34 
REPORT ON A BOTANICAL TOUR IN KASHMIR, 1893. 
northern side of the valley that peculiar grey-glaucous appearance 
so characteristic of the scenery of the dry country around Astor 
and Gilgit. 
At the lower and western end of the Gurais valley, where the 
river begins to turn southwards in the direction of Kanzalwdn, is 
a remarkable forest composed chiefly of the white poplar (Populus 
alba) ; and about a quarter of a mile lower down the valley, and 
on the same side of the river (the left bank), there is a similar piece 
of forest. The trees are growing close together, and when viewed 
from the steep hill above, their tops present a level mass of com- 
pact foliage, a few individual trees projecting here and there. The 
chief interest attached to this forest is the large size of the trees, 
their average height being over 100 feet, Mr. W. Mitchell, who hap- 
pened to be, at Gurais at the time, kindly assisted me in making some 
measurements. The largest specimen we could find was 127J 
feet high and 16 feet in girth at 7 feet from the ground,^ In the 
** Forest Flora of North-West and Central India, Sir D. Brandis 
gives the maximum size of Pvpulus alba in Indians 40 feet in height 
and 8 feet in girth. 
The undergrowth of this forest is composed chiefly of a tall, 
handsome Senecio {S, chenopodifoltus) and a low-growing kind of 
bramble. A few isolated specimens of pine, spruce, and silver fir 
are met Mth ; also Populus ctltala^y two species of willow, Crataegus 
Oxyacanthay Viburnum foetenSy and Hippophae rhamnoides ; this 
latter forms large thickets a little higher up the valley. 
After a short stay at Gurais, I made an expedition to the Shersdr 
lake on the Deosdi plains. As far as Chilam, on the further side 
of the Dorikun pass, the new Gilgit road is followed, and from there 
a path up the Balsir valley leads direct to the lake. On the first 
day I went as far as Bangla, where the road from the Kamri pass 
comes in, and thence to Minimarg at the junction of the Nagai river. 
This is really a larger stream than the Burzil before they become 
united. It rises near the pass leading over into the Shingo valley. 
There are a few houses at Minimarg, and some cultivated fields 
where buckwheat is grown. The elevation is about io,ooo feet. 
I made a short march on the following day (September 13th) 
to Burzil, and in the afternoon I was able to explore some good 
botanical ground along the path leading direct to Skdrdu from here. 
Several interesting plants, as well as seeds, were collected up to 
about 12,000 feet. The rock here is granite. 
I went over the pass on the 14th to Chilam, a distance of eighteen 
miles. This is rather a long march, but perfectly easy when the 
