During one of the most significant battles of the 1874-75 Indian campaign, columns of troops converging from five directions harassed Indians on the Panhandle Plains for more than six months. The 4th Cavalry under Col. Ranald S. Mackenzie, moving north from Fort Concho, tracked a large band of Indians to their secret camp in Palo Duro Canyon. Moving silently at dawn down a perilous path on the south rim, the first troops reached the canyon floor before the aroused camp fled. Some warriors took positions on the canyon walls and fired on the troops to give their families time to escape. Realizing his tactical disadvantage, Mackenzie ordered the camp and supplies burned and withdrew, taking 1,400 captured horses, 1,000 of which he later destroyed. The cavalry suffered no casualties in the fight, and only four Indian dead were counted. After losing half their horses and all their supplies and shelter, the Indians drifted back to their reservations at Fort Sill and Fort Reno.