VALLEY OF THE RAVI. 15 
have set me to rights, and I am now preparing to start for the Kara- 
koram range, which will be the termination of my travels. 
If my letter of the second of June reached you, as I hope it did, you 
will be aware that I had received the sanction of Government to my 
continuing my journey, and returning to Thibet for the purpose of 
visiting the mountains to the north of the Indus. In that letter, I 
believe, I mentioned to you the route which I intended to follow, and 
the plan which I there laid down has scarcely been in the least deviated 
from. From Bhadarwa I was obliged to cross a mountain range into 
the valley of the Ravi; the snowy range to the south of the Chenab, in 
which direction I wished to go, being impassable without making a 
détour. One day's journey took me to the top of this range, and I en- 
camped close to the summit at an elevation of 10,000 feet, among large 
patches of snow. The vegetation at this point was pretty much the 
same as on the ridge I had crossed two days before. The snow having 
but recently melted, only the earliest spring plants were in flower, 
principally Primula denticulata and rosea, a very beautiful Gentian, a 
Valerian, Trillium, &c. The trees were only just beginning to show 
their leaves ; but Rhododendron campanulatum and Viburnum nervosum 
were covered with blossoms. From this ridge I followed for three 
days the course of a stream descending towards the Ravi ina S. E. 
direction, snowy ridges still preventing me from proceeding north as 
I wished to do. At last on the fourth day, I reached a stream which 
from the north joined that I had been following, and turning up it, 
three more marches brought me close to a pass over the high snowy 
range to the south of the Chenab. During these six marches I descended 
a little below 5,000 feet, and reascended again to 10,500. At the 
lowest point which I reached the transition in the vegetation had com- 
menced, but was far from complete. Oaks had not disappeared, but 
Olea, Xanthoxylon, an Acacia, the common Hill Fig, Cesalpinia sepiaria, 
&c. had become common. The Oak was Quercus lanata, accom- 
panied as usual by Rhododendron arboreum and Pieris (And: da) ovali 
folia. These trees were all absent at Bhadarwa, and as a general rule 
they seem to be confined to the outer ranges of the mountains, and not 
to penetrate into the valleys between the branches of the snowy range. 
On the 11th of June I had reached the upper part of the valley 
which I had been following, and encamped at the elevation of 10,500 
L2 
