Full resolution (JPEG) - On this page / på denna sida - XXX.—Westwards to Leh
<< prev. page << föreg. sida << >> nästa sida >> next page >>
Below is the raw OCR text
from the above scanned image.
Do you see an error? Proofread the page now!
Här nedan syns maskintolkade texten från faksimilbilden ovan.
Ser du något fel? Korrekturläs sidan nu!
This page has never been proofread. / Denna sida har aldrig korrekturlästs.
464 ADVENTURES IN TIBET.
village of Noh, with its bulb-shaped cupolas in red and
white, its chortens, its flags and its gilded pinnacles, A little
bit farther on we caught sight, from a pass, of the wonder-
ful lake of Tso-ngombo, or the Blue Lake, then trozen over ;
it was long and narrow, and beset on both sides by rocky
walls jutting out into it en echelon. Here we encamped,
while the Tibetans pitched their quarters on a little island,
whence their fires at night flashed a red glare across the
dark transparent ice. From this place the chief of our
Tibetan escort sent a messenger to Leh, so that when we
reached the frontier between Tibet and Kaslimir we might
find everything we needed. I seized the opportunity to
send letters to the British authorities in the town.
As we marched along the northern shore of the lake,
zigzagging in and out at the foot of the cliffs, we met more
than one trading caravan from Leh, the goods being carried
on the backs of sheep. The route is difficult for camels ;
in fact some of the men had to go on first and level the
road before we were able to advance with ours. Round
one treacherous promontory we actually had to lead them
in the water, while the Tibetans carried our baggage on
the backs of their yaks, which surmounted the obstacle
without serious difficulty.
On the 3rd December we were stopped by a far more
difficult crag jutting out into the lake. The rocks shot
straight down into the water, and the path, which climbed
straight up them, was formed of slabs fastened into crevices ;
this made a tolerable pathway for men on foot, and for
sheep and yaks, but was absolutely impassable for camels.
What was to be done ? Could we advance along the
southern shore of the lake ?
" Impossible," replied the
Tibetans. But as I did not implicitly believe them, I sent
Chernoff to see if the ice would bear at a narrow place
where it was frozen right across. He came back and
reported that it would bear. I then measured the thick-
<< prev. page << föreg. sida << >> nästa sida >> next page >>
