He mounted his cayuse, waved his hand in farewell, then galloped down the trail.
The narrow path wound around the boles of enormous trees towering high above them, some of the tallest being nearly two hundred feet in height. Gillis appraised them with a critical eye. He was thinking of them as logs, calculated in terms of board feet, but over Donald their beauty and nobility cast a strange spell. How long had these monarchs enjoyed the repose so soon to be broken by puny man? Probably some of them were good-sized trees when Columbus discovered America.
The solemnity of the forest was at times broken by the sharp “ka-a-a-a-a-h” of startled deer as they caught their scent, or the sudden hum of wings as big blue-grouse shot up from their path. Once the horses pricked their ears and snorted in fear as a bear crashed his way through the deep woods.
As daylight abandoned the forest and twilight made eerie shadows on the dusky trail, they swung to an open space on the banks of the roaring Cheakamus River, and made camp for the night.
At daybreak they began the upward climb, and by noon felt the buoyancy of the air in the higher altitude. They crossed rushing streams and skirted the shores of small lakes on whose waters rested flocks of ducks in gregarious raft-like formations. The cayuses with their enormous packs showed signs of fatigue, and Gillis called frequent halts as the trail grew gradually steeper.
“We are nearly there,” cried Douglas eagerly.
A few minutes later they topped a heavily-wooded hill and swung in to a narrow path on their right. There was no need to guide the horses, as they knew that here were rest and food for them.
There was a sudden quickening along the line. Donald’s horse broke into a run, with Andy’s close behind, the latter holding to the rear of his saddle and making a wry face.
“I wish I knew ’ow to keep this ’ere blinkin’ saddle from comin’ up and hittin’ me in the seat,” said Andy querulously.
Donald reined in his eager horse as they emerged from the woods and an enchanting scene burst on his view.