Five days on the river are more than a whole lifetime. When the missionary Friedrich Ganse returns from a trip to Bujora, his wife Eva is dead and his daughter Gertrud is critically ill. The hastily summoned shaman of the African village helps Gertrud with his healing arts, but he sees only one way to save the child's life: father and daughter must undertake the long journey downstream by boat so that Gertrud can receive treatment in the hospital. For five days and five nights, he travels with the child. Their boat journey is interrupted by brief landings, during which the missionary meets the river's inhabitants and receives their assistance. It becomes a dangerous journey that changes him forever. And saves Gertrud's life.