A long-lost gold treasure, believed buried in the sand dunes of the fabulous Walking Hills, attracts adventurers Jim Carey (Randolph Scott), a rancher; Shep (William Bishop), rodeo rider wanted for murder; Old Will (Edgar Buchanan); Chalk (Arthur Kennedy); Frazee (John Ireland), a detective hunting Shep; Johnny (Jerome Courtland), a cowboy and Josh (Josh White), an entertainer. Uninvited, Chris Jackson (Ella Raines, loved by both Jim and Shep, joins the treasure-hunters. Hard work, suspicion, danger and intrigues and hatreds culminate in a grim fight with shovels, and a raging desert sand-storm leads to the conclusion.