Cabin Fever

The story opens with a keen observation about a restless mind that has been fed too much sameness. It calls this condition “cabin fever,” a kind of mental scurvy that turns humor into irritability and tests every friendship. The narrator suggests that only prolonged isolation can reveal whether comrades become rivals, allies, or something in between.

Into this psychological pressure steps Bud Moore, a former cattle driver turned owner of a modest stagecoach line winding from San Jose through the Santa Cruz Mountains to the Big Basin park. Bud’s steady hands and quick smile keep his passengers comfortable, yet the endless routine begins to gnaw at him, hinting at a deeper dissatisfaction. As winter looms and his route stalls, Bud finds himself confronting the very fever the opening warned about, setting the stage for a journey that is as much internal as it is across the hills.