RECORD ASCENTS IN THE HIMALAYAS 



DR WILLIAM HUNTER 

 WORKMAN and Mis Fanny 

 Bullock Workman, members of 

 the National Geographic Society and 

 authors of ' ' In the Ice World of Hima- 

 laya," have completed their second con- 

 secutive season of high climbing and 

 exploration in the northwest Himalayas, 

 in the region lying between 74 55' 

 to 75 40' east longitude and 35 ° 45' to 

 36 north latitude. As previously 

 stated,* their attention last year was 

 given to the first exploration of the 

 long Chogo Loongma glacier and its 

 large terminal tributary glaciers, and 

 to ascents of various peaks and passes 

 on these glaciers. 



The party consisted this season of 

 Doctor and Mrs Workman, J. Petigax, 

 C. Savoie, and L. Petigax, guides of 

 Courmayeur, and B.Hewett, of Loudon, 

 surveyor. The Hoh Lumba and Sosbon 

 glaciers, running noithwest from the 

 Bralches Valley, were first visited. 

 Neither of thes; had been previously 

 explored, and they were found to be of 

 quite different topography from that in- 

 dicated on Indian Survey Map, 27a 

 N. E. In fact, the Sosbon is sketched 

 on said map only as a small branch of 

 the Hoh Lumba. From the village of 

 Hoh, altitude 9,400 feet, the Hoh Val- 

 ley was ascended for about 8 miles to 

 Nanghmah Tapsa, a grazing ground at 

 11,800 feet. From here the ascent was 

 continued over a large old moraine, 

 covered with great blocks and well 

 wooded. This old moraine is followed 

 by one of much newer appearance, 

 covered with smaller rocks and scant3 r 

 vegetation, and there are evident signs 

 of a rapid retreat of this glacier of late 

 years. Above all this was a large 

 moraine ridge rising to 50 feet above 

 the glacier level. Crossing this the 

 real glacier was attacked at 13,000 feet. 

 Beyond here, it being early summer, 

 the glacier, lateral moraines, and lower 

 mountain spurs were all heavily coated 



* Nat. Geog. Mag., Vol. XIII, pp. 405-406. 



with winter snow and snow camps wei e 

 everywhere necessary. 



One night was passed at 14,400 feet 

 and two at 15,600 feet, at the base of 

 the only depression in the chain of 

 mighty rock needles which encircle the 

 upper end of the Hoh Lumba. This 

 depression, instead of being a long, easy 

 snow pass crossing to a glacier connect- 

 ing with the Hispar glacier, as marked 

 on the survey map, is an immense over- 

 hanging snow cornice surmounting a 

 high, difficult serac fall. It was as- 

 cended in six hours by Dr and Mrs 

 Workman and guides from the highest 

 camp. The height, calculated by hyp- 

 someter, later compared with lo.wer- 

 statiou mercurial barometer readings 

 taken at the same hours, was 18,600 

 feet. From the great cornice overlook- 

 ing an abyss of 7,000 feet a medium- 

 sized glacier was observed running in a 

 westerly direction, probably to the His- 

 par glacier. The length of the Hoh 

 Lumba from its snout to the base of the 

 great col is about nine miles. On the 

 west side of the southern end three 

 small glaciers debouch into the main 

 stream, and on the east a larger feeder 

 enters near the south end. Above this 

 on the east, four miles from the snout 

 of the Hoh glacier, a large glacier of 

 similar importance with the Hoh Lumba 

 comes in, called the Sosbon. Its course 

 is approximately parallel with the Hoh 

 Lumba, and its length from its junction 

 with this is five miles to the col at its 

 source. 



Camps were established on this gla- 

 cier, which was ascended and surveyed, 

 and measurements and angles were taken 

 to determine the rate of movement, and 

 angles also taken to ascertain the heights 

 of various peaks on this and on the Hoh 

 Lumba. 



The middle of July the party returned 

 to the chief camp of last year at 14,000 

 feet on the Chogo Loongma glacier. 

 Here they were imprisoned nearly the 

 whole of the last two weeks of the month 



