KASHMIR AND LADAK 
is too severe a form of sport can spend a delightful time without leaving 
the Vale of Kashmir, living on a houseboat as comfortable as those on the 
Thames ; and they can get a fair chance at bear and stag, without going very 
far afield. 
In the old days there used to be a great rush for the favourite nullahs as 
soon as the season opened, chiefly among the soldiers who came up on 
leave from India; but this has been a good deal lessened of late years by 
limiting the number of sportsmen who may enter Ladak and Changchenmo, 
both first and second leave. Now that the country of the Ovis hodgsoni and 
sharpoo has been divided up into blocks for their further protection, if the 
sportsman has secured one of these, by an early application to the Game 
Warden, he knows that that particular block is reserved for him alone, 
and consequently he need not hurry unduly on the road. 
The Markhor nullahs in the Kajnag range are allotted in this manner 
by the Game Preservation Department, and they are easy of access; but 
few good heads have been obtained there of late years. 
The racing for favourite nullahs is an unsatisfactory business, as, in 
addition to the hard work and double marching involved, sometimes 
one man gets ahead of another in the middle of the night and a good deal 
of ill-feeling results. To establish a claim to an unreserved nullah one 
must actually be camped in it oneself, and it is not sufficient to have a 
tent sent on and pitched in advance. 
As in all mountain countries, two men cannot hunt satisfactorily from 
the same camp, and should two friends wish to visit Kashmir together 
they must make up their minds to separate when approaching the 
shooting ground; of course, if they can secure neighbouring nullahs 
they can arrange to meet from time to time and possibly exchange their 
hunting grounds. 
Those who wish to penetrate to the Pamirs in quest of Ovis poli will 
have to procure special permits, which are occasionally granted to travel 
via Gilgit; but so few heads of decent dimensions have been secured of 
recent years in the Tugdumbash Pamir that it really looks as if all the big 
ones had died off, either from rinderpest or some kindred complaint; and 
unless permission could be got to hunt on the Russian side, which is almost 
impossible at present, the journey is hardly worth making. But one may 
take that road to the magnificent hunting grounds of the Tian Shan and 
perhaps see a good head on the way. 
Mountain shooting should only be attempted by those in the best of 
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