Part 63 - Halt, mail dispatch, and crossing Hubsing La to Kantanang

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SUMMARY:
High-altitude collecting around 14,000 ft yielded several small plants and a lake, with monal and burhel observed. The diarist notes mail delays, sends letters and parcels to H.H., Raja Dorji, and Betty during a halt, then crosses the Hubsing La to reach Kantanang in wet monsoon weather.

CONTENT:
very steep indeed. At first we found little, but at the highest altitude, about 14000, found a good many little things, including P. glabra (19011), P. sapphirina (19025), P. hopeana (Lud. Sherriff 19030), P. macrophylla, a good Aster and one Mec. paniculata (Lud. Sherriff 19019) in flower, but not elongated. Plec. simplicifolia is everywhere, but a miserable thing. Saw a few monal, and a pair with 3 young. Also some heads of burhel lying about. It was lovely up at 14000, and we found a nice lake there, the which may be worth visiting again later on. But I think almost every stream starts in a lake up here. Although the weather was so good, we did not see anything very much in the way of a view, but a press of flowers was worth more.

Still no mail. It is a good long time since I heard from Betty now, and I hope she is alright. Her last letter came very quickly to me, written on 13th and reached me 15th at Menjisi. I have sent her 2 or 3 letters since then, but I feel perhaps the dak may be slowing up now with all the work it has to do. In 1937 I had bigger mails, but not so often, and all except one came through alright. That one was found later abandoned by the roadside - no harm done, but just left there.

1st June. Halt. Our last day here. We leave some boxes behind, and calculate that we will be back in 3 weeks at most. A poor day, with a good deal of rain. I sent off a mail today - a letter to H.H., a parcel to Raja Dorji and a parcel of books and a letter to Betty. They reach Bumthang tomorrow, but I wonder when they will be sent on from there. There seems to be some delay now in the mails, which at first came so quickly.

2nd June. Kantanang. There was heavy rain all last night, and although little rain today, it is very monsoonish and misty and wet. A pity as we came over a hellish pass, the Hubsing La, of about 14500 I should say, and would have had a very fine view on a good day.