and, ascending between hues of sharp aiguflles,
culminates in a beautiful snow-col overhanging the Hispar
glacier. On the morning of the 22nd August we left camp with
twent\--five coolies to explore the glacier to its source. Crossing
over to its east side, we continued up its smooth, undulating
surface for three hours, when we reached the base of an ice-fall
stretching entirely across the glacier, and barring the way like
a frozen cataract. The caravan, with some assistance, sur
mounted this, and kept on up the steep snow--fields above, until
confronted by another similar barrier composed of great masses
of ice and neve separated by w-ide transverse crevasses. Examina
tion showed this to be entirely impassable at any point except,
possibly, near the west side of the glacier.
Tbe caravan was with some difficult}- led across to that side,
when, alarmed by the fall of several snow-caps, that, softened
by the hot sun, slid off from the seracs into the blue abysses
around, they refused to advance farther. While the coolies were
talking and gesticulating among themselves, the guides dis
covered, a short distance beyond, a steep narrow couloir running
up between a tall serac and a crumbling mass of snow, under
clusters of icicles, to a point behind, from which firm snow
above could be reached by cutting steps around the side of the
serac. The passage was a ticklish one, and w-e -were put to
considerable trouble to induce the coolies to attempt it, but the
all-powerful bakhshish finally settled the question in our favour,
and by free use of the rope they were hauled one by one up the
steps, which to them were the most alarming part. This
accomplished, we kept around the edge of the basin, crossed two
crevasses, and, having had a three and a half hours' exhausting
contest with the dangerous portion of the route, emerged on a
fine, high snow--expanse, at the top of which, directly under the
col aimed for, we pitched our camp at an altitude of 17,002 feet,
and named it Ice-fall Camp.

ANIMALCULES AT ICE-FALL CAMP. 369
To our delight a small rill of water was discovered coursing
down a perpendicular rock-face near b}-, resulting from the
melting of snow on the rocks by the fierce heat of the sun.
Running water is seldom found at such an altitude. All haste
was made to fill every available receptacle before the freezing
night-temperature should silence the cheery cascade. A curious
phenomenon was here noticed. In melting snow later the
resulting water was covered with small, grey, gelatinous animal
cules of various shapes, which moved actively and waved small
projecting parts. How these organisms managed to ascend
to a height of 17,000 feet, to be deposited in the snow, and to
retain their vitality, is a mystery we do not attempt to explain,
but for the fact we can vouch.
A gorgeous vermilion sunset illumined the line of peaks
rising from the darkening glacier stretching awa\- below- our
terrace, after which the cold, darkness, and deathly silence of
the uninhabited snow-world fell upon the camp like a curtain.
But in such a camp, when it is not too high and the coolies
are not too near, one sometimes sleeps a dreamless sleep not
vouchsafed in inhabited places, and we seemed scarcely to ha\-e
touched our pillows when the guide was heard calling, " Four
o'clock." At five Mrs. Bullock Workman and the guides left to find a
way to the col. A snow basin above the camp was crossed,
and a number of avalanche-beds also, to a very steep snow--wall,
down which avalanches had been raining the previous day, but
which now stood silent in the dull light of a frozen da-^vn. A
zigzag path was cut up its central face, at the top of which
several large rock-battlements were reached. These furnished
some gymnastic work, which had the advantage in the nipping
sunless air of restoring sluggish circulation. Then followed
neve which led to the col, another projecting cornice.
It had been hoped a practicable pass might be found, over
which the caravan could be taken to Hispar, but, far from this,
M. B B

370 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
the part}' had to content themselves, as on the Col des Aiguilles,
with stepping out singly on the shelf and looking down thou
sands of feet upon the broad expanse of the lonely Hispar,
winding its way towards the sun-baked vale of Hunza Nagar.
This differed from the other cornices met with, in that for
nearl}- half its length it took the shape of a reversed cornice,
its edge turning back like a w-hite fluted ruffle. This was
undoubtedly the result of some eccentricity of the wind, or of
the meeting at the edge of two currents, and might not exist at
all another season. This was named the Alchori Col. Its
altitude is 17,622 feet.
Photographs were taken of a large unnamed north branch of
the Hispar glacier directly opposite, leading from the latter to
Snow-Peak No. 4 of the Surve}-, 25,503 feet, which stands on
the confines of a region as }-et unexplored and unmapped.
\\'est of this rises Peak 2, 24,593 feet, which feeds the Kani-
basar glacier. The towering ramparts of these two giants cut
off all view of the unsurveyed world beyond, but their icy
splendour was a partial compensation ; for a grander scene than
this is rarely found. In handling the instruments without gloves
Mrs. Bullock Workman nearh- had her fingers frost-bitten, but
this was not realised until on descending they began to be
painful. The sun does not touch the col on the upper part
of the Alchori tfll 9.30 a.m. in the latter part of August. Both
the ascent and descent were made in the shade, the temperature
of the air being below freezing. Leaving Ice-fall Camp at ten.
Second Bear Camp was reached at 3 p.m. On the return the
coolies made light of the difficulties they had groaned over on
the upward march.
As regards the Karakoram Watershed south of the Hispar
glacier, it may be said, in the two expeditions described in
this volume, we attacked it repeatedly, partly because the
glaciers we were exploring culminate in fts cols and passes, and
partly because we had a hobby for finding a new caravan-

ICE-COULOIR ,\T HEAD ALCHORI GLACIER, UP WHICH CARAJ-AN JVAS 'TAKEN.

B B 2

ICE-FAI.I, CAMP, 17.002 FEET, AT HEAD OF ALCHORI GLACIER, ALCHORI COL BEHIND.

^OLS ADJOINING HISPAR GLACIER. ^ 375
passage over it, with the following results. The cols at the
head of the Sosbon and Hoh Lumba glaciers are separated
from the Hispar b}- a glacier and a high mountain ridge.
These cols, as has been shown, are corniced, and overhang

ON ALCHORI COL, 17,622 FEET, .\T 6.3O A.JI.
perpendicular precipices several thousand feet in height. Next
to the west, following the range, comes the Alchori Col just
described, difficult of access from the south and falling to the
Hispar b\- a precipice on the north. Then the cols above the
two branches of the Alchori also overhang the Hispar, but are

376 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
inaccessible from either side. From the Kero Lungma two
glaciers that might lead to the Hispar were found also to be

GLACIER JOINING HISPAR, FROM ALCI-IORI COL. PEAK ON RIGHT IS SNOW PEAK
NO. 4, 25,503 FEET.
inaccessible. Next in order is the Nushik La, a practicable pass
but one seldom crossed in the last tw-ent\- years. From the
upper tributaries of the Chogo Lungma we ascended two high

CHOGO LA— HARAMOSH LA.

377

cols, which proved to be impracticable as passages. The
Chogo La, at the head of the Chogo Lungma, w-ould furnish
a passage to the west, probably to Hispar, to a party of
thoroughly equipped mountaineers, but it would not be avail-

VIEW DOW-.N ALCHORI GLACIER FROM ICE-FALL CAJIP.

able for coolies on account of the long and difficult march up
the Chogo Lungma and the great ice-wall at its head of nearl}-
20,000 feet. The same is true of the Haramosh La, at the head
ofthe Haramosh glacier, leading to the Indus and Gilgit.
We have thus climbed or thoroughly examined twelve
depressions in the ranges of this region, and have failed to

378 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
discover an}- other available route from it to the north or west
than the Nushik La, which is the only one over which a caravan
could be taken. Our researches have also shown that Jhe
northern slopes of this watershed are moj^^fan^teras fhan the
southern. _Sniii -oi 4:-& -coIb as -were accessible at all proved to
be so from the south side only.
After finishing w-ith the Alchori we had planned to reascend
the Kero Lungma, cross the Nushik La, and descend the Hispar
glacier to Hispar and Nagar, and return via Gilgit, which would
enable us to complete our exploration of the region by investi
gating its northern approaches. We had the necessary permits;
the Hunza Nagar chiefs had been notified of our intended visit
by the Kashmir Government; we had provided a large supply of
food for the coolies, and our own arrangements were complete.
On our return to Second Bear Camp, this intention was
communicated to the coolies through the lambardar. The
effect was like the application of a spark to a powder-magazine.
An explosion followed at once. The coolie-camp was throw-n
into an uproar, and the sound of loud and excited voices filled
the air. Not a coolie would go with us. The same afternoon
ten deserted. Arguments, assurance that the route was easy,
and, on arrival at Nagar on the fourth or fifth day, they w-ould
all be paid off and might return immediately, and the offer of
four times their daily wages, had no effect. For the second
time in a fortnight they were deaf to all inducements. The
proposition had evidently touched a tender point, which at the
time we could not fathom.
The next da}- we returned to First Bear Camp. Here the
lambardar was told to select eight coolies to go with the guides
to examine a branch of the Kero Lungma. He reported no
one would go. A call was made for volunteers. Not one
responded. The mere mention of Nagar two days previoush-
had transformed the whole band. They were evidently afraid,
that the order to go with the guides even upon the Kero

SECOND BEAR CAJIP, 14,283 FEET ON JIAID.A.N, HUCHO ALCHORI GLACIER.

RECALCITRANT COOLIES.

3«i

Lungma was a trap, into which they did not intend to walk.
They said they would take us back to .\randu but would go

VIEW DOWN KERO NALA ACROSS TONGUE OF CHOGO LUNG.JIA
GLACIER.
nowhere else. They were w-illing to lie around doing nothing
at First Bear Camp, receiving food and w-ages from us, but
nothing in the w-ay ot w-ork would they do except to take us
back to Arandu.

382 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
We learned later from an official, who knows them well, that
the Basha people have a mortal fear of the warlike Hunza
Nagar tribes, who, before their conquest by the British, used to

WAZlR OF K.^TSURA.

make raids over the Nushik La and plunder the Basha villages,
and nothing would induce them to put their heads in the lion's
mouth by crossing the Nushik La. While this explains the
otherwise unaccountable attitude of the Basha coolies, w-ith
whom we had previously had no trouble except that due to

SUJIMIT NANG.X PARBA'T, 26,620 FEET. TELEPHOTO FROJI BANNOK LA,
25 MILES WEST.

M.

C C

C C 2

*i.',."'-.-^'

CHICOR NESTS— KERO NALA. 391
their cowardice and frequent desertion in the face of difficulties,
it did not console us for the loss of a month of what -would have
proved most interesting and valuable work. We had to accept
the situation as one of the exigencies of exploration.
One morning, while at this camp, we crossed the glacier and
ascended a rounded summit of 15,000 feet altitude, wooded on
its lower slopes, and covered with grass towards the top. The
interest of the trip lay in the glacier itself, which, although so
much shrunken, carries the enormous ice-ridges mentioned with
deep valleys between, containing rivers the size of mill-streams
which have cut channels deep into the ice, lakes, and large
blocks of granite besides other detritus, all of which, together
with its lateral moraines, a hundred and fifty or more feet in
height, made crossing it a rough scramble by no means devoid
of danger. On the mountain-top was a long line of chicor-
nests hollowed out in the dry earth on a crest commanding a
view of all approaches.
After some days at First Bear Camp, we returned in fine
weather to Arandu on 9th September. At the junction of the
Alchori with the Kero Lungma, we crossed some of the highest
ice-slants anywhere met with, one being two hundred and fifty
feet high from the bottom of the valley between it and the next.
From the tongue of the Kero Lungma the route runs down the
nala for two miles to a pasturage called Domok, below which
the end of the Niaro glacier has to be crossed, a short glacier,
but having ice-hillocks, and slants quite as high as those on the
Kero Lungma. These small glaciers often have ver}- large ice-
hills with deep valleys between.
The Kero nala from here to the Chogo Lungma is narrow-,
and its sides steep and composed of moraine-detritus through
which the stream has cut its way. The path through the nala
is very rough, and during or after rains may be dangerous on
account of falling stones or landslips.
On i8th September we left Skardo to return to Srinagar via

392 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
the Bannok La and Astor. Fifty-four coolies sufficed to carry
our luggage. After an eight hours' march dowm the Indus

^THE BARBER OF ASTOR. HEIGHT 3^ FEET.
valley, here wide and sand covered, we reached Katsura,
a village prettily situated a short distance up a side-nala,
where we camped in a grassy bagh sprinkled with boulders and
shaded b}- apricot and willow trees.

THE LEADERS OF THE EXPEDITION.

THE BANNOK LA. ^95.
From Katsura, a march of eight and a half hours up a path
rough with rocks and cut by streams, brought us to Shagerthang
at an altitude of about 11,550 feet, in a wheat-raising region
without fruit trees, surrounded by mountains of shale, granite,.
and basalt, dotted with arbor vitse trees. Two hours' farther
is Thlashingspang, where there is wood, water, and a good
meadow to camp on. Leaving camp early, we marched three
hours up the valley a,nd then two hours over stones and moraine,
when snow was reached. Mounting now over hard snow with
out crevasses up two snow basins surrounded by rock-peaks,
we gained the top of the Bannok La, in the second basin at
I p.m. The height of this was estimated from readings at
about 16,500 feet.
The massif of Nanga Parbat and its lower satellites, thirt}-
five miles to the west, are remarkably well seen from this pass-
About the base of Nanga Parbat rise several lines of peaks
graduated one above another, which, purpling in the after
noon light, recalled the beautiful view of the intermediate
ranges between Darjeeling and the snows. On this day the
air was wonderfully clear and details were distinctly visible.
The Bannok La, though far less difficult to cross than the
Trongo Pir, is more interesting on account of this view. A
descent of three quarters of an hour over a snow-field, succeeded
by one over moraine and screes, brought us into the descending
meadows of the Harpo nala, brilliant with autumn tints. Still
lower came trees, birches and pines, and a variety resembling
alders. The routes from the Harpo La and Trongo Pir also
enter the Harpo nala.
On 23rd September Astor was reached at 9 a.m. The next
morning our guides left us to return to Srinagar en route for
Europe, and some days later we followed leisurely, reaching
Srinagar on 9th October.

CHAPTER XIV.
Coolies as a Factor in Himalayan Mountaineering- Relations of Emploj'er
to Coolies — Difference in Coolies — Capabilities — Shikaris — Dilemma
in which Explorer is placed — Management of Coolies.
A VITAL question in Himalayan travel and exploration is that
of transport. In many, especially in the more remote regions,
coolies furnish the only means of transport. As such they
constitute a factor, that has to be taken into consideration in
planning any expedition, for without their assistance it cannot
be undertaken.
A knowledge of their character and habits is of great impor
tance to the explorer, in order that, having obtained the desired
number, he may know how to use them to the best advantage,
and how far he can push them in carrying out his plans and yet
retain them in his service. He learns in time, that the}- are
what they are and he cannot make them what they are not.
Like so-called civilised human beings they have their good
and their bad side, their virtues and their faults, their capabili
ties and their limitations. They will usually do what they are
accustomed to do or what appeals to their sense of personal
advantage, with readiness, but when called on to perform
extraordinary services, which conflict with their prejudices or
inclination, they respond much less readily.
They are supplied on request by the lambardars or other
head-men, who exercise a certain indefinite authority over them.
Just how far this authority extends we have never been able to
determine, but we judge it to be more nominal than absolute,
from the fact that, on more than one occasion, our servants have
been obliged to drag out unwilling coolies from hiding-places
in which they had concealed themselves to escape the service

COOLIE SERVICES— ATTENDANT CONDITIONS. 399
to which they had been appointed by the lambardar. Whatever
positive authority the head-man may have, one thing seems to
be recognised, at least in Kashmir and its dependencies, that
coolies cannot be compelled to perform an}' labour outside their
own district.
The traveller is expected to pay his coolies a certain sum
regulated by custom, though native officials are said to exact
gratuitous services from them. Whether they be paid in
person or through the head-men, it is doubtful how- much of
the amount paid remains to them for their own use, owing to
the Indian system of dastur, in accordance with which the
head-men and sometimes even the travellers' own servants
retain a part for themselves.
The services rendered by coolies to the traveller consist in
transporting his effects and supplies, assisting him in pitching
.and striking tents, fetching wood and w-ater, and acting on
occasion as messengers. So long as he is passing through
inhabited districts he is not hkely to have much trouble, and
can usually count on all his luggage being delivered to him at
the end of the day. He has personally but little to do with his
coolies. A given set go only one day's march with him, or
from one village to another, at the conclusion of which they
are paid off and replaced by others.
In case the traveller happens to be an explorer or mountaineer,
when he reaches the limits of human habitation his relations to
his coohes assume a very different aspect. He no longer requires
them for a single day, but must have a permanent corps, to go
with him for weeks or months. He is taking them away from
their homes and occupations into inhospitable, perhaps unknown
regions, peopled, it ma}- be, by their fancy w-ith harmful spirits,
whose wrath they fear to encounter, regions in which the}- have
no interest, and where, in spite of all provision made by him
for their comfort, they have to endure more or less of privation.
They have no understanding of nor sympathy with his object

400 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
in thus leading them into a desolate wilderness, and probabl}'
regard him as an insane enthusiast. Under these circumstances
it is not surprising that coolies often prove to be troublesome
employees. It is advisable for the explorer, if possible, to take with him
only those who, induced by the terms he may offer, may volun
teer to go, but even in this case he cannot feel sure they will
hold to their agreement. They have little moral sense and as
little regard for their pledged word, or for any contract they
may make and ratify with their thumb-marked signatures,
which they will break without scruple as soon as difficulties
are encountered, and often before, deserting and leaving their
employer with his outfit and supplies without means of
transport. Those who have employed coolies under ordinary conditions
at low altitudes and found their work satisfactory, would have
quite another story to tell, had they attempted with the same
coolies to force their way along the ice-clad peaks of the higher
mountain regions.
A lambardar should be taken in charge of the coolies, as his
infiuence and authority are valuable in keeping them up to
their work. When a defection among them does occur, it is
usually at a critical moment, when the prize may be dashed
from the hand that after months of patient effort is stretched
out to secure it.
The hold of an explorer on his coolies is almost as much a
moral as a pecuniary one, and much tact is required to keep them
in hand if strenuous work is to be done, such as exploring a
crevassed glacier or ascending a high snow-peak.
Coolies are by no means afl alike. Some render much better
service than others. Of those we have had experience with, the
Sikhim coohes are the worst, their natural imperfections having
been accentuated and others acquired by long contact w-ith
Europeans at Darjeeling. Not only do they demand four times

SIKHIM COOLIES.

401

the wages received by West Himalayan coolies, but for an
expedition they also demand an elaborate outfit of clothing and

BALTI INSTRUMENT COOLIE AGAINST HILLSIDE COVERED WITH PURPLE
ASTERS.
pro\-isions, where the latter supply their own clothing, and are
satisfied to live upon rice or ata. They refuse to start in the
morning till they have cooked a complicated hot breakfast, thus
causing the loss of two or three of the best hours of the day ;
M. ^ D

402 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
and, when they do march, cover only a third the distance
accomplished by western coolies.
They will desert without reason or warning, leaving their
loads on the roadside, a thing rarely known in the west.
Coolies who will leave invalids, as they are said to do, helpless
on Darjeeling roads, and who require the whole authority of
Government officials to prevent their deserting on expedi
tions, are not suited to the requirements of the explorer or
mountaineer. Kashmiri coolies are but little better. Many and bitter are
the complaints one hears of their treatment of summer visitors
within thirty miles of Srinagar. The best natured and most
willing coolies we have employed have been Ladakhis, while the
Baltis occupy an intermediate place, some being good, others
bad. Some of the Balti characteristics have become apparent
in the course of this narrative. With the more manly and war
like border tribes, such as the Hunza Nagar men, we have had
no experience. They are said to make excellent carriers, when
they are willing to act in this capacity.
As far as the capability of the different coolies of Kashmir for
mountain work is concerned, after an experience of five expedi
tions with them, we can say we have found them well able to
make their way on steep and even dangerous mountain-sides
below the snow-line. They are sure-footed and, as a rule,
fearless, and seem to possess something of the instinct of
mountain animals. In climbing lower mountains they ma}-
make helpful companions.
Above the snow-line and on glaciers the case is different. Here
their want of knowledge of snow-craft is at Once apparent, and
they move with an awkwardness and a timidity which makes
one disinclined to have them on the rope. Notwithstanding
this, probably from ignorance of mountain conditions, they show-
an utter disregard of danger from avalanches, both of snow and
rock, and on different occasions w-hile with us have persisted, in

COOLIES AND SHIKARIS AS MOUNTAINEERS. 403
spite of earnest warnings, in placing themselves in positions of
great peril from this cause.
They are also liable to be affected with mountain-sickness,
which renders them much less valuable than they might other
wise be. Every one of eight coolies, who have accompanied us
to summits over 18,000 feet, have been more or less affected
with this malady. On rocks we have never had to help them,
but on snow and ice, not only much help, but also much
persuasion and promises of bakhshish have been required to get
them over places that to us presented no difficulty. We ha\-e
probably led coolies over as many difficult places on ice and
snow as anyone, but we should have no confidence that the
same or other coolies could be induced to pass these places a
second time.
The same is true of shikaris, who differ from coolies onl}- in
being somewhat more intelligent and unwilling to carry loads.
They are employed mostly by sportsmen visiting the nalas of
the lower mountains, whose inexperience they take advantage
of to impose on them in a variety of wa}-s known to the
initiated. On mountain expeditions we have found them useless,
and their influence over the coolies has been pernicious.
In the light of our experience, -we cannot endorse the com
parisons which have been made of the mountaineering capacity
of coolies and shikaris on snow-peaks to that of expert European
guides. Such comparisons do not conform to fact, and indicate,
to say the least, a want of knowledge of difficult snow-work on
the part of those making them. Five minutes' observation of
the movements of a trained European guide and of a Himalayan
coolie on an ice-slope suffices to show their absurdity.
Within a few years two Kashmiri shikaris, whose apphcation
for service we declined, though they presented flattering testi
monials as to character and mountaineering ability from a self-
styled " guideless climber " on his first visft to Himalaya, were
emplo}'ed by a traveller as companions in an attempt on a
D D 2

404 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
snow-peak. The attempt failed. The traveller reported that
they were ignorant of snow-craft and of the use of the ice-axe,
refused to ascend moderately steep snow-slopes, and discouraged
his coolies, when he wished to make a high camp. This report
corresponds to the known character of them both.
The limitations of coolies on snow and ice and their disinclina
tion to go on these, place a heavy handicap on the mountaineer
who wishes to attain great altitude. Great altitude cannot be
reached without camping high. As matters now stand, to take
coolies higher than they have gone will probably be found a
difficult undertaking, at least in the Western Himalayas.
In the present unregulated state of affairs in Kashmir, the
prospects of further important work among its grand mountains
being accomplished in the near future by private expeditions
are not encouraging. The Durbar takes no interest in moun
taineering science, and does not seem disposed to encourage
efforts to promote it. The transport question constitutes a
serious obstacle. Coolies, who must furnish the transport means
in the higher and many of the lower regions, have, during the
last few years, become self-assertive and contemptuous of such
authority as is exercised over them. They are unreliable ; any
contract they may make with the explorer is, as already stated,
worthless, and, in the absence of a contract law in Kashmir,
the\' cannot be held responsible for breaking their faith. Even
if there were such a law, the attempt to enforce its penalties
upon a gang of recalcitrant coolies would be like tr}'ing to
enforce the provisions of a law upon a pack of wild animals in
a wilderness. The mountaineer is placed on the horns of a dflemma. If he
be so unfortunate as to secure a parwanah, or order from the
Durbar to the inhabitants to assist him, a host of minor officials
along his route, who are empowered to act in his interest under
its provisions, proceed to lev}' contributions on the people,
ostensibly for his use, but really for their own aggrandisement.

^.^

.f.-

r ¦ -'^

DILEMMA OF EXPLORER. 407
which are never paid for, of which he knows nothing, and from
which he receives little or no benefit. This creates a sort of
reign of terror along his route. The villagers flee on his
approach, hiding such supplies as remain to them, and his
reputation suffers in consequence of actions of which he is
entirely innocent. All this renders such coolies as are supplied
him suspicious ot him, and ready to desert at the first oppor
tunity. Under such circumstances effective scientific investiga
tion, even if he reaches his field of operations, is almost
impossible. He is equally at a disadvantage if he has no parwanah. No
authority stands behind him, and he has to make such arrange
ments as he can, at a high price, with coolies who have no
conception of common honesty, and whose word cannot be
depended on for an hour. It is not uncommon for coolies after
a few days' service to ask for payment before the time agreed
on, and, in case of compliance with their request, to decamp
forthwith, regardless of their pledges or the interests of their
employer. Not only does their desertion seriously derange the
plans of the latter, but the falsehoods they circulate regarding
him on their return prevent him from readil}- replacing them.
The impunity with which such acts can be committed is likely
soon to interfere materially with the course of ordinar}- travel
in Kashmir.
Certain philanthropically disposed persons, ha\'ing little or no
knowledge of coolies under the conditions here considered, talk
of the efficacy of kind treatment— which means coddling and
making companions of them — in inducing them to remain
fafthful to their agreements. We do not wish to be under
stood as advocating harsh treatment of coolies or anyone else.
Far from it. But our experience leads us to agree wfth those
who, having had much to do w-ith coolies under varying
condftions, regard this idea as mere sentimental nonsense.
It has been said to us time and again by those long in the

4o8 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
Indian service, and we have had every reason to believe it to be
in general true, that the coolie understands only the application
of superior force as an incentive to fulfil his obligations.
Gratitude he does not know. Kindness he does not appreciate
nor reciprocate, and ordinary motives of personal advantage, as
understood by Europeans, do not always appeal to him. He is
an Asiatic, unswayed by those principles which regulate the
conduct of conscientious Europeans. It is not necessary to
treat him harshly, but he must be handled with firmness.
Either you must master him or he will master }-ou. He knows
no middle ground. The more kindness you bestow on him the
more will he attempt to impose on you. He will accept all
your favours without thanks, and the next day he w-ill leave
you in the lurch, and steal from you if he can.
The principle of equal privilege for all cannot safely be
extended to him, as has been abundantly shown during the
past few }'ears by the evil effects of the doubtless well-meant
efforts to improve his lot, not only in Kashmir, but also in
India, by relaxing the conditions under which he serves the
public. The more these have been relaxed the more unreliable
has he become, and the less efficient his service. Not being
able to comprehend the value of privilege, he has prostituted it
to base ends, to the detriment of the position of the Anglo-
Indian, as is apparent to those conversant with the trend of
Indian affairs during the last ten years. The coolie has been
unduly elevated, the public interest has suffered.
In Kashmir the system of begar, or forced labour, by which
the Government can at any time call upon coolies to render
services for which they are not any too well rewarded, and the
custom of dastur, or graft, in accordance with which officials
deprive them of a large part, sometimes the whole, of the
proceeds of their labour, are doubtless largely responsible for
their shifty, untrustworthy character.

CHAPTER XV.
Importance of Altitude-Measurements — Mercurial Barometer — Hypso-
meter — Uses and Limitations --Aneroid — Liable to Index-Errors —
Useful when properly Checked — Experiments with Watkin Aneroids —
Shut-off Feature of Questionable 'Value — Different Aneroids develop
Different Index-Errors.
The measurement of Himalayan altitudes is a subject of
special importance in view of the facts, that many of the peaks
of this chain are higher than those of any other chain in the
world, that they are more and more attracting the attention of
mountaineers, that altitudes have already been reached on them
that are not elsewhere possible, and that they alone afford an
opportunity to solve some interesting questions pertaining to
man and altitude.
This subject has hitherto received from Himalayan travellers
less attention than its importance demands. Many statements
as to the altitude attained have been made, which are wide of
the mark, based on mere guesswork, or on estimates from
readings of instruments of imperfect construction, or not in a
condition to record pressures correctly, or from readings at the
points specified only, without regard to other conditions essential
to proper determination. In the interests of science and of
a spirit of fair play towards those who are labouring in the
same field, where every e.xtra hundred feet of altftude is gained
at the expense of strenuous effort, one cannot be too careful to
use every available means to fix the altitude reached as correctly
as possible.
To do this with an approximation to exactness wfth the
means at the command of the mountaineer is in many parts of
Himalaya a difficuft matter. Leaving the theodolite out of

410 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
account as unsuited to his use, he has to rely on the mercurial
barometer, the hypsometer, or the aneroid, the readings of
which can only give reliable results when compared with
readings of similar instruments taken at the same time, or
nearly the same time, at a convenient lower station, the height
of which is known. Such stations are rare in Himalaya, and,
until more extended scientific surveys have been made^ aside
from the peaks already fixed by the Indian Survey, the altitude
of many others, w-hich may be attempted, will ha.ve to be
estimated by single readings uncompared with readings at a
lower station, which estimates can only approximately represent
the true altitudes.
Single readings of reliable instruments at different times at
the same point may indicate for it altitudes differing from one
another by 1,500 feet or more, according as the pressure may
be high or low. This is true of instruments at sea-level. The
highest of 252 consecutive readings of the Government
mercurial barometer at Skardo during the summer of 1903
indicated for it, without comparison with readings at any lower
station, an altftude of 7,268 feet, the lowest that of 8,088 feet, a
difference of 820 feet. Hence it is easy to see how-, in the
absence of low-er station readings, inaccuracies in estimating
altitudes may arise. One person reaches a given point at a
time when the atmospheric pressure is low, and from the
reading of his aneroid or hypsometer estimates its altitude at
20,000 feet. Another visits the same point when the pressure
is high, and estimates ft at 18,500 feet. Neither gets the true
altitude, which lies somewhere between the two estimates, but
probably does not coincide with their average.
Each of the three instruments above mentioned possesses
certain disadvantages, which limft its field of usefulness.
From the nature of its construction and its fragility, the
mercurial barometer is not adapted to the exigencies of
mountain exploration. It is cumbersome, and easily broken.

KERO LUNGMA OPPOSITE ALCHORI GLACIER. (TELEPHOTO.)

MEASURING INSTRUMENTS. 413
Its more portable forms have not been brought to such per
fection as to ensure the degree of accuracy, combined with
simplicity of manipulation, which commends it to moun
taineers in the trying circumstances in w-hich they often find
themselves. They are therefore forced to discard the mercurial
barometer in favour of the hypsometer and aneroid, which
possess the great advantage of portabilit}-.
The value of the hypsometer depends on the correct scaling
of its thermometers. If these have been tested and found
accurate, or their errors determined, there is no reason w-hy
this instrument should not be as reliable as the mercurial
barometer. It can be used at all camps and on mountains
when there is no wind, or when a shelter from the wind can be
had. It cannot be used at points exposed to wind, or deeply
covered with soft snow, or where the nature of the terrain
is such as to afford no convenient resting place, as on a sharp
slope. Neither could any form of mercurial barometer well be
employed under such conditions. With these exceptions, the
hypsometer is always ready for use without any tedious and
often impossible manipulations such as are necessary to the
employment of the George barometer.
Another drawback to its use at high altitudes should be
mentioned. Above 17,000 feet alcohol does not ignite so
readily as at lower levels, and requires contact with a match for
some seconds before it will burn. At 20,000 feet, where the
air is said to contain only about half as much oxygen as at
sea-level, the lamp of the hypsometer shows itself quite as
sensitive to the diminution of this element as a human being.
It obstinately refuses to ignite inside the hypsometer jacket,
and w-hen lighted, outside of this and placed within it promptly
goes out. Rectified spirit, or still better, absolute alcohol,
should be used at high altitudes to ensure ready ignition and
supply sufficient heat to boil the water.
The aneroid, depending as ft does on an exceedingly delicate

414 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE AIUSTAGH.
mechanism considerably more sensitive to jars than that of a
watch, can scarcely be called an instrument of precision under
the conditions in which it is used by the explorer or mountaineer.
W-hile a good aneroid, when at rest, will perform its work
perhaps as well as a mercurial barometer, when carried about
and subjected to the motion and jarring which it must recei\-e
on an expedition, it will develop index-errors, which render its
readings unreliable.
These index-errors, in our experience, do not remain constant,
but vary according to the kind and degree of motion brought to-
bear on the aneroid. They may be positive or negative, or
ma}- change from one to the other. We have seen them
developed to the extent of three inches by severe jars, such as
those caused by step-cutting, a jump, or a fall. A jar which a
watch will stand with impunity, may cause a decided permanent
deflection ofthe index of an aneroid.
Comparing an aneroid with a standaid barometer before
leaving and after return is of little, if any, value, as under the
rough usage to which it is necessarily subjected during distant
expeditions in mountain regions, it is almost certain to develop
index-errors, which errors are as certain to vary from time to
time. Its reading, therefore, on return is no indication of the
correctness of its readings at different stages of the journey.
In consequence of these errors the aneroid, when used alone,
cannot be relied on to measure altitude accurately, and is of
comparatively little value for this purpose, as various reports
of aneroid eccentricities testify.
Employed, however, in connection with a reliable barometer
or hypsometer, by w-hich its index-errors can at any time be
ascertained, and properly read, it is a useful instrument, and
may render important and, apparently, quite reliable service,
where the hypsometer cannot be used.^ A moderate index-
1 As aneroids are scaled by different makers with zero varying from
30 to 32 inches, it is obvious that the scale of feet on them varies

ANEROID USEFUL UNDER PROPER CONDITIONS. 417
error is of no great account if one has the means of determining
it. In spite of such error, an aneroid in good working order, if
carefully carried, may register with considerable accuracy the
difference of altitude between two points, its reading and the
temperature being noted on leaving the lower point and on
arrival at the upper one.
One of our Watkin aneroids, used as an ordinary aneroid
without reference to the shut-off feature, thus indicated a
difference between two fixed points in the Alps of 3,500 feet,
the nieasured difference being 3,509 feet. Again, a difference
between two others of 1,875 feet, the measured difference being
1,880 feet. The small discrepanc}- show-n might be due to
inability to read with absolute accuracy, owing to the closeness
of the aneroid scale, or to a lack of coincidence in the position of
.the recording instruments, or to a slight change of atmospheric
pressure during the ascent to the upper points. An error from
this last cause would be likely to occur during an ascent requir
ing several hours, but at great altitudes this might fairly be
discarded. If, therefore, the altitude of a high camp be established by
hypsometric readings compared with simultaneous ones at a
fixed lower station, and an ascent of a peak be made from that
camp, in case the hypsometer could not be used at the summit
of the peak, it would be legitimate to consider the altitude
of the latter to be that of the camp plus the difference shown
by the aneroid readings, especially if, on return to camp, its
index corresponded to its position before departure. Still more
reliable would be the result obtained by comparing the aneroid
reading at the summit, corrected for index-error with a
simultaneous reading at the camp or lower station.
also. Hence another cause of discrepancies in the altitude of a given point
when registered at the same time by different aneroids read by the scale of
feet, as many mountaineers are in the habit of doing. Readings, to have
any claim to credence, must be made by the scale indicating the pressure
of the air as expressed by inches.
M. E E

4i8 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
Under a variety of conditions the aneroid, which can be read
quickly anywhere, fulfils a purpose which no other instrument
is capable of doing, and, as an adjunct to the hypsometer, is,
under proper control, a valuable instrument. Independently
of index-errors, it also serves a most useful purpose in deter
mining changes in the weather. Two or more aneroids
should therefore be included in the outfit of the mountain
explorer. We carried with us two h}-psometers, each with tw-o tested
thermometers, two three-inch three-circle Watkin aneroids
scaled to 24,500 feet, one latest pattern three-inch Watkin
mountain aneroid, with arrangement for putting it into and
out of action, scaled to 25,500 feet, and a three-inch Hicks
aneroid, scaled to 18,000 feet, which naturall}- played no role
above the limit of its scale.
The directions given w-ith the Watkin mountain aneroid are
to allow one minute to elapse after turning it into action,
and then read, the understanding being that at first its reading
will be one tenth inch too high, but after a minute the index
will settle to its proper position.
Before putting this instrument to practical use a large
number of observations from sea-level to elevations of 5,200 feet
were made to determine the value of its distinctive feature, the
apparatus for throwing it out of and into action. All four
aneroids were set by a standard barometer and kept under
exactly the same conditions. The readings of the other three
w-ere used to check the one tested. It was found, on putting
the last out of action for periods varying from ten minutes
to twenty-four hours, when restored to action it showed plus
index-errors of from three to seven tenths of an inch
During the first minute the index fell about one tenth inch,
as the maker stated it should ; during the second minute about
one thirtieth inch, after which its movement became imper
ceptible to the unaided eye, although it continued to fafl. A

SHUT-OFF FEATURE UNRELIABLE. 419
period of several hours was required, twelve to eighteen and
longer, to restore it to accord with the other aneroids.
The result in all observations was invariabh' the same, the
length of time necessary for the index to assume its proper
working position varying in general with the time the aneroid
remained out of action. The aneroid was returned to the
maker to be examined, but nothing amiss was discovered. To
day, after five years of use, during which time it has been
examined and tested by the maker three times, and found to
correspond with his standard barometer throughout its scale,
it works in exactly the same manner.
As this aneroid was thus found to be unavailable for
immediate reading after being put into action, we never made
use of this feature of it on expeditions, but employed it, like
any other aneroid, with the index always in action, in which
condition it worked consistently and gave about as good
satisfaction as the three-circle aneroids, though the latter,
having a more open scale, are more sensitive to changes of
pressure. During the summer of 1903, while we were delayed for two
days at a snow-camp on the Hoh Lumba glacier at an altitude
of 15,000 feet, it was thrown out of action for twenty-five
minutes. On being restored to action the index showed a plus
error of six tenths inch, w-hich after fifty hours still stood at
two tenths inch, the control aneroids having meanwhile fallen
one tenth inch. Whether that error was ever reduced to zero,
our further movements prevented us from ascertaining.
Afterwards in London, by the kindness of Mr. J. Hicks, the
maker, who placed at our disposal a new^ four-and-a-half inch
Watkin mountain-aneroid, we were able to make further observa
tions, of w-hich the following are typical: — Obs. I. Aneroid put out
of action for five minutes. On restoration, index showed plus
error of eleven one hundredths inch. During first minute it
fell two one hundredths inch, not one tenth, as it is supposed
E E 2

420 ICE-BOUND HEIGHTS OF THE MUSTAGH.
to do. It returned to its normal position in two hours, forty-
five minutes. Obs. 2. Out of action one hour. When restored,
index showed plus fifteen one hundredths inch. During first
minute index fell four one hundredths inch. At end of six
hours, error of plus four one hundredths inch still existed.
Obs. 3. Out of action twelve hours. When restored, index-
error was plus sixteen one hundredths inch. During first
minute index fell three one hundredths inch. At end of ten
hours agreed with that of control aneroid.
These are experiences with only two Watkin mountain-
aneroids, but, as these were made by a manufacturer of high
reputation and declared by him to be perfect in construction,
and as the second was made four years later than the first,
which bears a number well into the second hundred of its
series, their distinctive shut-off feature presumably represents
the same feature of other similar instruments.
These results, and like ones which have been observed by
others using the Watkin aneroid, throw suspicion on the
accuracy of readings taken in this manner with aneroids of this
class, and suggest the desirability of further investigation of
the working of this arrangement. Every possessor of a Watkin
aneroid can satisf}' himself of its value in case of his own
instrument by repeating these observations.
After starting on this and the following expedition, the four
aneroids, which when quiet read well together, although
handled with every care and, so far as possible, subjected to
the same conditions, developed different index-errors, even
when there was little change of altitude ; and it was seldom
that three of them read alike. The extremes of difference
often amounted to five tenths inch and sometimes to seven
tenths. Altitude did not appear to influence the index-errors
as checked by the hypsometer; they averaged as well in this
respect at ig,ooo feet and above as at 5,000 feet. The two
which proved most reliable alwa}-s showed plus errors above

DISAGREEMENT OF ANEROIDS. 421
17,000 feet except on one occasion, when one of them had a
slight minus error. This last circumstance is interesting in
connection with Mr. Whymper's observations on the loss of
aneroids of an older type as compared with the mercurial
barometer under diminished pressure, indicating possibly an
improvement in construction.
Further observations with these two and a newthree-and-a-half
inch aneroid scaled to 25,50ofeetrecentlymadefor us by Mr. Hicks,
all of which, when set and tested in the laboratory, were found
to correspond throughout their range with a standard mercurial
barometer, showed variations in their readings when transported
a few hours' distance from London at sea-level. These results,
together with others of similar nature, point to the conclusion
that motion, if not the chief, is a very important factor in the
causation of index-errors, whatever may be found to be the
effect of diminished pressure on instruments of recent construc
tion. An extensive series of readings of the three aneroids last
mentioned, compared with simultaneous hypsometric readings
at various altitudes from sea-level to w-ell over 21,000 feet,
made since the above was written, to be published later, tend
to confirm the conclusions stated.
Aneroid readings were taken morning and evening, and
oftener when in camp or when climbing, but these were used
for the calculation of altitudes only in a few cases at exposed
points, where the hypsometer could not be employed. Their
chief service was to determine coming changes of weather,
and for this purpose they proved a valuable addition to our
observations. In this field index-errors were of no account as
the indices rose and fell coincidently. THE END.

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INDEX

A.
Aiguilles, Camp des, 228
Aiguilles, Col des, 222
altitude, 232
ascent of, 228, 231
cold, sufferings from, 228
descent safely accomplished
— dinner on return to camp,
237-
heat, sufferings from, 231
just in time — change of
-weather on following day,
237
rarefied air, effects somewhat
felt, 231
time occupied (6 hrs.), 231
value of ascent — direct
passage from Hoh Lumba
to Hispar Glacier shown
on Indian Survey Map
proved to be non-existent,
232
cornice at top of col, view, etc.,
231—2
glacier running beneath cornice —
origin and probable course, 232
separated from the Hispar by a
glacier and high mountain
ridge, 375
Alampi route to Skardo, 6
Alchori Glacier and Nala :
animalcules found in water from
melted snow, 369
ascent, 352, 357, 361 — 70
camping places — First and
Second Bear Camps, 352,
361

Alchori Glacier and Nala— ^o«A
ascent — cont.
coolies refusing to advance,
362
Ice-fall Camp, 362
second ice-fall, passage of
through ice-couloir, 362
snow basin and wall, ascent
of, to col, 369 — 70
bears and foxes, traces of, 357,
361
branch glaciers, 361, 375 — 6
col overhanging Hispar Glacier,
362, 369
altitude, 370
cornice reversed for nearly
half its length, 370
falling to the Hispar by a
precipice on the north, 375
view, 370
course, length and width of
glacier from junction with Kero
Lungma, 351, 352
course of main glacier — inaccu
racy of survey map, 361 — 2
floral display in lower part of
nala, 357—8
ice-falls, 352, 362, 391
mountains enclosing lower half —
contrast of mountains on north
and south banks, 361
nala visited, but not hitherto ex
plored nor accurately mapped,
3SI
recession of glacier — moraines
overgrown with \-egetation and
bushes, 352, 361

424

INDEX.

Alchori Glacier and Nala — cont.
rill of water found at Ice-fall
Camp (17,000 ft.), 369
snow peak at east branch, 361
surface of glacier, 352
Alipore — maximum temperature, 22nd
May, 1903, 273
.•\ltitude measurements :
carelessness of many statements
made, 409
difficulties in the way of
accuracy —
lower stations of known
height whence compara
tive readings could be
obtained, scarcity of, 410
single readings of reliable
instrui-nents, variation even
at sea-level, 410
instruments — advantages and
disadvantages of each of the
threeinstruments used, 410 — 21 ;
for details .tee names of in
struments
lower station, meteorological
station at Skardo served as, 23
special importance in the Hima
laya, 409
Amar Singh, General Sir, 17
Aneroids :
index-errors —
atmospheric pressure, change
in, likely to cause error, 417
difference in errors of differ
ent instruments, 420
motion, errors due 10,413 — 4 ;
motion the chief factor in
errors, 421
plus errors shown above
17,000 ft. in all cases but
one — improvement in
construction possibly in
dicated, 420 — I
number and kind of instruments
carried, 418

Aneroids — cont.
scaling by different makers,
discrepancies likely to arise
from, 414, 7tote
use in conjunction with hypso
meter or barometer, 414, 417 — 8
¦Watkin mountain aneroid, see
that title
weather changes, use in deter
mining, 418, 421
Arandu .
coolies the best clothed, most
active and reliable of Basha
coolies, T^
situation, altitude, etc., 69, 168
terrace —
origin — probable origin, 168
produce confined to grain
and vegetables, 168
women of —
hairdressing, 74
keys worn by — significance
of number carried, 73, 74
visits to camp and offerings,
etc., T2,
Arandu lambardar, 10, 248, 335
supplies " lost " on Bolucho Col,
357
Asiatic Riffelhorn, see title Riffelhorn
Astor, 167
Austen, Col. Godwin, 4, 174
.\valanche, description of and narrow
escape from, 112 B.
Balti Coohes :
intermediate between Ladakhis
and Kashmiris, 402
more susceptible to mountain
sickness than Sums, 321
ruses tried on explorers, 135
Baltistan, routes to, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10
Bannok La, 395
Basha coolies, refer to names of
expeditions

INDEX.

425

Basha lambardars, 70
Basha river, 37, 173
Basha uplands, reconnaissance of,
see titles Ganchen and Rachel
Basha valley and path leading to
valley, 43
Basin Glacier :
ascent —
Crevasse Camp, 141
heat — sun temperature at
I p.m., 138
Ibex Camp, 137 — 8
right-hand col too dangerous
to attempt, 142
snowstorm at starting, 137
Bergschrund and ice-fall, 141 — 2
Bhayakara Col, sec that title
cols seen from Crevasse Camp, 141
course, length, etc., 137
ice-fall into Chogo Lungma
impassable, flow smooth above
fall, 282
pools found in 1903. .285
Bears, traces of, in Alchori Nala, 357,
361
Begar — effect of system on coolie
character, 408
Begging incident at an Indus valley
village, 17
Bhayakara Col :
altitude as given by Watkin
aneroid readings compared with
readings at Skardo, 145 — 6
ascent — difficult and dangerous,
142
dangers of descent— porter's
mishap, etc., 146, 149 — 50
view of pass from wall be
tween Chogo Lungma
and Basin Glacier, 286
heat on the col, 146
view, 142, 145
Biafo Glacier :
Chogo Lungma, comparison with,
113, igo

Biafo Glacier — co?it.
lakes found on, 1S9
water on — much more water than
on Chogo Lungma, i8g
Biafo peaks, 305
Birds :
chorus at dawn in .Shigar valley,
32
solitary black chough seen when
exploring Upper Chogo Lung
ma, 1 1 1
Bolucho-Kero Lungma expedition,
1903. 330
alternative route suggested by
Arandu lambardar, 335
caravan, constituents of, 335
coolies preferring no shelter
to trouble of pitching tents,
348
re-ascension of Kero Lungma,
passage of Mushik La and
descent of Hispar Glacier
to Hispar and Nagar
planned — plan frustrated
by coolies' refusal to go to
Nagar or anywhere else
but .A.randu, 378, 381
explanation — Basha people
in mortal fear of Hunza
Nagar tribes, 382
sheep and goats, conduct of, 336,
347
supplies sent for, 335
return of Gurkha, lambardar
and coolies with supplies —
explanation of lambardar's
"loss" of supplies in the
snow, 352, 357
topographer rejoining expedition
357
see also names of glaciers, etc.,
explored — Alchori, Bolucho,
Kero Lungma, etc.
Bolucho Glacier :
ascent, 336

426

INDEX.

Bolucho Glacier — cont.
ascent — cont.
col, passage of —
descent of gallery by
Mrs. Bullock 'Work
man, 339 — 40
glissading by coolies,
343—4 ; no serious
results, 348
panic by coolies on the
col — return of advance
party to top of col, 344
path reconstructed — de
scent safely accom
plished by coolies
under Petigax's super
intendence, 347
preparations made by
guides, 339
junction of Bolucho with Cho
go Lungma reached, 335
reconnaissance of head of
glacier, 335, 336
Rivulet Camp, 336
bed of glacier impassable, 336
col — altitude, view, etc., 339
length and width, 335
no branches, 336
receding glacier —
evidence of lateral moraines,
etc., 336
no longer connecting with
main stream of Chogo
Lungma, 186
Border Camp, 257
Braldoh valley and river, 37,200
Bretherton, Maj., 6
Burrard, Lt.-Col. S., 322
Burtsa Camp, 76
Buspar, Mt., ascent of — altitude, view,
etc., 33—4 C.
C.VMPlNG places :
mountain torrent or noisy river,
preference for camping near, 18

Camping places — cont.
wet grass preferable to native
hut — Arandu, 69
refer also to names of camping
places and expeditions
Canzio, Signore Ettore, 195
Cedars on hillsides above Chogo
Lungma — altitude at which growth
ceased, 76, 192
Chaltoro Glacier, 215
Chicornests on summit overlooking
Kero Lungma, 391
Children in Himalayan valleys, 15
Chogo Col and La, 114, 314
passage impracticable for coolies,
377
Chogo Lungma Glacier —
advancing, signs of, in second
section — advance due to thrust
of Haram.osh Glacier, 177,
181
altitude, 171
bend to south-west — basin formed
into which open five large
feeders, 80, 181
Biafo Glacier, comparison with,
113, 190
branches, 102, 106
lakes — none seen except
small surface lakes on
Basin Glacier in 1903. . 189
number, 186
recession of northern
branches of middle sec
tion — southern branches
not receding, 186
see also names of tributaries
— Haramosh, Bolucho,
Moraine, Basin, etc..
Glaciers
division into three sections, 171
division into two arms 20 miles
above tongue — rock promontory
projecting into basin formed by
bend. 80

INDEX.

427

Chogo Lungma Glacier — cont.
exploration of glacier prior to
1902, extent of, etc., 4
first section —
ice hidden by detritus from
moraines of second section,
171, 182
recession, signs of — primary
and secondary moraines,
174. 177
surface much broken, covered
with mud, etc, 171
lakes —
border lake opposite entrance
of Moraine Glacier, 189
depression enclosing lake a
short distance above en
trance of Haramosh Gla
cier — altitude, etc., 93, 186
emptying of sub-glacial lake
process seen from Last
Wood Camp, 189
left (north) bank — border
lakes drained dry, 189
length, 4, 171
maidans, 179
moraines —
lateral moraines, 76, 174, 178,
182
medial moraines of second
section, 180, 181, 182
terminal moraine, insigni
ficance of, 204
disposal of debris cover
ing first section of
glacier, question as
to, 172—3
moulin, 79
movements —
measurements made by Mr.
Hewett at two stations,
190 — I
observations not carried far
enough to permit of ex
tended deductions, 191

Chogo Lungma Glacier — coni.
movements — cont.
some, if not all, of currents
indicated probably corre
sponded with ice-streams
of tributary glaciers, 191
forces determining ve
locity of these cur
rents, 191 — 2
upper station at entrance to
Haramosh Glacier, points
showing increasing rate of
movement from station to
wards centre of glacier, 192
recession, signs of, in first section,
174. 177
second section —
extent, 180
moraines, sec that sub-head
ing
surface — edges much broken
and crevassed, middle
smooth, 181
white ice, 180, 181
snow — altitude where soft snow
began to be met with, 193
third section, sec sub-heading
Upper Chogo Lungma
tongue —
distance from Arandu, etc.,
171
distance from right lateral
moraine, 174
latitude and longitude, etc., 4
river flowing out towards
Arandu, 173
Upper Chogo Lungma —
altitude of highest part of
glacier proper, 107, 171
avalanches —
constantly falling, 106,
185
description of and narrow
escape from ava
lanche, 1 12

428

INDEX.

Chogo Lungma Glacier — cont.
Upper Chogo Lungma — co?tt.
basin formed by entrance of
highest southern branch —
ice-fall, example of neve
stratification, etc., 257 — 8
ice-wall culminating in col,
107, 185
length, gradient, 94, 182, 185
point at which upper part of
glacier comes into view, 79
reservoir or formative basin
of glacier, 185
snow-wall north of Border
Camp, 258
surface — seracs, ice-fall, etc.,
94, 97. 185
temperature at noon on
glacier between Serac and
Glacier Camps, 106
water, absence of, igo
vegetation —
altitude at which the various
kinds of vegetation ceased,
etc., 76 — 7, 192
bush, species of, found up to
14,400 ft.— better fuel than
willows or cedars, 192
water on glacier, 190 ; see also
sub-heading Lakes
width, 80, 171
Chogo Lungma Glacier Expedition,
1902 :
altitudes, calculation of — records
forcomparative purposes kept by
GovernmentofficialatSkardo,23
ascent of glacier —
description of course followed
up to Riffel Camp, 74—83
first section, only method of
ascending, 174
head of glacier, last reach to
base of snow-wall in which
it takes its origin, 106 — 7,
108, III, 112

Chogo Lungma Glacier Expedition,
1902 — cont.
ascent of glacier — cont.
snow-wall above head of
glacier, 107 ; preparations
for ascent stopped by
storm— retreat to Serac
Camp and later to Riffel
Camp, 1 14, 117, 118
camping places —
Burtsa Camp, 76
Foggy Camp, 114
Glacier Camp, 106
Last Wood Camp, 79
Riffel Camp — base camp for
exploration of upper
Chogo Lungma, 80,
83, 153, 158
final departure from, 161
retreat to Rififel Camp
after snowstorm, 118
temperature during
August — various read
ings in sun and shade,
90
Serac Camp — secondary base
camp for exploration of
upper Chogo Lungma,
97
cairn placed 200 ft.
above camp with
record of explorations,
gS
site lost under debris,
snow and avalanches
in 1903. .256
snowstorm of 60 hours,
114, 117
camping places between Srinagar
and the glacier —
Arandu— wet grass preferred
to native hut, 6g
Buspar, Mt., camp at base of
rock cone, 34
Huldero, 44

INDEX.

429

Chogo Lungma Glacier Expedition,
1902 — cont.
camping places between Srinagar
and the glacier — co?it.
Indus route to Skardo —
discomforts of camping
places, 14
Tolti, first good camp
ing place since leaving
Srinagar, 18
Mango, 33
Sesko, at base of Mt.
Ganchen, 45
Skardo, 23
Tisser, camp near, 43
coolies —
accident to coolie, 84, 89
Arandu, selection of coolies
at, 69
clothing, importance of warm
clothing not realised either
by coolies or lambardars,
70
desertions, 108, 118
management, distribution of
food, etc., undertaken by
Arandu lambardar, 70
panic among Seracs, 94,
97
payment — precautions taken
to avoid mistakes, 8g
Riffel Camp — arrangements
as to mails, firewood, pro
visions, 83, 84
wood-cutting expedition
found sitting idle on the
hillside, 76
getting on to the glacier, difficul
ties of, 79
guide, see Zurbriggen.
heat and difficulties of march in
soft snow, 106
lambardars —
Arandu lambardar, scanty
knowledge of glacier, 74

Chogo Lungma Glacier Expedition,
igo2 — cont.
lam.bardars — co7it.
craven, worthless lot with
exception of Arandu lam
bardar, 70
peaks ascended during ascent of
glacier, see Cornice Peak, Fur
rowed Peak, Riffelhorn
porter, see iSIuller
route to Chogo Lungma from
Srinagar via Skardo, and
Shegar and Basha valleys,
4
Arandu, start from, to ascend
the glacier, 74
Basha valley, 43
Buspar, Mt., ascent of, 33,
34
Ganchen, I\It., reconnais
sance of, see that title —
Haramosh Range, Zur
briggen sent to make a
preliminary study of, on
the way to Skardo, 9
sand-dunes above Skardo,
28
Shigar river, experiences on
a zak, 37—43
Shigar valley, description
and comparison with
Basha valley, 32, 43
Skardo —
rock of — ascent of, by
Mrs. Bullock Work
man, 24 — S
routes to — description
of journey via Indus,
valley marches, etc.,
4, 5, 9
Skardo to Shigar, 28 — 31
sledge, unsuccessful trial of, 105
snowstorm of 60 hours, 114,
117
tents, see that title

430

INDEX.

Chogo Lungma Glacier Expedition,
1902 — cont.
transport and supplies, arrange
ments, etc., 6, 24, 28, S3, 84
instructions by various au
thorities to headmen of
Baltistan, 17
last village on route to Skardo
where transport ponies
could be obtained, 10
sheep and goats, 74, 83
welcome accorded every
where — reception by Raja
of Tolti, 18—22
Chogo Lungma Glacier Expedition,
1903 — further exploration of
Upper Chogo Lungma :
Arandu, start from, 251
ascent on south side of Upper
Chogo Lungma, 256
camping places —
Border Camp, 257
Riffel Camp (No. 2), 252
final leave-taking, 335
stone cairn built, record
of two seasons' explora
tions placed there,
330. 335
sun and shade tempera
tures, 256
coolies —
food — arrangement with Kot
wal of Shigar for supply
of ata ; irregularity of
service, theft en route, etc.,
249, 297
lambardar difficulty, 248
selection from coolies col
lected by order of Govern
ment at Arandu, 248
Gurkhas of the expedition,
250 — I
late winter, traces of— snowbeds,
etc., 251
meals at Riffel Camp, 252

Chogo Lungma Glacier Expedition,
1903 — cont.
route from tongue of Kero Lung-
m.a to Chogo Lungma, 391
snow on glacier — snow-shoes very
helpful, hard work for coolies,
256—7
snow-wall on north of Border,
Camp impossible forcoolies, 258
summit overlooking Kero Lungma
Glacier, ascent of — chicornests
on crest, 391
temperature — sun and shade tem
perature at Riffel Camp, 256
weather — storms of July and
August, 251—2, 255—6, 329
work on Chogo Lungma com
pleted, 330
farewell to glacier, 335
Chogo, Mt., ascent of, 339
Basin Glacier, start for, August g,
igo3, 282
preparations — coolies and
supplies taken, etc., 282
camping places —
Highest camp, 294
Intermediate camp, 289
Pool Camp, 285
Chogo Lungma, ascent from —
possible but too dangerous ; no
line of retreat, 281
cold, 293, 298
coolies, difficulties with, 286, 289
coolieleftbehind,3o5 ; picked
up on return, 314
mountain sickness, 2g3 — 4
refusal to get up after night
in intermediate camp —
summary measures taken,
290
refusal to go on later in day
— impossible to get them
further, 293 — 4
rest at highest camp, demand
for, 294

INDEX.

431

Chogo, Mt., ascent of — cont.
final stage of ascent, effects of
cold and altitude, 298, 300
flank of wall, ascent of, 286
flank, traverse of, 290, 293
ice-fall of Basin Glacier impass
able, ascent of beds of neve
bordering it, 282
line of ascent chosen — from top
of wall up south-east side
of cone, 281
approaches to wall recon
noitred by guides, 281 — 2
most difficult and dangerous of
trio of peaks, 281
rarefaction of the air, effects of,
297, 300
return, difficulties of — reception
at camp, 314, 317
soft snow, difficulties due to, 286,
289
storm at intermediate camp, 289
summit — snow cornice, 300, 305
sunrise at 21,000 ft., 298 — 300
temperature —
summit, 305
sun and shade temperatures
at Highest camp, 2g4
view from summit, 305
Workman's, Dr., topi, loss of, 293
Chough seen when exploring Upper
Chogo Lungma, 1 1 1
Chutrun, 247
Cirrho-stratus clouds — sign of ap
proaching storm during
monsoon, 154
Conway, Sir M., 105, 232
Coolies :
accidents — only one coolie injured
during any ofthe expeditions, 89
capability of Kashmir coolies for
mountain work below and above
snow line, 402 — 4
character and habits, importance
of knowledge of, 396

Coohes — cont.
clothing a matter of importance,
which neither coohes nor
lambardars could grasp, 70
crevasses, pass.age of — hard work
to get the leading coolie over ;
that accomplished, the others
followed, 290
defection usually occurred at a
critical moment, 400
deterioration of Kashmir coolies,
404 ; causes, 408
different races of coolies — com
parative merits of Sik
him, Kashmiri, Lada
khi, Balti, and Hunsa-
Nagar coolies, 10,
400 — 2
Arandu coolies best clothed,
most active and reliable of
Basha coolies, 73
Dasso coolies strong and
willing, 199
explorers' difficulties with coolies,
399—400
illness, mode of dealing with
complaints of, 8g
inhabited districts — coolies not
likely to give trouble, one set
only going one day's march, 399
kind treatment, theory as to
efficacy of — sentimental non
sense ; firmness the only
method, 228, 407 — 8
labour outside their own district,
Kashmiri coolies not compelled
to perform, 399
lambardars —
authority of, 396
lambardar should be taken on
exploring expedition, 400
limitations of coolies a heavy
handicap on mountaineer de
siring to reach high altitude,
404

432

INDEX.

Coolies — cont.
loaning tent to — ruin of tent for
oneself involved, 216, 221
management, distribution of food,
etc., undertaken by Arandu
lambardar in 1902 and 1903..
70
mountain sickness, see that title
neglect of comforts provided —
preferring no shelter on a
glacier to the trouble of pitch
ing tents, 34S
only means of transport in more
remote regions of the Himalaja,
396
payment of —
precautions taken to avoid
mistakes, 89
system in use — dastur, etc.,
399
rations, pro/ision of — serious
problem, disappearance of por
tion of supply e?i route, etc.,
249—50
rewards, offer of, not always
effectual — instance in ascent of
Mt. Chogo, 294
rocks as shelter, preference for,
216
ruse to escape further service, 17,
135
services rendered to traveller, 399
shifty and untrustworthy, 400,
407 — causes, 408
tact required in explorer, 400
volunteers should be secured if
possible for exploring expedi
tions, 400
Cornice Glacier, 102, 232, 238, 241
Cornice Peak :
altitude, 102
ascent, difficulties of, 98, loi, 102
descent, 102
temperature in shade at noon,
102

Cornice Peak — cont.
view from, 102
Cornices :
experience of standing on a
monster cornice, 232
never safe to trust strength of a
cornice, 231
Crevasse Camp, 141
Crevasse Glacier, ascent of:
altitude at Great Crevasse, 265
immense crevasse extending
across entire width of glacier,
etc., ascent not continued, 265
highest temperature camp, heat
at, 265 — 6
sun and shade temperature,
266
reascension considered and aban
doned, 274
snow conditions, 258, 265
Crevasses — irregularity of direction
indicating irregularity of glacial
bed — Chogo Lungma, 185
Crops in oases of Himalayan xalleys,
13 D.
Dasso :
apricots presented by lambardar,
162
coolies — strong and willing, 199
distance from Hemasil, 162
Dastur, system of, 399, 408
De Bourbel, General, 5
Deosai Plains route to Skardo, 4
Difficulties incident to exploration of
Himalayan heights, 2, 278
{for particular difficulties refer
to titles Coolies, Distance,
Heat, etc.)
Disintegration of exposed rocks at
high ahitudes, 66; causes, 274
Distances, estimating distances :
ability varying greatly with dif
ferent individuals, 129

INDEX.

433

Distances — cont.
difficulty in estimating distance
in Himalaya — European
standards no guide, 126,
129, 130
Haramosh Glacier, instance
on, 125, 130, 133
Doko village, 43
Domok pasturage, 391
Dras valley ;
description, 9, 10
oases, II — 15
route to Skardo via Dras and
Indus valleys — Journey of
Chogo Lungma Expedition,
1902, 5, 9
water erosion, evidence of, 15 — 17
Drew, Mr. F., 4, i8g
Duke, Lieut.- Col., 5
E.
EcCLES, .Mr. J., 322
Eliot, Sir John, 273
English authorities — assistance ren
dered to Chogo Lungma Expedi
tion, 1902, 17
Eree Glacier, height of snow-peak at
head, etc., 221

F.
Feet, difficulty of keeping feet warm
at high altitudes, 298
Fires in snow camps, stones needed
for fireplace, 228
First Bear Camp, 352, 357
Flett, Mr. John S., 194
Flies, pest at Sesko Camp, which
ceased at sunset, 45
Foggy camp, 114
Forced labour, system of— effect on
coolie character, 408
Foxes in Alchori Nala, 357
Freshfield, Mr. Douglas, 172—3
M.

Fuel supply — Chogo Lungma Glacier
Expedition, altitude at which wood-
growth ceased, 76 — 7, 192
Furrowed peak, 98 G.
Game, scarcity of, 357
Ganchen, Mt., ascent of;
altitude, 44
approach, only method of, 44, 45
camping places —
Camp Ganchen, 57
Sesko, camp at, base of
mountain, 45
Snow-line Camp, 50
terraces excavated on hillside
and paved with stones, 46,
50
coolies —
number engaged, arrange
ments for relays, 45
recalcitrant coolies, 58
main peak, difficulties of ascent
— not possible with coolies, 57
Practice Peak, ascent by Mrs.
Bullock Workman and Zur
briggen, 54
shepherds met on flank of moun
tain, 46
snow region leading up to main
peak, reconnaissance of, 54, 57
snowstorms at Snow-line Camp,
53-58
view of, from Huldero Camp, 44
Ganto La, 162
Glacier Camp, 106
Goats and sheep :
Chogo Lungma Expedition, 1902,
supplies for, 74, 83
milk supply, goats taken for,
74. 83
conduct at high altitudes, 83, 336
— example to coolies on Bolucho
Col, 347 F F

434

INDEX.

Goats and sheep— ^^«A
Himalayan and European goats
compared, 74
Hoh Lumba Expedition, supplies
taken, 200
Golden throne, 314
Gonella, Signore Francesco, 195
Gore, Col. St. George C, 322
Grey, Arthur, Esq., of Lahore, 250
Guides :
Chogo Lungma Glacier Expedi
tion, 1902 . .5
expedition of igo3, guides engaged
for, ig5
Gurais, 167
Gurkhas employed in 1903 (second)
expedition, 250 — i, 352, 357
Gusherbrum, Mt., 305, 314
H.
Haramosh Camp, 135
Haramosh Glacier, 93
advancing, 121, 177, 181
ascent —
coolies taken, 121
head of glacier, ascent to,
130. 133
distance — Zurbriggen's
mistaken estimate,
125, 130, 133
return to camp, discom
forts of, 134 — 5
new snow, effects of, 125, 130,
133
return to Riffel Camp, 135
weather, 122, 125, 133
arm of Chogo Lungma Glacier,
80 — largest branch, 181
col at head of glacier at entrance
of Haramosh La — view, alti
tude, etc., 133 — 4
course, length, width, gradient,
surface, 121 — 2
glacial tables and shafts of tables,
122

Haramosh Glacier — cont.
junction with Chogo Lungma —
identity preserved to middle
of second section of Chogo
Lungma, 181
moraine formed by detritus
on left edge, 181 — 2
thrust causing advance of ice
against lateral moraine,
121, 177, 181
mountains enclosing glacier, 121
Haramosh La, 133 — 4
passage not possible for coolies,
377
Haramosh range, 305, 314, 339
altitude of Mt. Haramosh, 121
striking individuality, 125
three summits, 125
Zurbriggen sent to make a pre
liminary study of peaks, 6, 34
Haramul, 162
Hardas village, 10
Harpo La, 165, 167
Harpo Nala, 395
Harvestinggrain in Himalayan valleys :
pulling it up by the roots, 13
threshing by yaks, 162
Heat at high altitudes :
headache and lassitude caused,
26g
maximum temperatures, sun and
shade on clear days,
July 18 to August 17 —
table, 270
comparison with tempera
tures recorded at Alipore
and Lahore, 273
deduction from figures, 274
highest temperature not
abnormal, exceeded by
temperature recorded in
June in Shigar valley, 274
shade maxima not always
coinciding with sun
maxima, 273 — 4

INDEX.

435

Heat at high altitudes — cont.
maximum temperatures — cont.
thermometer used, 274
time of day at which maxi
mum temperature occurred ,
270
rarefaction and freedom from
moisture of the air, increasing
power of sun's rays, 273
shade temperatures always low,
freezing beginning almost
immediately that the sun left
a snow surface, 273
skin of Europeans, effect on —
herpetic eruptions on lips,
etc., 26g
burnt cork a possible protec
tion, 270
comparison with effects of
heat in Indian plain,
269
complexion, effect of— lighter
complexions more sensi
tive, 269
cuticle of face shed every 3
or 4 days, 270
white linen masks useless —
they should have lining of
black or red, 269
snow, effect on, 266
time at which snow became
too soft for marching,
265
snow increasing heat — re
flected worse than direct
heat, 266
sudden change from heat by
day to cold at night, impor
tant factor in rapid disinte
gration of exposed rocks,
274
Hemasil, 162
Hewett, Mr. — measurements of
movements of Chogo Lungma,
190

Hewett, Mr. B. H. M., of London,
engaged to accompany expedi
tion as topographer :
arrival at Srinagar, 195
left on Sosbon Glacier to com
plete some work, weather pre
venting finish, 242
Highest camp, 294
Highest temperature camp, 265 — 6
Hikmul, Mt., 44
Himalaya — term applied by authors to
Mustagh range, 3
Hispar Glacier :
large unnamed north branch
photographed from Alchori Col,
370
passage to, from watershed south
of glacier — no practicable pas
sage but the Nushik La, 370,
375-8
Hoh Lumba Glacier :
branches entering half a mile
above lateral moraine, 215
Col des Aiguilles, see title
Aiguilles, Col des.
division into two main branches
4 miles above tongue — quite
different topography from that
of survey map, 207, 212, 215
Eree Glacier, entrance of, 221
lake, 215
length and width, 242
moraines —
lateral moraine on shoulder
of hill above right
bank, origin of
granite boulders
on top, 208
rounded surface rocks
below moraine — ab
sence of striation
marks, 211
small moraines between
rocks and side of
tongue, 2 1 1
F F 2

436

INDEX.

Hoh Lumba Glacier — cont.
moraines — cont.
terminal moraine —
age, size, formation, 204,
207
lower moraines behind
the giant terminal
moraine, 204
upper part of glacier — lateral
moraines slight or wanting
medial moraines,if existing,
hidden by snow, 222
recession, evidences of, 204, 208,
211
scenery at and above Snow-
hillock Camp, 221
Sosbon branch, see title Sosbon
Glacier.
Hoh Lumba Glacier Expedition, igo3 :
avalanches seen from Camp des
Aiguilles, 227
Braldoh valley, march up, 200
camping places —
Aiguilles, Camp des, 228
Nangma Tapsa Maidan,
203—4
Snow-hillock Camp, 216
Col des Aiguilles, ascent of, see
Aiguilles, Col des
coolies —
Askole coolie's arrival at
Camp Sosbon, 242
attempt to secure picked men
at extra wages at
Skardo, igg
terms of engagement —
written contract signed
with thumb marks, igg
unsatisfactory conduct —
desertion in a body
after 2 weeks' service
and attempt to obtain
wages not due, igg —
200, 237 — 8
difficulties with, 227

Hoh Lumba Glacier Expedition,
1903 — cont.
coolies — cont.
Hoh coolies and lambardar,
reinforcement by, 2CO
neglect at Camp des Ai
guilles, 228
tents insufficient, expedition
obliged to loan coolies a
tent at Snow-hillock Camp,
216
date of start from Srinagar, 195
glacier, start to explore, 208
guides and topographer, 195 ; see
also Hewett, Mr. B. H. M.,
Petigax, and Savoye.
Hoh Nala, ascent of — acme of
desolation, 200, 203
Hoh village — Munshi from
Srinagar left to look after
interests of expedition at Hoh,
200
ibex seen, 215
lateness of winter, 203, 215
left-hand or north-west branch,
decision to explore first,
215
point of divergence reached,
215
live stock taken, 200
sent back to Nangma Tapsa,
215
Nangma Tapsa Maidan reached
— altitude, etc., 203
return to Arandu after ascent of
Sosbon Glacier, 247
Shigar, march to— trouble with
coohes, igg — 200
Skardo —
entertainment of expedition,
ig6
march to, by Indus valley
route, ig5
temperatures —
Snow-hillock Camp, 221

INDEX.

437

Hoh Lumba Glacier Expedition,
1903 — cont.
temperatures — cont.
sun and shade —
base of Col des Aiguilles,
227
Shigar, 200
Skardo, 200
weather — snowstorm on June 21,
215—6, 221
wood-growth, limit of, in Hoh
Lumba region, 204
Hoh Nala, 200, 203
Hoh village, 200
Hucho Alchori. See Alchori Glacier
Huldero Camp, 44
Hummock Camp, 154
Hunza-Nagar tribes, fear of, among
Basha people, 382
Hypsometers :
correct scaling of thermometers,
value dependent on, 413
ignition difficulty at high altitudes,
413
number carried, 418
wind rendering instrument use
less, 413 I.
Ibex, 137,215
Ibex Camp, 137 — 8
Ice-fall Camp, 362
Indian survey — cartographical topo
graphy hopelessly at vari
ance with actual topo
graphy of Chogo Lungma
region, 322
for instances of inaccuracy see
Alchori Glacier, Hoh Lumba
glacier and Indus Nagar
W^atershed Peaks, Nos. 2 and 4
Indus Nagar Watershed Peak No. 2,
314, 339
position on survey map, 322
Pyramid Peak, question of identity
with, 322, 325

Indus Nagar Watershed Peak No. 2
— cont.
Pyramid Peak, question of identity
with — cont.
altitude question — altitude
assigned to Pyramid Peak
estimated, 325 — 6
Indus Nagar Watershed Peak No. 4,
305> 314, 339
most prominent landmark of the
Chogo Lungma, 80
not chartered on survey map, 322
Indus valley :
description, 10
oases, II — 15
route to Skardo vii Dras and
Indus valleys, 5, 9
water erosion, evidence of, 15 — 17
Intermediate camp, 289
Irrigation of oases, scientific methods
of Himalayan valley-dwellers, 12, 13
J-
Jhula bridge at Rondu, 162
John Methuselah, 6, 33, 45, 162
K.
K 2 Peak, 305, 314
Kanibasar Glacier, 370
Kashmir — unregulated state of affairs
discouraging prospect for private
mountaineering expedition, 404
Kashmir, Maharaja of — Parwanah
obtained from, 17
Kashmir, Resident of — aid in procur
ing coolies, 199
Kashmir, vale of, 3
Kashmiri coolies, demerits of, 10, 402
Katsura, 392
Kero Lungma Glacier :
branch glacier, descent of, 348
course, 351
descent of, 351
diminution in size in recent times,
351

438

INDEX.

Kero Lungma Glacier — cont.
Hispar, no route to, 376
ice-falls, 351, 39i
lateral moraine, 351
stream from, 173
surface rough and covered with
detritus, 351
ice-ridges with valleys and
stream between, 351, 39'
Kero Nala, 391
Kilwaru Glacier no longer connecting
with main stream of Chogo Lungma,
186
Koser Gunge, ascent in 1899. .293
Kupultung Kung, 181

L.
Ladakh and Baltistan, Kashmir joint
commissioner for, 196
Ladakhi coolies, 10, 402
Lahore maximum temperature. May
31, 1903.. 273
Lambardars :
authority over coolies, extent and
nature of, 396
Basha Lambardars, 70
Last Wood Camp, 79, i8g
Le Mesurier, late Capt, 17
Leaders of an expedition, the fewer
the better, i
Lungma, Mt., ascent of, etc., 305,
339
altitude, 306
division of party, Mrs. Bullock
Workman ascending peak with
porter while Dr. Workman and
guides went on to reconnoitre
Pyramid Peak, 305 — 6
rarefaction of air, 3og
summit — snow cornice, 306
temperature — shade temperature
on summit, 3og
view from summit, 3og

M.
Maiimns found at sides of Himalayan
glaciers :
examples in Alchori Nala, 352, 361
moraine barriers, I7g
not to be confounded with rock-
strewn spaces between primary
and secondary moraines, 179—
80
period of formation, 179
Mango, camp at, 33
Masherbrum, Mt., 305, 314
Meals at high altitudes, 309
Mendai. See Rondu
Mercurial barometer not adapted to
exigencies of mountain exploration,
4101 413
Meteorological station maintained by
the Government at Skardo, 23
Moraine Glacier :
division into three branches, 153
junction with Chogo Lungma, 153
main trunk, ascent of, 153
medial moraines, 153
north-east division, ascent of,
154- 157
altitude attained, 158
Hummock Camp, 154
storm threatening, 154 ; necessi
tating return to camp, 158
trefoil basin seen from Bhaya
kara Col, 153
west and north divisions impene
trable, 154
Moraines — course of ice -currents
marked by medial moraines, 182
Moulin on the Chogo Lungma, 79
Mountain majesty in the heart ot
Asia, 309
Mountain sickness, liability to, etc. .
avoidance by gradual approach
to high altitudes — controversion
of this hypothesis by authors'
experience, 318, 321

INDEX.

439

Mountain sickness, liability to — cont.
conclusions drawn from authors'
experience, 321
coolies, liability to sickness, 403
experiences of authors, 318,
321
race, effect of, 321
Europeans, experience of, in
Himalaya, 318, 321
symptoms practically identical
with those of sea-sickness,
321
Muller, Giuseppe, 5, 24, 27, 28
Music :
bird-music in Shigar valley, 32
Chogo Lungma Expedition, 1902,
greeted by bands at Tolti and
Parkutta, 18
Skardo, native music at, 196
Mustagh range :
" North-West Himalayas,'' popu
larly regarded as, 3
separate range, not belonging to
Himalayan system, but con
nected with it by an inter
mediate system, 3
Mustagh Tower, 305

N.
NAG.4R, expedition to, via Nushik La
and Hispar Glacier, frustrated by
coolies' refusal to go to Nagar —
explanation, etc., 378, 381 — 2
Nanga Parbat, 315, 395
Nangma Tapsa Maidan, 203
Natives, demoralising- effect of con
tact with Europeans :
begging incident at an Indus
valley village, 17
Sihkim coolies, 400
Needle Camp and Col. Sec Aiguilles,
Camp and Col des
Neve, Dr., Kashmir guide, 5

N6v^ stratification, example at junc
tion of crevasse and Chogo Lungma
Glacier, 258
Niaro Glacier, 391
Nushik La, 351 ; only practicable pass
over Karakoran watershed south of
Hispar Glacier, 370, 375 — 8
O.
Oasks in Dras and Indus valleys, 1 1
Obstacles — difficulty of determining in
advance obstacles on Himalayan
mountain, 126, 129, 130
Oestreich, Dr. K., 5
P.
Parkutta, 22
Parwanah, results of securing or dis
pensing with — choice of evils, 404,
407
Petigax and Savoye Col, 238, 375
Petigax, Joseph, guide of Courmayeur
engaged for expedition of 1903
..195, 231, 286,339, 343.344
Bolucho Col, superintendence of
coolies' passage of, 344, 347
efficiency, 195
l-'yramid Peak question, opinion
on, 322
Petigax, Laurent, fils, engaged as
porter in igo3. . ig5, 297
Pir Panjal, 3
Pirnar Tapsa, 203
Pockets in glaciers, formation of, 190
Polo at Skardo, 196
Pool Camp, 285
Pools on a glacier, use to explorers,
286
Porters :
Chogo Lungma Glacier Expedi
tion, 1902. . 5
expedition of igo3 . . 195
Practice Peak, ascent of, by Mrs.
Bullock Workman and Zurbriggen,
54

440

INDEX.

Private explorers :
difficulties to be overcome, special
hardships incident to explora
tion of Himalayan heights, i, 2
prospects not encouraging in
Kashmir, 404
Pyramid Peak, 339
altitude, 281
estimated, possibly consider
ably higher, 325 — 6
cornice at apex, 310
Indus Nagar Watershed Peak
No. 2, question of identity with,
322, 325
partial ascent, altitude of point
attained, 310, 313
view from point attained,
313—4
weather, 313
type of many high Karakoram
peaks, 310 R.
Rachel, Mt. :
altitude, 61
ascent of, 61
thunderstorm during descent, 62
Rarefaction of the air at high altitudes,
effect of, 309
difficulty rendering rock climbing
in the Himalayas more formid
able than on Swiss mountains,
66
mountain sickness, see that title
respiration impeded, sleep pre
vented, 297
erect position better than
lying down, 297
sleep might be so much
interfered with at camps at
23,000 to 27,000 ft. as to
make further ascension
impossible, 297
Resting on snow at an angle of 60°,
method of, 344

Retreat, line of, should always be kept
in view in Himalaya, 281
Rififel Camp. See Chogo Lungma
Glacier Expedition, 1902, camping
places
Riffel Camp, No. 2. See Chogo Lung
ma Glacier Expedition, 1903, camp
ing places
Riffelhorn — Asiatic Riffelhorn :
altitude — comparison with Zer
matt Peak, go
ascent — scene from summit, go
stone-cairn built in which notes
of summer's work, etc., were
deposited, g3, 252
traverse of, by Mrs. Bullock
Workman and guides, 277
Rivulet Camp, 336
Rock, specimens of, examined by Mr.
J. S. Flett, of the Geological Sur
vey, ig4
Rock-climbing at high altitudes :
special difficulties rendering
Himalayan heights moreformid-
able than Swiss mountains —
rapid and extensive weathering
of exposed rocks, 66, 274
rarefaction of the air, 66
size, 62 — 3
Rondu :
ascent of Nala, 165
Jhula bridge, 162
route to, by Nala leading from
Hemasil to the Ganto La,
162
temperature in tents at 4 p.m., 165
water erosion in valleys, 165
Rose trees among rocks, 10
Routes to Baltistan, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10
Rustum — headman attaching himself
to expedition up Haramosh
Glacier, 121
discharge, ruse to obtain, 135
nailed boots and socks, theft of,
after discharge, 136

INDEX.

441

Sand-dunes above Skardo, 28
Savoye, Cyprien, guide of Courmayeur,
engaged for expeditions of 1903
..195, 251, 286, 289, 290, 293,
2g7, 339
Pyramid Peak question, opinion
on, 322
Schlagintweit, Major, 4
Second Bear Camp, 361
Sencho, Mt., 44
Serac Camp, 97, 114, 117
stone-cairn placed 200 ft. above
camp with record of explora
tions made, 98
Sesko, Basha village at base of Mt.
Ganchen, 45
Shagerthang, 395
Shepherds — unintelligence of Hima
layan shepherds, 46
Shigar river :
formation and course, 37
voyage on a zak, 37 — 43
Shigar valley, 32, igg
Basha valley, comparison with,
43
sun and shade temperatures,
June 12 — 15, igo5..20o
maximum temperature, 274
Shikaris, 403 — 4
Sikhim coolies, demerits of, 400 — 2
Silence in isolation of snow and rock,
effects of, 227
Size — comparison of rock work in
Himalayas and Swiss mountains,
62—3
Skardo, 162, 195
camping place, Chogo Lungma
Expedition, 1902, 23
importance as chief town in
Baltistan, 23
meteorological station main
tained by the Government,
23, 410

Skardo — cont.
meteorological station maintained
by the Government — cont.
served as lower station for
calculation of altitudes
during expeditions of 1902
and 1903 — records kept by
Government official, 23
routes to — description of route via
Indus valley, 4, 5, 6, 9
situation, 23
sun and shade temperatures,
June 10, 1903. .200
Skardo, Raja of, and brothers, 196
Skardo, rock of, ascent of, by Mrs.
Bullock Workman, 24 — 8
excessive thirst caused by the
heat, 27
temperature of summit — sun and
shade, 27
Skardo Tehsildar, 199
Skardo to Srinagar via Bannok La
and Astor, expedition in 1903,
392—5
coolies taken, 392
view from Bannok La, 395
Sledge, trial of, in ascending the
Upper Chogo Lungma, 105
Snow camps :
sleep in, 369
stones needed to make a fire, 228
Snow-hillock Camp, 216
Snow-Line Camp, 50
Snow-line in Chogo Lungma region,
278
highest about the end of August,
193
highest camping-place found not
on snow, 278
indeterminate, varying according
to weather, exposure, and
temperature, 192 — 3
low and uncertain snow-line
increasing difficulty in high
climbing, 278

442

INDEX.

Snow peaks Nos. 2 and 4 of the
survey, 370
Snow-shoes :
coohes, question of supplying
snow-shoes for, 282
use on upper snow-covered por
tions of glaciers, 256, 283, 285
Snowstorms. See Weather conditions
Snow-water — animalcules found in
water at Ice-fall Camp, 369
Sosbon Camp, 237
Sosbon Glacier :
ascent of, 238
Camp Sosbon, 238
coolies —
Askole coolies, arrival at
Camp Sosbon, 242
Dasso coolies insisting
on leaving expedition,
237
easy, except for depth of
snow, 242
movement — observations at
tempted under difficulties,
242
return to Nangma Tapsa and
Hoh, 247
snow hiding much of interest
on glacier, 241
weather —
Hewett, Mr., unable to
finish work on glacier,
242, 247
snowstorm, 237 — 8
course, 237
gneissoid rock in five fragments
encountered in descent, 241
length and width, 242
moraines, 242
Petigax and Savoye Col — altitude,
etc. — no passage afforded to the
Hispar, 238, 375
Sosbon, Mt., 238
Spain — threshing grain, method same
as in India, 162

Srinagar flood, igo3, connection with
storms in Higher Baltistan, 256
Storms. See Weather conditions
Sunrise on Mt. Chogo, 2g8— 300
Suru coolies, 321
Swiss mountains, rock-work in the
Himalayas contrasted with, 62 — 4

T.
Tandoro oasis, 43
Temperatures :
Basin Glacier, sun temperature
at I p.m., 138
Chogo, Mt., summit, 305
Col des Aiguilles, base of, sun
temperature, 227
Cornice Peak, shade temperature
at noon, 102
Crevasse Camp, minimum night
temperature, 141, 153
Haramosh Camp, tem^^erature at
6 a.m., 135
Ibex Camp, minimum night
temperature, 138
maximum sun and shade tem
peratures —
highest camp, 2g4
intermediate camp, 289
July 18 to Aug. 17, 1903, table,
see Heat at high altitudes
Riffel Camp No. 2, 256
Shigar valley, June, 1903 . .
274
Skardo, rock of, 27
time of day at which maximum
temperature occurred, 270
Riffel Camp, various readings in
sun and shade during August,
90
Rondu, temperature in tents at
4 p.m., 165
see also Heat at high altitudes
Tents for Himalayan exploration,
details of make and price, 50, 53

INDEX.

443

Terminal moraines seldom or never
built by receding glacier, not always
by advancing glacier, 173
Theodolite — use out of the question in
the Himalaya, 409
Thlashingspang, 395
Three snow-peaks rising from moun
tain wall separating Chog >
Lungma from Basin Glacier,
281
ascent of, see Chogo, Mt., Lung
ma, Mt., and Pyramid Peak
return march, 314
Threshing by yaks, 162
Thunderstorm — storm during descent
from steep rock summit — few things
more trying to a mountaineer, 62
Thurgo, 247
Thursay, 165
Tippur Glacier, 69
advancing, 168, 171
talus of — probable origin of
Arandu terrace, 168
terminal moraine —
height above Arandu, etc.,
168— 171
old moraine further down
valley covered with grass,
shrubs, etc., 171
tongue — nearness to Arandu, 162
Tippur Nala, 168
Tisser, camp near, 43
Tolti :
democratic autocracy, apparent
example of, 22
welcome accorded by Raja to
Chogo Lungma Expedition in
1902. ..18— 22
Topographers, 5, 195
Transport :
coolies as means of, see Coolies
difficulty in high climbing in
Chogo Lungma region, 278
dilemma of the mountaineer —
choice of evils of obtaining or

Transport — cont.
dispensing with a parwanah,
404, 407
Srinagar to Skardo, last village
on Indus route where transport
ponies can be obtained, 10
vital question in Himalayan travel
and exploration, 396
Trongo Pir ¦
ascent — altitude, 165 — 6
descent on further side over chaos
of blocks — origin of blocks
difficult to account for, 166 — 7
path seldom used — no path, 167
V.
"Vegetation :
Alchori Nala, floral display, 357 — 8
autumn colouring in Trongo Nala
and on further side of Trongo
Pir, 165, 167
Chogo Lungma, altitude at which
wood-growth ceases on hill
sides, 76 — 7, 192
Hoh Nala — a few white birches
and burtsa-tufts at one spot
only, 203 W.
Water erosion, signs of:
Dras and Indus valleys, 15 — 17
Rondu region, valleys of, 165
Water on glaciers :
convenience to explorer, 369
formation of, igo
rill found at Ice-fall Camp, 17,000
ft-, 369
Watershed of the Karakoram, south
of Hispar Glacier :
exploration of cols and passes —
no pass practicable for a cara
van except the Nushik La, 370,
375-8
northern slopes more precipitous
than southern, 378

444

INDEX.

Watkin mountain aneroid :
shut-off apparatus not used on
expeditions, 419
tests made to determine value ot
apparatus for throwing instru
ment out of and into action —
results, 418—20
Weather conditions :
cirrho-stratus clouds an unfailing
sign of approaching storm
during monsoon, 154
obstacle to high climbing, 278
snowstorms —
European snowstorm a baga
telle in comparison, 1 18
sixty hours' storm at Serac
Camp, 114, 117
storm of August 20 and 30,
1902. . 158
south-west monsoon, effect of, in
high climbing months, 278
suddenness of Himalayan storms,
154
unsettled season of 1902 . . 161
variety of a Himalayan bad
weather period, 252
Weathering of exposed rocks at high
altitudes, 66 ; causes, 274
Willows in Chogo Lungma Nala,
192
Women of Himalayan valleys, 15
Workman, Mrs. Bullock :
accident to, delaying start of
Chogo Lungma Glacier Expedi
tion, 1902. .6
handling instruments without
gloves on Alchori Col — fingers
nearly frost-bitten, 370

Workman, Mrs. Bullock — cont.
Lungma, Mt., ascent of, with
porter — altitude record for
women broken, 306
Practice Peak, ascent of, 54
Riffelhorn, traverse of, 277
rock of Skardo, ascent of, 24 — 8
Workman, Dr. W. Hunter —
ascents of Mt. Chogo, Mt.
Lungma, and Pyramid Peak
to height of 23,394 ft.,
2g7— 313
loss of topi while assisting
coolies, 2g3

Y.
Yaks, use of, in threshing grain, 162
Yuno, 33, 38

Z.
Zak, description of — experiences on
Shigar river, 37—43
Zoji La, g
Zurbriggen, Mattia, guide for moun
tain work, Chogo Lungma
Expedition, 1902. .5, 6, 34, 54,
138, 149
Bhayakara Col — opinion on
dangers of ascent, etc, 146,
150
mistaken estimate of distance on
Haramosk Glacier, 125
Pyramid Peak question, opinion
on, 322

BEADEUBY, .\8NEW & CO. LD., PBINTEES, LONDON AND TONBBIDOE.

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