valley, descending very gently. Two species of rhubarb
were common, and a dwarf willow fringed the margins of
the stream.
As I advanced, the valley gradually narrowed, and on
the right high precipitous rocks ere long overhung the
stream, so that I crossed to the left bank, and, instead of
keeping on the bottom of the valley, proceeded horizontally
along the hill-sides. A little further on, the stream,
which had hitherto had a north-west course, turned suddenly
to the north, and entered an extremely narrow
rocky ravine, which to all appearance was quite impassable.
Here the road turned abruptly to the left, and
ascended to cross a low ridge. On attaining the summit
an open valley was seen 1000 feet below, which at its
lower extremity contracted into a fissure precisely similar
to that just described; and as the two ravines were only
separated by a narrow rocky ridge, which rose to the
north into a high cliff, there can be no doubt that the
two streams joined a mile or two below. Descending
gradually into the valley, I encamped at the village of
Phutaksha, at an elevation of about 14,300 feet.
Notwithstanding its great elevation, the valley of Phutaksha
was partially cultivated. The fields formed a
narrow belt parallel to the stream, along which they extended
almost up to 15,000 feet, but the crops were
scanty. The wild plants of the borders of the cultivated
land were the same as those common in Zanskar, and
grew with great luxuriance along the margins of the irrigation
streamlets. Alluvial boulder clay was common in
the valley; and I saw also a great deal of the fine cream-
coloured clay, which I have elsewhere noticed as being
probably of lacustrine origin. The occurrence of this
clay at an elevation of upwards of 14,000 feet is rather
uncommon, and here, as well as elsewhere, appears to be
accompanied by such a conformation of the mountains as
to render the former existence of a small lake probable.
Below Phutaksha, as I have already observed, the ravine
of the little stream is exceedingly narrow and rocky, and
as likely as any other part of Tibet to have been blocked
up by alluvial deposits so as to form a lake.
On the 4th of July my road lay up the valley. The
banks of the little stream were fined with most beautiful
green turf, producing all the characteristic plants already
mentioned. I took the right-hand branch of two which
here united, and, on looking up the other, observed that
the snow-fine on the northern slope of the mountains, at
its head, was very considerably above the level at which
I stood; its height, where lowest, seemed to be about
16,000 feet. In one small side-ravine there was an incipient
glacier. After leaving the cultivated lands the
valley became extremely stony and barren, fragments of
a brittle limestone rock being everywhere scattered about.
The vegetation changing to that of the alpine zone, several
new species of Astragalus and Phaca were collected.
Following the streamlet almost to its source, the road
afterwards ascended to the top of a steep ridge, elevated
probably a little more than 16,000 feet; this ridge was
rocky, or covered with shingle of a dark slate, which had
succeeded to the limestone. The yellow Thermopsis
was almost the only plant which grew on the summit,
from which I had a fine view of the pass crossed the
day before, and of the range of mountains I had left; but