Snowbound: The Jim and Jennifer Stolpa Story
Encyclopedia
Snowbound: The Jim and Jennifer Stolpa Story is a 1994 American television film.
Snowbound is based on a true story. Jim and Jennifer Stolpa and their infant son Clayton are 500 miles from their home in Castro Valley, California
, when they lose their way and are stranded in an endless wilderness of deep snow in northern Nevada
, east of Cedarville, CA. They battle for survival against the elements when Jim Stolpa drives too far down a snow covered road and gets stuck during a snowstorm. Using only meager supplies and resourcefulness, the young couple struggles to keep themselves and their son alive in a frozen shelter while awaiting rescue. Realizing they will not be found and out of supplies, Jim ultimately strikes out on a courageous 50-mile walk through the snow alone, determined to reach help and return to save his loved ones before they die.
Jim and Jennifer's story was also used as the plot for the "Lost in the Snow" episode of I Shouldn't Be Alive
. The episode originally aired November 3, 2005, and featured Les Stroud
analyzing the Stolpas' actions and showing the viewers how to be better prepared for such a situation.
Jim Stolpa (21) a private first class with the US Army based at Paso Roberts Calif, and his wife Jennifer Stolpa (20) an exe private from the US Army and mother and their 5 month old baby son Clayton Stolpa were home for Christmas on returning to work Jim found out that his grandmother had passed away and was granted 5 days leave to attend the funeral and be with his family.
The funeral was to be held at a church in Pocatello, Idaho on New Year’s Eve and Jim, Jennifer and Clayton had arranged to meet the rest of the family their including Jim’s mother and step father (Kevin). The couple borrowed Jennifer’s brother’s pickup truck a red dodge Dakota with a steel camping shell attached to the back.
On the morning of Tuesday 29th December 1992 the trio left their apartment in Hayward (San Francisco Bay Area) Calif, and headed out in the red pickup. They informed their family that they intended to drive through the Sierra Nevada’s using route I80 and that they would see them the next day, after a morning of driving the trio were stopped at a road block near Donner Pass by the Californian Highway Patrol and were advised that due to up to 9ft of snow and a heavy snow storm the I80 route through the Sierra Nevada was closed and that they would have to find an alternative route.
The couple stopped off at a local town called Downieville along Highway 49 and asked a local convenience store clerk for directions and purchased a map and some refreshments. They decided that they would take the 299 towards Cedarville Calif, the trio carried on driving down the 299 only to stop off at a garage to have some chains fitted to the types due to the local road conditions and the threat of more bad weather on the radio. After continuing down the 299 the trio passed Cedarville and by now it was getting late they carried on planning to drive over the state line Calif, and Nevada along the 299 and across the Sheldon nature reserve and meet the 140 that ran into Winnemucca then join the I80 to Idaho.
Snowbound
Jim decided to make sure that they could make up time he would remove the chains from the tyres so that also Jennifer and Clayton could sleep as the ride would be smoother. It was getting late on Wednesday 30th December 1992 and the funeral was the next day as the trio carried on down the 299 they soon crossed the state line and entered Nevada, the smooth tarmac road of the 299 soon changed into the dirty track of Nevada SR8a the continuation of the 299 that led onto the 140 after passing through miles of the Sheldon nature reserve a very remote area with around 20 houses in a 4000 square mile area am miles of hills, ridges and canyons. Jim was driving while Jenifer and Clayton slept next to him, due to the heavy snow fall and being dark outside Jim failed to see the only road sign for miles saying that the road was not maintained and that the route was closed over the winter he carried on through the ghost town of Vya, Nevada. By now the trio were 140 miles from their original planned route to stop Jim’s mother from panicking Jim and Jennifer decided not to tell them about the change of route. They were now 50 miles east of Cedarville the nearest civilisation and about 15 miles east of Vya, Nevada. Then a rush of snow on the bonnet woke Jennifer as the couple looked around they could not believe that they were driving along a state road and that it was unusual for this amount of snow to be on the road then they suddenly realised that they were driving along a road that had not been ploughed. At that point Jim hit a wall of snow that caused the car to become stuck in the snow. No amount of driving forward and backwards would allow the back wheels to become free they were well and truly snowbound miles from anywhere.
The Search
As morning came it was New Year’s Eve on Thursday 31st December 1992 and the day of the funeral. Jim and Jennifer woke to a bag of chips, pre netal vitamin pills, fruit cake and coconut cookies. They used the remaining petrol in the tank to heat the truck but this was running dangerously low and they could not stay for ever or they would freeze to death realizing this Jim tried to convince Jennifer that we would venture alone to the 140 approximately 18 miles away and flag down help and would be back by night fall or make the walk back towards Cedarville and brink help by the next day but the couple decided that they would stick together and slept in an old mattress and sleeping bags in the back of the truck they huddled together as the new year came in, meanwhile sensing that there was a problem and as the trio had not made it to Idaho Jim’s step father Kevin Mulligan called home to check with Jennifer’s brother and see if he had heard from the couple. On new year’s day Kevin and Jim’s mother reported the trio missing to the Californian Highway Patrol, frustrated with the lack of support and with the help of Jennifer’s brother Kevin enlisted the help of the media to ask for the public’s support in helping to find the trio this started a state wide hunt for the missing trio with their 5 month old baby who by now had been missing for 4 days. Meanwhile back in Sheldon the couple were still arguing about Jim leaving the car to get help realising that staying would cause them to freeze to death and that there was nobody coming to rescue them the couple decided to stick together and make the 18 mile walk through the snow filled desert as the snow storm had stopped however it was minus four degrees and 4ft of snow on the ground. The couple wrapped their feet in plastic bags and put on extra socks and layers and placed Clayton into a make shift sleigh using the sleeping bag and pulling it along this was by now day 4 since being snowbound on a minor state road that was closed for the winter. The couple carried on and ate snow to keep hydrated the feeling of coldness was unreal as their feet stung as they walked along dragging Clayton along in their sleeping bag whilst at home the media campaign was in full swing with a search and rescue mission being run from Jim’s mothers home.
Hell Creek & A Wrong Turn
Meanwhile the trio stumbled towards a sign saying hell creek and the path forked left and right the couple were unsure as to what direct to go, using the idea to dig in the snow with their hands to the surface of the ground they would see what the surface was made of seeing that the left fork was dirt and the right fork was gravel the couple opted to follow the gravel path as it resembled a road more than the dirt they went right into Hell Canyon. As it began to get dark the stumbled towards a ridge and on the horizon they saw what appeared to be a straight row of lights in the distance. Overjoyed the couple carried on towards the 140 the walk took them through the night and into the next morning day 5 Sunday 4th January 1993, the couple finally managed to climb the ridge that would leave to highway 140 Jim looked over the ridge and froze on the spot only to realise that over the ridge was not the 140 but was instead a huge snow filled canyon that went on for miles the couple had taken the wrong turn and should have turned left they had walked deeper into Sheldon Nature Reserve and were now lost. Jennifer by now was exhausted and suffering from dehydration the couple realised that they would have to Part Company Jim said that he would have to walk back to the car and on to Cedarville approximately 65 miles away, using a blue top as a market Jim tied the top to a tree marking a cave in the rocks that Jennifer and Clayton would stay in with the sleeping bag, Jim promised to return with help in 2 days’ time and then Jim set off back to the car.
Jim Alone & The Rescue
It was either late that night or the early hours of Monday 5th January 1993 when Jim had made it back to their abandoned car, Jim slept for a couple of hours waking to dawn on Monday 5th January 1993 and day 7 Jim walked back towards the direction of Cedarville and managed to join the 299 seeing a sign for Cedarville 51 miles Jim carried on his lonely cold walk in 4ft of snow and it was now 5 below freezing. Jim continued walking into the next day Tuesday 6th January 1993 day 8. Jim was now suffering from major frost bite, dehydration and exhaustion. It was now around 12:30pm and in the distance Jim could see a flashing orange light as she got closer he noticed a highway maintenance pickup truck turning in the road Jim managed to gain the strength to run towards the truck screaming for him to stop. Seeing Jim running towards him and in a poor condition the driver of the truck Highway maintenance worker Dave Peterson stopped seeing that Jim was disorientated and suffering from hypothermia he took Jim home and soon realised after making some phone calls that he was Jim Stolpa and him and his family had been missing for 8 days, Dave’s wife tended to Jim’s feet using a hair dryer to dry them off to that she didn’t peel away any tissue from his feet whilst trying to tend to his feet. After several calls at approximately 2:00pm a search and rescue party headed by Pat Green of the Californian Highway Patrol and members of the US Bureau of Land Management using a snow cat loader with a plough searched the Sheldon Reserve for Jennifer and Clayton using maps and Jim’s recollection of the journey from the cave where he left his wife and child after 3 hours of searching the rescue team came across the blue jumper tied to the tree at 5:15pm the team had rescued Jennifer and Clayton who were immediately taken by land ambulance to Cedarville Hospital where Jim was waiting for them asleep in the hospital bed. The next morning Jim and Jennifer woke up to find that after several tests Clayton was deemed to have been fit and well despite being dehydrated the baby fat cells were able to starve off the hunger that could have killed him. Later that day the trio were transferred to the Washoe County Medical Centre in Reno were they underwent treatment for severe frostbite, unfortunately they had to have up to ¾ of both their feet removed.
The Later Years & Divorce
Jennifer and Jim made a full recovery and were able to walk again after intensive hospital treatment. In 1999 Jim and Jennifer Stolpa divorced after moving to Milwaukee, Jim works as a machine operator after an honourable discharge from the US Army because of his feet and attended a machinery design course at a local college. Clayton grew up to pass high school with a strong interest in music and Jennifer worked part time as a bar worker with the dream of becoming a physical therapist. To this day Jim and Jennifer have married to other people and have more children but still remain close friends never forgetting what the pair went through in the Winter of 92 and what Jim did for her Jennifer is still thankful to Jim for his part in the family being saved.
Snowbound is based on a true story. Jim and Jennifer Stolpa and their infant son Clayton are 500 miles from their home in Castro Valley, California
Castro Valley, California
Castro Valley is a census-designated place in Alameda County, California, United States. As of the 2000 census, it is the fifth most populous unincorporated area in California, and the twenty-third in the United States...
, when they lose their way and are stranded in an endless wilderness of deep snow in northern Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
, east of Cedarville, CA. They battle for survival against the elements when Jim Stolpa drives too far down a snow covered road and gets stuck during a snowstorm. Using only meager supplies and resourcefulness, the young couple struggles to keep themselves and their son alive in a frozen shelter while awaiting rescue. Realizing they will not be found and out of supplies, Jim ultimately strikes out on a courageous 50-mile walk through the snow alone, determined to reach help and return to save his loved ones before they die.
Jim and Jennifer's story was also used as the plot for the "Lost in the Snow" episode of I Shouldn't Be Alive
I Shouldn't Be Alive
I Shouldn't Be Alive is a documentary television series that airs on multiple networks in the United States, Canada, the U.K., Australia, India and Pakistan...
. The episode originally aired November 3, 2005, and featured Les Stroud
Les Stroud
Les Stroud is a Canadian musician, filmmaker, and survival expert best known as the creator, writer, producer, director, cameraman and host of the television series Survivorman...
analyzing the Stolpas' actions and showing the viewers how to be better prepared for such a situation.
Cast (in credits order)
- Neil Patrick HarrisNeil Patrick HarrisNeil Patrick Harris is an American actor, singer, director, and magician.Prominent roles of his career include the title role in Doogie Howser, M.D., Colonel Carl Jenkins in Starship Troopers, the womanizing Barney Stinson in How I Met Your Mother, a fictionalized version of himself in the Harold...
.... Jim Stolpa - Kelli WilliamsKelli WilliamsKelli Renee Williams is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Lindsay Dole on the Legal drama The Practice and as psychologist and deception expert Dr. Gillian Foster on Lie to Me....
.... Jennifer Stolpa - Richard Ian CoxRichard Ian CoxRichard Ian Cox is a Welsh-Canadian voice actor and online radio host best known for his voice acting for English language dubs of anime. Cox gained prominence for playing the character of Henry Dailey's teenaged traveler and horse rider, Alec Ramsay, in The Family Channel's Adventures of the...
.... Jason Wicker (as Richard Cox) - Duncan FraserDuncan FraserThe Very Rev Duncan Fraser DD, MA, JPwas Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland from 1964 to 1965.He was born in Bracadale on 7 August 1903, educated at Portree High School and the University of Edinburgh. He was Minister of Invergordon Kirk from 1929 to 1967; and a Naval...
.... Don Patterson - Susan ClarkSusan ClarkSusan Clark is a Canadian actress, possibly best-known for her role as Katherine on the American television sitcom Webster, on which she appeared with her husband, Alex Karras.-Personal life:...
.... Muriel Mulligan - Michael GrossMichael Gross (actor)Michael Gross is an American television, movie, and stage actor who plays both comedic and dramatic roles. His most notable roles are as the father Steven Keaton from Family Ties and the Graboid hunter Burt Gummer from the Tremors franchise.-Early life:Gross was born in Chicago, Illinois, the son...
.... Kevin Mulligan - Andrew AirlieAndrew AirlieAndrew Airlie is a Scottish-born Canadian actor.He has starred in television series including Breaker High and his TV credits include guest starring in popular television shows such as Monk, Smallville, Stargate SG-1 and The X-Files. He had television regular roles as Mr...
.... Dr. Bonaldi - Alexander Ahnert .... Clayton Stolpa
- Zachary Ahnert .... Clayton Stolpa
- Shannon Beaty .... Megan Mulligan
- Heather Beaty .... Megan Mulligan
- Joy CoghillJoy CoghillJoy Coghill, O.C., is a Canadian actor, director, and writer.She and Myra Benson founded Canada's first children's theatre company, Holiday Theatre. In 1994, Coghill founded Western Gold, a theatre company for older professional actors. She holds honorary degrees from SFU and UBC...
.... Dr. Jorgenson - Kevin McNultyKevin McNultyKevin McNulty is a Canadian actor.McNulty was born in Penticton, British Columbia, Canada. He has acted on three aviation movies: Falling from the Sky: Flight 174 with William Devane, Final Descent with Robert Urich and Snakes on a Plane with Samuel L. Jackson...
.... Joe Tirado - Roger Barnes .... Steve
- J.B. Bivens .... Roadblock CHP
- Ken Camroux .... Sergeant Satellite
- John B. Destry .... Redinger
- Beverley Elliott .... Terri
- Tina Gilbertson .... Reporter
- Mitchell KostermanMitchell KostermanMitchell Arthur Edgar Kosterman is a Canadian actor.He was in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He is probably best known for his role as Sheriff Ethan Miller in Smallville.-Filmography:* John Doe as Sheriff Ash...
.... Deputy (as Mitch Kosterman) - Catherine Lough Haggquist .... Paramedic (as Catherine Lough)
- Randi Lynne .... CHP Sergeant
- Walter Marsh .... Sheriff Watkins
- Hrothgar Mathews .... Rick Frazier
- Arlin McFarlane .... Roberta Patterson
- Douglas Newell .... Tommy
- Rick Poltaruk .... Mechanic
- Phil Reimer .... Weatherman
- Robert Toohey .... Doug Farley
- Arnie Walters .... Uncle Clay
- Shawn WebsterShawn WebsterShawn Webster is a former Republican member of the Ohio House of Representatives, who represented the 53rd District from 2001 to 2008.-Life and career:...
.... Weatherwoman - Dale Wilson .... Lt. Jack Reynolds
- Donna Yamamoto .... Nurse
The Real Full Story
The Journey & DetourJim Stolpa (21) a private first class with the US Army based at Paso Roberts Calif, and his wife Jennifer Stolpa (20) an exe private from the US Army and mother and their 5 month old baby son Clayton Stolpa were home for Christmas on returning to work Jim found out that his grandmother had passed away and was granted 5 days leave to attend the funeral and be with his family.
The funeral was to be held at a church in Pocatello, Idaho on New Year’s Eve and Jim, Jennifer and Clayton had arranged to meet the rest of the family their including Jim’s mother and step father (Kevin). The couple borrowed Jennifer’s brother’s pickup truck a red dodge Dakota with a steel camping shell attached to the back.
On the morning of Tuesday 29th December 1992 the trio left their apartment in Hayward (San Francisco Bay Area) Calif, and headed out in the red pickup. They informed their family that they intended to drive through the Sierra Nevada’s using route I80 and that they would see them the next day, after a morning of driving the trio were stopped at a road block near Donner Pass by the Californian Highway Patrol and were advised that due to up to 9ft of snow and a heavy snow storm the I80 route through the Sierra Nevada was closed and that they would have to find an alternative route.
The couple stopped off at a local town called Downieville along Highway 49 and asked a local convenience store clerk for directions and purchased a map and some refreshments. They decided that they would take the 299 towards Cedarville Calif, the trio carried on driving down the 299 only to stop off at a garage to have some chains fitted to the types due to the local road conditions and the threat of more bad weather on the radio. After continuing down the 299 the trio passed Cedarville and by now it was getting late they carried on planning to drive over the state line Calif, and Nevada along the 299 and across the Sheldon nature reserve and meet the 140 that ran into Winnemucca then join the I80 to Idaho.
Snowbound
Jim decided to make sure that they could make up time he would remove the chains from the tyres so that also Jennifer and Clayton could sleep as the ride would be smoother. It was getting late on Wednesday 30th December 1992 and the funeral was the next day as the trio carried on down the 299 they soon crossed the state line and entered Nevada, the smooth tarmac road of the 299 soon changed into the dirty track of Nevada SR8a the continuation of the 299 that led onto the 140 after passing through miles of the Sheldon nature reserve a very remote area with around 20 houses in a 4000 square mile area am miles of hills, ridges and canyons. Jim was driving while Jenifer and Clayton slept next to him, due to the heavy snow fall and being dark outside Jim failed to see the only road sign for miles saying that the road was not maintained and that the route was closed over the winter he carried on through the ghost town of Vya, Nevada. By now the trio were 140 miles from their original planned route to stop Jim’s mother from panicking Jim and Jennifer decided not to tell them about the change of route. They were now 50 miles east of Cedarville the nearest civilisation and about 15 miles east of Vya, Nevada. Then a rush of snow on the bonnet woke Jennifer as the couple looked around they could not believe that they were driving along a state road and that it was unusual for this amount of snow to be on the road then they suddenly realised that they were driving along a road that had not been ploughed. At that point Jim hit a wall of snow that caused the car to become stuck in the snow. No amount of driving forward and backwards would allow the back wheels to become free they were well and truly snowbound miles from anywhere.
The Search
As morning came it was New Year’s Eve on Thursday 31st December 1992 and the day of the funeral. Jim and Jennifer woke to a bag of chips, pre netal vitamin pills, fruit cake and coconut cookies. They used the remaining petrol in the tank to heat the truck but this was running dangerously low and they could not stay for ever or they would freeze to death realizing this Jim tried to convince Jennifer that we would venture alone to the 140 approximately 18 miles away and flag down help and would be back by night fall or make the walk back towards Cedarville and brink help by the next day but the couple decided that they would stick together and slept in an old mattress and sleeping bags in the back of the truck they huddled together as the new year came in, meanwhile sensing that there was a problem and as the trio had not made it to Idaho Jim’s step father Kevin Mulligan called home to check with Jennifer’s brother and see if he had heard from the couple. On new year’s day Kevin and Jim’s mother reported the trio missing to the Californian Highway Patrol, frustrated with the lack of support and with the help of Jennifer’s brother Kevin enlisted the help of the media to ask for the public’s support in helping to find the trio this started a state wide hunt for the missing trio with their 5 month old baby who by now had been missing for 4 days. Meanwhile back in Sheldon the couple were still arguing about Jim leaving the car to get help realising that staying would cause them to freeze to death and that there was nobody coming to rescue them the couple decided to stick together and make the 18 mile walk through the snow filled desert as the snow storm had stopped however it was minus four degrees and 4ft of snow on the ground. The couple wrapped their feet in plastic bags and put on extra socks and layers and placed Clayton into a make shift sleigh using the sleeping bag and pulling it along this was by now day 4 since being snowbound on a minor state road that was closed for the winter. The couple carried on and ate snow to keep hydrated the feeling of coldness was unreal as their feet stung as they walked along dragging Clayton along in their sleeping bag whilst at home the media campaign was in full swing with a search and rescue mission being run from Jim’s mothers home.
Hell Creek & A Wrong Turn
Meanwhile the trio stumbled towards a sign saying hell creek and the path forked left and right the couple were unsure as to what direct to go, using the idea to dig in the snow with their hands to the surface of the ground they would see what the surface was made of seeing that the left fork was dirt and the right fork was gravel the couple opted to follow the gravel path as it resembled a road more than the dirt they went right into Hell Canyon. As it began to get dark the stumbled towards a ridge and on the horizon they saw what appeared to be a straight row of lights in the distance. Overjoyed the couple carried on towards the 140 the walk took them through the night and into the next morning day 5 Sunday 4th January 1993, the couple finally managed to climb the ridge that would leave to highway 140 Jim looked over the ridge and froze on the spot only to realise that over the ridge was not the 140 but was instead a huge snow filled canyon that went on for miles the couple had taken the wrong turn and should have turned left they had walked deeper into Sheldon Nature Reserve and were now lost. Jennifer by now was exhausted and suffering from dehydration the couple realised that they would have to Part Company Jim said that he would have to walk back to the car and on to Cedarville approximately 65 miles away, using a blue top as a market Jim tied the top to a tree marking a cave in the rocks that Jennifer and Clayton would stay in with the sleeping bag, Jim promised to return with help in 2 days’ time and then Jim set off back to the car.
Jim Alone & The Rescue
It was either late that night or the early hours of Monday 5th January 1993 when Jim had made it back to their abandoned car, Jim slept for a couple of hours waking to dawn on Monday 5th January 1993 and day 7 Jim walked back towards the direction of Cedarville and managed to join the 299 seeing a sign for Cedarville 51 miles Jim carried on his lonely cold walk in 4ft of snow and it was now 5 below freezing. Jim continued walking into the next day Tuesday 6th January 1993 day 8. Jim was now suffering from major frost bite, dehydration and exhaustion. It was now around 12:30pm and in the distance Jim could see a flashing orange light as she got closer he noticed a highway maintenance pickup truck turning in the road Jim managed to gain the strength to run towards the truck screaming for him to stop. Seeing Jim running towards him and in a poor condition the driver of the truck Highway maintenance worker Dave Peterson stopped seeing that Jim was disorientated and suffering from hypothermia he took Jim home and soon realised after making some phone calls that he was Jim Stolpa and him and his family had been missing for 8 days, Dave’s wife tended to Jim’s feet using a hair dryer to dry them off to that she didn’t peel away any tissue from his feet whilst trying to tend to his feet. After several calls at approximately 2:00pm a search and rescue party headed by Pat Green of the Californian Highway Patrol and members of the US Bureau of Land Management using a snow cat loader with a plough searched the Sheldon Reserve for Jennifer and Clayton using maps and Jim’s recollection of the journey from the cave where he left his wife and child after 3 hours of searching the rescue team came across the blue jumper tied to the tree at 5:15pm the team had rescued Jennifer and Clayton who were immediately taken by land ambulance to Cedarville Hospital where Jim was waiting for them asleep in the hospital bed. The next morning Jim and Jennifer woke up to find that after several tests Clayton was deemed to have been fit and well despite being dehydrated the baby fat cells were able to starve off the hunger that could have killed him. Later that day the trio were transferred to the Washoe County Medical Centre in Reno were they underwent treatment for severe frostbite, unfortunately they had to have up to ¾ of both their feet removed.
The Later Years & Divorce
Jennifer and Jim made a full recovery and were able to walk again after intensive hospital treatment. In 1999 Jim and Jennifer Stolpa divorced after moving to Milwaukee, Jim works as a machine operator after an honourable discharge from the US Army because of his feet and attended a machinery design course at a local college. Clayton grew up to pass high school with a strong interest in music and Jennifer worked part time as a bar worker with the dream of becoming a physical therapist. To this day Jim and Jennifer have married to other people and have more children but still remain close friends never forgetting what the pair went through in the Winter of 92 and what Jim did for her Jennifer is still thankful to Jim for his part in the family being saved.