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National Geographic : 1902 Nov
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THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE plished, following the glacier to its source, 30 miles northwest of the vil lage of Arandu, and also throughout their whole course three of its large terminal tributaries. In all, 55 miles of glacier were examined. This is the first time the upper half of this glacier and its branches have been visited. Its de lineation on the maps was found entirely incorrect and mostly the work of imag ination. The Chogo Lungma ascends from its end to its point of origin over 9,000 feet, exceeding in this respect by 3,000 feet the Biafo Glacier, explored by the same parties in 1899. It takes its rise in a wall of ice and snow, the top of which is 20,000 feet, connecting two high peaks, one of which has been fixed by the Indian Survey at 24,486 feet, and the other is not much lower. Its upper part takes one among a group of mountain massifs, several of which reach heights of over 24,000 feet, in the highest degree beautiful, majestic, and impressive. Its surface is much broken. In many parts wide crevasses seam it in every direction, huge seracs of curious and varied forms shag it, and in the higher portions ice falls tax the skill of the explorer to find a way through and around them. The glacier bears several large medial moraines 80 to 1oo feet high, contrib uted by the terminal branches. A deep depression at one point is occupied by a good-sized lake. Impassable ice falls occur in most of the tributary glaciers. The gradient is gentle except for the last few miles, where it is sharp. One of the branch glaciers leads to a broad ice pass at a height of 17,500 feet, beneath the northern slopes of Mt. Haramosh, 24,285 feet, whence another glacier plunges rapidly downward to valleys leading to the Indus. First ascents were made of four peaks and two cols. One of the last, a wall of ice covered with snow rising at angles of 450 to 600, afforded a climb of excep tional alpine difficulty. Every step had tobecutfrom6a.m.to1.30p.m., when the crowning ridge, something over 19,000 feet, was reached. The descent was more difficult and danger ous than the ascent, owing to the soften ing of the covering layer of snow by the burning sun. The weather was unfavorable most of the time. Scarcely two days in suc cession were clear. Much new soft snow was met with in the higher parts of all the glaciers, rendering progress slow and difficult. The depth at one point measured 34 inches, which was a fair average over considerable distances covered. The party was detained at one high camp sixty hours by a severe snow-storm. Many days and nights were passed at high snow camps at altitudes of 16,ooo to over 19,000 feet. Stone cairns were built at points where the material for building them existed, in which records were left. To the three altitude records made by Mrs Bullock Workman on the last expedition, the highest being 21,000 feet, she has now added a fourth, being the only woman who has made the first ascent of one of the great Himalayan glaciers or any other of equal size. The thanks of the explorers are due to the English officials at Srinagar for moral and material aid in obtaining transport, and to His Highness the Maharaja of Kashmir and his brother, Gen. Raja Sir Amar Singh, who took a friendly interest in the expedition, ordering all officials along the route taken to provide coolies and supplies and render any other needful assist ance. Dr Karl Oestreich, of Frankfurt, ac companied the expedition as topogra pher and Mattia Zurbriggen and Muller Giuseppi as guides. Many photographs were secured. F.B.W. 4o06
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