Chapter 3

By the time the sun was properly above the horizon, they’d only made a few miles. They wouldn’t make much more than eight or ten miles a day until the herd was trail-broke, but after that, you could count on between twelve to fifteen miles per day. Any faster than that, and the cattle would lose weight because they didn’t have enough grazing time.

Joe’s job, along with the other point rider, was to lead the way for the herd, making sure the front animals were pointed in the right direction. They’d gotten rough directions from Frank, who’d ridden off to see exactly where Cookie was setting up the evening camp. He’d ride back with directions to the camp, along with suggestions on the best way to get the herd there in one piece.