Old Shatterhand is back to the Wild West, and wants to see the Teton Mountains. However, he cannot reach his destination because his train journey from Omaha is interrupted by an incident. With Fred, the private detective, and Winnetou, the chief of the Apache, he attempts to save a railway station from an impending attack of the Oglala. After many adventures, he has to travel to the scene where he, Charlie, became Old Shatterhand. His task is to retrieve the treasure of the Apache. However, his task is extremely difficult as his old adversaries, Santer and the Kiowa, also appear. He will need his reputation, his skills, and his moral stance not to carry out his task, but just to survive.
This unabridged English translation retains the exciting adventures, and the strong moral conviction of May's original book, while modernising the style, and editing parts that were erroneous or may evoke bad associations. With this editing the core of May's world, the action, the dreaming of heroic deeds, and the struggle for a kind of justice have become more emphasised, and more accessible to the modern reader.