I get much closer now, having jogged about a mile. Luckily for me I am a runner and don't find this as hard as it might seem. ... I see a youngster down there. Hopefully, I can sneak down without scaring them all away. Perhaps I shall take on the image of a tree ...

As I move along a much higher ridgeline, I can see one Stallion chasing another away from his mares in the valley far below. I will trot at a nice pace along the backside of this ridge, somewhere around 7000 feet elevation, until I can approach the bands without being detected. I am running on a path, about 12 inches wide, which has been flattened into the steep hillsides by the mustangs bands as they move from area to area.

This is the Lead Stallion's Lieutenant. He's taken the high ground and is grazing. However, he is on the lookout for mostly other stallions who will try and steal his bosses mares. The dust in one of the first pictures here is from such a takeover attempt. While I was down amongst the band, that rogue stallion tried at least three different times. He was thwarted by the calls of warning down to the Lead Stallion below.

Moving closer. I'll jog down this "draw" and hope the Band's lookout, seen in next picture, will not detect me.

OK ... that ploy worked. I had the feeling, watching the the "lookout", that he decided I wasn't going to steal the mares and therefore I wasn't an "Interest", for the moment. Then I was out of sight. Here we are, sown with the mares and weanlings. They are grazing towards me slowly. All I will have to do is sit over there by that bush and make sure I am thinking of being a bush, not of taking pictures ....

.... still working my way down the slope ...

nice little group ... quite pretty coloring; they all seem fat enough and their coats look great.

there they are ... grazing towards me

I've been here, amongst them, listening to the sounds of their ripping grass with their teeth and to their snorts and chortles, for maybe an hour.  The Lead Stallion has run a hundred feet to the right and played around like he was playfully suggesting they leave. ... They sauntered off ...

This is a picture of the rather good looking black mustang stallion. He peacefully grazes, separate from the mares it seems, until his Lieutenant alerts him to the impending attack. At which time, I saw him collect-up incredibly fast and charge after the guy, biting him on his rump and subsequently driving him back to his own band where he's likely a junior member.

Nice looking horses for being wild, aren't they?

...