CAMPING ON THE PLAINS 85 



red in the west. This was a landmark, and as I 

 had wandered eastward from camp I thought 

 and also felt that my buffalo wallow camp must 

 be somewhere off in the west. 



I headed at the sun and walked rapidly until 

 dark. I still was uncertain where camp was and 

 stopped and made a fire. A compass will not 

 do a fellow any good, nor will knowing points 

 of the compass, unless he constantly use his 

 head and keep the position of camp in mind. I 

 should have looked back occasionally during the 

 day and made mental pictures of the few land- 

 marks. But I spent the night on the prairie 

 without supper or bedding. 



Daylight came grandly at four o'clock and I 

 at once started off to back-track myself to camp. 

 A number of antelope stood for a time on a ridge 

 between me and the red rising sun. I headed 

 eastward. I had walked due west after leaving 

 the mother antelope the night before and easily 

 back-tracked this straight line. 



Back-tracking myself over the course where 

 I had crawled, curved, and doubled in following 

 the antelope was a task. Occasionally I got 

 down on hands and knees to find the dim trail, 

 or to determine which way I should follow it. 

 This was the best of trailing experience. 



Finally I arrived at the place where I had 

 first seen the mother antelope and kids. Then, 



