In the morning he bestirred himself so early that in the gray gloom he had difficulty in finding his horse.

Day had just broken when he struck the old trail again.
He rode hard all morning and halted in a shady spot to rest and graze his horse.

In the afternoon he took to the trail at an easy trot.

The country grew wilder.

Bald, rugged mountains broke the level of the monotonous horizon.