The specific advantage that the Apache bands had always had over the Army — superior knowledge of the country — was partially offset when the Army was guided by people with the same knowledge.

This dimension of the conflict is important for understanding the conditions under which the resistance fighters operated in its later phases.

They were not merely evading an Army that didn’t know the country.

They were evading an Army guided by people who did know it, who could read the same terrain the resisters were using, who understood the specific patterns of movement and the specific locations of water and shelter that made Apache survival in the desert possible.

The survival of Geronimo’s band — the small group of resisters that Lozen was part of in the final phase — against this combination of Army pursuit and Apache scout tracking was an achievement that speaks to the exceptional capability of everyone involved.