NOTES

1. The Khillanmarg Avalanche, 1936
2. The Survey of the Kumaun Himalaya
3. Exploration and Climbing in the Sikkim Himalaya
4. Kolahoi in 1926
5. Himalayan Club Hut at Mome Samdong, Sikkim
6. Siwalik Erosion
7. The Watts-Leiga Photo-theodolite
8. The Naming of Peaks in the Himalaya
9. Rules for the Engagement of Porters
10. Correction to Himalayan Journal, vol. viii, 1936

 

 

Early in 1936 a disastrous avalanche fell from the slopes of Apharwat behind Gulmarg, in Kashmir, and overwhelmed the hut erected by the Ski Club of India. Three British officers and the chowkidar who were in the hut lost their lives.

The hut was an extremely strong structure, built on the Canadian system of logs dovetailed into each other, the roof and sides being strongly bolted together. It was erected during the summer of 1932 on a site chosen with considerable care by a committee which had the advice of the Chief Conservator of Forests and of the local people. The site was believed to be absolutely immune from avalanches. In view of the extraordinary features of the disaster we publish a brief report which has been communicated by Major- General R. G. Wilson.

The Ski Club of India holds two meetings annually from their headquarters in Nedou's Hotel at Gulmarg (8,700 feet). The best ski-ing slopes are found on the plateau of Khillanmarg (10,100 feet), where the Club hut is situated, and on Apharwat mountain (13,592 feet) across the plateau. From Gulmarg to the hut the track leads through fir woods for two miles and rises 1,400 feet in that distance. The first photograph shows the Club hut and the caretaker's hut in the foreground; in the middle distance is the Khillanmarg plateau, rising 500 feet in 1,100 yards to the foot of the Apharwat ridge. This ridge forms the background of the illustration and rises 3,100 feet in 2,100 yards. A buttress of Apharwat projects towards the hut, on each side of which there is a depression. The ski tracks in the foreground lead from the woods mentioned above to the hut, a distance of 200 yards. The photograph was taken at Christmas 1935 when there were three and a half feet of snow on the plain.

In February 1936 a meeting was held which ended on the 25th, when most of the members left. Snow had been falling since the 22nd February, and conditions were not good for ski-ing. On the 27th February three members of the Ski Club¹ went up with their kit to the hut with the intention of staying there a few days, the caretaker only being with them. With short intervals it snowed continually from the 22nd February onwards.

On the 4th March Khillanmarg was visited by the two brothers of the caretaker. They found no trace of the hut or its occupants. On the 6th March a search party arrived from Srinagar and found one level expanse of snow. After eight hours' work the hut was located under 14 feet of snow.

 

The view was much as in the second illustration which was taken from the site of the hut and shows in the foreground the snow disturbed by the digging operations. There was, at the time, no other sign of disturbance.

When a portion of the hut had been uncovered, it was found that the roof had gone and the walls had been pushed over towards the right (west), but were standing. The bodies of the victims were found in the sleeping-room with ski kit and boots on; two were lying on bunks and the third reading near the fire. The caretaker was sitting over the fire in the next room. Unconsciousness had been instantaneous. The hut was packed with snow, over and under everything, and was a mass of beams and debris.

The damage done to the trees below the hut was tremendous, between 250 and 300 trees of ages ranging from 60 to 200 years having been broken and uprooted. The area damaged in the woods below the hut was half a mile wide and extended for a distance of a mile. There was a certain amount of damage on the flanks of this area.

As one of the victims left some notes of the doings of the party which were written up after dinner on the 29th February, and as they were fully dressed when found, it is almost certain that the catastrophe occurred during the day of the 1st March. From investigations made by an experienced member of the Club towards the end of March, on the spot, and from the observations of those who took part in the search, it is surmised that the disaster was due to an enormous fall of snow from Apharwat. This avalanche was accompanied by a great wind, which was sufficient to remove the roof of the hut and cause most of the damage to the trees. The snow was very deep everywhere and huge accumulations were found in the woods below the hut, in the course of the avalanche.

The second illustration, taken towards the end of March, shows a very great change in the middle distance. It has been marked to show the probable course of the avalanche. The sequence of events was probably somewhat as follows:

A very heavy snowfall lasting for more than a week accumulated in the form of masses of powder snow on the old substratum of crust. This powder snow collected in drifts in the depressions on and to the sides of the Khillan- marg plateau, filling them and levelling the whole plateau. At the same time it collected and lay in unstable masses on the steep slopes of Apharwat.

A high wind caused the snow on these slopes to slide; and owing to the levelling-out of the nullahs which normally catch such falls, the avalanche took an unusual course across the plateau itself. The powder snow must have flowed almost as water, spreading out as it went, and the end of the fan caught the hut.

No appreciation or praise can be too great for the prompt assistance, in conditions of extreme difficulty and no little danger, given by the members of the search party. This included officials of the Kashmir State, European ladies and gentlemen, and other residents of Srinagar, as well as local inhabitants.

This report is based on the very thorough investigation carried out by Captain Bruce Bakewell at the end of March, with the assistance of those ladies and gentlemen.

 

There are certain extraordinary features about the disaster. Medical evidence confirmed that death was instantaneous. No effort had been made by any member of the party to escape. At the time of the avalanche one was lying on a bunk reading a paper, a second was sitting on a bench, having made a cup of tea, the third was asleep. Everything was firmly packed with snow. The conclusion reached in the official report issued by the Ski Club of India is that the avalanche turned to the east at the 'Bump', swept down over the marg, and spread out, preceded by a terrific wind. The blast of this wind tore off the roof of the hut and killed the inmates instantly. With the wind would be immense quantities of very fine-grained powder snow which must have filled the roofless hut at once. The hut seems to have been on the extreme western edge of the avalanche which followed the wind and powder snow, and it was this fact, and the spreading out of the avalanche westwards, that pushed the walls over to the west.

A very special word of praise is due to the staff and boys of Canon Tyndale-Biscoe's Church Mission School in Srinagar. This is hardly the place to mention, except in passing, the immense benefits institutions such as this and the Mission Hospital have brought to the people of Kashmir. The work of both has been the admiration of all visitors to Kashmir for over fifty years. The first news of the disaster reached Srinagar on Thursday the 5th March. A party from the school immediately volunteered for rescue work, and by 7 o'clock the next morning a party composed of staff and students, including Mr. and Mrs. Eric Tyndale-Biscoe, and Dr. Marian Smyth, of the C.M.S. Women's Hospital, were working with shovels at the site of the hut. It was not discovered till 4 p.m. The Governor of Kashmir, Rajah Mohamed Afzal Khan, had already taken prompt and energetic steps in sending up coolies to assist in the digging, and himself arrived during the day to superintend the work. No praise can be too high for the promptness of the action taken by the search parties.

 

 

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In the Himalayan Journal, vol. viii, 1936, p. 145, a brief account of the progress of the modern survey of the Garhwal and Kumaun Himalaya was given. The following short note of the work during 1936 has been received from Major Gordon Osmaston, who was in charge.

'The Survey of India has continued the modern half-inch survey of the Tehri and British Garhwal Himalaya. The area completed during 1936 includes the Great Himalaya from Bandarpunch in the west to Nanda Devi in the east. The Gangotri glacier and the watershed separating it from the Alaknanda has at last been completely surveyed. Smythe, Birnie, Shipton, Tilman, and Marco Pallis have all tackled this area since 1930, and the present survey is a fitting conclusion to their explorations. It is largely due to these expeditions that attention was drawn to the limitations of the old maps, and that the necessity of a new survey was made apparent. Major Osmaston, helped by Mr. Shipton, did a photo-survey of the Nanda Devi basin in the autumn, just after the mountain had been climbed by the Anglo- American party.'

From another source comes a tale of adventure during the survey of the Gangotri glacier earlier in the season. Mr. Fazal Elahi, of the Survey of India, was camped near the head of the Gangotri glacier with four khalasis when he was caught by the early arrival of the monsoon and completely snow-bound. His supply coolies, who had gone to the mouth of the glacier for fuel and rations, were unable to reach him, and after five days of bad weather, and with fuel and food exhausted, Fazal Elahi decided to abandon camp and make for Gaumukh at the glacier snout. The five set out with two blankets each and the plane-table map. Sinking into the fresh snow up to their waists at every step, they made little progress during the day, and were forced to spend the night huddled together in the snow with no food and more snow falling.

The next day they were weaker, and had to abandon one blanket each. They struggled on all day through the soft snow, eventually reaching an ablation valley at the edge of the glacier after covering in all about three miles. Here they spent a second night in the snow in an exhausted state, having been without food for two days. On the morning of the third day it was only Fazal Elahi's fine example that got his men to move. Having discarded their last blanket, they stumbled on in the remote chance that their coolies might possibly come to look for them. Late in the afternoon it seemed certain that they would have to spend a third night in the snow, this time without blankets. Suddenly in the dusk figures were seen. In the last few moments before the rescuers arrived three of the khalasis collapsed and had to be carried into camp. Fazal Elahi and the other managed with support to get in under their own steam. All were badly frost-bitten and had to have their boots cut away. The whole party deserves the highest praise for their courage and endurance.

It may perhaps be mentioned that during this survey one of Major Osmaston's regular theodolite stations in the Gangotri region was at about 21,000 feet; it is believed to be the highest theodolite station of the Indian Survey directly connected to the Indian triangulation.

 

 

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A paper by Lieut.-Col. Tobin under the above title was published in the Himalayan Journal, vol. ii, 1930. The Honorary Secretary, Eastern Section, has sent me some notes of climbs since 1929, and I had hoped to find time to compile a complete list of peaks climbed and attempted up to date in Sikkim, but I am afraid I must leave it to some enthusiastic member of the Eastern Section who has the necessary time. Meanwhile the following list, amplified and rearranged from Mrs. Townend's notes, taken in conjunction with Colonel Tobin's paper, will, it is hoped, be found useful. The mountains are placed in alphabetical order, with approximate geographical co-ordinates measured from Kurz's map, Das Massiv des Kangchendzonga, where possible. Outside the area of this map reference is made to the Survey of India maps 77d and 78a, while in the area of the Zemu glacier, Bauer's map, issued with the Himalayan Journal, vol. vii, 1935, is quoted. References to papers dealing with the climbs which have been published in Himalayan Journals are also given.

⁴Black Peak:

Chomiomo.

Choten Nyima La, West Peak.

Kang Peak.

Lachsi.

'Lagerberg

Lhonak Peak.

‘Liklo (northpeak).’

Simvu Massif.

Siniolchu.

‘Sugar Loaf.’

 

 

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Mr. C. R. Cooke sends us some interesting details of research carried out by him on the heights of certain features, mountain summits and saddles, of the well-known panorama seen from Dar- jeeling. Mr. Cooke obtained data and instructions from Colonel Wheeler and Major Bomford, of the Survey of India, for calculating corrections for curvature and refraction. Twelve summits whose heights are known with a considerable degree of accuracy were used as a basis. The subtended vertical and horizontal angles of the twelve points at the lens of the camera were calculated, and a continuous curve plotted showing the error in the apparent position of points falling on different parts of the photograph due to a combination of lens distortion and error in the assumed refraction coefficient (0.7). The photograph was then measured up. Mr. Cooke claims no great accuracy for the method, but it probably gives better results than any we have for the features at present, and they are certainly worth recording.

The 12 peaks, with their heights, which were used as data, are the following (the figures in the first column refer to the outline drawing of the panorama):

Table i. Known Heights

Ref. No.	Name	Height	Map
2	Janu	255294	78A
4	Little Kabru	22,000	78A
11	Kabru South	24,002	78A
17	Kabur	15,814	78A
19	Forked Peak (S)	20,017	78A
26	Kangchenjunga (3)	28,146	78A
28	Pandim	22,010	78A
29	Kangchenjunga (1)	25,522	Bauer
30	Kangchenjunga (0)	23,492	Bauer
3i	Jubonu	19,530	78A
32	Kangchenjunga (2)	27,887	Bauer

 

In Table 2 below are given the results of the investigation. For convenience certain provisional names have been given to features which at present bear no names; these are shown in italics.

Table 2. Measured Heights

Ref. No.	Name	Height	Remarks
1	Koktang Peak	20,385
3	Tower Rock	19,422	Rock peak 1 m. E. of Koktang.
5	Little Kabru Saddle	20,862
6	The Bastion	21,760	Junction of 2 spurs where S. ridge of Kabru S. bifurcates.
7	Upper Bastion	22,782	A point higher up on the S. ridge of Kabru.
8	Top Kanzel Rock	18,346	A prominent rock in the middle of the Kabru ice-fall.
10	Camp I Shoulder	18,641	A buttress on SW. ridge of the Dome, dividing the Kabru ice-fall from a minor glacier S. of the Dome.
12	Bottom of Ice-wall	20,069	See illustration, p. 113, H.J., viii, 1936
13	Isbrae	23,765	Highest portion of Kabru ice-field visible from Darjeeling
14	Dome Ridge Peak	21,787	A minor peak on the ridge between the Dome and Kabru N.
15	The Dome	21,479
16	Kabru N.	24,176
18	New Peak	23,803	A peak on the ridge between Kabru N. and Talung Col. Not shown on Kurz's map.
20	Talung Col	22,565	The high saddle between Kabru N. and Talung Peak
21	Talung Peak	23,868
22	Talung Saddle	21,930
23	Dome Glacier I	19,482	Minor peaks along the ridge dividingthe Alukthang valley from an unnamed glacier flowing NNE. from theDome into the Talung Glacier.
24	Dome Glacier II	19,624
25	Dome Glacier III	19,405
27	Guicha Peak	19,972

 

It will be seen that Kabru North works out 174 feet higher than Kabru South, that Talung Peak is about 308 feet lower than Kabru North, but 1,938 feet higher than the Talung Saddle. New Peak, between Kabru North and Talung Peak, is 373 feet lower than the former, and 65 feet lower than the latter.

 

 

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With reference to my foot-note to John Hunt's account of his ascent of Kolahoi by the south face, on p. 106, Himalayan Journal, vol. viii, 1936, Mr. G. R. Cooke informs me that he and Lieut. B. W. Battye climbed the peak on the 9th July 1926. They approached it by the same route that Dr. Neve and I took in 1912, by the Armiun Nar, the Hari Gati pass, and established their base camp by Har Nag. The peak was tackled from a light camp near point 15,314, about if miles ESE. of it, shown on the Survey of India Map 43 N/8. It was first attempted by a long rib of steep but easy rock at the eastern end of the south face. They then followed the crest of the east ridge, reached the prominent rock tower at about 16,200 feet, which was turned with some difficulty, and regained the arete beyond the saddle which terminates the long narrow snow couloir extending the whole length of the south face. The descent from here was made by the rocks at the side of this couloir, the same route taken by Dr. Neve and myself in 1912, as a small avalanche had been seen sweeping the whole length of the couloir while the party was rounding the rock tower. A second, and this time successful, attempt was made by the easier route up the side of the couloir to the east ridge, and the summit was reached at 1.30 p.m., seven and a half hours from the glacier.¹

 

 

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The Honorary Secretary, Eastern Section, sends us the accompanying illustrations of the new Himalayan Club Hut at Mome Samdong, near the head of the Lachung valley in Sikkim. The hut is well placed to serve both the Sebu La and the Donkhya La. It is to be hoped that funds will shortly be available to build a second hut on the Sebu La route, so that the Lachen and Lachung valleys will be linked up without the traveller having to take tents.

 

 

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To illustrate the paper by Mr. A. P. F. Hamilton on Siwalik Erosion that appeared in the Himalayan Journal, vol. vii, 1935, pp. 87-102, Major J. G. Pocock sends us an interesting photograph of the effects of erosion in a Cho five miles east of Hoshiarpur, on the road to Una. The soil has been completely eroded from the roots of the tree and it cannot be long before that tree must die. The photograph was taken by Miss Bosvile.

 

 

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At my request, Mr. Michael Spender has sent me the following description of the instrument used during the Mount Everest reconnaissance in 1935.

'The combination of a Watts theodolite with a Leica camera called the Watts-Leica photo-theodolite was evolved at the Royal Geographical Society by Messrs. Hinks, Flower, and Spender in co-operation with the Watts firm. The light mountain theodolite is a standard instrument listed at about £50, which had been in the possession of the Society since 1926. A bridge was cast out of aluminium and arranged to fasten to the uprights of the theodolite with four screws. The bridge was in plan T-shaped, with three points of contact to define the position of the camera; the three contacts were the usual socket, groove, and plane used when it is desirable to have a precise return to position. The corresponding plate was attached to the ordinary removable shield of the camera. Here lay the least satisfactory part of the design, because this shield was not intended to fit with any great precision to the camera and therefore to the optical system.

'To design a satisfactory photo-theodolite a calibrated camera must be so related to a theodolite that the collimation marks on the photograph can be used to reconstruct the horizontal through the principal point. Calibration means a fixed relation of lens, marks, and focal plane where the magnitude of the principal distance and the position of the principal point are known. In the present design a thin glass plate was cemented (with "Durafix") to the metal "gate" or frame of the camera.¹ This can be regarded as rigidly connected with the lens, for in this camera the lens is held in position by a retractable tube which, when extended, is firmly locked with the frame. The marks were defined as the intersection of a pair of perpendicular lines engraved on the glass with the camera frame. Tests have shown a high degree of correspondence in the registration of the film against this glass plate: and the lens (Elmar 5 cm. f. 3.5) is certainly adequate for any single-picture photogrammetry.

'The weakness of the present arrangement is that the system "lens-camera-frame" is not rigidly connected with the theodolite. Patently later design must meet this defect. The question then becomes: can the arrangement be used for stereoscopic or double-picture methods of photogrammetry where it is intended to plot in a machine? To my mind a combination of a miniature camera and a precision, eye-piece reading theodolite would make a very suitable equipment for the exploratory surveyor. He would use the theodolite for astronomical determinations of position, triangulation, and range- finding by the method of an optically measured base. The Zeiss firm have now developed such a combination on the well-known Zeiss II model theodolite. The theodolite, tripod, and bridge are listed at 1,750 RM., the Gontax camera at 380 RM., prices ex works. The outfit weighs 40 lb. The weights of the Watts-Leica instrument are

 

‘A tripod specially made but lost on the 1936 Mount Everest Expedition weighed only 3 lb.'

 

 

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Attention is called to the letter from Brigadier H. J. Couchman, Surveyor-General of India, dated the 1st October 1936, regarding the invention of names for peaks and other features of the mountains to the north of India. The full text of the letter is published in the Honorary Secretary's Report for the year on p. 196, and it should be carefully studied. The Surveyor-General asks that his letter should be brought to the notice of travellers and will be grateful to explorers for any suggestions they may care to make. Names where possible should be given in the local vernacular, and English names should be given very sparingly. The words local vernacular are important. In an uninhabited area, such as parts of the Karakoram, the use of Balti or Ladakhi should, of course, be preferred to the language of Kashmiri shikaris or Darjeeling porters. In his letter the Surveyor- General asks that proposed names with sketches or annotated copies of Survey of India maps should be sent to him either direct or through the Himalayan Club. Full reasons should be given for the proposed names, with their meanings in English and the language adopted. Personal names will not be considered.

It is to be noted that the Surveyor-General is the sanctioning authority for the adoption of new names. Geographical names have been given by explorers in the past, a few of them with the consent of Surveyor-Generals, others without. The only knowledge the Survey has of some of the latter class is when a new traveller goes to a region and reports that a certain name is not known; in that case he sometimes suggests a new one. Once a name has been sanctioned by the Surveyor-General it is more in the interests of geography that future travellers should try and make the accepted name as widely known as possible in the district, so that that name and no other becomes current among the neighbouring people.

With the approval of the Surveyor-General, a small committee has for some time past been investigating the names of mountains in the Karakoram, and it is hoped to publish the results of the work of this committee in the next Himalayan Journal.

 

 

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Attention is called to the rules and regulations for the employment of porters through the agency of the Himalayan Club, which are printed at the end of Club Proceedings, pp. 198 et seq.

 

 

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In Karl Wien's paper, 'Weather Conditions on Nanga Parbat, July 1934^s, Table 1, p. 81, for Rainfall in mm. read Rainfall in cm.

 

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