Gold Rush

Narrator: ON THIS "GOLD RUSH"...

SHUT IT DOWN! HEY!

YEAH, BUDDY!

FIRST GOLD OF THE SEASON, YOU KNOW?

IT'S EXCITING, RIGHT? IT IS.

Parker: WE'VE GOT TO GET A PILE OF GOLD COMING IN.

THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG WITH THIS PIECE OF DOZER.

WE'VE DONE SOME STUPID , BUT THIS IS ONE OF THE TOP ONES.

HEY! HOLY .

THAT'S DEEP.

FORTY, 60, 70, 80, BINGO.

WHOA.

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

I'M LIKE 7 WEEKS IN NOW, STILL DON'T HAVE ANY GOLD.

I'M A WEEK LATE ON THE $30,000

I OWE ON THIS WASH PLANT AT THIS POINT.

I'VE GOT ALL KINDS OF OTHER DEBTS.

REALITY IS SETTING IN HERE THAT I MIGHT SCREW THIS UP

BEFORE I EVEN GET ANY GOLD.

Narrator: ROOKIE MINE BOSS RICK NESS

HAS INVESTED AROUND $400,000.

HE'S DEEP IN DEBT AND HAS YET TO PAY HIS CREW A DIME.

I HAVEN'T RECEIVED ANY PAYMENT SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE,

AND MY JOB WAS TO COME UP HERE AND MINE GOLD

AND GET PAID FOR IT,

AND I'VE HELD UP MY END OF THE DEAL.

I DON'T HAVE A JOB TO GO BACK TO.

IT REALLY IS THE ULTIMATE RISK IN EVERY ASPECT.

RICK HAS TO BE SUCCESSFUL,

AND ALL MY MONEY IS ON HIM RIGHT NOW.

BY THE END OF THE WEEK, I GOT TO DO A CLEANUP,

SHOW THESE GUYS SOME GOLD

SO THEY DON'T LOSE FAITH IN ME COMPLETELY.

Narrator: RICK HAS SET A 1,000-OUNCE GOAL

TO COVER HIS COSTS.

SEVEN WEEKS IN, THIS IS JUST THE SECOND FULL DAY

HE'S RUN HIS WASH PLANT.

STARTING OFF PRETTY SLOW HERE, BUT YOU GOT TO LEARN SOMEWHERE.

WE'RE NOT SMASHING ANY RECORDS RIGHT NOW,

BUT AT LEAST WE'RE GETTING GOLD.

Narrator: BY THE END OF THE WEEK,

RICK NEEDS THE SLUICE BOXES TO BE FULL OF GOLD,

BUT EVEN THEN,

HE HAS NO WAY OF SEPARATING THE GOLD FROM THE CONCENTRATE.

Rick: I GOT TO GET A GOLD ROOM SET UP.

I GOT TO SHOW THESE GUYS WHY WE'RE HERE, YOU KNOW?

UP UNTIL NOW, WE JUST BEEN SHIFTING DIRT,

AND I'VE GOT TO SHOW THEM THAT THERE'S GOLD IN THAT DIRT.

I'VE GOT FREDDY DODGE ON THE CASE.

HE'S THE BEST GOLD-RECOVERY GUY I KNOW.

Narrator: GOLD EXPERT FREDDY DODGE

HAS SPENT $50,000 GETTING EVERYTHING

RICK NEEDS TO SET UP A GOLD ROOM,

TAKING RICK'S TOTAL INVESTMENT TO $450,000.

-FREDDY DODGE. -HOW'S IT GOING, RICK?

WELL, HERE IS YOUR GOLD-ROOM STUFF.

WOW.

SET OF JIGS, TABLE...

-YEAH. -...AND A VAULT.

THAT THING IS INCREDIBLE.

I WANT YOU TO FILL IT.

LET'S GO SEE WHERE THE GOLD ROOM IS.

YEAH. LET'S JUMP IN.

I WAS THINKING, YOU KNOW, WE'D PUT IT RIGHT HERE.

WHERE'S THE CONCRETE?

OH, I DON'T... I HAVEN'T HAD TIME, MAN.

I DON'T HAVE ANY OF THAT SET UP.

I MEAN, WE CAN'T PUT IT ON THE GRAVEL.

IT WON'T WORK.

THE TABLE HAS TO HAVE A SECURE PAD TO ANCHOR INTO,

OR THE MOTION OF THE TABLE WON'T WORK RIGHT.

WE NEED CONCRETE.

IT'S GOING TO BE LIKE $10,000 TO GET A 20-BY-20 PAD OUT HERE.

I CAN'T SPEND $10,000

ON CONCRETE, MAN.

YOU KNOW WHAT? I'VE GOT AN IDEA,

SOMETHING I'LL SHOW YOU, MAY OR MAY NOT WORK.

ALL RIGHT.

IT'S BEEN 7 YEARS SINCE I TURNED DOWN THIS ROAD.

I'M NOT EVEN CERTAIN WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR

IS STILL HERE, BUT...

-OKAY. -...WE'LL KNOW PRETTY QUICK.

-THIS THE PAD WE NEED. -CONCRETE PAD.

NO WAY.

IF WE CAN CUT PIECES OUT OF THIS AND GET IT OVER THERE

WITHOUT IT BREAKING, IT'LL SAVE YOU 10 GRAND.

MAN, THAT'S HUGE. I'M ALL ABOUT THAT.

YOU SEE THE NAMES IN IT, IN THE CONCRETE?

-HUNTER? -NOW YOU KNOW.

THAT'S TODD'S KIDS.

THIS IS WHERE THE HOFFMANS STARTED IN THE YUKON.

Narrator: BACK IN 2011, FREDDY HELPED TODD HOFFMAN

SET UP HIS GOLD ROOM RIGHT HERE.

OKAY, GUYS. THIS IS A BIG MOMENT.

IT'S OUR FIRST CLEAN OUT.

WELL, LET'S JUST MAKE IT HAPPEN.

ALL RIGHT.

WE CAN'T TAKE IT ALL IN ONE PIECE,

SO I NEED TO CUT IT INTO SOME PIECES.

-YEAH. YOU GOT A SAW? -I'VE GOT A SAW.

LET'S CUT IT UP.

YEAH!

YEAH, BUDDY!

AH!

YEAH, GO FOR RICK.

AH,

ALL RIGHT. IT. I'LL BE RIGHT THERE.

HEY, MAN. I JUST GOT A RADIO CALL.

SOMETHING IS GOING ON AT THE WASH PLANT,

SO I GOT TO RUN. YOU GOOD?

ALL RIGHT. ALL RIGHT.

SHUT IT DOWN! HEY, STOP!

WHAT THE ?

Narrator: DURT REYNOLDS' LOOSE EXTENSION

HAS BUSTED OFF THE PLANT

AND IS HANGING ON BY ITS CABLES.

YEAH, I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE HAPPENED.

I GUESS THE GROUND WASN'T STABLE ENOUGH

UNDERNEATH THAT EXTENSION.

YOU THINK IT'S GOING TO UNDERMINE THE PAD?

YEAH.

Narrator: THE SLUICE-BOX EXTENSION SHOOTS THE WASTE WATER

AWAY FROM THE WASH-PLANT PAD.

WHEN IT BROKE OFF,

1,800 GALLONS OF WATER A MINUTE

STARTED UNDERMINING THE SLUICES,

THREATENING TO COLLAPSE THE PAD

AND TOPPLE THE 20-TON PLANT OFF THE BANK.

WE NEED TO GET THIS FIXED FAST,

OR THE WHOLE THING IS GONNA GO OFF THE EDGE!

THIS HAS BEEN THE WORST PART OF THE SEASON

THAT WE'VE EVER HAD BY FAR.

WE'RE WAY BEHIND SCHEDULE,

AND WE REALLY NEED TO START BRINGING IN SOME GOLD.

Narrator: PARKER SCHNABEL HAS SET

AN AMBITIOUS 6,000-OUNCE SEASON GOAL.

SEVEN WEEKS IN, HE'S ONLY DUG UP 315 OUNCES,

WORTH $380,000, A THIRD OF WHAT HE HAD THIS TIME LAST YEAR.

I'M JUST HELPING BRENNAN DOWN HERE,

YOU KNOW, TRYING TO KEEP BIG RED GOING,

KEEP IT FED AND DOWN TO PAY HERE.

YOU KNOW, THERE'S A LOT OF WORK THAT NEEDS TO GET DONE

AND IN A HURRY HERE.

WELL, BIG RED IS UP AND RUNNING, AND IT'S RUNNING FULL TILT.

IT'S RUNNING SO GOOD THAT WE'RE RUNNING OUT OF PAY VERY QUICKLY,

MIGHT NOT BE ABLE TO KEEP THIS WASH PLANT

FED FOR TOO MUCH LONGER.

Narrator: PARKER'S CLAIM IS ONLY WORKING AT HALF CAPACITY.

AT THE OTHER END OF THE CUT,

WASH PLANT SLUICIFER SITS IDLE

WITH NO PAY DIRT TO PROCESS.

PARKER'S NEW $1-MILLION DOZERS ARE WORKING AROUND THE CLOCK

TO GET SLUICIFER BACK ON THE GOLD.

WE STARTED SO LATE.

NOW WE'RE JUST DOING WHATEVER WE CAN

TO GET THIS FROZEN MUD AND FROZEN GRAVEL OFF.

IT'S HARD ON EVERYTHING.

WE'RE WEARING OUT TEETH ON D10s AND THESE 700s,

BUT RIGHT NOW, THAT'S WHAT WE HAVE TO DO TO GET AHEAD.

SO RIGHT NOW, WE'RE JUST THROWING EVERYBODY

AND ALL THE EQUIPMENT OUT INTO THE CUT,

TRYING TO GET SLUICIFER GOING.

WHAT THE ?

THING.

THAT DID NOT SOUND GOOD.

.

PIECE OF THING.

MITCH, THERE'S SOMETHING WRONG

WITH THIS PIECE OF DOZER.

IT JUST COMPLETELY LOCKED UP ON ME.

COULD YOU COME TAKE A LOOK AT IT?

PIECE OF .

WE REALLY NEED THIS DOZER BACK IN THE CUT.

LIKE, WE CAN'T AFFORD TO RUN OUT OF PAY.

Narrator: AT SCRIBNER CREEK,

BIG RED IS SLUICING 200 YARDS AN HOUR,

BUT WITH A BROKEN DOZER, IT'S RUNNING LOW ON PAY.

WITHOUT THIS WHOLE DOZER,

WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO SHUT THE PLANT DOWN.

Narrator: PARKER IS DEPENDING ON MECHANIC MITCH BLASCHKE

TO GET THE D10 BACK IN ACTION.

HEY, MITCH, WHAT'S THE STORY WITH THAT DOZER?

I WISH I HAD SOME GOOD NEWS FOR YOU,

BUT THAT TRANNY IS DONE. IT'S LOCKED UP.

YOU THINK THE WHOLE TRANSMISSION IS BLOWN UP?