A CONTRIBUTION TO THE ORNITHOLOGY OF NEPAL. 215 



region — a view quite confirmed by its vegetation and avi- 

 fauna. 



Nawakot is the name of a small town and district, about 

 twenty-two miles by road and sixteen miles in a direct line, 

 north-west of Kathmandu on the main road from the valley of 

 Nepal to Gorkha. The road to Nawakot starts from the north- 

 west corner of the Great Valley and passes across the Kakani hill. 

 The path lies at first over very rough g-round, and, constantlv 

 rising and sinking, runs along the side of the hill, which is in 

 this part quite bare of trees. From the pass on the crest of 

 the hill a fine view is obtained of the snows ; immediately below 

 at the northern base of the Kakani Ridge flows the Sindhuria 

 river, and further out the Likhu and Sadi rivers in their straths, 

 the streams all running in a general westerly direction. 



From the crest of the hill there is a steady descent to 

 Chutrali Powah, which is about twelve or thirteen miles from 

 Kathmandu. Here the fact that we have reached a much 

 lower level than the Nepal Valley is made evident by the 

 considerably higher temperature of the air, and by the appear- 

 ance of trees, such as the Banian, not found in the great valley. 

 From Chutrali Powah one gets a most picturesque view of 

 the Nawakot district, which may be called roughly triano-ular 

 in shape. The base of the triangle is formed by a lofty rano-e 

 of hills to the north, whose lower slopes are principally covered 

 with a forest of Finns longifolia. The western side of the 

 district is limited by the Trisul Ganga flowing down from the 

 northern hill-barrier to a little west of south; to the rio-ht 

 the district is bounded on the east by the ends of the spurs 

 which separate the Tadi, Likhu and Sindhuria rivers; while on 

 the southern side is the Kakani or Burmandi Rido-e which 

 separates Nawakot from the Nepal Valley. The apex of the 

 triangle is at Devighat, on the south-west, where the Tadi river 

 falls into the Trisul Ganga. From Dhaibung or Jibjibia, the 

 most prominent peak of the hills to the north of Nawakot 

 a spur runs down in a south-westerly direction between the 

 Trisul Ganga and Tadi rivers. The town of Nawakot is situated 

 on the crest of this spur at the northern extremity of the 

 district, and its lofty red brick Durbar is conspicuous from 

 Chutrali Powah. The Nawakot spur has its soil of a marked 

 red colour, and nearly the whole of its slope towards the Tadi 

 river is covered with a forest of SSil trees. 



From Chutrali Powah there is a steep descent to the bed of the 

 Sindhuria stream, the path being bordered on each side by 

 the most luxuriant vegetation. From the base of the Bur- 

 mandi hill the road lies along the glen of the Sindhuria to the 

 junction of that stream with the Tadi. About four miles above 



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