A weather-beaten guide and a city adolescent join a small party whose schooner is driven onto a rocky coast, prompting a trek through northern woods. The narrative follows their preparations, lessons in piloting and woodcraft, and an extended forest journey that tests scouting skills during a blizzard, encounters with wolves, and a dangerous moose wound. Practical instruction in navigation, survival, and leadership is woven into episodic adventure scenes, emphasizing resourcefulness, teamwork, and the mentor-student relationship as they strive to reach safety and resolve the wreck's consequences.