In the winter of 1846, a group of pioneers became trapped in a prison of ice, forced to perform unspeakable acts to survive. Now, the Donner Party is memorialized in Truckee, California. But the park’s pristine trails hold much more than nature’s abundance…
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Sep 2021
Introducing: Wild Wild West
In this special collection of Parcast episodes, we’re revisiting the lore and tackling the tallest of tales from an era that’s endlessly mythologized in American pop culture — the Wild West. From bloody feuds to gunslinging bandits, unsolved murders to centuries-old mysteries, sa ... Show More
15m 54s
Dec 2023
Encore: Donner Party | Snow and Blood | 2
<p>In November of 1846, an early snowstorm left the Donner Party’s 87 men, women and children trapped in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Freezing and running out of food, they decided to send out a team of men and women on a rescue mission. But soon, the rescuers would find themselv ... Show More
46m 58s
Jul 2023
The Donner Party Turns Deadly
August 4, 1846. A few months into their journey from Illinois to California, a group of pioneers encounters trouble. They’ve just found a note from their guide. It essentially says, “That shortcut I told you to take through the Wasatch Mountains – don’t.” The setback disastrously ... Show More
28m 23s
Jan 2024
Encore: Donner Party | In Their Footsteps | 4
In December of 1846, a small group split off from the Donner Party in a desperate attempt to find help. The party, known as the Forlorn Hope, endured the bitter Sierra Nevada winter, trekking roughly 100 miles in 33 days. The route the party took remained unknown for decades. Unt ... Show More
34m 24s
Mar 2023
Dirtbags of Dope Lake: Yosemite National Park
When treasure in the form of 6,000 pounds of high-grade Mexican marijuana fell from the California sky during a plane crash in the winter of 1976, lives were changed and lives were lost – and legend was carved into the soul of Yosemite National Park. For the latest NPAD updates, ... Show More
1h 7m
Dec 2019
Best of 2019: The Donner Party Pt. 1
Here’s one of our listeners’ most requested episodes of 2019: On May 12, 1846, a wagon train set out toward the West Coast of North America. The trip should have taken four months. In the end, it dragged on for a year, exacerbated by bad weather and rapidly dwindling food stores. ... Show More
53m 14s