A minute more and they had mounted, and were riding away with the speed of the wind.
The Amazons mounted, too, and started in pursuit; but they were poor riders, and our little party of explorers soon outdistanced them.
In less than half an hour they reached a heavily timbered forest, and the strange horde of women were soon lost to sight.
The trail made by Doc Clancy and his companion was a very plain one; Van led the way, following it in every turn.
About noon they came to a halt near a stream of running water to give the horses a rest.
Van and Jack shot some game, while the rest of the party busied themselves in constructing better bridles for their horses.
Two hours later they started out again, following the trail as before.
Just before nightfall they arrived at the bank of a river, which was fully half a mile in width.
As they looked about them the country showed signs of being inhabited, as fastened to the bank were a number of rafts formed by felled trees tied together by tough vines.
"I wonder if we haven't struck the country the Amazons told us about," remarked Van.