Showing 6 results

SUMMARY:
Records continued fine mornings following a Bhutanese 'St. Swithin's Day' weather rule. On 19th July the party traveled 8 miles to Trongsa in leech-ridden conditions, found a single campanula flower, and stayed in HH's summer house above the dzong; the Zimpon recounted his trip to Calcutta with HH and his heavy duties at Damthang arranging salaams and gifts for visitors to the Maharaja.

CONTENT:
back to Chendebi again. The Bhutanese St. Swithin's Day rule is holding good. We had awful rain for the last 10 days of the last Bhutanese month. But if the 30th was fine, we were to have 15 days fine, if wet, then bad weather for a month. It was not fine, but there was comparatively little rain and we had sun in the afternoon. Since then all mornings have been fine.

19th July. To Trongsa. 8 miles. Very heavy rain all last evening and night. Fine this morning, leeches very bad, got 5 or 6 on my feet and some on my hands which weren't seen till too late. Found only one flower of a nice campanula, but otherwise nothing of interest. Here we are staying in a very nice kind of summer house which HH uses, above the dzong. It is pleasantly cool and a breeze blows all day. The Zimpon seems a very nice man. I had met him before in Bumthang, where we had competed at archery. He was down in Calcutta with HH last year, and has been telling me all about his experiences there. His work was light, he got all the fun there was, and thoroughly enjoyed himself. But at Damthang on the way back, he had to work hard, as everyone who came to salaam the Maharaja had to do so through him, he had to give presents to them all. So that of the 8 or 9 maunds of things he had brought

SUMMARY:
Expected malaria patients from Punakha did not appear, despite H.H.’s orders, leading to frustration and letters to H.H. and Tobsgye. On 20 Oct the party marched to Taluku, found the hut gone, noted a better camp at Nahila, and collected 47 bulbs of Lil. Wallichianum; on 21 Oct they reached Balimape, where the Zimpon was away in Ha.

CONTENT:
shrubs all the way down, but otherwise the place looks dry. We were to have had 40 malaria cases here waiting for us, from Punakha, whose blood Hicks was to make slides of to see what kind of malaria they all suffer from. H.H. ordered these men to be produced. But there was nothing here, all the Dzongpon said was "There is no fever in Punakha". If this is really so, which I very much doubt, then all our gift of 5000 Paludrine is being just thrown away now. I personally think there is a lot of fever, but that the Dzongpon is a fool who has not the energy to call in the sick people. I've written a stinker to H.H. & told Tobsgye all about it. We are both rather sick at this. It seems v. difficult to get anything done for these people. They say they want something done, but then won't do anything, when one tells them what to do.

20th Oct. Taluku. A lovely day, with clouds in the morning, but clearing to the real cold weather dryness. This is an absurdly short march which I only arranged as there was a nice hut here, which would save trouble for the locals in making arrangements. But we got here to find the hut gone. That doesn't really matter as we have tents, but a much better camp would have been at Nahila, 4 miles on. We got 47 very fine bulbs of Lil. Wallichianum on the hillside across the valley here. Some are bigger than I have ever seen, but none has had more than 2 flowers on it, whereas in Kalimpong gardens they can have up to 5 flowers.

21st Oct. Balimape. Again fine though mostly clouded. We got in by 2.0 but kit not till 4.0 - 5.0 pm. The Zimpon is away in Ha, so we are spared any trouble here in the way of conversation & entertainment. He is a pleasant man, but it makes things easier if he is not here.

SUMMARY:
Notes from Kangla and Narim Thang describe heavy rain, few birds, and generally poor collecting, though masses of Primula eburnea were found under rocks near a lake on the way to a pass. The party leaves the Zimpon, observes hanging glaciers, a flock of grandalas, and common snow partridges, and records several plant specimens.

CONTENT:
18 Aug. Kangla. Cremanthodium cf. linearis 471, Aconitum spicatum 473, Delphin. caeruleum 474, Cremanthodium palmatum var. Benthamii 475, Prim. eburnea 476, Mecon. aculeata 477, Prim. involucrata 479, Prim. glomerata 480, Polygonum forrestii 481.
71

varies between 100 & 300 yards broad, extends for over half a mile up the valley. 11. We left the Zimpon today: he has done a great deal for us one way & another, was a pleasant man. We fear we have come to rather a poor place for our last fortnight. There seem to be very few birds about, & so far today I have only found rather uninteresting flowers. But Cooper was the same, till suddenly he came across Primula eburnea & P. oreina, both growing here. I think we may possibly be too late for them, but will have a good look anyway. Just fine in the morning, mist & rain all afternoon.

B. 26.
View from Singhi Dzong.
Women coolies choosing Woolworth necklaces.

Camp at Narim Thang
19th August. Halt at Narim Thang. A fine morning at 5.0 am. But almost immediately the clouds began to gather, & by 11.0 it was raining hard, with mist right down over the camp & everywhere. Ludlow & I went up to the lake on the way to the Pass. We were disappointed to find no birds & no flowers. However we wandered about, & came across masses of Primula eburnea - certainly a beauty. It grows only under rocks, sheltered from wind & rain but open to the sun. I also found higher up a few other flowers of no great interest. At the highest point I went to, among the cliffs, I shot two grandalas, beautiful birds. It is very cold here & raw.

Kangla
Prim. eburnea
Prim. pusilla 483
" dryadifolia 485
Hanging glaciers everywhere
flock of grandalas
Snow partridges common

Narim Thang
21st Aug. The rain here is perfectly awful. If we are

SUMMARY:
After an early start, Tasho and his man led the diarist to Codonopsis aff. vinciflora, and there are notes on discussing with HH the organization of medical work in Bhutan, including a hospital at Tongsa and rest houses. On 23 August at Isalunape heavy rains had altered the river and plants were later than in 1937, with the Zimpon improving the lodging. On 24 August at Tahudu the party reached camp early despite washed-out paths, noting large patches of Lilium wallichianum, finding Luculia pinceana, and collecting old seed of Streptocarpus simplex.

CONTENT:
After 6:00 am Tasho rode up the first mile. Here one of his men pointed out Codonopsis 'aff. vinciflora', the one I was looking for when we last passed. It was just where we had been looking, but then it was not in flower, all mixed up in the holly oak foliage. Now we saw about a hundred plants, all just coming into flower, so it must be about a fortnight later this year. Tasho was nicer and showed more life this time. He appears to have been talking to Jigme Dorji about various things in the country - hospital at Tongsa, getting the doctors going, and medicine organised etc. I am going to talk to HH about it all, and see if HH will give Tasho the job of organising all medical work now in Bhutan, also putting the rest houses in order.

23rd August. Isalunape. 5:30 to 10:00. Mist and some rain, but just fine all day. It is obvious that there has been exceedingly heavy rain lately. The river is quite different now and it is over the path in 3-4 places and much discoloured. This certainly seems the wetter month in Bhutan. I notice all plants here are later than in 1937. P. capitata and crispata are just coming into flower now, and in '37 they were in full flower by 12 August. Ceratostigma also is just becoming a fine sight. The Zimpon met me here, and has obviously taken great trouble to make this place better than before. Beds are made, curtains hanging (!) and all sorts of improvements. All I'm afraid of are fleas and bugs.

24th August. Tahudu. Fine most of the day, but misty and damp. There has been terrific rain everywhere lately, and the path is washed away in very many places. We were all in camp by 2:45 or 3, after 5:15 start. The only interesting things were the sight, across the valley here, of 2 patches of each of about 100 Lilium wallichianum. And I found Luculia pinceana. It is a beautiful tree, with very fine big flowers. Got (old) seed of Streptocarpus simplex.

SUMMARY:
Notes plans to go to Nagartse via Yamdrok Tso and hopes for work east of Bumthang, with Tibet possibly late for butterflies and flowers. Records weather, colour photography of flowers, scenes in the Ha valley, and a visit to Ha from Damthang including riding Tobgye’s ponies, playing football, and tea with the Zimpon.

CONTENT:
Report on B.B.:- Very good throughout.

the Yamdrok Tso, as we will go to Nagartse. This news has cheered us up a lot. If we can now get 6 weeks in the area E. of Bumthang, we will be getting all the collections we have time to work this year. Tibet in fact may be too late for either butterflies or flowers, but we should get some seeds, & at any rate see what the birds are there.

7th June. Another day with a little sun, & fine all morning. Took some photos in colour of flowers in Coventry's contraption. They have turned out fairly well, but drying ordinary negatives is a difficult business, as in this damp climate they take more than 24 hours, sometimes as much as 48.

B.B. contd.
Views of villages in Ha valley bet. Damthang & Ha. Yaks at Damthang leaving for their summer pastures. B.G. A Bhutanese with a yak load with two children. Bhutanese women.

10th June. Damthang. Three good days with very little rain & a fair amount of sun. On 8th went to Ha, riding Tobgye's ponies, for lunch & tea with Tobgye. After lunch played football with the boys, a hard job at that height with heavy clothes & boots on. Some of them play pretty well. After football had tea with the Zimpon - Tobgye's lama, an old family lama of the good type. He seemed a very decent

SUMMARY:
Zimpon visits from Tashi Cho Dzong and demonstrates imported rice mills, with the diarist comparing Kashgar huskers. The party travels through Pyimitangha to Paro and Ha Dzong amid variable weather, meets Tasho and his men near the Belaka, and laments missing a Codonopsis previously collected on 14 Aug 1937.

CONTENT:
Zimpon rode down from Tashi Cho Dzong to see us, he stayed a long time with us. He has imported two rice mills & I went to see one. It is a small & easily transported machine, which husks 30 mds a day. He takes 5% of rice as payment. He made the wooden driving wheel & the power is water. It all works very well. I showed him how the rice huskers of Kashgar work, & think he will make one to try.

11th August. Pyimitangha. 5.15 to 10.30. Fine till we got in, then a few showers, & a fine evening. A nice valley, dryer than any seen in Bhutan, with mixed pine & broadleaf forest. Ceratostigma griffithianum common on first half of March, but in poor flower this year.

12th Aug. Paro. Mist & some rain until close to Paro. Were met on the Belaka by some of Tasho Drugyel's men with tea & biscuits, & later on by Tasho himself. This was unfortunate, as I had no chance of finding the Codonopsis again, which I got on 14 Aug 1937, & which is new. This was very sad indeed, but I will have another chance on returning.

13th August Ha Dzong. 6.30 to 2.30 Heavy rain to start with but clearing up. Did not see any Peony, but was not looking carefully