28 Abode of Gods
famed peaks of Uttarakhand Himalayas, which I had an occ-
asion to see at close range or climb the outskirts or ridges are
Kamet, Trishul, Nanda-ghunti, Sudarshan, Shivling, Bandar-
Poonch, Pancha-chali, Chaukhambha, Neelkanth and Bhagi-
rathi group of peaks. I had an opportunity of climbing
Bhagirathi II (21,365 ft.) in 1968, a description about the climb
been given elsewhere in the book.
From Garhwal, the Himalayas, bend a little northward tak-
ing in their stride Himachal Pradesh where lie the famed
peaks of Leo Pargyal and Kinnar Kailash. From Himachal,
the Himalayas stretch all along the Kashmir and end up at
the end of Laddakh where the Pamirs, Hindukush and
Himalayas meet and mingle. Here, at the end of the valley
where the Pakistan border meets India's stands Nanga Parvat
which culminates at the top into a dome in the sky. At the feet
of the Nanga ends Himalayan range and starts Karakoram
which houses the famed 2—the second highest peak of the
world.
Thus lies stretched the 2500 km. long range of Himalayas
which girdles Asia and tops India like a diadem crested with
the finest jewels which attract men of courage and conviction
who revel in deeds of adventure.
The Himalayan system
Longitudinally, the Himalayan system consists of three par-
allel zones.
(f) The Great Himalayas—Bahyagiri.This comprises northern
most ranges forming an array of magnificent peaks, all above
the snow line. They have an average elevation of 20000 ft. and
more than 100 peaks exceed this height. Some of the
prominent peaks within Bahyagiri are as follow.
Name of the peak Height Region
Mt. Everest 29,028 ft. Eastern Himalayas
It lies at the Border of
Tibet-Nepal.
Gurla Mandhata 25,355 ft. Western Tibet
Kailasli 22,028ft. —do—
Canchenjuriga 28,168ft. —do—
JDhauIagiri 26,869 ft. —do—