Muunokhoi's eyes open just a crack; he stretches his limbs as he awakens from his slumber. The tarbagan marmot peers around the hibernaculum and sees his family sleeping peacefully, but something doesn't feel quite right. He is surprisingly very alert and does not feel as drowsy as he usually does after waking up from hibernation in the spring. He inspects the family more closely and notices none of them have lost any appreciable weight and neither has he. This can only mean one thing. Winter is far from over, but he is most definitely . . . awake! He tries unsuccessfully to induce hibernation.

Muunokhoi emerges from his burrow into a hostile winter environment, to explore the availability of food. He first encounters an eagle owl, who advises him that with no food available in the winter months, his only option for survival is to embark on a quest to lower elevations where he can find food to sustain him until the spring.

The journey will be fraught with danger from predators that stalk the mountainous Mongolian terrain, but the marmot will surely starve to death if he stays put. Summoning all his courage, Muunokhoi sets out on an adventure that could ultimately save his life . . . or end it.