The year is 1919. Forest fires were fought with guts and courage, not chemicals, and airplanes. Bill Bell was the toughest ranger in an elite crew of rugged men. A figure of heroic proportions, he was generally feared and respected by all. The young ranger does everything to remain in the good graces of Bill Bell, the senor ranger he idolizes. Their tentative rapport grows into a friendship through a hilarious and heroic rite of passage in which the younger ranger meets the test.