Showing 6828 results

SUMMARY:
An easy downhill march from Takhtoo to a standard camp with rhododendrons and Magnolia campbellii in bloom; Primula denticulata is common, and a young Tibetan mastiff was bought in Sanden. From Phungni on the 16th March, heavy smoke over Bhutan from widespread grass burning is noted, with half-burnt rhododendrons and contrasting vegetation on the valley’s north and south faces; Ludlow remarks on rapid changes over a few days.

CONTENT:
very pleasant - a good wind and hot sun.

15th Takhtoo. A very easy march downhill to a pleasant
(Rhod. kingianum 1184, arboreum 1185, grande 1186) camp of the standard pattern, which is beginning to spoil
us badly. Nothing very much on the way, but rhododendrons
are beginning to come out and a marked difference was
seen by Ludlow from the time he came up this way only
(Mag Campbellii) four or five days ago. Magnolia Campbellii is in full
bloom still. It only has an altitude range of about
(Prim denticulata) 1000 - 1500 ft. Prim. denticulata (erythrocarpa?) is
everywhere, as is a red rhododendron rather like arboreum.
Bought a dog in Sanden, which is rapidly becoming
happy with us. He is a young Tibetan mastiff, for
which Rs 2/- would seem a small price at home.

16th March. Phungni. The smoke over Bhutan is very
(Between Takhtoo and Phungni) marked, one can only see a mile or so each day.
(NB) The reason is that the rank old grass is now dry and
being burnt everywhere to allow young grass to come up.
It is horrible to see half burnt rhododendrons everywhere.
The North face of the valley is covered with a mixture of
trees, mostly evergreen, while the South face was today

SUMMARY:
The diarist notes abundant P. rotundifolia near Taktsang and decides to cut across rather than go to Potrang. An officer in the Tibetan army from Lhasa, met at Tama La, initially questioned the diarist’s presence on the route but ultimately supported the party and reprimanded some coolies; he questioned Tenduk about the diarist and departed early for Potrang.

CONTENT:
...been pretty hard at it since leaving Chienchar. The P. rotundifolia are in masses near here, and there are lots of bellidifolia too, but none of the red ones. I have decided not to go to Potrang but to cut across from here.

22nd June. TAKTSANG. 4 miles. Approx 13,500'. Late in the evening an officer in the Tibetan army from Lhasa, who is on the pilgrimage, arrived at Tama La. I sent him tea and cake, and he came and called. At first he was a bit worried about my being on the 'kinglam' and thought I had no passport, and he asked my name. But eventually he was quite happy about everything. Some of the coolies - not the Chienchar ones, had been at him, so I heard. However he told them off pretty good and proper and said there was to be no nonsense, and that they were fairly to run over the pass with my stuff. He stayed till nearly dark, then I went and saw him, and came back to dinner at 7:30. He asked Tenduk all sorts of questions about me. One was, what were all those flowers for? Tenduk told him I took them home and put them up as decoration on the wall. He went on at 5:30 this morning to Potrang and we arranged to

SUMMARY:
The diarist notes movements of people from Sakden to Phongmi and Rungsung and trade with Dirang, then halts at Taktu with a good morning after birds, mails sent and received, and a visit from the Kazi. A quoted letter from the postmaster at Kumarikhata reports the death of Mr. S. M. Lemarchand and mentions earlier mails from Bhutan; nights are frosty and chilly.

CONTENT:
119

The whole of Sakden moves down to Phongmi + Rungsung about now, or else they are busy exchanging their butter + yak produce for Indian corn from this side or Dirang.

28th
27th Oct. Halt Taktu. Had a very good morning after birds. Then prepared to send a mail off. Another mail arrived in the afternoon, with letters from Srinagar of 9th — pretty quick work. A grand day again. The Kazi came down in the evening + stopped here the night. There is just a touch of frost here at nights, + it is very chilly, with a breeze all night.

A letter from the postmaster Kumarikhata is so good, that I quote it:— "Dear Sir, I am very glad in receipt of your letter with the mails sent on 28th Sept from Bhutan I am enclosing the list of mails in which you will come to know everything. I am extremely glad that both of you are doing well in Bhutan + pray to Almighty God for your safe arrival at Kumarikhata. I am sorry to report to you untimely death of Mr. S. M. Lemarchand. After returning from Gauhati he proceeded England, but before his arrival at home he breathed his last breath. At last I beg to acknowledge receipt of one letter to Director General of Post + Telegraph in which I hope it will be good for the office as well"

[Marginal notes:]
Cine film
14 + 15 C
F Packs
4, 5 + 6
Contax
12 + 13
sent 28/10.

SUMMARY:
Notes a black‑necked crane near Talung and describes Talung’s monastery, village, and August fair, with showers and thunder in the evening. Describes the 13th September route toward Nangartse Dzong via Chö Dzong by Yamdrok Tso, noting high river levels preventing the lakeshore route and that the party is on the route the Williamsons took to Lhasa.

CONTENT:
94

crane (Grus nigricollis) near Talung: Talung?
The owner of the garden then knew he or she too was responsible for that load. Once that was decided there was no waiting. Talung is picturesque; it stands on the top of an isolated rock in the middle of this huge flat plain. With it is the usual monastery. It is quite a large village of perhaps 50 houses. This is probably due to the fact that there is an annual fair held here each August. On the plains are countless sheep, & many yak too. A few showers in the evening, some thunder. The latter is a good sign, but the weather does not by any means yet look settled. We are now on the route the Williamsons took to Lhasa. Tomorrow we intended to go to Chö Dzong on the shore of the lake, but they say there is too much water in the river to do that.

(9)
13th September. NANGARTSE DZONG. 14,500' 10 miles. For the first 2 1/2 miles the route lies over the flat plain. From m 1 to m 2 is dry; the next mile over swamp. At m 2 1/2 the route enters the hills & passes a small lake on the west. At m 3 the shore of the Yamdrok Tso is reached & here is a small village of CHO DZONG. There is a cold weather route along the shores of the lake, but this is impracticable in summer. Leaving Cho Dzong village the path keeps along the hillside turning into a side valley which it crosses at m 4, then climbing up to

B. 30.
Ravens at Talung camp:
Transport leaving Talung:

SUMMARY:
Notes from the Tang Chu area record collections of primulas, saxifrages, rhododendrons, and Paraquilegia, observations from a ridge around 15,000 ft with barometric and temperature readings, and a storm that soaked the party. A halt on 8th June is noted with fine weather until late afternoon and three days of work remaining.

CONTENT:
Saxifraga 3210 - see 7th Aug.
P. umbratilis var. alba 3212
primulas were seen, some collected, No 3213. These had no flowers out.
3213 appears to be like P. umbratilis, but it is too early to say yet.
Rhod. pogonophyllum 3216 R. hypenanthum
Some interesting rhods were also seen, e.g. 3216 a minute thing of 1-2",
anthopogon Rhod. campanulatum 3218
& 3217 about 6" high. Finally there was the deepest coloured Isopyrum
Paraquilegia anemonoides 3214
I have ever seen 3214. We were all caught in the storm, &
arrived back soaked to the skin. The view from the top of the range,
which gave BP 18.6 Temp 55 Time 1200, = 15000 approx, was grand,
though nothing over 20000 was seen. The Br. Mt showed up clearly, with
no clouds, even up to 1200 noon. There is a good deal yet to be
done in this area, we have three days left.
Tang Chu area - up to 15000f
8th June. Halt. Another lovely day, fine up till 4.

SUMMARY:
Tsongpen Tenduk returned with notable primula collections, especially P. tsarongensis v. alba (3366) and P. sonchifolia (3367), regarded as the best finds so far, amid persistent heavy rain causing drying difficulties. A route note records travel to Omta Tso (4 miles) along the Rinchen Chu/Maru Chu at approximately 14,500 ft with poor weather conditions.

CONTENT:
MB section 5-11 - Tang Chu

yellow. Tsongpen Tenduk came back today with a good
haul of things, but no seeds. Far away the best, were two
P. tsarongensis v. alba 3366, P. sonchifolia 3367
primulas, or two forms of one primula, 3366 + 3367, both
magnificent flowers, though unfortunately Petiolarids. I measured
one of the specimens of 3367 at 1 3/4", full, across. 3366 was in
masses, by the hundred yards: 3367 in rather a small
patch, but closely packed. These are the best things collected
so far. (P. flagellaris 3368) A few P. tenella were brought, & they certainly seem
very near the Chanderi primula, but the scape is much shorter,
leaves smaller, & only one specimen was seen with two
flowers. I will be interested to hear the Professor's remarks on
the Chanderi primula. A most cheering evening to an
otherwise foul day of pouring rain + strong wind. Everything
is pretty sodden, & flowers take a horrible long time to dry. The
drying paper seems as wet as ever only an hour or two after
changing.

13700 ft To via Maru Chu (Rinchen Chu)
5th July, Omta Tso. 4 miles. BP. 187.6. Temp. 47° Time 5.0 pm. Ht. 14500 app.
Rained all night, very hard all day. Path keeps up R bank of
Rinchen Chu (known here as Maru Chu) to m 1 1/2, where there are two
huts, then crosses by a bridge to L bank, climbs up to an open
P.

SUMMARY:
The diarist travels down from the Lao La to Ritang and on to Trashidinka in the Tang Chu valley, noting dense forest, steep side valleys, masses of Lilium giganteum, rain, leeches, and a painful leg. At Ritang there is a mail mix-up involving a box of tankhas exchanged by the Maharaja, and later the party camps on the Pele La Range east of the Tang Chu; the Tang Chu area is noted as rich in Primulas.

CONTENT:
NB. Tang Chu area rich in Primulas (nos 5-10).

5th June. Camp in Tang Chu valley at Trashidinka, 9 miles. Ht. approx 9000'. (Trashidinka).

Fine till 3.0pm, then rain. Path drops pretty steeply on north side of the Lao La, and continues through dense forest. At m 3 it reaches the main E to W route 1/2 m to the E of Ritang. This is followed down to Ritang at m 3 1/2. Thence path keeps up the L bank of the Tang Chu, winding about a good deal and climbing up and down. Two side valleys are crossed, the second a very steep sided one, and the path keeps gradually up to the village of Trashidinka. Just opposite this, a big valley enters the R. bank of the Tang Chu. // We had a long wait at Ritang, and while there a mail arrived, having taken 18 days I believe. There we heard another mail had gone on "for the Gangtok sahibs". Pimbo thought it was not right, so called the man back, and it turned out to be a box with tankhas which the Maharaja had exchanged for my rupees. It was addressed clearly enough to the "flower collecting sahib wherever he may be", but no one could read the writing. Beyond Ritang we saw masses of Lilium giganteum. Rain came on here, so did leeches, flies and dimdams. It's a pretty foul place, but ahead looks excellent. My left leg has been very painful for three days now, but I don't know any reason for it, so can do nothing. Very glad to get news of Ludlow again.

6th June. Camp on Pele La Range E of Tang Chu. B.P. 190.5 T. 54°. 5.0pm. (up to 15,000 ft)

SUMMARY:
At Tashigong, despite few coolies and a missing tent load, mules with syces arrived and the Nyerchen, informed by Tobgye, provided assistance and lodging, though one room was infested with bugs. Arrangements were made to proceed to Puntso-gong, where heavy rain fell through the night and following day.

CONTENT:
1st June. Tashigong Only 6 coolies even this morning. The rest are still "coming". But we decided to go on after some talk in the dzong about coolies & the missing tent load. Very hot indeed, along the valley at only about 2500'. At the bridge we hoped again that mules might be down to meet us, which would mean that news was in about us. But nothing was there. However we had only walked 400 yards up hill when mules came trailing polite syces, after all the glum unfriendly looks we'd had in the last few days. The Nyerchen met us in the dzong. He had just heard from Tobgye about us yesterday night. So all is well, & I know we will have no more trouble in Bhutan as far as transport is concerned. We were given a nice "suite" of rooms, which looked nice & clean when we arrived, sat down on a carpet covered "boden". We both began to itch a bit soon later, & got up to find the boden running with bugs. There were dozens & all over the floor too. We killed a great many. But our tent was lost anyway so we could go nowhere else. The other room was cleaner & we put our beds there. The Nyerchen is very good to us & provides all we could possibly want. We have arranged everything for the trip down, will go on to Puntso-gong tomorrow. Still very hot.

2nd June. Puntso-gong. Heavy rain all night & rain all day

SUMMARY:
Mail arrived with letters up to 6 August and a note from Betty at Changu; Danang departed with Pompoli and Tundru. At Tashiling the path to Chendesi was badly damaged, a pony fell through a weakened bridge and could not be rescued, and after storms the huts were preferred except for filthy Tsalimape; on hearing H.H. had gone back to Bumthang they planned to go straight through. Reaching Tongsa, the heaviest rains continued and people in Trongsa Dz. reported considerable recent damage.

CONTENT:
Described as being carried in a dhooley by 4 men. That is very sad, & Ludlow will miss him very much indeed. A small mail came in last night, with letters of up to 6 August from home - very quick - & a note from Betty from Changu. I heard later that with Danang went Pompoli & Tundru.

29th August. Tashiling. Yesterday the path to Chendesi showed signs of wear. There were 6-7 baddish breaks, but today there were 15-20 & some were big affairs. Some have only come down 2-3 days ago. Just before we reached a bridge whose sides have been scoured out a bit, a man crossed with 3 ponies. 2 got across, & the 3rd broke one of the long tree planks & fell through into a chasm below. How the pony squeezed through the breadth of only one plank, I don't know. We helped for over an hour, but could do nothing, & had to leave. I fear the pony will be dead before help we sent for here reaches it. I would have ridden over that bridge five minutes later, & it certainly would have given way with me on. So I consider myself lucky today. It has just kept fine once more today. I expected a sparkling day because about 1.0 last night there was a thunderstorm & very heavy rain, which came in through the roof & soaked us all. If there were decent places for tents, I wouldn't dream of occupying these huts. Chendesi & Tashiling huts are, at any rate, clean & bugless. Tsalimape is the filthy place. Heard last night that H.H. has gone back to Bumthang, so we will go straight through too.

30th August. Tongsa. A dreadful day of the heaviest rain yet seen. Again the path was washed away in many places. In Trongsa Dz. they said considerable damage had been done by the rain in the last 7-9 days. That was when H.H.

SUMMARY:
The party crosses a high swinging bridge, climbs steeply through burnt pine forests to the Tata La, and reaches Shamgong Dz/Dzong amid clouds and afternoon thunderstorms. The next stage begins with a descent to the Wangdi Chu near the Mangde Chu, followed by a steep ascent to the Bruksong La en route to Tesar.

CONTENT:
have managed the bridge, which was high over the water, long, and swung from side to side. After that, we had a mile, level along the L bank, then straight up the hillside at the steepest point anyone could find - Coolies tackled it in wonderful style, keeping up with us on H.H.'s fine mules, which took the hill in a series of short sharp rushes. This continues for about 5 miles, where oak mixes with the Pinus longifolia forest, which is slowly replaced. And so to mile 7, a pass is reached on the ridge, called the TATA LA. Just over this lies Shamgong Dz, a fine square building on a spur, with a village behind it, and a little cultivation. The most noticeable thing today is that all the young pine trees are burnt. One passes nothing but old fully grown trees, except near the top where it seems little grass burning has been carried out. What potential waste has taken place in these forests, and this cannot be put right now. Even if re-afforestation is started, there will be a long gap of bareness. It has been clouded all day, and just as we got in at 12:00 the rain started, and we've had thunder and heavy rain this afternoon. I hope that will clear away the haze over everything, which takes the beauty away. A few Rhodo arboreum seen, but no others. Flowers mostly uninteresting.

1st April. Tesar 17 miles. A long day, starting with a heavy thundershower, which cleared up before we left camp. It was sad to have to lose all our altitude within the first two hours. The path goes straight down to the Wangdi Chu, at almost the level of the Mangde Chu. But once over that it goes even steeper up the other side to the Bruksong La, which is not so high as Shamgong Dzong, but not far off it. It is about 4 miles down and nearly the same to