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SUMMARY:
Notes on the death of the Thimbu penlop and Tobgye’s sending of English medicine, causing concern with the Maharaja. On 30th June Ludlow and the author travelled to Lomi-Tsa-wa via Do Kyong La in clearing weather, collecting flowers including Magnolia globosa and observing that vegetation in the Trashi-cho-dzong valley and at the pass resembled Sikkim.

CONTENT:
35

Thimbu penlop. He died of dropsy & a short while ago his
relations asked Tobgye for English medicine. Against his own
lamas advice, Tobgye sent some, but with strict instructions
that the lamas should first of all decide in their usual way
whether it would do good or not. After taking one of the two
medicines, the man felt weaker, & the whole thing was
immediately reported to the Maharaja, who is said to have been
angry with Tobgye. They said nothing of the fact that the
other medicine did a lot of good. I can't believe that the
Maharaja will put any blame down to Tobgye in the end.

30th June. TO LOMI-TSA-WA. 12 miles - 6700' (An. Ht. 7700'). Ludlow & I
Embelia oleracea 182
Anemone rivularis 183 were at last able to go on our own & were allowed to shoot
Rhod. Keysii 184
Symplocos ramosissima 186 as soon as we reached the DO KYONG LA, 10410'. So we
Pedicularis megalantha 187
left at 5.30 am, although it was raining pretty hard. By
Meconopsis villosa 189
Rhod. camelliaeflorum 190 7.30 however it cleared up & remained fine till 5.0 pm. On
Berberis celestina 191
the way up & at the top we found a number of flowers,
Mag. globosa 192
Pyrola rotundifolia 193 including the magnificent Magnolia Globosa in full bloom at
Streptopus simplex 194
10000'. We also got a strange rhododendron which Dawang
Geranium pratense 198
Didissandra lanuginosa 199 has never seen before. In the Trashi-cho-dzong valley
the vegetation is quite different to what we had seen before:
trees were quite scarce, & what there were, were mostly
small. The forest again became thick, but at the pass the
vegetation was much more like Sikkim - no pines or firs, a
good deal of bamboo undergrowth & numbers of rhododendrons.

SUMMARY:
On the diarist’s birthday at Chensi Rongang, Tasho—the girls’ brother—arrived from herding, and local girls sought medicine, including for gonorrhoea; the diarist departed after declining to host them. Reports accuse the headman of Kuoma of extracting rice and supplies despite H.H.’s contrary order, prompting the need for action. The route climbed over Latsi La and continued to Tongnanying before a steep, muddy descent into dense forest after overnight rain.

CONTENT:
rather silly that we are so close and so far away.
3rd May - Chensi Rongang. 8 miles Ht approx. 6500'

My birthday. Yesterday did not finish when I thought it had. A very filthy man arrived and greeted me in Hindi. He was Tasho, the brother of the girls. They all have the same father and mother except the lad who has a different mother. He had come in from herding the cows. He was a cheerful soul whom I liked best of all. The younger girl came again with a bunch of hangers-on: she wanted medicine for gonorrhoea. She is not an attractive girl in any way, and her sister, suffering as she is, is much nicer, cleaner and easier to talk to. The hangers-on all wanted medicine and were not very grateful for it. I was very glad indeed to escape this morning, though that meant saying goodbye to the sisters. I refused to have them in my tent, so little time was wasted. All the hangers-on were, I thought, unpleasant; now we also hear that the headman of Kuoma has been doing the locals down by saying that he is to collect rice and other things for me, although he knows H.H.'s order to the contrary. The men had to give quite a lot, none of which I saw incidentally. So we must take some action on that.

The road leads up steeply to the Latsi La at m 1, then more or less flat over steep grass hillside for 2 m. to Tongnanying and so on to m 4 where it suddenly enters dense forest and drops very steeply indeed for some 1500 feet I should think. The path was very muddy and slippery. It had rained all night, but luckily was not raining this morning till after

SUMMARY:
Clear, frosty day at Amelungnang with notes on Hicks needing to cross the Rudo La in Bhutan. The writer reflects that the Dhur Chu area would have yielded better flowers than Waitang, noting climatic differences after crossing the Tolegang La; Pasang and Yundru arrived later with a good haul of seed despite a foot of snow on boulder scree, and there was disappointment regarding Mec. bella near the Sin La.

CONTENT:
probably, after having a lonely duck swoosh up and down the Tumen Su in a temperature of about 10° F.

Hicks will be glad of the change in weather. He will have the Rudo La to cross, and he will be lucky to find a good day to get over that. It must be one of the wetter passes in Bhutan, on the east side.

3rd October. Amelungnang. Misty, with a hard frost in the early morning, but soon cleared up to a perfect day - the first with no rain at all. Clouds formed soon but never looked wet. It was an interesting march, too, and I now have much more of an idea of the country. I just wish that we had chosen the area of the Dhur Chu instead of Waitang. We would have got many more flowers and of much greater interest. Partly this is due to the area not being overrun by yaks, but there is something else climatic as well. As soon as we crossed the Tolegang La, this was evident. But it can't be helped now. Pasang and Yundru came on later than us with their haul of seed. They have done well, and got quite a good lot of things. They were unable to go the way we meant them to, owing to the snow being a foot thick. That on boulder scree, is really impossible. It made no real difference to the seed gathering, which way they went. One disappointment was Mec. bella. We saw so very much of it all along N of the Sin La, that I expected

SUMMARY:
The diarist travels 9 miles to Le in wet monsoon conditions with difficulty obtaining coolies, noting a fine, sweet-scented rhododendron near the top end of the Pangchen plain and abundant magnolias above camp. A preceding note mentions plants at Sanga Choling and Chosam, lack of gentians and Cyananthus wardii seed above Sanga Choling, and time spent in Tsari in July and September.

CONTENT:
36

Sanga Choling, Adonis at Chosam and several other plants. I got no gentians nor seed of Cyananthus wardii which is abundant above Sanga Choling, — ... I was in Tsari for a week in July and a bad week in September."

4th April. To Le. 9 miles. B.P. 197.5° Temp. 51. Time 4.30 p.m. Ht. 8050'.

Quite a good day, but very wet from 10.30 on. The monsoon seems definitely to have begun in earnest. Coolies difficult to get, some had not arrived by 7.0 p.m. The finest flower seen was a Rhododendron 1269, about 1/2 m above the bridge at the top end of the Pangchen plain. It really is a grand flower & sweet smelling as well. More R. Boothii (R. gracilipes) also seen at most waterfalls. At one, beside the second bridge, it must have been a wonderful sight a month ago, but is all over now. The path is good the whole way, but built up on galleries here & there over the river. But it is well built everywhere, & not in bad repair. Only a few houses here. Rhododendrons not numerous, but magnolias (Magnolia campbellii) are a wonderful sight just above us here.

SUMMARY:
Describes a frosty halt day, continued collection of Gentiana (lacunulata), and praise for the seed collector Tupden. Notes comparisons of the Dhu Chu area with the Bumthang Chu, reports a letter from HH about upcoming arrivals (Hicks, MK, Tasho Drunyer), tallies seed and plant collections, and mentions confirmations by Ludlow and Taylor regarding Mec. Sherriffii.

CONTENT:
with Mec. paniculata, simplicifolia & horridula, all of which are in cultivation at home. Tupden is one of the best seed collectors there could be. He takes great pains & always goes on till called away. I wished to have had him from the beginning. Now I know him, I find him very good indeed. He is a Khampa, probably a runaway murderer or something like that, from Markham. The area of the Dhu Chu is something like shown opposite.

4th October Halt. Another lovely day, & very cold hard frost last night. The tents each night now are covered with frost inside & out, & this makes them very heavy. Nothing special happened today. I went out to look for more of yesterday's Gentiana (lacunulata) 19789, & after a while we found a lot of it. It reminds me of G. amplicrata which we first found at Zimsati near Sangacholing in Takpo. I don't think it is G. depressa, & certainly isn't G. amoena. The more I see of this area, the better it looks. It holds much more than the Bumthang Chu valley, although this is a tributary of the Bumthang Chu. It must be more than just not so many yaks here, although there is no doubt that many yaks, & sheep too, in a valley, make a very great difference to the flora. A letter came in from HH to say Tasho Drunyer will arrive on 6th. So with Hicks on 5th, MK on 6th & us on 7th, there will be some activity in Bumthang this week. The main seed collection is now over, & I have about 130 gatherings of seed now, besides the 40-50 taken before & some 25 rooted plants & a number of bulbs & tubers & corms & so on. Ludlow tells me he has 5 lbs. of seed of Mec. Sherriffii! That shows how common it is when it does occur. Taylor has confirmed that it is Mec. Sherriffii, but a very fine form of it.

SUMMARY:
Route notes from Mug to Singhi Dzong and onward to Towa Dzong, detailing ascents, bridges over the Lhobrak/Kuru Chu, and the crossing of Nyema La (14800'). Mentions transport changes at a village and Lala, and notes camp near the new Dzong with good water and fuel.

CONTENT:
2 4th September. To SINGHI DZONG. 12700. 8 miles. Path leaves
Mug, ascending gradually to a shoulder then steeply
down to the Lhobrak Chu, which is crossed by a good
bridge at m 2 1/2. On the L bank the ascent is steep
for three miles, climbing nearly 2000' to a small
village, where transport is changed. The Lhobrak Chu
bends very considerably to the North about here. The
path ascends slightly from this village, rounding a
shoulder of the hill & reaching the cultivation of
Singhi Dzong at m 6 1/2. Thence route descends
easily to the Dzong at m 8. The Dzong, an old
unused castle on a hill is at the North end of
the cultivation. A new Dzong is 200 yds from the old
one & the usual camp is beside this. C.G. small:
water & fuel good.

3 5th September. To TOWA DZONG. 12550' 17 miles. This is a long
march for one day unless transport is ready at Lala.
From the Dzong the path goes up a side valley to the
East, crossing this at m 1 by a bridge. Thence the
ascent on the North side is steep along. It winds
round the shoulder to the N.W., crossing the Nyema La
(14800') at m 3 1/2. Thence easy descent over good road
past a village at m 5, the path gets steeper as it
drops at m 6 1/2 to a bridge over the Lhobrak or Kuru Chu.

SUMMARY:
Notes compare Bimbi La plants with pinker flowers, report a good haul of Parnassius butterflies despite rain, and mention sightings of Babax waddelli and blackbirds. On 6 July at a camp on the north side of Drechung La (15000'), the route is described from the valley over a bridge, up a steep rhododendron-covered ascent to open hillside and along rocky slopes past yakherds; P. cawdoriana (specimen 2305) is common and fully out.

CONTENT:
the Bimbi La ones I am sure, in that the leaves have longer petioles and are much rounder and are cut up more. The flower is not so lilac, but pinker. Yesterday we got a good haul of Parnassius, but rain spoilt things today, rose only for 6. Some of these Laha ones should be good. I do not remember seeing the smaller one before. There were lots of Babax waddelli about at 14500 or so, some blackbirds too. Saw no other birds of any interest.

6th July. Camp N. side of Drechung La. 15000'. 8m. We had to go down the valley for a couple of miles - to the last house on the path, then turned south over the main stream by a bridge. Thence for five miles the ascent is very steep indeed, nearly all the way through thick rhododendron jungle. Then the open hillside is reached, and the path ascends for another mile. Thence slightly downhill, along steep rocky hillside, past a summer encampment of yakherds, round a spur to the second stream. Beyond this there is no wood available. Camping ground is not good; very little level space available.

Up here P. cawdoriana 2305 is common and is fully out, a beautiful little thing, with a big flower. There is any amount

SUMMARY:
Travel from Maruthang (Reinchen Chu) to Chichukang (Tang Chu) amid heavy rain, with notable plant collecting including a new gentian, Delphinium muscosum, and primulas from Thita Tso. Tendup redirected a visitor to Rihang, and Tsongpen was sent to Thita Tso and later reported a herd of burhel near the primula site.

CONTENT:
88

anyway that Tendup told the man not to come here, but sent him on to Rihang.

6th August. To Maruthang (Reinchen Chu). 10 miles. Just fine all morning (Saxifraga sp. nov. 3528). Very heavy rain from 12.0 on (Corda. bealhamii 3527). Tsongpen went on from here to the Thita Tso. Here found a pretty little gentian No. 3531 (Gent. melensis sp. nov. 3531), which did me down badly. It was fully open and very pretty when I first saw it, so I ran in for my camera, but the rain started as I opened the camera, and it shut up in about 20 seconds.

7th August. To Chichukang (Tang Chu). 7 miles (12,200 ft). A foul day of rain, with a fine interval in the evening. Tsongpen for the primula I sent him for at the Thita Tso, taken before as 3438 (P. uniflora 3438, 3536). It is a perfect beauty, with huge flowers for its size, and should come in with P. Menziesiana. But I will be very disappointed if it is not a new one (3536). No gentians found, but several other interesting things, besides a good Delphinium (3537) (Delphinium muscosum 3537 sp. nov. Lyon), some seed of the big yellow saxifrage 3210 (Saxifraga sp. 3210). We also got roots of the three good petiolaris primulas 3366, 3367, 33843 (Roots: Barnardi alba, Chamaethauma, strumosa). Tsongpen saw a herd of 40 burhel up near the blue pet. primula place. There is a great deal of P. umbratilis not far from camp beside the waterfall just above camp, 12,500 ft higher, on the talus slopes.

SUMMARY:
The diarist halted due to weather, sent a man to reconnoitre a pass for snow conditions, searched unsuccessfully for blood pheasant young, and noted finding but not collecting P. yargonensis. They record local clothing said to come from near Tsetang on the Tsangpo and report heavy monsoon rain, with the scout later advising the pass is feasible but risky due to falling rocks; plans hinge on the Drogpas’ return from taking the Drok Locha to Shasjetang.

CONTENT:
6th June Halt. Very wet night, but fine most of the day. Sent a man up to the pass we want to cross, to see if there is too much snow. I say that 'we' want to cross, but I am probably the only one who wants it. The other way would be simpler & easier for the locals. I looked for blood pheasant young today with no success, though I saw many pairs. We found but did not collect P. yargonensis. Otherwise the day was blank. The locals mostly wear very gay chubas here, & I wanted to see them wearing them. But Ngudup tells me they all come from near Tsetang on the Tsangpo. That is the big bazaar we passed in '46 on the R bank, where the huge chorten is. The cloth is coloured & woven there it seems. But no Tibetan would ever wear clothes made of that pattern. Surely these used to be made in Bhutan? Of course the Drogpas here wear woollen clothes, not cotton which are general in Bhutan.

7th June Halt. A real monsoon day, rain almost all day, but never very heavy & no fine periods for long. One can almost see the snow drifts melting, & one can certainly hear the result of the rain & melting snow in the rocks falling down the hillside. The man we sent off yesterday morning got back by evening, & reported only about 30 yards of deep snow at the top. He, in fact, said we could go alright, as long as I did not mind boxes being bumped against rocks, & was prepared for a bad bit of 200 yds where rocks keep falling down. I don't like the last thing. It is always beastly, but I think we should try when the Drogpas come back from taking the Drok Locha down to Shasjetang. In the meantime, as there is so little up