noon
It was distant a day 's severe travel . In that advanced season the party soon passed out of the moist , temperate regions of the foothills into the dry , cold , bracing air of the Sierras . The trail was narrow and difficult . At noon the Duchess , rolling out of her saddle upon the ground , declared her intention of going no farther , and the party halted . The spot was singularly wild and impressive . A wooded amphitheatre , surrounded on three sides by precipitous cliffs of naked granite , sloped gently toward the crest of another precipice that overlooked the valley . It was , undoubtedly , the most suitable spot for a camp , had camping been advisable .