Bering Sea Gold

NOW ON "BERING SEA GOLD"...

Ken: IT'S GETTING LATE IN THE SEASON.

VERY POSITIVE ABOUT THE MYRTLE'SPRODUCTION

AND WHAT IT'S CAPABLE OF DOING, BUT WE'VE GOT TO PROVE IT YET.

LET'S DO IT. LET'S GO.

GET US SOME GOLD.

Shawn: I JUST GAUGE THE GROUND BY THE GOLD I'M SEEING,

AND YOU START PUTTING TOGETHER THIS MAP.

WE'RE GONNA BET IT'S ALL RIGHT THERE.

Joe: OH, YEAH. THERE SHE IS.

Emily: I'M ASKING MY DIVERS TO PUT THEMSELVES

AT RISK TO MAKE ME MONEY,

SO IT'S IMPORTANT TO ME

THAT THEY'RE AS SAFE AND HAPPY AS POSSIBLE.

Emily: IT'S REALLY HIGH UP HERE.

Bob: AAAAAAH!

-WOO-HOO. -WHOA.

-THE TIME IS CHANGING. -SOMEONE

-LET'S GET TIT FOR TAT. -YEAH!

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

Narrator: THE FLEET HAS HIT THE MIDPOINT OF THE SEASON,

AND LOOKING DOWN THE BACK HALF, THE TIME FOR BLUSTER IS OVER.

FOR THE CAPTAINS TO MEET THEIR SEASON GOALS,

IT'S TIME TO SWEAT...

Narrator: ...BLEED...

AND PUT GOLD IN THE BOX,

OR IT WAS ALL FOR NAUGHT.

Ken: ALL RIGHT. HERE WE GO.

Narrator: SO BUCKLE UP.

-YEE-HAW! -WHOA. WHOA.

Narrator: THE SECOND HALF OF THE SUMMER MINING SEASON...

AAH!

Narrator: ...STARTS RIGHT NOW.

90 MILES EAST OF NOME...

AT THE BLUFF.

WE HAVE SOME POTATOES, YELLOW PEPPERS.

A WHOLE BUNCH OF DELICIOUSNESS.

Narrator: CAPTAIN SHAWN POMRENKE IS DETERMINED TO SECURE

THE FUTURE OF THE FAMILY BUSINESS

BY BUILDING HIS 825-TON MEGA DREDGE.

I WANT TO HAVE THE BEST DIVE OF MY LIFE.

Narrator: 1,200 OUNCES OF BERING SEA GOLD

WILL FEED THE PROJECT'S VORACIOUS BUDGET

AND ENSURE CONSTRUCTION OF THE MEGA DREDGE

CONTINUES THROUGH THE WINTER.

Shawn: WE'RE GONNA KEEP EATING AWAY AT IT.

Narrator: AND WITH THE EVER-PRESENT SPECTER

OF RIVAL KEN KERR'S $6 MILLION MYRTLE IRENE

DEVOURING THE GOLD GROUNDS AROUND NOME, MR. GOLD...

Shawn: I WANT A 100-OUNCE DIVE.

Narrator: ...HAS NO TIME TO WASTE.

SOME BIG WAVES. WASN'T SUPPOSED TO GET THIS BAD.

Narrator: LAST WEEK,

MOTHER NATURE DESCENDED FROM THE NORTH...

ONE ANGRY BERING SEA RIGHT HERE.

...AND CLEARED THE FLEET OFF THE GROUNDS.

PLAN HAS CHANGED.

WE'RE GONNA GO HOME.

LIVE TO MINE ANOTHER DAY.

Shawn: THERE'S, LIKE, BOULDERS.

Joe: IT SEEMS ALMOST LIKE THERE'S A "V" OF BOULDERS

KIND OF COMING IN, LIKE, WITH THIS VIEW.

Narrator: SHAWN IS THE FIRST CAPTAIN BACK ON THE WATER...

I'M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHERE THIS GOLD IS RUNNING.

WE KNOW IT COMES OUT HERE SOMEHOW.

Narrator: ...WITH A PLAN TO MAKE IT PAY

AND HOPEFULLY REEL IN HIS SEASON GOAL.

ORIGINALLY, BACK IN THE GOLD RUSH,

THERE WAS THREE DIFFERENT STRIKES ON THE BEACH AT BLUFF.

THERE WAS A STRIKE OVER HERE AND A STRIKE OVER HERE.

MAYBE THEY ALL COME TOGETHER RIGHT HERE.

I JUST GAUGE THE GROUND BY THE GOLD I'M SEEING,

AND AS I'M DIVING,

YOU START PUTTING TOGETHER THIS MAP

AND START FIGURING THINGS OUT.

Narrator: MR. GOLD HAS TRIANGULATED

THREE HISTORICAL BEACH STRIKES ACROSS THE BLUFF GOLD GROUNDS.

TODAY, HE'S SETTING UP ON THE POINT WHERE THEY COME TOGETHER.

AS THE THEORY GOES, THE INTERSECTION OF THREE STRIKES

WILL YIELD THREE TIMES THE GOLD.

WE'RE GONNA BET IT'S ALL RIGHT THERE.

LET'S GET YOU DOWN.

WE MIGHT HIT THE RICHEST YET RIGHT HERE.

HEADING UNDER FOR THE FIRST SHIFT OF THE DAY...

THE SLUICE BOX IS GONNA BE LIKE STARING AT THE SUN.

...VETERAN MINER BIG JOE FULLWOOD.

YOU'LL GO BLIND IF YOU LOOK RIGHT AT IT.

Shawn: YOU NEVER KNOW IF THE PAY STREAK IS GONNA CONTINUE

OR IF IT'S GONNA STOP, BUT WE'RE HOPING IT CONTINUES.

Joe: HERE WE ARE BACK ON THE GROUNDS.

Shawn: NO WHAMMIES, NO WHAMMIES, NO WHAMMIES.

YEAH, YEAH, YEAH.

ALL RIGHTY.

I'M GONNA GET TO SUCKING OUT AROUND THIS ROCK.

YOU GUYS WANT TO IDLE IT UP?

IDLING UP.

YEP, SHE'S RIPPING.

COME ON. COME ON.

GET IN THE SLUICE BOX.

THINK IT'S A REALLY IRREGULAR DEPOSIT HERE.

IT'S LIKE A GOLD, IRON-FLATTENED LIMESTONE.

OH, YEAH.

DAMN.

I'VE GOT THE GOOSE BUMPS DOWN HERE.

OH, YEAH. THERE SHE IS,

STARING ME RIGHT IN THE FACE.

WOO-HOO!

AND, BOOM, 1,000 BUCKS.

BOOM!

WHAT ARE YOU THINKING ABOUT THE MAP NOW?

ARE YOU THINKING OUR HUNT IS RIGHT?

WE ON THE SPOT? -YEAH.

I THINK, UH, THE SMALLEST STRING GOES RIGHT TO IT.

FOLLOW THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD.

Narrator: 90 MILES WEST, IN NOME HARBOR...

Ken: WE'RE READY TO GO TO WORK,

SEE IF WE CAN GET OUT HERE AND FIND SOME GOLD.

Narrator: ...CAPTAIN KEN KERR IS GETTING HIS 600-TON

BERING SEA BEAST, THE MYRTLE IRENE,

BACK OUT TO THE GROUNDS.

Ken: GOT A LITTLE CALM WEATHER HERE, A LITTLE WINDOW,

SO I'M HOPING WE GET SOME LONG DIGGING HOURS IN TODAY.

Narrator: THE CAPTAIN HAS BARELY SCRATCHED THE SURFACE

OF HIS 2,000-OUNCE SUMMER GOAL,

AND WITH THE COST OF CREW AND FUEL ALONE

EXCEEDING $8,000 PER DAY...

A FULL DAY OF DIGGING AND THEN WORK OUR BUTT OFF

AND PULL A DOUBLE,

WORK ALL THE WAY THROUGH TONIGHT.

Narrator: ...HE NEEDS THE MYRTLE TO GENERATE 35 OUNCES OF GOLD

EVERY 24 HOURS JUST TO MAKE ENDS MEET.

ALL RIGHT. GO AHEAD AND JUST PUT HER DOWN RIGHT HERE.

Man: ROGER THAT.

Narrator: SET UP ON GOLD-RICH GROUND...

George: THAT'S THE SPOT.

...FOUND BY ARCTIC SEA OPERATIONS MANAGER

GEORGE YOUNG...

Ken: DIG! DIG, BOY, DIG!

...CAPTAIN KEN KERR STILL BELIEVES

IN THE MASSIVE PROMISE OF HIS DREDGE.

Ken: I CAN GET 300 YARDS AN HOUR,

BUT A 10-INCH DREDGE

PROBABLY RUNS 30, 40 YARDS AN HOUR

IF THEY'RE LUCKY COMPARED TO, YOU KNOW, 300 YARDS AN HOUR.

I THINK WE CAN DO IT. WE GOT TO JUST GET HER DONE.

ALL RIGHT. LET'S SEE WHAT WE CAN DO.

Narrator: THE MYRTLE'S5-YARD BUCKET IS THE BIGGEST IN NOME,

AND IT CAN MOVE MORE GROUND THAN ANY OTHER ON THE BERING SEA.

Ken: FIRST OF THE DAY.

WHAT DOES THIS STUFF LOOK LIKE?

MUCK AND CLAY.

Narrator: AND UNLIKE A SUCTION DREDGE, IT CAN REACH GOLD

UP TO 30 FEET BENEATH THE OCEAN FLOOR

DEPENDING ON THE DEPTH OF THE WATER.

Ken: WE DIG TO A HARD PAN, WHERE THEY CAN'T EVEN THINK OF GOING.

WE MOVE BOULDERS LIKE THIS THEY CAN'T EVEN MOVE.

WE'RE SWINGING LIKE CRAZY.

YEE-HAW!

I'M GONNA DO A LITTLE PAN ON THIS MATERIAL,

SEE HOW GOOD IT REALLY IS.

I DON'T THINK THERE'S ANY GOLD IN THAT CRAP,

BUT I'M FIXING TO FIND OUT.

THERE YOU GO. PUT IT IN A BUCKET.

DID YOU GUYS GET A BOTTOM SAMPLE?

[ MAN SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY ]

COME ON. LET'S GO.

I'M ABOUT READY TO DUMP SOME ON THE DECK.

LET'S SEE WHAT WE GOT.

Ken: THERE IS?

THIS IS COMING OUT

OF THE BOTTOM OF THAT CLAY.

OH, YEAH. THERE'S QUITE A FEW FINDS IN THERE.

Narrator: THE PAN CONFIRMS RICH GROUND.

DESPITE THE SETBACKS WE'VE HAD,

IT'S NICE WHEN YOU SEE GOLD IN THE BUCKET.

VERY POSITIVE ABOUT THE MYRTLE'SPRODUCTION

AND WHAT IT'S CAPABLE OF DOING.

BOOM.

BUT WE GOT TO PROVE IT YET.

Narrator: NOW...

COME ON, BABY. DIG.

...ALL KEN NEEDS TO DO IS LET THE BEAST FEAST.

Ken: IT'S GETTING LATE IN THE SEASON,

SO EVERY MINUTE COUNTS

WHEN YOU'RE OUT THERE DREDGING, EVERY MINUTE.

THERE'S A LOT OF GOLD IN THE BERING SEA.

WE JUST GOT TO FIND IT.

Narrator: COMING UP...

AAAAAAH!

GOLD IS FLOWING LIKE A FINE WINE.

Narrator: 90 MILES EAST OF NOME...

AT THE BLUFF...

Andy: IT'S BRIGHT OUT HERE TODAY.

Narrator: ...AFTER A WEEK OFF THE GROUNDS

WHILE A SUMMER SQUALL BLEW THROUGH,

KELLY UNITED IS HITTING THE WATER, BUT THEY'RE A MAN DOWN.

KRIS IS IN TOWN. HE SAID HE WAS COMING OUT TODAY.

WE'LL SEE. I DON'T KNOW.

Narrator: IN THE CAPTAIN'S ABSENCE,

IT'S UP TO LEAD DIVER ANDY KELLY