This is the story of a bush legend of the 20th century. A man who shunned society and chose to live a life alone with nature, with the mighty Murray River as his lifeline for 54 years. Max Jones, a Detective Sergeant with the South Australian Police Force, became interested in "The Possum" and to why he had "gone bush". Was he a murderer on the run? Had he committed serious crimes that lead to him avoiding all human contact for years?

Max Jones' instincts as a police officer lead him on a 28 year quest to get to the bottom of the mystery. The Possum roamed hundreds and thousands of kilometres along the Murray, and often was not sighted for years at a time.

Max Jones, during breaks in his police duties, would set out in search of the Possum, often tracking him for many days, only for the Possum's tracks to disappear into the Murray where the recluse would swim across the river or seek refuge on one other many small islands in the river system. But Max persisted, and not only did he track down the Possum, he gained his confidence and heard the real reason why he had turned his back on society.

This is a remarkable story of survival against the odds and of two men who have established themselves in Australian outback folklore.