Gold Rush

Narrator: JUST OUTSIDE THE ARCTIC CIRCLE,

SEVEN DOWN-ON-THEIR-LUCK MINERS

ARE INTO THEIR SECOND GOLD-MINING SEASON,

AND THIS TIME, IT IS MAKE-OR-BREAK.

IF WE DON'T MAKE IT THIS SUMMER, WE'RE DONE.

Narrator: DEEP IN DEBT AND WITH NO JOBS BACK HOME,

THE HOFFMAN CREW FIGHTS TO KEEP THEIR DREAM ALIVE.

THIS IS THE BIG ONE.

GOT A LOT OF GUYS AND A LOT OF FAMILIES COUNTING ON US.

Narrator: THEY'VE RISKED EVERYTHING

ON A NEW CLAIM IN THE NORTHERN WILDERNESS.

THAT VIRGIN GROUND HAS NEVER BEEN TOUCHED.

THEY'VE REBUILT A BROKEN-DOWN WASH PLANT.

THAT SHOULD DO IT.

BUT THEY STILL HAVE NO GOLD.

NOW THEY HAVE TO MAKE UP FOR LOST TIME

AND GET MINING THE KLONDIKE WAY.

WHOA!

THIS IS A WHOLE NOTHER BALL GAME.

Narrator: AND IN PORCUPINE CREEK,

THE DAKOTA BOYS ALSO RACE TO GET MINING...

UNTIL FATHER AND SON LOCK HORNS.

"WHAT THE HELL YOU DOING?"

AT THE BIG NUGGET MINE... Parker: ROCKING.

...THE MAN IN CHARGE, 16-YEAR-OLD PARKER SCHNABEL

PUSHES HIS MACHINES TO THE LIMIT.

WELL

WHEN THIS THING GOES DOWN, EVERYTHING GOES DOWN.

IF YOU CAN GET DOWN TO IT, YOU'RE EARNING IT.

Narrator: AT THE QUARTZ CREEK GOLD CLAIM,

WAY UP NORTH IN THE KLONDIKE,

THE HOFFMAN CREW IS ALREADY 36 DAYS

INTO A 150-DAY MINING SEASON.

AND FINALLY, THEY START DIGGING FOR GOLD.

GREG REMSBURG IS ON THE D8 DOZER.

HE MUST CLEAR THE VEGETATION OFF OF THE VIRGIN GROUND

EAST OF THE CREEK BEFORE THEY CAN ACTUALLY START MINING.

Remsburg: WHOA! GEEZ.

RIGHT OFF THE BAT, HE'S IN TROUBLE.

HOLY COW. WHOA. WHOA.

WHOA!

THIS IS CRAZY.

OH!

IT'S 100,000 POUNDS SLIDING SIDEWAYS.

IT MAY BE SUMMER IN THE KLONDIKE,

BUT THIS CLOSE TO THE ARCTIC CIRCLE,

THE GROUND IS FROZEN YEAR ROUND.

IT'S CALLED PERMAFROST,

AND BENEATH IT LIES THE KLONDIKE GOLD.

THOUGHT TO HAVE BEEN FORMED AROUND 1 MILLION YEARS AGO,

THIS LAYER OF FROZEN DIRT IS CLOSE TO 8 FEET DEEP

AND IS HARD AS CONCRETE.

BENEATH THE PERMAFROST,

THE HOFFMANS' HOPE IS A PAY STREAK,

A LAYER OF GOLD-RICH GRAVEL SITTING RIGHT ON THE BEDROCK.

TO GET TO THE GOLD,

THEY HAVE TO REMOVE THE 8-FOOT LAYER OF FROZEN DIRT.

IF I CAN'T GET TRACTION,

THEN I'M NOT GONNA BE ABLE TO PUSH ANY OF THIS DIRT AWAY.

IF I GET UP THIS LITTLE HILL -- WHOA!

PROBLEM IS, THE VIRGIN GROUND IS ON A SLIPPERY SLOPE.

I'M TELLING YOU WHAT --

THIS IS LIKE NOTHING I'VE EVER SEEN.

I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO CONTROL OF THIS MACHINE.

I'M SLIDING SIDEWAYS. CAN'T EVEN STOP.

HEY, TODD, YOU COPY?

I copy.

I'M SLIPPING AND SLIDING ALL OVER THIS PLACE.

IT'S LIKE PUSHING ON AN ICE RINK.

Narrator: GREG THROWS IN THE TOWEL.

I THINK TODD OVERLOOKED A MAJOR, MAJOR DETAIL HERE.

MAYBE WE'RE DOING IT WRONG, YOU KNOW?

I DON'T KNOW.

I DON'T HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS, OKAY?

WE CAN'T GET TO THE GOLD. IT'S IMPOSSIBLE.

Narrator: FOUR WEEKS AGO, THE HOFFMAN CREW HAD TO LEAVE

THEIR OLD CLAIM DOWN IN PORCUPINE CREEK.

THEY RELOCATED 600 MILES NORTH TO THE KLONDIKE.

EVERYTHING FROM THIS SIDE IS VIRGIN GROUND.

FOUND IT. WE GOT OURSELVES A MINE.

WHOO!

BUT BREAKDOWNS...

...ARGUMENTS... WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?

...AND DELAYS...

COST THEM FIVE PRECIOUS WEEKS OF MINING.

Jack: THE SEASON'S SHORT.

WE WANT TO GET GOING AS FAST AS WE CAN.

Narrator: RUNNING COSTS AVERAGE $1,000 A DAY.

EVERY DAY THEY'RE NOT FINDING GOLD

PUTS THE HOFFMAN CREW DEEPER IN THE FINANCIAL HOLE.

DESPERATE TO FIND LEVEL GROUND TO MINE,

THEY SURVEY THE OTHER SIDE OF THE CREEK.

Turin: GOT THE MAP?

YEP. GOT IT.

BUT MOST OF THIS AREA WAS MINED BY A GOLD DREDGE YEARS AGO.

GOD LORD. LOOK AT THE SIZE OF THAT THING.

BETWEEN 1935 AND 1950,

THIS ROVING WASH PLANT PROCESSED

7 MILLION CUBIC YARDS OF PAY DIRT,

TAKING OUT OF THIS VALLEY OVER $1 BILLION WORTH OF GOLD

AT TODAY'S PRICES.

IT LEFT BEHIND GIANT PILES OF WORTHLESS ROCKS

KNOWN AS TAILINGS.

BAD NEWS IS THAT, MAN, THEY GOT A LOT OF THE GOLD.

THE GOOD NEWS IS I DON'T THINK IT CAUGHT IT ALL.

NOW WE JUST GOT TO FIND IT.

THE CREW HAS TO FIND FLAT GROUND THAT THE DREDGE NEVER REACHED.

YOU KNOW, UNFORTUNATELY, THE MAP DOESN'T SAY,

"FIND GOLD HERE."

ONE WAY TO TELL IS

IF THERE'S BIG SPRUCE ON THE PROPERTY.

THEN THE DREDGE DIDN'T GET THERE.

LET'S WALK DOWN THIS WAY JUST A HAIR.

THAT IS AN OLD DREDGE TAILING.

SEE HOW IT LAID.

Narrator: DEEPER INTO THE BRUSH,

SIGNS OF DREDGE TAILINGS DISAPPEAR.

I DON'T THINK IT GOT THROUGH HERE.

AND TODD SPOTS ANOTHER GOOD SIGN.

SEE, NOW, UP HERE, THIS IS A VERY OLD FOREST.

YEAH. THESE ARE ALL OLD TREES.

AND THERE'S A TREE THAT'S OLD.

DUDE, THIS WAS NOT MINED UP HERE.

NO.

THIS IS ALL VIRGIN GROUND RIGHT HERE.

THIS WHOLE SECTION RIGHT HERE.

THIS IS A LOT OF GROUND.

Narrator: THE ICY SLOPE EAST OF QUARTZ CREEK

HAS PROVEN TOO STEEP FOR THE D8.

TODD NOW PLANS TO MINE THE FLAT GROUND

WEST OF THE CREEK,

JUST OFF THE PATH OF THE OLD DREDGE.

HE THINKS THAT THE MATURE TREES

INDICATE THAT THE DREDGE NEVER MINED THIS AREA.

WITH TIME RUNNING OUT ON THE SEASON,

TODD HAS FEW OPTIONS.

Todd: SINCE IT'S ALL FLAT,

THIS WILL BE A LOT EASIER TO MINE.

I DON'T THINK THE PERMAFROST IS AS BAD OVER HERE,

BUT WE'LL FIND OUT.

Narrator: 600 MILES SOUTH AT PORCUPINE CREEK,

DAKOTA FRED IS THE NEW BOSS.

Fred: ANOTHER BEAUTIFUL DAY IN ALASKA.

ABSOLUTELY.

WE'RE JUST STARTING BRAND NEW.

WE'RE TAKING ALL THIS CRAP OUT OF HERE.

Narrator: WHEN FRED BOUGHT THE PORCUPINE CLAIM,

HE BROUGHT IN HIS OWN CREW.

GET THAT THING OUT OF HERE!

HE TORE DOWN THE WASH PLANT THEY USED TO SEPARATE

THE GOLD FROM THE DIRT.

FIVE WEEKS INTO THE SHORT ALASKAN MINING SEASON,

FRED'S GOT NO WAY OF WASHING DIRT -- YET.

TODAY, HE INSPECTS A PIECE OF EQUIPMENT

THAT MAY JUST BUY HIM BACK THE TIME HE'S LOST.

THIS IS OUR SECRET WEAPON. THIS THING IS A DEROCKER.

IT WILL HANDLE BIG OLD ROCKS.

THAT OTHER PLANT THEY HAD UP THERE WAS JUST TOO WIMPY.

THIS IS THE LAMBORGHINI OF WASH PLANTS.

Narrator: THE DEROCKER WILL REPLACE

THE HOFFMANS' OLD SHAKER AND TROMMEL.

GOLD-BEARING ROCKS AND DIRT

WILL DROP ONTO THE DEROCKER'S UNDULATING DECK.

HIGH-PRESSURE WATER JETS WILL THEN WASH OFF

THE GOLD-BEARING MATERIAL.

THE GOLD AND FINE DIRT WILL FALL THROUGH GAPS IN THE MOVING DECK.

THE WASHED ROCKS WILL FALL OFF THE END OF THE DEROCKER,

LEAVING GOLD DEPOSITS IN THE SLUICE BOXES.

THE DEROCKER IS DESIGNED TO HANDLE MUCH LARGER ROCKS

AND PROCESS UP TO FOUR TIMES AS MUCH DIRT

AS THE HOFFMANS' WASH PLANT LAST YEAR.

EXCELLENT.

PARKER AND YOU HOFFMAN BOYS UP IN THE YUKON, LOOK OUT.

FRED PAID NEARLY $30,000 FOR THE DEROCKER.

THREE WEEKS AGO, IT WAS IN PIECES,

BUT NOW IT'S READY TO BE PUT TO THE TEST.

UH-OH.

NOT COMPLETELY TOGETHER, IS IT?

Dustin: SHOULD HAVE HIT IT WITH A HAMMER OR SOMETHING.

Narrator: FRED'S ALREADY RIPPED OUT THE HOFFMANS' OLD WASH PLANT.

IF HE CAN'T GET THE DEROCKER RUNNING,

HE'LL BE OUT OF LUCK THIS SEASON.

YEAH! IT'S GONNA WORK.

YEAH!

ON THE ROAD TO THE BIG NUGGET CLAIM,

ANOTHER MINER UPS THE ANTE.

16-YEAR-OLD PARKER SCHNABEL IS SINKING $10,000 A MONTH

INTO A TURBOCHARGED, INTERCOOLED A25C DUMP TRUCK

TO MAKE HIS OPERATION FAR MORE EFFICIENT.

HALF OF THE GUYS I'VE SEEN COME UP TO PORCUPINE, YOU KNOW,

AREN'T THERE THE NEXT YEAR,

AND THE HOFFMANS ARE A PERFECT EXAMPLE.

Narrator: A MONTH AGO,

PARKER TOOK OVER THE BIG NUGGET MINE

FROM HIS 91-YEAR-OLD GRANDFATHER.

THANKS, GRANDPA.

HE HAS ALREADY FOUND 10 OUNCES OF GOLD WORTH AROUND $16,000.

SO, THAT'S NOT BAD.

Narrator: BUT HE NEEDS AT LEAST SEVEN TIMES THAT

TO KEEP THE MINE FROM GOING BUST.