[15: "Gypsies"]

The campers and vans roll up not far from the pen where the horses are.

Men are standing on the rails of the pen, each trying to get a better look
at them than the fellow next to them. One is standing, both feet on the
narrow top rail and somehow managing to keep his balance, despite the
jostling of the makeshift pen, just panels chained together.

The auction isn't until afternoon, and here it's just past dawn, but the
crowd isn't going to be deterred.

A couple federal wildlife agents are trying to usher the crowd away from the
horses, but they're not having any of it. The officers look resigned and
just stand by in case someone should fall -- or be pushed -- into the pen.

A paint mare rears up and the crowd shuffles to watch, and she swings
dangerously close to the man standing on the top of the rails, but he dodges
nimbly and doesn't fall.

"Alright, everyone, step back". An officer with a megaphone is trying to
impose order, but the crowd ignores him. Hands reach out, horses spook and
shy away, or are pushed close by the herd now penned up.

The sun starts to rise into the sky, and as the temperature climbs, the
crowds disperse.

There's the rough noise of a scuffle off in the middle of a group of
campers, they've parked in a rough ring, like a wagon train, and inside, two
young men are wrestling. A rag-tag crowd has gathered, and they cheer them
on.

There's a hiss-pop of cans being opened, and everyone pushes in here, now,
to see the action, clustered in the little bits of shade the campers provide
in the treeless stretch of desert.

---

The auction starts -- the bidding isn't as spirited as the wildlife officers
hoped, since half the deals have already been made, who gets to bid on which
horses, so nobody drives up the prices. Three in a row go to a family, and
two sons tie halters onto the horses, and one jumps on, bareback, and
manages to stay on top for several minutes, despite the horse rearing and
throwing its head.

The crowd looks on, approving. 

A couple cowboys, sporting giant buckles try to bid up on a couple horses,
but the crowd quickly outpaces them. One elbows the other, and they slink
off, surprised that they were outbid when the prices were low just moments
before.

The last of the horses sold, and the families cluster into their campers.
There's the smell of meat roasting, and the inner circle is lit by firelight
from a huge bonfire.

Horses make noises from all sides, stamping and whinnying, and occasionally
a camper will rock as horses tied to the side give a yank.

As dawn breaks the next morning, a row of campers pulling trailers file out
down the desert roads, and a group of men on horseback lead new horses out
in bunches.