For some reason or other, Khalik struck fear into the
hearts of all these poor people. Grass, grain, eggs,
etc., had been collected beforehand, so it was not
long before all were comfortably settled down for the
evening.
Twelve miles distant, at tha head of the valley, was
the Chang La (18,000 feet), a trying pass at all times
of the year, for not only is it usually deep in snow,
covering innumerable large, loose boulders, but it also
has an evil reputation for mountain-sickness. Our
guides had informed us that it was practicable, but
a further report received in the evening on the condition
of the snow was not very encouraging. We
had, however, a large number of yaks at hand, so it
was decided to load these up with half-loads, and allow
the ponies to cross the pass unburdened.
Our next halting-place was Zingral, a flat spot of
about twenty acres in extent, situated on the near
side of the pass, 2200 feet below the summit ; the
road leading to this place lay along the river-bed,
as the ordinary path, high up the mountain-side, was
still under snow.
We found here the remains of a hut which previously
afforded a welcome shelter to belated travellers; only
the walls and a part of the roof are now standing. We
also obtained good water, but all grain, wood and grass
had to be brought up from the village below. Our
encampment that night appeared rather formidable,
consisting as it did of about 150 men and 120 animals
—many of the men having volunteered their services
merely to assist the yaks and ponies in the passage
of the Chang La.
We rose at 3 a.m. the next morning, with the
idea of reaching the top of the pass, if possible before
the sun had begun to melt the O snow7; the baDggo agOe
was loaded by the light of the stars, and after a hard
struggle up the western slope the highest point was
gained before the sun rose over the eastern peaks.
All were somewhat exhausted by this climb, but
though the going had been bad, it was nothing
compared with what was before us. For seven or
eight miles down the eastern side of the pass the
snow lay fifteen to twenty feet deep, and though the
surface had thawed during the previous day under
the heat of the sun, yet it had frozen again during
the night. The result was that a crust had been
formed which was firm enough to support a man, but
nowhere sufficiently strong to bear the weight of a
baggage animal, with or without a burden.
This brittle covering broke as the weight of an
animal was thrown on each leg in tu rn ; a quick, sharp
scramble ensued, leaving the panting beast, with his
belly on the crust and his legs in the soft snow
beneath, quite powerless to help himself. We counted
twelve ponies in this predicament at one time. The
method of procedure that was adopted as a means of
rescue was as follows : The animal was seized by the
tail, ears, mane and rug, and forcibly hauled from his
temporary grave, only, however, to be in a similar
position five minutes later. This continual struggling
not only weakened the ponies considerably, but cut
their legs and faces badly ; so much so, indeed, that a
clearly marked trail of blood indicated the route taken
from the top of the pass.
Fortunately the day was cloudless, without a breath
of wind, so, although both men and beasts were much
exhausted, we managed with sundry halts to make our
way down the valley, and by two o’clock in the afternoon
had left the snow behind.
The yaks had displayed their wonderful powers