You keep going and that night Reinhardt and Spitzer rejoin the Party without Wolfinger. In grim tones and with lowered eyes they tell the group, which includes Wolfinger's young wife Doris, that Wolfinger was killed by Indians who pilfered his wagon. Many in the group quietly express doubts among themselves that the pair are lying but no one is willing to go back and investigate so the matter is dropped but the mood in the group plunges even more.


The next day William Eddy and Patrick Breen (a wealthy settler and dedicated Catholic travelling with his large family) nearly get into a fight when Breen refuses to give Eddy any water for his thirsty children and Eddy threatens to kill him, the matter is only resolved when the Donner Brothers intervene and persuade Breen to give up some of his water. As the Donner Party struggles slowly on, suffering now from lack of provisions along with everything else.


You reach Truckee Meadows near the Humboldt River and here the Party halts for a rest. A small hunting group is prepared by William Pike and William Foster (a tough young man travelling with his wife and infant child). They are loading various weapons and drying wet gunpowder packets near the fire when William Eddy walks up to you and suggests that you join the pair in trying to shoot some animals for food.


What do you do?

You stay with the rest of the Party

You decline to join the group and it is just as well. William Foster is loading his pistol when it accidentally goes off, hitting his brother-in-law William Pike in the back and killing him instantly. This accident, the latest to befall the Party, is an especially great tragedy as the two men were the closest of friends, Pike was a popular member of the group and he leaves behind a wife and two infant children. Foster is horrified by the accident and inconsolable for weeks.


Three days later Charles Stanton returns to the Donner Party bringing with him seven mules loaded down with food being driven by two Indians called Luis and Salvador. Everyone is overjoyed to see him return and Stanton quickly fills you in on a few details. He says William McCutchen has fallen ill and is back at Fort Sutter in California. He met James Reed and Walter Herron on his way over the mountains and though on the verge of starvation both men made it to California safely. He reports it took him just eight days to travel from Johnson's Ranch, the furthest outpost of civilization in California, to the Donner Party. One last push will get you over the Sierra Nevada Mountains to California and safety.


As soon as the Donner Party sets off the troubles begin again. An Indian shoots nineteen oxen with arrows until William Eddy shoots him with his rifle and kills him. George Donner cuts his hand very badly trying to repair his wagon and the Donner Brothers, who are not young men, begin to lag behind. Even worse it starts to snow on the last day of October, which threatens to make the journey over the Sierra Nevada Mountains practically impossible. Charles Stanton, Patrick Breen and a few other families press ahead, climbing near vertical slopes while the Donner Brothers fall increasingly behind, slowed by George's injury.


What do you do?

You press on ahead

Determined to press on over the mountains before the passes become impassable you join a small group that includes Patrick Breen, William Eddy, Louis Keseberg, Charles Stanton, Patrick Dolan (a friend of Breen's) and the two Indians Luis and Salvador in pushing on towards the summit. It is not to be however: the snow begins to fall more thickly and the pass below is impassable. You cannot go forward or backwards.


You are trapped in the Sierra Nevada Mountains until the snow melts in the spring.


Wearily you turn back to re-join the women and the children who have stopped on the edge of a frozen lake. The Donner Brothers did not even make it this far: snowbound down at Alder Creek eight miles further down the mountain they have halted there. As November goes on all the settlers begin to build cabins: at Truckee Lake the Breen and Murphy families build a cabin each while the Reeds and Graves Families share a cabin. Louis Keseberg builds a strange sort of lean-to against the Breen Cabin for his wife and their children. William Eddy and his family move in with the Murphy's while Charles Stanton and the two Indians move in with the Graves and Reeds.


Down at Alder Creek the Donner's build two cabins, one for the Donner family and the other for various wagon drivers and others, including Mrs Wolfinger who has been with the Donner's since the death of her husband. In all there are twenty-one people staying at the Donner's camp at Alder Creek and sixty living up by Truckee Lake. For your part you had better move into one of the two camps and make yourself comfortable: the snow won't melt until Spring and the supplies are not going to last nearly that long.


Which camp do you move into?

The Alder Creek Camp

Finding room in the tent that holds the Donner Brother's wagon drivers you make yourself as comfortable as you can in a corner with blankets and hunker down. There is little you can do: a strange lethargy seems to have come over the camp at Alder Creek: George Donner is still suffering badly from his wounded hand and Jacob Donner is looking more ill by the day. Both brothers, especially Jacob, keep themselves busy writing letters that various wagon drivers run up to the camp at Truckee Lake promising generous amounts of money for any food, no matter how small. All the cattle have already been slaughtered and everyone is cold and hungry.


In mid-December you visit the camp at Truckee Lake and return with an interesting note from Charles Stanton addressed to George Donner at "Donnersville". It mentions that he and Franklin Graves have been making snow shoes to try and cross the snow into California and asks for Donner's compass and some tobacco. Travelling up to Truckee Lake with Donner's compass you find that seventeen volunteers have been equipped with snowshoes to attempt the dangerous crossing of the snow-filled passes.


This group consists of William Eddy, Franklin Graves, Patrick Dolan (Patrick Breen's friend), Jay Fosdick (Grave's son-in-law), William Foster (the man who accidentally shot William Pike), Donner teamsters Dutch Charley Burger and Antonio, Sarah Fosdick (Jay Fosdick's wife), Sarah Foster (William Foster's wife), Mary Graves (Franklin's adult daughter), Amanda McCutchen (William McCutchen's wife), Harriet Pike (William Pike's widow), Lemuel Murphy (who is twelve) and William Murphy (who is ten). The journey will be dangerous and extremely risky but you can either volunteer or sit tight in the camp.


What do you do?

You volunteer yourself

Each member of the Snowshoes Party is given enough food for six days (at least enough for a few bites each day) and a pair of snowshoes. It is quickly discovered that William Murphy cannot keep up and he is sent back to the camp with Dutch Charley Burger, a little chunky man who is not built for this sort of activity. If you want to turn back now this is your last chance, otherwise you'll have to risk the dangers of the snow-filled passes.


What do you do?

You press on

Pressing on you initially make good progress, reaching the summit of the Sierra Nevada Mountains after one day's travel. Charles Stanton who has been exerting himself a great deal in making the snowshoes begins to suffer from snow blindness and fall behind. By the fifth day there is very little food left and everyone is exhausted. Stanton declares he is unable to walk and sitting by the fire calmly smoking his pipe he tells the rest of your group to go on without him. After a few moments hesitation the group resume their journey.


What do you do?

You stay with Stanton

Remembering everything Stanton has done to help the group you know that you can't leave him behind. Sitting next to him the pair of you enjoy a last smoke and as the wind begins to whip the snow up all around you lose sight of each other. A wave of tiredness overcomes you and you find you can neither get up nor do you want to try. The pair of you die there in the snowy pass.