Gold Rush

WE'RE SCRAPING THE BOTTOM OF THE BARREL, BUDDY.

-AAAH! -LOOK OUT!

Man: NO WAY!

WELCOME BACK.

YOU'RE NOT GONNA BELIEVE THIS, BUT WE'RE MOVING BIG RED

DOWN TO THE GROUND WE BOUGHT.

Mitch: LAST THING WE NEED TO DO IS BREAK THE TRUCK.

WE BROKE ENOUGH STUFF THIS YEAR.

- -OH

I DON'T SEE HIM!

QUIT POINTING!

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

THIS TIME OF YEAR IS PRETTY EERIE.

I MEAN, WE'RE BASICALLY JUST GOING THROUGH THE MOTIONS

WAITING TO GET

I MEAN, THE WEATHER'S COMING. THERE'S NO DENYING IT.

AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S ALREADY FREEZING.

LIKE, IT'S WELL BELOW FREEZING THIS MORNING.

WE SHOULD STILL BE ABLE TO KEEP MOVING,

SO ALL WE CAN DO IS HOPE THAT, YOU KNOW,

WE GET A FEW MORE DAYS.

WE'VE GOT MORE GOLD TO GET, SO...

Terry: Rick Ness, you gonna copy?

YEAH, GO FOR RICK.

Hey, man.

YOU GOT TO GET DOWN TO THE UPSTREAM CUT RIGHT AWAY.

GOT TO SEE WHAT? WHAT'S GOING ON?

IT'S NOT GOOD, MAN.

Narrator: WINTER HAS COME TO THE KLONDIKE.

RICK NESS IS DESPERATE TO TURN A PROFIT IN HIS ROOKIE SEASON,

BUT HE'S STILL 60 OUNCES SHORT

OF HIS 1,000-OUNCE, $1.2-MILLION GOAL.

HOLY BUDDY.

-IT'S A BAD DEAL. -SHE FROZE LAST NIGHT.

Rick: SPRINKLERS AREN'T EVEN TURNING.

Terry: NO. THIS ISN'T GOOD.

WHOA. WHOA. YEAH. THIS IS ROCK SOLID.

WHOA.

Rick: HOW THE DOES THAT HAPPEN?

IT GOT REALLY COLD LAST NIGHT.

Narrator: RICK INSTALLED SPRINKLERS,

WHICH SUCCESSFULLY THAWED THE PAY DIRT,

BUT A 10-DEGREE DROP IN TEMPERATURE OVERNIGHT

MEANS THAT INSTEAD OF MELTING THE GROUND,

THE WATER HAS NOW FORMED A SURFACE LAYER OF SOLID ICE.

BENEATH THE ICE LIES TWO FEET OF PAY DIRT THAT'S STILL THAWED.

IT COULD CONTAIN ENOUGH GOLD TO MAKE A GOOD PROFIT FOR RICK,

THE MILWAUKEE BOYS, AND THEIR FAMILIES.

WELL, I HOPE THERE'S A COUPLE OF FEET OF THAWED PAY

STILL UNDERNEATH THAT. YEP.

SO IT'S TIME TO TOSS UP A HAIL MARY,

GET THESE SPRINKLERS OUT OF HERE

AND START GETTING THIS PAY

BEFORE IT'S ALL FROZE AND LOCKED IN

FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR.

IT'S A ICE-SKATING RINK, TERRY.

ALL RIGHT, GET ON THE HORN AND CALL EVERYBODY IN HERE.

YOU GUYS ARE GONNA HAVE TO GET THE OUT OF HERE.

WE'RE GONNA GET ALL OF OUR MACHINES IN HERE.

Narrator: RICK'S ONLY HOPE --

GET ALL THE THAWED PAY TO THE PLANT ASAP...

COME ON! LET'S GO!

Narrator: ...BEFORE IT FREEZES ROCK-SOLID.

MOTHER NATURE IS CLOSING IN ON US

AND CLOSING IN ON US FAST.

I SET A GOAL.

I FULLY INTEND ON BEING HERE TILL I GET IT.

I WILL RIP OUT THIS FROZEN GRAVEL

UNTIL THERE'S NOTHING LEFT OF THIS BUCKET,

SO IT, AND YOU, ICE.

ARE YOU SERIOUS?

MUST YOU BE SO ROUGH WITH ME?

OH, I DIDN'T KNOW YOU WERE SO SENSITIVE, BEN.

HEY, TINA, WHY DON'T YOU GET TURNED AROUND

AND COME ALONG AROUND SIDE OF ME HERE NEXT TO THIS DITCH?

I'LL LOAD YOU UP.

Narrator: RICK CALLS IN AN EXTRA TRUCK AND DRIVER

TO HAUL PAY TO THE PLANT.

-AAAH! -LOOK OUT!

-OH! -NO WAY!

UH-OH. UH-OH!

OH, SHE JUST HIT THE TRUCK.

DAMN.

HOLY

Narrator: THE RELIEF-ROCK-TRUCK DRIVER, TINA, HAS HIT ZEE'S TRUCK.

Rick: I did not see anything.

WHAT HAPPENED?

Ben: Tina hit Zee's truck.

FREYA WAS STANDING ON TOP OF THE TRUCK

PUTTING A GoPro ON THE DUMP BOX.

Narrator: A MEMBER OF THE FILM CREW, FREYA,

WAS MOUNTING A MINI-CAM TO THE VEHICLE WHEN IT WAS HIT.

A MEDIC ATTENDS TO THE CUT ABOVE HER EYE.

FREYA AND THE MEDIC HEAD TO DAWSON FOR FURTHER TREATMENT.

I MEAN, DON'T BE TOO HARD ON YOURSELF.

HAPPENS. EVERYBODY'S OKAY.

IT'S OKAY. IT'S OKAY.

WELL, I DON'T GIVE A ABOUT THE TRUCK.

I'M JUST GLAD EVERYONE'S OKAY.

THAT COULD'VE BEEN BAD.

WE'VE BLOWN PAST OUR TARGET.

I MEAN, 6,000 OUNCES IS WELL BEHIND US NOW,

BUT WE'RE PAYING MORE ROYALTIES THIS SEASON

THAN WE FOUND OUR FIRST SEASON UP HERE.

IT'S UN- -BELIEVABLE.

Narrator: PARKER SCHNABEL HAS HIT HIS $7.2-MILLION GOAL,

BUT HE'S PAID A STAGGERING $3.6 MILLION IN ROYALTIES

TO LANDLORD TONY OVER THE PAST FIVE YEARS,

A SUM THAT WOULD HAVE UPSET HIS GRANDPA.

FIVE YEARS AGO, GRANDPA JOHN INSPIRED HIM WITH A MISSION.

PARKER, I WOULD GET OUT FROM UNDER TONY

AND EARN ENOUGH TO BUY YOUR OWN CLAIM.

AFTER FINALLY REACHING AN AGREEMENT WITH TONY,

PARKER CAN NOW MINE HIS OWN GROUND -- THE BANK CUT.

I'D LOVE FOR OUR SEASON TO END

WITH SOME GOLD OUT OF OUR OWN GROUND.

Narrator: TO PREPARE FOR HIS NEXT SEASON

MINING THE GROUND HE OWNS,

PARKER NEEDS TO PROVE HOW MUCH GOLD IT CONTAINS.

Parker: YEAH, AND THE BIGGEST THING RIGHT NOW

IS IF WE'RE GONNA BE MINING HERE NEXT YEAR,

WE'VE GOT TO START GETTING AN IDEA

OF WHAT'S IN THE GROUND, YOU KNOW?

WE'RE HEADING INTO GROUND THAT HAS NEVER HAD

AN OUNCE OF GOLD PULLED OFF OF IT BEFORE.

WE'RE HEADING OFF INTO THE UNKNOWN.

Narrator: FIRST, HE HAS TO MOVE BIG RED,

AND WITH WINTER CLOSING IN, HE NEEDS TO ACT FAST.

OH.

-WELCOME BACK. -HOW'S SHE GOING?

GOOD. HOW ARE YOU?

BETTER NOW.

MAN. WHAT'D YOU GET?

2 PLATES, 13 SCREWS AND 36 STAPLES.

Man: We got a boating accident down here in Scribner Creek.

We got a guy busted up pretty bad.

Narrator: A MONTH AGO, WHEN PARKER CRASHED HIS JET BOAT WITH MITCH IN IT,

MITCH HAD TO BE MEDEVACED TO THE HOSPITAL WITH A BROKEN ARM.

I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S WORTH ANYTHING,

BUT I'M SO SORRY.

DUDE, IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT.

HAPPENS. I MEAN...

IT WAS FUN UNTIL WE WRECKED.

IT WAS A LOT OF FUN,

BUT I'M GLAD THAT YOU CAME BACK.

I MEAN, YOU KNOW, IT WOULD'VE BEEN --

AND IF YOU WANT TO GO HOME, YOU STILL CAN.

NO, MAN. I'M READY TO WORK.

ALL RIGHT. GOOD, BECAUSE, I MEAN,

YOU'RE NOT GONNA BELIEVE THIS,

BUT WE'RE MOVING ANOTHER WASH PLANT.

LIKE, WE'RE MOVING BIG RED DOWN TO THE GROUND WE BOUGHT.

NOW IS PRETTY LATE IN THE YEAR TO BE MOVING A WASH PLANT.

I KNOW THERE'S THAWED PAY THERE,

AND I KNOW IT SHOULD BE PRETTY DAMN GOOD,

SO WHATEVER YOU'RE CAPABLE OF, WE'RE GONNA NEED IT.

I'LL GIVE YOU WHATEVER I CAN.

YOU KNOW, I'VE BEEN HERE SINCE THE START,

AND I WANT TO BE HERE AT THE FINISH, SO...

YOU'VE GIVEN IT EVERYTHING AND THEN SOME.

YEAH.

Narrator: AS THE MECHANIC

AND ONE OF THE ONLY PROFESSIONAL TRUCK DRIVERS ON THE CREW,

PARKER RELIES ON MITCH

TO SAFELY COORDINATE EVERY WASH-PLANT MOVE.

-QUITE THE WIDE LOAD! -YEAH.

HERE WE'RE GONNA JUST TRY AND SLIDE IT OFF THE PAD

WHERE IT'S SITTING UNDER THE TRAILER HERE.

Mitch: I'D MUCH RATHER BE A LITTLE MORE HANDS-ON,

BUT ALL I CAN DO IS KIND OF COACH FROM THE SIDELINES HERE.

ALL RIGHT. LET'S DO IT.

Parker: IT'S ALL YOU, BRENNAN!

Narrator: PARKER TASKS BRENNAN TO GET THE 50-TON WASH PLANT

ONTO THE TRAILER.

COME ON, BABY.

Brennan: I'M A LITTLE NERVOUS RIGHT NOW.

ONE WRONG MOVE, THAT PLANT SLIPS OFF

THE SIDE OF THE DECK.

IT'S SO TOP-HEAVY, IT'S JUST GONNA FALL OVER.

I DON'T WANT TO BE AROUND WHEN THAT HAPPENS

'CAUSE THAT WILL BE AN UNHAPPY PARKER

AND, YOU KNOW, BYE-BYE TO BIG RED.

UP!

WELL, I'M TRYING HERE.

COME ON, YOU

SWING THIS WAY!

ALL RIGHT, NOW DRAG THE OUT OF THERE.

HE SEEMS A LITTLE EDGY, EH?

THERE WE GO.

OH-HOO-HOO!

HOLD ON A SEC.

IT LOOKS PRETTY GOOD.

HOW MUCH FARTHER?

UNTIL SOMEBODY YELLS AT YOU.

GET ME ANOTHER INCH OR TWO.

COME ON, BABY.

-WHOO! -HERE. THERE IT IS.

YEAH, THAT'S FINE. IT.