Doctor Reid Tucker's intention to spend the summer at a remote cabin at Eagle's Claw Lake in northeast Washington State with only his dog, Cinders, never eventuates. On the trip there, pilot Kate Meltz calls in with the amphibian to a commune at the other end of the lake.

 While waiting on board, Reid pulls a desperate and distressed teenage girl, Lorie Somerville, from the water. This begins a frightening chain of events as fanatical commune leader, Peter Littlejohn, tries to find Lorie and two other girls and prevent them from leaving. Though he doesn't find her on the aircraft, he sabotages it so the trio are left stranded at Reid's cabin.

Intertwined with these fast paced adventures is the human side; Reid and Kate are attracted to each other and this turns to love. The girls rescued react to their newly found freedom and need help to adapt. Even Cinders, the dog, plays a part in the girls' rehabilitation.

And what happens at the commune? All is revealed in 'Eagle's Claw Lake' by Ross Richdale.