"That is the best thing, now," added Anne.
"You don't mean to sleep out in this awful wilderness, do you?" gasped
Barbara.
"No, we're going to engage a suite of rooms at the 'Queen Victoria' for
to-night!" jeered Eleanor.
"I hope to reach the Slide and ride back to those Falls for camp. We
have fish and pasture and soft moss there," said Polly.
"Ideal place, too," approved Anne.
"But the wild beasts, and, oh, suppose a rattler comes along while we
are asleep?" almost sobbed Barbara.
"He'll steer clear of you, Bob!" retorted Eleanor.
"Come on, girls, don't waste time arguing, or we'll camp on top of the
peak, yonder," laughed Polly, jumping back into her saddle and urging
Noddy along the way.
Although Grizzly Slide was but four miles from the blaze, the trail was
so rough that the horses had to go slowly. Too, the rarefied air
strained the animals' hearts and Polly advised frequent halts to rest
the heavily breathing beasts.
During those four miles, the trail often opened from the heavy timber
and gave a glimpse of far-off valleys, and dreadfully nearby abysses
that made one feel that one was on top of the world. Even the pines in
the nearer crests and clefts looked like wisps of green--so small they
appeared from the tremendous height.
The trail finally led through a thick forest of lodge-pole pine that
looked interminable, but suddenly ended at a line as if it had been
purposely cleared away.
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