After a record snowfall, four Minnesota boys are enjoying a rare day off school by digging a system of snow tunnels to each others houses, a local tradition. As they navigate their way through the massive mounds, they get more of an adventure than they bargained for when they enter a portal uncovered beneath the snow by Robbie, the youngest of the group.

When their adventure lands them in the midst of one of Blackbeard's evil schemes, twelve-year-old Davey, the self-appointed leader of the group, struggles to find the solution to getting back home but it's not until the group, including Monica, Davey and Robbie's 16 year old sister, decides to set aside their differences and cooperate, that they can uncover the solution to get home in time for Christmas.

The story is driven by Robbie's imagination, resulting in a unique series of character parallels and manifestations including a peculiar depiction of pirates.