where is the man going and how is his attitude toward his journey

The man was bound for an old (gold) claim on the left fork of Henderson Creek (Yukon). The man is a "newcomer" to this territory. Still his attitude is a little too "cocky". He treats his journey as a sort of competition with nature. In the early stages of the trip he smirks at his little mistakes and does not heed the warnings of the cold. The man reflects on what the old-timer had advised him but thinks that he can quickly overcome the man's advice rather than taking it to heart. As his mistakes get more numerous (wet feet, no fire.....) the man becomes more and more desperate. Finally his only friend left, the dog, turns out not to like him that much after all and really doesn't want to be turned into a sleeping bag either. The man freezes to death.