John and his partners use the money to set off in search of the legendary mine. They travel for a year through the wilderness, living off what they hunt, but they fail to find the mine. However, what they do find in the end is a place at the Yukon that proves extremely lucrative for panning gold. The men set up camp and fill bag after bag with gold nuggets. The dogs meanwhile enjoy a life of leisure, and Buck again starts dreaming of the primeval man at the fire. More and more often, he feels as if something is calling him, and he begins exploring the wilderness around the camp.