Chap. XXII. 



THE SNOWY RANGE. 



381 



this mountain I had my first good view of the snowy 

 range. We had stopped for the night at a Dak 

 bungalow. Next morning when we resumed our 

 march a light drizzling rain was falling, and heavy 

 clouds were hanging in masses about the sides of the 

 hills. These clouds were not only above us, but they 

 were also seen far down in the glens below. As I 

 turned to look on this strange and wonderful scenery, 

 the snowy mountains lay before me in all their 

 grandeur, and the sun was shining on them. To say 

 that they rose far above the clouds conveys no idea 

 of their height, for I was above the clouds on the 

 spot where I stood. Their snowy peaks seemed to 

 reach to heaven itself, and to pierce the deep-blue 

 sky. 



Never in all my wanderings had such a view been 

 presented to my eyes. It was indeed grand and 

 sublime in the fullest sense of the words. How little 

 the most gigantic works of man seemed when com- 

 pared with these ! The pyramids of Egypt themselves, 

 which I had looked upon in wonder some years 

 before, now sank into utter insignificance! I could 

 have looked for hours upon such glorious objects, but 

 the clouds soon closed in around me, and I saw the 

 snowy range no more. 



After crossing the Gaughur we gradually de- 

 scended its southern sides until we reached the 

 Bheem Tal tea-plantations. 



The lake of Bheem Tal is situated in latitude 

 29° 20' north and in longitude 79° 30' east. It is 

 4000 feet above the level of the sea, and some of 



