1 82 SNOWY MOUNTAINS. THE CLIMATE 



the elevation is 13,000 feet above sea-level. The 

 rocks are mostly siliceous slate and felspathic por- 

 phyry. There are hardly any cliffs or chasms on 

 the north ; water is abundant, and the southern side 

 is beyond comparison more fertile than any part of 

 Northern Tibet that we saw. The soil is sandy, but 

 owing to plentiful moisture the valleys and slopes 

 are well clothed with grass. 



Between the Shuga and Baian-kara-ula chains 

 lies a terrible desert 14,500 feet above the level of 

 the sea,^ for the most part undulating, dotted here 

 and there with groups of hills hardly more than 

 1,000 feet above the plain. 



The only snowy mountains are the Gurbu-7iaidji 

 (in Tangutan Achiun-gonchik)l^ lyirig" towards the 

 north-west, and which would seem to form the 

 commencement of the Kuen-lun system. For the 

 Mongols say that a continuous succession of moun- 

 tains extends hence a long way to the west, now 

 rising above and again sinking below the snow-line. 

 In the eastern part of this system, other snowy 

 peaks besides the Gurbu-naidji rise from the groups 

 of Yusim-obo and Tsagan-nir. 



The elevated plateau between the Shuga and 

 Baian-kara-ula chains is typical of the deserts of 

 Northern Tibet in general. The climate and natural 

 character of this region are simply awful. The soil 

 is clay mixed with sand or shingle, and almost 



' Lake Bitkha-nor is 14,000 ft., and the Heitun-shirik swamp at 

 the northern foot of the Baian-kara-ula, 14,900 ft. above sea-level. 

 ^ These mountains were forty miles to the west of our route. 



