Doppler has just lost his father. Despite the fact that he has a pregnant wife and two children, he decides to move into the woods. Here he starts a lonely and purposefully boring existence. He has never been so happy. When Doppler kills a she-elk for meat, he can't feel guilty about it, but he does feel a bit guilty about the calf she left behind. When the baby elk adopts him, Doppler is tempted to knock it down as well. But the little elk is wily and escapes death, and gradually they become friends. He names the little elk Bongo--and finds her to be a very good listener.