Part 103 - Halt at Chigupnaga with route options from Mago to Tsona and field observations

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SUMMARY:
The diarist describes three routes from Mago to Tsona and spends a halt day at Chigupnaga conducting a northward hill climb, photographing flowers, and collecting primulas. Wet weather persists; two monals are missed, one bird is shot and skinned by Guba, and a distant gorge is noted as not being the Tsona Chu.

CONTENT:
has one of these fits. I have to skin the birds, or else shoot none: besides this there are flowers to be changed, or have to find both flowers & birds. I now find that there are definitely three routes from Mago to Tsona - one the way we came, one through here to Shao, three days good road & bridges, with yak herds here & there & one from our camp N of Nyuri through the hills to Tsona in three nights. The latter seems good - firewood all nights except one.

4th August. Halt at Chigupnaga. Not quite such a wet day. Left at 7.0 & got back at 12.15. Climbed the hills to the North of the small ravine N of camp. Nothing till the top was reached, where there were masses of P. congestifolia (762) (Prim. atrodentata subsp. oreodoxa). On the way down found a new primula, but flowers were withered, probably pink (763) (Prim. juncundana (Diyatfolia)). When I returned the sun shone fitfully for ½ hour, then heavy rain & mist. Took a few photos of flowers in situ & close up. Although still raining at 6.0pm, I can for the first time see the outline of the hills to the west beyond a gorge, which they say is not the Tsona Chu, but which must be of considerable size. Saw two monals at the top of today's climb, & missed them. Shot one bird, the same as I sent to Ludlow yesterday. Guba skinned it reasonably well. It was