noon
With every swinging step of the horses taking them on , a new gladness blossomed in King 's heart . For they were pushing ever further into the portion of the world which he knew best , loved best . The present left him nothing to wish for ; he had Gloria , and Gloria had elected to come with him . Until high noon they would wind along , for the most part climbing pretty steadily with the old trail -- Indian trail , miners ' trail , trail which even to-day seems to lead from the first generation of the twentieth century straight back into the heart of 1850 and beyond . Here men did not penetrate save at long intervals ; here was true solitude . And soon , when they should leave this trail to travel as straight a line as the broken country would allow toward Gus Ingle 's caves , they would enter a region given over entirely to the wild 's own bright-eyed , shy inhabitants . There were red spots in Gloria 's cheeks when they started .