Departure from Le—Sabu Valley—Pass between Le and Nubra—Snow—Encamp at 15,500 feet—Digar—Valley of Shayuk—Alluvium—Populus Euphratica—Tsatti—Nubra river—District of Nubra—Villages—Irrigation—Saline soil—Isolated rocks—Chirasa—Panamik—Lower Nubra—Platforms of Alluvium—Traces of a great flood—Unmaru—Kuru—Great contraction of valley—Mountain pass of Waris—Boghdan ravine—Chorbat—Mahommedan population—Villages—Outburst of granite—Siksa—Khapalu—Open plain of Khapalu—Junction of Shayuk and Indus—Nar—Iskardo plain—Description of Iskardo—Aqueduct—Fort—Lacustrine clay formation—Vegetation.

While we were at Le there was a good deal of unsettled weather, and two very slight falls of snow. On the 9th of October we had an opportunity of observing an eclipse of the sun, which was welcomed by the inhabitants of the town with a most discordant beating of drums, intended to frighten away the demons who had taken possession of the sun. After a week's halt, Major Cunningham and myself started in different directions; Major Cunningham following the course of the Indus, and proceeding by Dras to Kashmir, while I crossed the range of mountains to the north into the valley of the Shayuk, and descended along that river to its junction with the Indus. The mountain range which separates these two rivers barely rises into the region of perpetual snow, a very few peaks only retaining any snow throughout the year. It is therefore crossed by passes at the head of each valley; but the pass nearest to Le having a small but very steep glacier on its northern face, is difficult and dangerous in autumn, after the snow has entirely melted from the surface of the ice. I was, therefore, recommended to cross into Nubra, by a pass a few miles further east, at the head of the valley of Sabu, which is separated from that in which the town of Le lies, by a steep ridge of granite hills.

SABU VALLEY.
October, 1847.

I left Le on the morning of the 11th of October. The road to the Sabu valley enters the granite range close to the town, ascending a narrow stony valley in an easterly direction, and crossing by a short steep ascent a depression in the ridge, to descend into a narrow ravine which has a south-east course into the Sabu valley, up which the road led. The hills were very stony and bare, or covered with the large Echinops of the Indus valley, of which the heads of fruit were falling to pieces. I encamped for the night in the valley of Sabu, which is very like that of Le, with pretty extensive cultivation, but few trees.

LAZGUNG PASS.
October, 1847.

Next day I crossed the pass. The ascent was very long and fatiguing, and, from the lateness of the season, very uninteresting. A cold bleak wind blew from the north in strong gusts, and the sky was overcast with light clouds. The valley contracted into a rocky ravine before the road left it to ascend rapidly the steep mountain-sides, which were covered with masses of boulders, heaped together in great confusion. The upper part of the ascent, which was very steep, was covered with snow, which lay on the loose stones of the crest to the depth of about a foot. It was late in the evening before I reached the top of the pass, the distance being much greater than I had been led to anticipate. The elevation of the summit, by the observations of Captain Strachey, is about 18,300 feet.

On the north face of the pass snow lay thickly for two miles or rather more, and more scantily for a mile further. As evening had begun to close before I reached the summit, I hurried my descent as much as possible. Fortunately, a great part of my baggage porters were in advance, but it had been for some time quite dark before I reached a spot sufficiently free of snow to be suitable for an encampment. The night was intensely cold, the sky being clear; and next morning, at half-past six o'clock, the thermometer stood at 15°. At the same time I found that water boiled at 184°, indicating an elevation of upwards of 15,500 feet.

In the morning I made a short march to the village of Digar, which I ought to have reached the day before, had not the darkness prevented me. The distance was not more than four miles, and the descent about 2500 feet, Digar being rather more than 13,000 feet above the level of the sea. The general direction of the valley in which I was encamped was north-east, and it was surrounded on all sides by extremely rugged mountains, now much covered with snow, down to about 14,000 feet. Throughout the descent, vast piles of boulders, heaped one on another, and forming steep banks, evidently moraines, occupied the flanks of the valley. The village of Digar, though small, and possessing only two small trees, had a considerable extent of cultivation, and seemed prosperous. It was situated on the left side of the valley, or rather on the slope of the mountains on that side opposite a lateral ravine, from which a stream of boulders had at one time descended. The centre of the valley was much lower, being excavated out of the alluvium which had once filled the whole.

VALLEY OF SHAYUK.
October, 1847.

On the morning of the 14th of October, I descended to the valley of the Shayuk, making a march of fifteen miles to the village of Tsatti, on the right bank of that river. The road skirted the steep stony hills on the left side of the valley, parallel to the Digar stream, for about two miles, descending rapidly, but still high above the bottom of the dell. The Digar ravine, before reaching the Shayuk, joined a wider one which descends from the south-east, and the united valley has a nearly due north direction. As the road turned by degrees to the left, round a spur of the mountains, the Shayuk valley came in sight, 1500 feet below. It was of considerable width, and very stony, barren, and desolate. Mountains of black slate, very lofty and rugged, in many places too steep for snow to lie, were seen to the north-east, from among which the river appeared to issue into the more open tract immediately below.