s
through fairly well-known districts; therefore, I shall not dwell on the
first portion of our route. I had some thirty carriers with me. We
proceeded up and down, through thick forests of pine and fir trees, on
the sides of successive mountain ranges.

We went through the ancient Gourkha town of Pithoragarh, with its old
fort. Several days later I visited the old Rajah of Askote, one of the
finest princes Northern India then possessed. I went to see the Raots, a
strange race of savages living, secluded from everybody, in the forest.
In a work called _In the Forbidden Land_ a detailed description will be
found of my experiences with those strange people, and also of our long
marches through that beautiful region of the lower Himahlyas.

We reached at last a troublesome part of the journey--a place called the
Nerpani, which, translated, means "the waterless trail." Few travellers
had been as far as this point. I shall not speak of the ups and down at
precipitous angles which we found upon the trail, which had been cut
along the almost vertical cliff. Here and there were many sections of
the trail which were built on crowbars thrust horizontally into the
rock. A narrow path had been made by laying over these crowbars large
slabs of stone not particularly firm when you trod over them. As you
went along this shaky path on the side of the precipice the drop down to
the river at the bottom of the cliff was often from 1800 to 2000 feet,
and the path in many places not wider than six inches. In other places
the Nerpani trail consisted of badly put together flights of hundreds of
steps along the face of the cliff.

CHAPTER II

AN UNKNOWN PASS

It was at a place called Garbyang, close to the Tibetan boundary, that I
made my last preparations for my expedition into Tibet. A delay at this
place was inevitable, as all the passes over the Himahlya range were
closed. Fresh snow was falling daily. I intended to cross over by the
Lippu Pass, the lowest of all in that region; but having sent men to
reconnoitre, I found it was impossible at that time to take up my entire
expedition, even by that easier way.

I had a Tibetan tent made in Garbyang. Dr. H. Wilson, of the Methodist
Evangelical Mission, whom I met at this place, went to much trouble in
trying to get together men for me who would accompany me over the
Tibetan border. His efforts were not crowned with success. The thirty
men I had taken from India refused to come