In 1909, twenty-five-year old Conrad Kain, from the tiny Austrian village of Nasswald, located in the heart of the Rax Mountains, boarded the CPR ship, the Empress of Britain, en route to the Canadian Rockies.  Never did he imagine the adventurous life that lay before him, as the first official mountain guide to the newly formed Alpine Club of Canada (ACC).

This historical novel tells the story of Conrad Kain's 25 years in Canada in a manner that reflects the overall spirit and experience of the early days of alpine adventure in the Canadian Rockies - from his arrival as a young man to his later years in and around Wilmer in the Columbia Valley.

With almost 70 first ascents or new routes on peaks throughout the Canadian Rockies and 59 ascents (29 first ascents) in New Zealand, Conrad Kain was recognized a "the prince of Canadian mountain guides" - in what can only be called the Golden Age of mountaineering in Canada