40 Extracts from the “ Journal of a Surveytoexplore (Jury, 
Road generally level on bank of the river: cross an avalanche 
of great magnitude, being a fall of lumps of snow like large 
rocks, it has brought down, and broke to pieces, all the cedar 
trees in its path: perpendicular rocky precipices rise imme- 
diately from the river bed to the height of 1500 and 2000 feet ; 
high snow peaks on all sides ; large cedars at their feet. 
An exceedingly steep ascent; river not visible, but close 
below mountains with bare peaks; not a blade of herbage on 
their rocky sides. In front, Decani snowy peak ; to our left a 
mountain called T’hui. The south side of Decani is washed by 
the Bhagirat’hi, and the north side by the Jahni Ganga or Jah- 
nevi, their confluence being at Bhairog’hati. This place is 
called Ratenta. 
Another steep and toilsome ascent. 
Descent over broken fragments of peak. A rocky precipice 
nearly mural, of 1000 feet, overhangs the right bank of the 
Ganges, which here, as usual, rushes over rocks with an impe- 
tuous and foaming current. In front is the gigantic peak Decani 
rising immediately from the bed of the river, on the left, almost 
equally high, one of T’hui; below immense masses of granite 
overhang the river. The scenery is very grand. Very large 
cedars here. 
A sweep from 8. to E. brings us to that most terrific and 
really awful looking place called Bhairog’hati. 
The descent to the sangha is of the steepest kind, and partly 
bya ladder. The sangha is inclined far from the level, and, as 
seen from the height above it, cannot fail to inspire the beholder 
with anxiety as to his safe passage over it. It is indeed by far 
the most formidable sangha I have seen; the height of the plat- 
form above the river, we measured by dropping the chain ; it 
was 60 feet. One is apt at first sight to estimate it at much 
more ; however, this height added to the circumstances of the 
narrowness of the sangha (about 24 feet wide), its elasticity, and 
its inclined position, 1s sufficient to render its passage disagree- 
ble, it being (like all the rest) quite open at the sides. It is laid 
from one side of the precipice to the other; the end on the left 
bank is the highest; the precipices in some places are quite 
perpendicular, in most, nearly so, rising to the height of 3000 
feet above the stream; they are of compact granite. On some 
ledges there is a little soil where the cedars fix their roots. The 
river below the sanghais closely confined by the wall-like rocks, 
which are perfectly perpendicular, and its course is thus bounded 
nearly to Gangautri. The breadth of the stream is about 45 feet, 
and it is deep under the bridge. 
Turn to the left by a rocky path to our tent, which is in a very 
strange place for a tent to be in; and one of the most curious 
sights among many here, is to see a little tent pitched under vast 
overhanging masses of rock at the confluence of these two 
rivers, the Bhagirat’hi, and its foaming rival the Jahni Ganga, or 
