Stars Charlton Heston and a fantastic supporting cast that includes Joan Hackett, Lee Majors, and Bruce Dern. This inspiring and iconic Western tale takes a refreshing look at mature love and the hardships and loneliness of the cowboy life.

Will Penny has just completed a long cattle drive in Montana and he needs another job to ride out the winter. He heads out with two other men, Duchy and Blue, in search of employment. One day, while they’re out deer hunting, the lawless Preacher Quint and his sons attack them. Will has no choice but to kill one of the sons in order to save his friend. Now, the Quint family vows vengeance.

Once Will finds a doctor to patch up Duchy, he heads out and finds a job riding the boundary of a huge cattle ranch. His boss specifically tells him that he’s to throw out any squatters he finds on his land. So, Will sets out for his mountain shack and gets ready for another long, lonely winter.

To his surprise, he finds Catherine Allen and her young son, Horace living in the cabin. The pair was abandoned by the guide her husband hired to lead them over the mountain. Will feels ashamed and guilty to turn out a mother and child into the harsh winter weather, but he still informs them that they must leave within a few days.

Everything changes, however, when Will goes out to do a routine check of the property—and the Quint family ambushes him. Preacher Quint and his two sons beat Will savagely and leave him for dead. Somehow, Will manages to get back to the cabin, where Catherine tenderly nurses his broken body and spirit.

As Christmas and the long Rocky Mountain winter days pass, Will and Catherine fall in love. Will and Horace also start to share a father/son bond that both enjoy. For the first time in his life, Will begins to think that maybe, just maybe, he could give up his rootless, unattached cowboy life for one of domestic tranquility.

But there’s a storm brewing on the horizon, and this one’s definitely man made. Can Will, Catherine, and Horace continue to live in peace—or is Will destined to a life on the unforgiving trail?