34 TOOTE : GEOLOGICAL STRUCTURE OF THE EASTERN COAST. 



of fia-htino*. The upper part of the central valley lies in the strike of the 

 beddin^. The extent to which the southern peak * has been cut up by 

 jointing is quite extraordinary, and the natives say the peak is inaccessible 

 from its extreme ruggedness. This statement is probably based more on 

 their fears of some leopards which inhabit the caves on the hill, than upon 

 the real inaccessibility. 



The most important and conspicuous mass of the hornblendic variety 



is the Chimakurti mountain. As already men- 



Chimakurti mountain. tit , i <• , 



tioned, the hornblendic rock here forms a great 



elliptical area, 8 miles in length and nearly 5 across its greatest 



width. The southern half of this ellipse is occupied by the mountain 



and its rocky spurs, which extend some distance into the northern half. 



At the extreme north end are two considerable and very rugged hills 



formed of the same intensely black rock. The whole mountain is very 



bare, and but little soil exists for vegetation to be possible, and the usual 



native recklessness has denuded the slopes of what little wood might 



grow there if any attempt at conservation were made. Despite the 



bareness of the mountain, the bedding of the rocks is not easy to make 



out, it being very obscure to begin with, and also much concealed by the 



great masses of loose and confusedly tumbled blocks which cover much 



of the summits and slopes. It is best seen by descending some distance 



on the northern side of the summit, to where a good view is obtained 



of the great northern spurs. The southern elliptical curve is distinctly 



traceable here, though very obscure on the southern slopes. The rock is 



a coarse hornblendo-felspathie, and apparently quartzless, compound of 



dark greyish-black colour weathering to absolute black. The north-east 



faces of the various summits are all coated with grey and white lichens, 



due doubtless to the effect of the north-east monsoon. The highest 



summit, on which is a Trigonometrical Station, attains the height of 



1 1 was unfortunately unable to get a guide to show the way to the summit, which 

 must command a noble panorama, and had not the time to seek a path for myself through the 

 bewildering chaos of large blocks amongst which no track can be made out from below. I 

 think the summit would certainly be reachable from the north side. 



( 34 ) 



