three o'clock in the
afternoon
Mile after mile he continued his tireless trail . He had no inclination to eat . He stopped only once at the creek to drink . And when he looked at his watch he was astonished to find that it was three o'clock in the afternoon . It was now too late to think of returning to camp . Within an hour the day gloom of the chasm would be thickening into that of night . So Rod stopped at the first good camp site , threw off his pack , and proceeded with the building of a cedar shelter .