We gamboled amongst huge boulders, gnarled juniper, and piñon pines, mountain mahogany, scrub oak, and other shrubs, scampered over rocks, side-stepped across steep slopes, bushwhacked through ravines, and managed to avoid the yucca and cholla and opuntia cacti.

We had the entire expanse to ourselves, and the warm sunshine, deep blue skies, stillness, vistas, and other wonders of nature were awe-inspiring.