MY FIRST MISSION TO BHUTAN
On a misty morning we rode quietly up the valley, and after an hour’s gradual ascent reached the Yakle-la (16,800 feet). The maps, I found, were completely wrong, as the pass is situated on the water-parting which separates the Thim-chhu from the Mo-chhu, the eastern slopes of Chomolhari thus draining into the Poonakha river. On the left of our path there lay a pretty dark green tarn, fed from a small snow-slope to the west of the pass, and from thence a somewhat steep descent brought us to the main stream of the Pim-nak-me-chhu, which joins the Mo-chhu near Ghassa. Following the valley for a few miles, we soon came in sight of Lingzi-jong on a hill apparently blocking the valley, but as we continued our march we discovered another ridge between us and Lingzi, round which we had to ride, ascending and descending for some way through lovely rhododendron scrub, of which at least eight different varieties were in flower. Crossing the stream, which, separates the two ridges, and which rises in some glaciers coming down from the east of Chomolhari, we again ascended the shoulder of the Lingzi spur, and, leaving the ruins of the fort on the top, found an excellent camping-ground close to a small stream. It was, on the whole, an easy march, as there was only a small quantity of snow on the north side of the pass. We saw several flocks of burhel, but could not get a shot, although my shikari was more successful and bagged two females, which were a useful addition to the supplies of my followers. We had some particularly fine views of the Chomolhari glaciers which feed the lower streams near Lingzi. We halted at Lingzi for a couple of days, and made an excursion down the valley to try and locate Ghassa, but did not succeed, as it was cloudy and drizzly weather and we could see no distance.
We also visited the ruins of Lingzi-jong, which must have once been an imposing and very strong citadel, much larger than I should have thought necessary, but the earthquake of 1897 has reduced it to a picturesque mass of ruined masonry. The Thimbu, becoming communicative,
179
