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CAMPING IN CHAMBA. 



By Professor Harold Littledale, m.a. 

 {Read before the Bombay Natural History Society on 6th Dec, 1897.) 



It may be well to begin by saying that Chamba is the name of a Native 

 State in the Himalayas, north of the Gurdaspur district of the Punjab. 

 The British hill cantonments of Dalhousie and Dharmsala are on its southern 

 boundaries, and the nearest railway station is Pathankot. Thence it is 28 

 miles to Dunera, 23 more to Dalhousie, and finally 20 on to Chamba. The 

 river Eavi and its tributaries flow through the State, but unfortunately do 

 not add much to the sporting attractions of the country, for the fishing is said 

 to be exceedingly poor — in fact scarcely worth taking a rod for. However, the 

 shikar on the Chamba hills amply compensates for the lack of sport in the 

 rivers. The game to be found there includes Gooral (or Himalayan cha- 

 mois) ; Thar (a goat akin to the so-called " Ibex " of the Nilgiris) ; Bears, 

 both black {Tibetanus) and red (Isabellinus) ; Ibex (in Pangi and Kilar) ; 

 Leopards ; Serow (or goat-antelope); Musk-deer and Barasingh (both strictly 

 preserved) ; and great variety of pheasants, such as Monaul, Cheer, Koblass, 

 Tragopan (the Argus, wrongly so-called, of the Chamba Came-license) 

 and Kalij. Chukor are found in unusual numbers, and there are a few 

 woodcock. Game birds of course cannot be shot till September. Smaller 

 mammals abound, such as foxes, martens, weasels, and flying and other 

 squirrels. The woods and hill-sides offer many attractions to the lover 

 of wild flowers and ferns ; and the butterfly-hunter can have a very 

 good time with his net. But to the shikari the special attraction is 

 the thar and gooral shooting, which one is not able to get in Kashmir 

 proper. 



It may be admitted that Chamba is not comparable to Kashmir in variety 

 of sport or fineness of the trophies to be secured. A thar is not much 

 beside a markhor, nor a gooral beside an ibex or an Ovis arnmon ; but thar 

 and gooral both afford good sport, and are not to be bagged without some 

 hard work and steady shooting. Moreover, in Chamba game is far more 

 plentiful than in the Kashmir territories ; the scenery is in many places not 

 inferior ; and the facilities for obtaining coolies and supplies are far greater. 

 Lastly, nothing can exceed the kindness shown to visitors by His Highness the 

 Bajah of Chamba and the chief officials, concerning whom I shall speak mox*e 

 particularly further on. 



Early this year I resolved to try Chamba as a place for summer resort, and 

 took some trouble to find out about the ways and means of getting there, and 

 of obtaining sport when there. As my investigations and experiences may 

 prove useful to some of my fellow members who may wish to add thar and 



