The man tells the boy that the area used to be divided into states. They consult an old, dismembered map and plan their route. After staying at this camp for an undisclosed amount of time, at least several days, the father decides they must leave because the waterfall will attract others. In the morning, the father checks for other people and once again finds none. In the woods, they find morels (a kind of mushroom), then settle down for the night, satisfied with their makeshift camp. They bathe in the waterfall, despite the cold. It takes four days for them to travel out of the snow. At night, the boy has a nightmare about a wind-up penguin that haunts the house they used to live in, moving without being wound up. When the road is obstructed by fallen trees, they must unpack their cart, carry their belongings to the other side, then repack it.

The son tells him, 'If you break little promises you'll break big ones' (29). The boy reminds his father that he promised not to limit himself like that, so the father splits the hot cocoa among them both. They stop to rest, and the father makes his son hot cocoa, while he drinks only hot water himself. Finally, he recognizes the location he seeks. The father, who is familiar with this part of the land, expects to reach a summit soon. Within a year there were fires on the ridges and deranged chanting. 'People sitting on the sidewalk in the dawn half immolate and smoking in their clothes. The narrative switches briefly into a flashback to describe what occurred apocalyptically on earth, though not explaining why. Though the dream seems sacrificial, the father remembers that 'she died alone somewhere in the dark' (27). The father dreams that his wife is sick and he cares for her.

In the morning, the fire in the mountains is still visible, but the weather grows colder. One night, as they make camp, the father watches his son stoke the fire, 'God's own firedrake' (26). In the distance, they can see forest fires raging in the mountains. They travel in snow but make campfires at night to keep warm.

They expect to travel across mountains, and the father hopes they have enough food. The father and son continue traveling south as winter descends.

The road by cormac mccarthy