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Description of the beautiful "Elephant Valley" |
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To Dzukhu in the so-called "elephant valley". The way there is difficult, crossing the Barail at a height that cannot be much less than 9000 feet, and then dropping down a stream into a level open valley surrounded by an oval of precipitous hills some 500 feet above the valley level which is probably about 7500 to 8000. That looks at a distance like turf, turns out to be mostly a dwarf bamboo growing to about 8 inches high in most places in the open and studded with primulas, while the slopes are covered with rhododendrons red, yellow, white and pink growing to a great size and sprinkled with oaks. Anenomes, buttercups and marsh-marigolds are there and other familiar flowers, and a number of clear streams flow into and through the valley, but without a fish of any sort in them at all - an ideal place to introduce trout. The outlet to the valley at the lower end which is towards Japvo, and wrongly shown or not shown at all on the map, is very narrow and if dammed the valley would be quickly turned into a vast lake, about a mile long by three-quarters of a mile broad. The woods are partly destroyed by the burning which Nagas practice in order to tempt out the Sambhar to the young green shoots that follow. There must be still many sambhar there in spite of too regular Shikar, but I only saw hinds, which I refused to shoot, much to the disgust of my following. Very windy, damp and cold. |
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Halted. (T.A. not drawn). |
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Back by another and much worse path to Jakhama crossing the range at a higher point. A few miscellaneous petitions at Jakhama. |
