332 Lieutenant R. Strachey on the 



thrown on the subject generally, by my shortly explaining 

 the state in which I have found the higher parts of the 

 mountains, at the different seasons during which 1 have 

 visited them. 



In the beginning of May, on the mountains to the east of 

 the R^mganga river, near Ntimik, I found the ground on the 

 summit of the ridge, called Champwi, not only perfectly free 

 from snow at an elevation of 12,000 feet, but covered with 

 flowers, in some places golden with Caltha and Ranunculus 

 polypetalus, in others purple with primulus. The snow had 

 in fact already receded to upwards of 12,500 feet, beyond 

 which even a few little gentians proclaimed the advent of 

 spring. 



Towards the end of the same month, at the head of the 

 Pindur, near the glacier from which that river rises, an open 

 spot on which I could pitch my tent could not be found above 

 12,000 feet. But here the accumulation of snow, which was 

 considerable in all ravines even below 11,000 feet, is mani- 

 festly the result of avalanches and drift. The surface of 

 the glacier, clear ice as well as moraines, was quite free 

 from snow up to nearly 13,000 feet ; but the effect of the 

 more retired position of the place in retarding the melting 

 of the snow, was manifest from the less advanced state of 

 the vegetation. During my stay at Pinduri, the weather 

 was very bad, and several inches of snow fell ; but excepting 

 where it had fallen on the old snow, it all melted off again 

 in a few hours, even without the assistance of the sun's di- 

 rect rays. On the glacier at 13,000 feet, it had all disap- 

 peared twelve hours after it fell. 



On revisiting Pinduri about the middle of October, the 

 change that had taken place was very striking. Now not a 

 sign of snow was to be seen on any pai't of the road up to 

 the very head of the glacier ; a luxuriant vegetation had 

 sprung up, but had already almost entirely perished, and its 

 remains covered the ground as far as I went. From this ele- 

 vation, about 13,000 feet, evident signs of vegetation could 

 be seen to extend far up the less precipitous mountains. 

 The place is not one at which the height of the perpetual 

 snow can be easily estimated, for on all sides are glaciers, 



