90 Notes on the Pangong lake district of Ladahh. [N°- 2 > 



changed my route, sent back for the supplies and camp at Spang Mik, 

 and late in the evening, they had all arrived. Other advantages 

 accrued by following the south shore, viz., that I saw more of my 

 ground without having to ascend to very high peaks, there was 

 plenty of water and wood as far as the Chushal river, and the villages 

 extended farther. On the other hand, the northern shore » very 

 bare, and water is only obtainable by digging holes close to the edge 

 of the lake, into these water percolates, but only slightly less saline. 

 On the 22nd July, my march lay over the sandy, stony plain, skirt- 

 ing the shore of the Pangong, crossing two or three ravmes, where 

 actions are well displayed of former and higher levels of its waters 

 in sands, interstratified with an angular rubble like that distributed 

 over the present surface. At about eight miles from Man, the strag- 

 gling village of Meruk is passed on the right hand, and the last on the 

 Take Karkpet is three miles further. The level ground between the 

 shores and the foot of the mountains increases much in breadth 

 as one proceeds east, and the stream from Chushal gives, from a dis- 

 tance, no signs of its proximity, and I was rather surprised on coming 

 suddenly upon a fine body of water, flowing with a quiet current through 

 a narrow belt of green grass some 10 feet below the surface of the 

 plain. Finding plenty of wood and a nice green sheltered spot 

 nnder the bank, I pitched camp by the side of it. 



The extent of level ground here is considerable, quite ten square 

 miles, dotted over in the vicinity of the stream with a few low bushes 

 and over the rest grows a scanty coarse grass in tufts. Towards the 

 shore of the lake rise two very conspicuous isolated low rocky knobs a 

 mile apart, and between these is the confluence of the Chushal stream 

 and the Pangong Tso. The next morning I walked across and ascend- 

 ed the most eastern eminence, having the strange sounding name o 

 Tuggh Nuggu. This had formerly been a fortified post, the level 

 space at the top was enclosed by a low stone wall, while a detached 

 out-work had been built on the low spur that ran out on the east 

 side- none of my coolies, who were all from this district of Pangong, 

 could give any account of it, as to when or by whom it had been 

 built; it must be comparatively an ancient work, still considering how 

 soon events are forgotten by such men, its age may be only 150 to 

 200 years. It was a lowering morning; and before I had finished 





