The Valley of Flowers: An outstanding Himalayan climbing seasonIn his delightful The Valley of Flowers, mountaineer Frank Smythe takes you on a botanical expedition to the Garhwal Himalaya. Alongside the author, scale the steep craggy mountains and bathe in crystal clear pools; breathe in the scented foothills of the Himalaya and their carpets of peonies, roses, rhododendrons and gentian. Experience 'the keen, biting air of the heights and the soft, scented air of the valleys'. Climber and adventurer Smythe journeys through the Himalaya's Byundar Pass, climbs the Mana Peak, descends into the Byundar Valley, and comes terrifyingly close to an encounter with The Abominable Snowman. The Valley of Flowers is a pleasurable escape for any climber, walker, mountain lover or gardener, or indeed anyone who needs reminding of the beauty and serenity of the natural world. |
From inside the book
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... ridge, where I saw several tree rhododendrons and the distant snows of Trisul and Nanda Devi, then wound sinuously down to the level floor of the wide Sarju Valley. Garur, the terminus of the motor road, is a sordid little place, like ...
... ridge, where I saw several tree rhododendrons and the distant snows of Trisul and Nanda Devi, then wound sinuously down to the level floor of the wide Sarju Valley. Garur, the terminus of the motor road, is a sordid little place, like ...
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... ridge where the bungalow stands overlooking the haze-filled depths of the Pindar Valley to the remote gleam of the Himalayan snows. Two Englishmen were encamped near the bungalow, Mr G.W.H. Davidson, the Headmaster of Colvin Taluqdars ...
... ridge where the bungalow stands overlooking the haze-filled depths of the Pindar Valley to the remote gleam of the Himalayan snows. Two Englishmen were encamped near the bungalow, Mr G.W.H. Davidson, the Headmaster of Colvin Taluqdars ...
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... ridge, which rises on either hand to hills densely forested in spruce and the Himalayan oak, which is a narrow spreading tree as compared with the English oak. To the north the ridge falls away into a branch valley of the Nandakini ...
... ridge, which rises on either hand to hills densely forested in spruce and the Himalayan oak, which is a narrow spreading tree as compared with the English oak. To the north the ridge falls away into a branch valley of the Nandakini ...
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... ridges on either side of the camp there did not seem any likelihood of danger. There was no time to do anything now and ... ridge of the tent and down the lateral guy rope. The worst was over within half an hour and I went outside to see ...
... ridges on either side of the camp there did not seem any likelihood of danger. There was no time to do anything now and ... ridge of the tent and down the lateral guy rope. The worst was over within half an hour and I went outside to see ...
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... ridge clothed with oaks and tree rhododendrons. I lunched in a glade which commanded a view between the trees of Trisul, a vast barrier of shining snow at the head of the deeply cut Nandakini Valley, whose ribbon-like stream thousands ...
... ridge clothed with oaks and tree rhododendrons. I lunched in a glade which commanded a view between the trees of Trisul, a vast barrier of shining snow at the head of the deeply cut Nandakini Valley, whose ribbon-like stream thousands ...
Contents
The Snow Col on Rataban | |
On Doing Nothing | |
The Belvedere | |
The Bhyundar Rock Wall | |
A Rock Climb | |
The Lower | |
The Abominable Snowman | |
My Finest Snow and Ice Peak | |
Second Attempt on Rataban | |
The Banke Plateau | |
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Common terms and phrases
afternoon Alaknanda River Alaknanda Valley allardias Androsace ascent attempt avalanche Badrinath Banke Glacier Base Camp beautiful beneath bergschrund Bhotia Bhyundar Pass Bhyundar Valley bloom blue boulder buttress climber climbing clouds cold colour crags crest crevasse crossed descended difficult distance Dunagiri east edge Everest expedition face feet high foot forest Garhwal gorge gully halted height hillside Himalayas hope hour ice axe icefall inches Joshimath Kamet Kangchenjunga ledge light looked Mana Peak mists monsoon moraine morning mountain Nanda Devi night Nilgiri Parbat Nilkanta nomocharis o’clock overhanging Pasang peak Peter pitch plants plateau porters possible potentillas precipices Primula rain Ranikhet Rataban reached rhododendron ridge rock rope route scrambled seemed seen shepherds Sherpa side slabs sleeping slope snow snow-slope snowfield Snowman steep step stream summit tent Tewang Tibetan torrent tracks traverse Trisul upwards Valley of Flowers village wall Wangdi weather whilst wind Zaskar Zaskar Range