At the point where the slope of the mountains is most abrupt, certain repairs had lately been made upon the trail, and a man was now prying large stones over the edge.

They rolled and tumbled down, taking wild leaps into the air and plunging from rock to rock.

After they disappeared in the woods we could hear them crashing and clattering down the canon.

A small avalanche of broken fragments followed in their wake.
It must have been a fine sight when the blasting was first done in the side of the rocky precipice: when huge masses of rock, half as big as a house, were rent from the side of the mountain and thundered down with frightful crash, cutting off huge trees and shaking the very mountains.
And now I will say again that the trail is wide and safe; the slopes on the side are seldom very steep, and the mules could not be pushed over by any available power.
Some people, in fact, prefer the old trail because it is more wild and romantic and not so well kept.

The new road has enough picturesque features to satisfy me.
I remember when the valley came in sight again, after half an hour's climbing, the first objects to catch my eye were the storage reservoirs, which dot the valley and are used in irrigation.