The man sets out on an eight hour journey through the Klondike to meet the boys. He sets out alone into this vast frozen plain despite being warned, and is accompanied by a wild dog.
Climax
The cold within the Klondike is extraordinaryin its harshness and persistence, and the man must constantly remain vigilant. Fire is the only way he can save himself, and must be ready to prepare a fire at any moment in order to fend off this silent killer within the Klondike.
Falling Action
The man makes a fatal mistake however, and attempts to walk on a snow bank that he believes can support his weight. The snow bank gives way beneath him rendering him wet halfway to the knees. He desperately makes a fire in order to thaw himself out under the arms and watch of a spruce tree.
Resolution
Sparks erupt from the man's fire, and he uses the twigs of the spruce above him to fuel his lifeline, but the Klondike shows no mercy. The boughs of snow held high up in the spruce's arms collapse on each other in a domino like fashion, until they fall onto the fire, putting it out. The man tries to desperately grab his wild companion and cut him open to warm his hands within, but the frost of his hands render his endeavorsfruitless
The man runs desperately through this frozen abyss. Whether this is a strategic attempt to free himself from his death sentence, or it was a thoughtless response before death is up to the reader to decide. The dog follows closely behind the man, not understanding what the man would have done to him.
The man grows tired quickly, and collapses. He decides to rest for a time. He does not build the fire, and falls asleep. The dog remains with him, until it smells the scent of death, and leaves him to rest in peace to find food, and warmth in the places it can recall.