Western Himalaya and Tibet / A Narrative of a Journey Through the Mountains of Northern India During the Years 1847-8

by Thomas Thomson

ROAD TO SIMLA.
May, 1847.

The distance from Kussowlee to Simla is by the road about thirty miles, though in a direct line the two places are not much more than half that distance apart. The road descends from Kussowlee almost to the level of the plains, crossing the Gambar at an elevation of a little less than 3000 feet, and ascends to Simla by following the ridge which runs parallel to that river on its right bank, the source of the Gambar being immediately below Simla. It would indeed be possible to reach Simla, by following the crest of the ridge, without descending at all into the valley of the river; but for this purpose it would be necessary to follow the Kussowlee ridge so far to the southward, in order to reach its junction with the main range, that the length of the journey would be very much greater than that now followed. The road, therefore, only keeps the ridge for a very short distance, or as far as the "col," or lower part immediately north of Kussowlee, which is quite bare of trees. It then turns abruptly to the left, descending on the north face of a spur, at first in a winding manner, afterwards for a short distance along a shady ravine, and finally through a good deal of cultivation, at an elevation of between 4000 and 5000 feet, to a considerable stream which runs towards the north to join the Gambar. The greatest part of the descent is bare of trees, except along the banks of the little stream, which are covered with a belt of wood. The cultivated lands are extensive, occupying a flattish terraced slope, such as is of very general occurrence in the mountains, the fields being adapted for the growth of rain crops, principally of rice, with a few fields of ginger and cardamoms.

SABATHU.
May, 1847.

After reaching the stream just mentioned, which is crossed by a ford, a suspension bridge, for which the piers are partly built, having never been erected, the road continues to descend parallel to it towards the north, passing under the military station of Sabathu, which, at the elevation of 4200 feet, occupies the crest of the ridge immediately to the east of the little river, a very short distance before its junction with the Gambar.

After passing Sabathu the road turns to the right, round the projecting ridge of the range, and descends rapidly to the valley of the Gambar river, which is crossed by a good suspension bridge at an elevation of 2700 feet above the level of the sea. It then ascends by a steep and laborious path to Haripur, a small village about 500 feet above the bed of the river. The Gambar river, where the road crosses it, flows through a narrow rocky ravine, somewhat picturesque, but quite devoid of trees. This, however, is not the general character of the river-bed, which is frequently wide, with a broad gravelly channel, and sloping though often rather steep mountains on either side. There is occasionally even a strip of flat land, capable of cultivation along the banks; and where such is the case, the water of the river is carried off in artificial channels, for the purpose of irrigation.

After attaining the crest of the ridge, and passing through the village of Haripur, the road follows the ridge parallel to the river Gambar, nearly all the way to Simla, not always on the very crest or top, which would entail a great many unnecessary ascents and descents, but generally a little on one side or other of the hill, as circumstances may render most convenient; at one time ascending rather steeply, but more generally rather gently as far as Sairi, the last stage on the way to Simla, beyond which the road is pretty level, nearly to the bottom of the mountain on which Simla stands.

The valley of the river Gambar may be regarded as an excellent specimen of a smaller Himalayan river, draining a large extent of country, and discharging its waters independently into the plains, though not, like the first-class rivers, deriving its origin from the snowy mountains. The southern border of the basin of the Gambar, is of course the main chain of the South Sutlej Himalaya; and the whole of the country between the Jutog spur, which leaves that chain at Simla, and the Kussowlee ridge, the origin of which I have already detailed, is drained by the Gambar and its tributaries. This includes an extent of country of not less than 1000 square miles, the bounding ranges of which have, throughout the greater part of their extent, an elevation varying from 8000 to about 6000 feet. Both the Kussowlee and Jutog ranges dip at last rather abruptly, so that it is only during a very short distance that they are below the last-mentioned elevation. This elevation, which is quite temperate, is however by no means that of the whole superficies of the basin, the bed of the river having, at its débouchure into the Sutlej, an elevation of not more than 2000 feet, and rising very gently till near its source immediately below Simla. The lateral ridges, which traverse the basin in every direction, are in general less elevated; not exceeding 5000 feet in their upper part, and sinking to 3000 or even lower, so that the mean elevation of the whole basin cannot be estimated, I should think, higher than 3500 feet.

BASIN OF GAMBAR VEGETATION.
May, 1847.

Such being the case, it is not surprising that the general appearance of the vegetation should be tropical, and closely approximate to that of the low hills on the very exterior of the Himalaya. This is in general the case. The hills, which are generally grassy, and, though steep and frequently stony, rarely rocky or precipitous, are quite devoid of forest, or even brushwood, except in a few shady nooks with a northern exposure, and favourably situated with respect to moisture; the shrubby vegetation being thin and scattered. This total want of forest, is unquestionably caused by the dryness of the climate during the greater part of the year, which is to a certain degree increased beyond what it would otherwise be, by the proximity of the surrounding mountain ranges, to which a large proportion of the rain-clouds are no doubt attracted.

In the shady ravines north of Kussowlee, where there is the greatest approach to forest, a species of laurel is the most conspicuous tree. On the more exposed hills, Falconeria insignis and Euphorbia pentagona occur, scattered as small trees, and one small wood of Ægle marmelos is passed close to the village of Haripur. The most common shrubs are Adhatoda Vasica, Carissa, and Zizyphus Jujuba, species universal in the plains of upper India; Colebrookea oppositifolia, Grislea, Bergera, Roylea and Bœhmeria nivea, all species which are throughout the north-west Himalaya, characteristic of the lower and drier parts of the outer ranges. Two Labiate shrubs, Plectranthus rugosus and Meriandra strobilifera, are particularly abundant on the slopes between Haripur and Sairi, and strongly mark the aridity of the climate.