Western desert distances deceive the eye because the air is crystal clear

Evidence

By evening we were running across the continent on a bee line, and I sat for an hour on the rear platform of the rear car to enjoy the wonderful beauty of the sunset and the atmosphere. Far as one could see in the crystalline air there was nothing but desert. The jagged Humboldt ranges flaming in the sunset, with snow in their clefts, though forty-five miles off, looked within an easy canter. The bright metal track, purpling like all else in the cool distance, was all that linked one with Eastern or Western civilization. — Isabella L. Bird, A Lady’s Life in the Rocky Mountains, 42

Categorization

• CANDY: A pithy period observation: mountains 45 miles off looked within an easy canter, in desert air that makes every distance lie.