Annie Brennan, known in Secoma as one of the best skippers in the Pacific Northwest, finds her boat Narcissus frequently outmaneuvred by rival Red Severn. Her son Alec adores his mother and wants to quit school to take care of her, convinced that his alcoholic father Terry can't. Annie, however, loves Terry, and although they frequently fight, she thinks that when sober he is the finest man in the world. Schooling and hard work later enable Alec to become the youngest ship's master on the Pacific Coast. He works for a company now owned by Severn, and he and Severn's daughter Pat plan to marry. Annie and Terry are delighted, but Terry's happiness over Alec still cannot keep him away from drinking. When Alec helps his father get a job with Severn, Terry loses it when he drunkenly corners Severn in his office. Convinced that Terry will never change, Alec begs his mother to leave her husband and allow him to take care of her, but she refuses. Forcing her to choose between them, Alec leaves when she says that she must stay with Terry. A short time later, Terry's negligence results in an accident that causes them to lose ownership of the Narcissus . They then find themselves sailing her as a garbage scow under someone else's ownership. Several months later, Alec still refuses to see his parents, even though Pat tries to bring them together. When his ship, the Glacier Queen , is endangered by a large storm, Annie and Terry go to its rescue. Although the boilers on the Narcisssus are at the breaking point, Terry fixes them in time to save both ships, but, in doing so, is seriously burned. While he is recovering from his burns, Terry promises once again to give up drinking. Although she knows better, Annie is happy to have her family together again and to have the whole world know what a fine man Terry is.