All language subtitles for Ice.Road.Truckers.S12E08.720p.WEB.H264-JFFEnd of the Road”

- Muskie Creek,
we have a very good reputation.

We don't leave a load behind.

I'm short on drivers.

- Hey. You must be Bill.

- Lisa. Nice to meet you.

- If I don't make the money
to fix the truck,

I'm going to have
to start selling horses.

The hose came off.

The freaking heat
isn't working.

The window just broke.

[tense music]

Truck's on fire.

- Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!
Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!

Let's throw a $100 bet down

to see who can run the most
miles this winter road.

[Lisa laughs]

- You must be Scott.
- Yes, sir.

I haven't been in any
of these ice roads.

This is all new territory
for me.

We're going to pray that the
rest of our trips are blessed.

[screams]

[groans]

Wow.
This is going to be fun.

- Todd.
- Nice to meet you, buddy.

I'm 51 years old.

Ow. [bleep]
Cut all the way open.

[chuckling]
I don't know if I've got

what it takes any more
to do these roads.

Ah! Oh, [bleep]!

But I'm going to hit it hard.

Tell me this don't get
your heart pumping.

And I'm going to see if I can
make myself some good coin.

Make sure you tell
my grandbabies hi for me.

Scooter over there
took the easiest job.

- Todd Dewey needs
to dial his [bleep] back.

- I love you.

- Don't you dare
try to kiss me.

I've been lonely from my wife.

- Hold him, Lisa!

[dramatic music]

- Wollaston is
absolutely closed right now.

I think we're going
to do some things

that we don't normally do
this time of year.

- He says he wants us to take
over and he wants to retire.

He'll never, ever retire.

- And your uncle
clipped off the top

of one of those pressure ridges
and he went through.

Right in here is where he died.

- I just want
to prove to my dad

that I can handle
the rough country.

- Driving with the two boys

truly is one
of my proudest moments.

My handsome boy, eh?

[pig snorts]

[tense music]

[suspenseful music]

[wind whistling]

♪

[dramatic music]

♪

narrator: At the ragged edge
of the northern frontier...

- The convoy has
finally made it.

narrator:
The Muskie Creek convoy

is hitting their offload.

- Yeah!

- Oh, my gosh.

- Oh, yeah.
- Yee-haw!

narrator: After four
days on the world's

longest winter road.

- [laughs]
Look at this.

I'm just so happy that
we're finally to Fort Severn

and getting these loads
off our backs.

- Oh, me too.

- It's been a long one
for sure.

- Time to turn and burn.
We need these loads off.

- Scooty and Todd.

You guys are heading on up
to Peawanuck now, huh?

- Yep.

- I have one backhaul that's
deeper in in Peawanuck.

I'd like Scooter to go in.
I want to send Todd with you.

♪

- Last two days were brutal,

but we're going to offload here
and take off.

We really need
to get on the road.

It's going to be a long drive,
a lot more miles.

- Scooty!

Have a safe trip up there.

- You're going
to miss me or what?

- Hell yeah,
we're going to miss you.

You're part of the team.
- [chuckles]

Scooter, he's got a good
character about him.

But when you're working
16 hours a day,

seven days a week,
pretty soon,

everybody gets
to their breaking point.

Look at Scooter over there.
Took the easiest job.

- Todd Dewey needs
to dial his [bleep] back.

- But you know what?

Sometimes you got to just
make sure you stop, relax.

Scooter seems like
a pretty good guy.

Dinner at the end
of the season?

- I hope so.

- Hey. Lock that in.
[Lisa chuckles]

- Todd and Lisa,
we have a good team.

I'm really happy
I got to know them.

- Well, go get her done,

but get a little less smiles
than me, OK?

- Oh, let's throw
a $100 bet down

to see who can
run the most miles.

[Lisa laughs]

- You ready to blow
this popsicle stand or what?

- Hey, Scoot, be safe.
Have a good trip.

We'll see you guys
back at Muskie Creek.

- Yes, sir.

[upbeat rock music]

We're rolling out.

♪

Bye, princess.

♪

narrator:
While Scooter and Muskie Todd

blast 350 miles deeper
into the wilderness

to pick up their backhauls

in the remote community
of Peawanuck.

- All right.
Let's make some tracks.

narrator: Lisa and Todd
are offloading...

[mechanical rumbling]

♪

- We got to get going fast.

narrator: So they can try
again to pick up two trucks

frozen into the landscape.

- Still got a long way
to get out of here.

Hopefully those winter roads
are going to hold up.

Because we are knocking
on the door of this road

being closed completely.

- You're going
to see a few trucks

that have been buried in snow.

Get them unstuck
and pulled out of there.

- It's all you, buddy.

- That's all the pressure
you can lift, these Macks.

Suck her back in.

It's not going
to lift the weight.

- If we had an excavator,
that'd be great.

- Hey, Bill.

- So I found you guys a dozer.

- So this last backhaul
is super-important,

because I'm right
at the edge of having

enough to fix my truck.

♪

- Rock and roll!

♪

- Let's roll.

♪

We got a mission to complete.

♪

narrator: As Lisa, Todd,
and the two Muskie drivers

race to meet a local road crew
with a bulldozer...

♪

700 miles to the west...

[tense music]

- This load doesn't look
like much, but it is heavy.

narrator:
Shaun Harris is loading

50,000 pounds of steel...

- We are absolute max weight
today.

narrator: As part of his plan
to save the season

by pivoting from
Wollaston Lake...

- If you went
across here loaded,

you would absolutely
go in the drink.

narrator: To Lake Athabasca.

♪

- This is going to be
a challenging one.

This will probably be
the most challenging load

we haul all winter,
because this load

is very heavy
and it's time-sensitive.

They want it in before
the road starts to fall apart,

which it is.

narrator: The route
to the old mining outpost

is one of the longest
ice crossings in the world

on a road that's falling apart
as winter recedes.

- Yesterday, we went in
with some lighter loads.

Zach broke through
with the pilot truck.

- Oh. Oh, [bleep].

[tense music]

- If you're falling through
with a one-ton diesel dually,

that's not a good sign.

But you know, I'll never
back away from a challenge.

Everything's
on the line for us.

We're going to do whatever
we have to do to the season.

We have to get it in there
and get it done.

♪

Maximum weight here
is about 75,000 pounds.

With the truck and trailer
and the weight of this rebar,

we're right at max.

We're just over 75,000.

♪

There's a ice heave
along the ice road

and it's cracked
and it's about two feet wide.

The ice is getting thin

and it's starting to flood
with water.

That's generally something
you're going to see

at the tail end of the season
when, you know,

you probably shouldn't
be on the ice anymore.

♪

This is a sketchy one,
a little heavy.

So, uh--[chuckles]

♪

It's pretty quiet out here.

I think this is the last
big load going into Uranium.

♪

Cracking and popping.

[ice rumbling and cracking]
It's cracking hard.

You just hear it
rolling like thunder.

[ice rumbling]

[tense music]

narrator: Across
the warming wilderness...

♪

- 25 inches.

- That's not a lot of ice.
- That's not a lot of ice.

narrator: Riley and Zach
are crossing Wollaston Lake

despite the warnings about the
temperature and ice condition.

- We had a call last night.

So we're going to have you guys
go up across Wollaston.

This load is a 911.

You have one day
to get in and out.

No delays.

narrator:
They're picking up a load

they think is light
enough to haul out

without going through the ice.

- You're driving.

- You're going to let
me drive your truck?

- Yeah, man.

My dad told me he wants Zach
to drive Wollaston Lake.

I love my truck, and I'm
nervous for Zach to drive it.

♪

- I guess we'll just take her
easy and baby our way across.

I've earned a little bit of a
reputation for having oopsies.

And I do my best to avoid it,
but it just seems to find me.

narrator: Zach's
navigating Riley's truck

20 miles across thinning ice

and two portages to the
Wollaston Lake community.

♪

- This is actually
sketchy as [bleep].

Like, we're sitting on about

this much [bleep] ice
right now.

♪

- I think we're the only
ones dumb enough

to go across this lake
right now.

- Yeah.
Well, you're probably right.

- It's quite possible
we'll be the only guys

that cross that ice
with a semi this winter.

My dad takes pride
in getting things done

that nobody else wants to do.

That puts a fair bit
of pressure on me and Riley.

We'll just get this load
and get the hell out of here.

♪

But we have to prove
we can run the business.

♪

- Yeah, that does not sound
like heavy-duty ice.

♪

narrator: Nearing the end

of the world's longest
ice road...

- Oh, here we go.

Yip-dee-doo.

- [laughs]

narrator: Scooter and Muskie
Todd are blasting through

drifts deposited by a
recent northern blizzard...

- [bleep].

There's a doozy of a bank.

narrator: In pursuit
of their final backhaul.

- I can see this
being a problem.

Hang on, baby.
Here we go.

Whoa, baby.

Whoa.

Whoo!

♪

narrator: The storm
and winds buried the road,

distorting the border
between Scooter's route

and the unforgiving landscape.

- I see drifts
and we got to plow through.

♪

Don't want to get stuck.

Come on, Big Bird.
Get her.

Come on, baby.
Come on.

Come on.

[dramatic music]

It's like 4x4ing in a big rig.

Hang on!

♪

I can't see a damn thing.

♪

[bass drop]

[suspenseful music]

[tense music]

I can't see [bleep]!

[groans]

- Hang on, baby.
Here we go.

narrator: At the world's
northern edge...

[wind howling]

- Whoo.

[tense music]

♪

[bleep].

narrator: A massive snowdrift
just ate Scooter's truck.

- [sighs]

Whoops.

All right, all right.

- Are you stuck?

[suspenseful music]

- [chuckling]
Oh, buddy, am I. Yeah.

[laughing]

♪

Today's ridiculous.

[chuckles]

All right. Hold on.
[clears throat]

[quirky country music]

I'm right in there good.

Might not win this
mile race now

if I don't get
out of this mess.

- Can you move at all.
Like, backwards?

- I can't move anywhere.

Maybe give me a tug backwards

instead of trying
to push through this [bleep].

- All fun and games
till someone gets stuck.

- Hopefully this works.

narrator: The Muskie drivers
are days away from help.

- If one of our units
are dead on the road,

there's not a damn thing I can
do to help you guys up there.

narrator: If they can't
pull out Scooter's rig,

it'll end up like the trucks
they passed on the way in.

[tense music]

[radio beeps]
- Ready?

- Ready, Freddy.

♪

Hey.
Hold on, hold on, hold on.

♪

This is a nightmare.

♪

Come on, Big Bird.

Come on.

♪

[Scooter laughs]

Yeah.
We're good there.

[soft upbeat music]

With Muskie Todd,
we have a good team.

We work good together.

- That just cost
a bottle of whisky.

- Probably two.
- [laughs]

Let's go.
Let's go have some more fun.

- We're going to make
some miles now.

Ah!
My tea.

That was almost a catastrophe
right there.

Let's do this [bleep].

♪

[tense music]

narrator:
100 miles down the road...

- Hey, Todd.

- Yeah.
Go ahead, Lis.

narrator:
Lisa and Todd are racing

in the opposite direction.

- We're getting close
to the trucks.

Sun's still up,
but it's fading fast.

narrator: So they can
attack the stuck rigs

before the ball
hits the horizon.

♪

- Bill worked out
some type of plan

to get a dozer
hauled out with us...

[phone line trilling]

- So I found you guys a dozer.

- To start working
on those two rigs.

Hopefully this goes well.

Yeah, this is the spot
right here.

[suspenseful music]

Pretty devastating
and heartbreaking

to come out here and work
for a half a day

and not
get anything accomplished

and not be able
to get the trucks loaded.

I think it's a lost cause.

We need a loader
or an excavator here

digging this out.

narrator: Nobody gets paid
for the return trip

unless the stuck trucks
make it back to Muskie Creek.

- These backhauls
are essential.

You guys will have to
bring it back to the yard

or we don't make money.

The owner has said get them out
by any means necessary.

narrator: So they
all need trucks on trailers

for Muskie Creek to make money

and for the drivers to hit
their goals for the season.

[suspenseful music]

- Currently,
my truck is sitting broken

in the shop in Fairbanks.

I need a lot of money
really fast to get it going.

- This year, I have a chance
to actually buy my own big rig.

♪

- He's like,
yeah, I'm just ramming it.

- [laughs] That's what
I'm talking about.

- Oh, wow.

It is solid.

I don't know if we're going
to be able to get this.

- This is a redemption round

and we're going
to get these suckers out here.

One way or another,
we're going to get them loaded.

- Now that
it's the end of the season,

getting these trucks out
with this bulldozer

is kind of my last chance
at getting a backhaul.

♪

Gonna get to keep my horses.

I can't wait!

[metallic crashing]

Whoo, yeah!
Get her!

[dramatic music]

♪

[engine revving]

Whoo!

Holy moly.

Yeah!
- [laughs]

- Yeah.

[upbeat rock music]

♪

- There it goes.
- Oh, my.

[metallic crash]
- Ooh.

There goes the tire.

[metal creaking]

Holy moly.
[laughs]

That was awesome.

There's no way the winch truck

or shovels would have
gotten that out of there.

So--[sighs]

That's good.

♪

Thank you so much.
That was awesome.

I really appreciate it.

- Yeah. No problem.

- You just made us a paycheck.
[all chuckle]

Because now, we got a backhaul.
- Yep.

- [laughs]

That's what we needed,

to have a good operator
to get this done.

[suspenseful music]

Wayne with our picker truck
is here,

and then Linden pulled in
right in front of him.

Lisa, which one do you
want to haul?

The blue one?
- Yeah. I'll haul the blue one.

- OK, Wayner.
It's on you, man.

- Get this thing picked up
in the air,

get Lisa's trailer
back underneath here.

Keep her cutting,
keep it cutting.

- Stay right there.
- Yep.

Let her down, Wayne.

Go ahead.
Go up.

Keep coming.

Keep coming.
Good!

You did it.
- Whoo.

- She's on there.
- All right.

I'm so happy that
I got a backhaul.

That means I can fix my truck,
keep my horses.

- One truck down.

Still got another
truck to do yet.

But we're going to do
those in the morning.

We've been up for 16 hours.

It's going to be time
for a little bit of sleep here.

- All right.
Good night.

- All right, guys.
We'll see you bright and early.

[wind howling]

- Hi, Blakey.

It's Grandpa.
Hi, Andy.

Oh, love you guys.

Grandpa loves you.

I did things up here that a
lot of people can't get done.

I wanted to get back
on the ice roads

and challenge myself.

I wanted to see if I still have

what it takes
to do these ice roads.

But I really missed my family
quite a bit this year.

Oh, she's going
to go down the slide.

Oh, whoa.
Almost wrecked.

I'm tired.
I'm worn out.

I'm--I'm--I'm homesick.

I'm ready to come home.

All right.
- Love you. K, bye.

- All right. Bye.

My wife, my daughters,
those little grandbabies,

that's what
makes my world turn.

It's everything.

[peaceful music]

♪

[tense music]

narrator:
750 miles to the east...

♪

- It feels pretty rocky,
actually.

I'm kind of surprised.

We're rocking quite a bit.

narrator: Shaun's gambling
the melting ice

will hold his maxed out rig

on the 55-mile crossing
to Uranium City.

- We've got a lot of weight.

It's the biggest
I've hauled this winter.

narrator: It's his only option
to save the season.

[ice cracking]

- It's hard to get used to
watching your mirrors

and seeing a crack
follow you down the road.

[wind howling]

Yeah, we're coming up
to this big heave

where the road
is cracked along the edge

and it's been flooding.

narrator: As the massive ice
sheet melts and breaks apart,

heavy loads
and waves under the ice

widen the cracks
and flood the road.

[ice cracking]
- A lot of noise here.

A lot of cracking and popping.

narrator:
The cracks get worse each day,

and now Shaun's forced
to thread the needle

to reach shore.

- After a certain amount
of time,

the road just deteriorates
where there's

nothing but crushed ice left.

If we were to stray either
side, we'd go through.

[engine rumbling]

We're heavy, so we're
pushing down quite a bit,

so we'll have a good wave
in front of us.

And that's--
that's why we have to go slow.

The more momentum
we give that wave,

that's when you have issues.

[ominous music]

[ice rumbling]

You usually see when the wave
ahead of you hits the cracks,

if something starts to open up,
it doesn't look right.

[ice cracks]
Oh.

♪

You can see there's a big crack

forming right beside us
as we drive here.

[tense music]

[tense music]

♪

narrator:
On one of North America's

largest sheets of ice....

- You can see there's a big
crack forming right beside us

as we drive here.

narrator: Shaun Harris
is shooting the gap

with a maxed-out load.

- So with the truck
and trailer

and the weight of this rebar,
we're right at max.

We're just over 75,000.

♪

The heave is moving
as we go by.

♪

It's rocking.

We need to idle and just
walk right through here.

narrator:
If he pushes too hard,

the wave created
by the truck's weight

will break open
the failing ice.

- [chuckling] Oh, wow.

♪

[ice crunching]

♪

I think we're over
the worst of it now.

These are some of the most
dangerous roads in the world.

And this winter has forced us
to push it to the limit

all the time.

That was Sketchy Incorporated,
that one.

♪

narrator:
900 miles to the east...

[soft upbeat music]

♪

It's the end of the world's
longest ice road.

- We're rolling into Peawanuck.

We've been
asked by the community

to stop by the school.

[horn honks]

♪

- Hi.
- Hi. How are you?

- Hi. Welcome.
Welcome to Peawanuck.

- Thank you.
- These are my students.

- Nice to meet you guys.
- Nice to meet you.

- Wow. You guys have
a beautiful community here.

- So you can say you've been
on the longest winter road.

- The upsides of trucking
is meeting new people,

learning new things.

- What do you have to do
to be an ice road trucker?

- Up here, you got to be able
to leave your family behind.

You know, a lot can happen
to us out in these roads.

You got to be strong-willed and
ready to do what you got to do.

- Wow.

- Coming to
a northern community,

just seeing that you're
actually meaning something

that makes a difference,
it feels good, you know?

- What are you guys hauling?

- We're going to haul a sea can
and a pickup truck out of here.

[upbeat rock music]

Yeah.

Keep coming, keep coming.

- That's good, eh?
- Yeah.

Haul it out of here.
- Ooh.

♪

[phone line trilling]

[notifications chime]

- What's up, brother?

- Really?

- Yeah.

- I just wanted to check in
with you girls.

Miss you.

- Love you.
- Miss you too.

- I have two daughters in
Nova Scotia, Bianca and Zoe.

- How are you doing
on the ice roads right now?

How's it going?
- It's been rough.

You know, I miss them a lot.

- I'm genuinely
so proud of you, Dad.

We all appreciate you so much.

- You're going to make me cry.

- I'm being serious.
- I know.

All right, I got to get going.
Love you guys.

- I love you.
- Love you too.

- Bye.

I'm really grateful
for the great support team

of family I have.

[groans]

♪

All right, let's do this.

[upbeat music]

- Let's go.

- All right, we're going.
Rolling, rolling, rolling.

♪

[wind howling]

[tense music]

narrator: Across
the warming wilderness...

- Holy [bleep].
Look at this.

[tense music]

- Wollaston is absolutely
closed right now.

The ice is just too thin.

If you went across here loaded,

you would absolutely
go in the drink.

narrator: Riley and Zach
are on a big-money run

to pick up a load they think
is light enough to haul out

within the limits of the ice.

- Oh, this looks
a little gross.

♪

The ice is completely rotten.

It's cracked on one side.

- Holy [bleep].
Can we even do this?

♪

I can see ruts through
the ice in the middle

where it's been soft
and slushy.

Man, this Wollaston road
is a different animal.

We're kind of committed now.

There's no turning back, so--

The [bleep] we do for money.
[laughs]

- We tend to do a lot of things
that other companies won't do.

♪

- All righty.

♪

- We're the first group
of people that'll say,

hey, we're not scared
to do that.

You know,
we're not chicken[bleep].

- Well, this is by far

the most dangerous spot
we have crossed all season.

I have to prove to my dad
that I can drive up there

and that I can
manage the situation...

I'm hearing a lot
of [bleep] cracking, man.

Control my nerves
in the sticky spots

and to be able to do the job,
basically.

♪

Oh, my God.

Looks like it's been
[bleep] flooding up here too.

♪

Should have brought
a life jacket.

[laughter]

[peaceful music]

♪

narrator: Across
the northern frontier...

♪

- This section is so rough.

narrator:
Lisa and Todd are racing home

with their big-money
backhauls...

- This is the last day out.
This is it.

It's almost over with.

narrator: In a convoy
with Muskie drivers,

Wayne and Linden.

[dramatic music]

- Oh, good gosh.

Jeez Louise.

narrator:
But the northern wilderness

won't let them escape
without a fight.

- Oh, man.
Here we go, getting the bumps.

[truck thumping and rattling]

It's so horrible.

- This is the last big push
of our recovery mission.

The road has definitely
turned into rat[bleep].

It's getting bumpy.
It's rough.

Hopefully everything
holds together.

- Oh, goodness gracious.

♪

Oh, my goodness.

Oh, gosh.

When you're
on a really long run,

especially where
it's super-bumpy,

it's just like your body's
like--[groans]

It hurts in every way.

At some point, your body's just
like, I'm just done bumping.

♪

'Cause it's relentless.
It just never stops.

- Keeping an eye
on my truck back there.

♪

Oh, there's some wicked bumps
around that corner.

- Oh, gosh.

Holy cow.

Whoa.

♪

No, no, no, no, no!

Stop.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

[tense music]

narrator: In an icy graveyard

cutting through
the northern wilderness...

♪

- Holy [bleep].
Oh.

No, no, no, no, no!

narrator: The road has
claimed Lisa's load.

- Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

♪

Good gosh.

♪

- What's going on, Lis?
You all right back there?

- Hood of the truck
just fell off.

- Holy [bleep].
It's [bleep].

- How did that happen?
I had it strapped down.

- Oh, man.

We'll pull over, park so we
don't get too far ahead of you,

and then let us know
if you need us.

- OK.

[groans]

narrator: On the world's
longest winter road,

there's safety in numbers.

- So I've got Todd, Wayne,
and Linden.

I want you guys to convoy in.

You're stronger in numbers.

narrator:
Especially when the numbers

include Wayne's picker truck.

- Wayne,
good thing you're good at this.

♪

All right.
- OK.

- Good thing you got
the picker truck.

Nice.
And then down.

Nice.

[grunts]
- I think we're good.

- Wayne, thank you.
- Ready to roll.

Let's get out of here.

I appreciate it so much.

If we could just make it,

we might get off these roads
in one piece this year.

I got to rack up
the most miles I can.

I can't get towed out.

- That's right.
You got to win the bet.

narrator:
500 miles to the east...

on a different expanse
of melting ice...

[upbeat rock music]

- We made it.

narrator: Riley and Zach
survived the run

to the Wollaston Lake
community.

- Big girl overtaking
up and turn and burn.

narrator: A mission
that seemed impossible.

- Wollaston is absolutely
closed right now.

And I'm getting
extremely nervous.

Can't get across here,

when normally, we'd be
hauling across here weeks ago.

♪

- Which one are we
putting on first?

- Blue one.

[upbeat country music]

[laughs]
I was watching.

There's lots of room.

- OK.
Now it's the Dodge, right?

♪

- Close the doors and go.

- [laughing]
The space here between

the truck and this wall.

narrator:
Now Riley and Zach need

to turn and burn back
across the melting ice,

hauling the truck south
for repair.

[tense music]

- Yeah, I think so.

Our dad wants to scale back
and slow down a little bit.

So at this point,
it's kind of do-or-die.

We have to start making calls
and making commitments

and really start
to do this for ourselves.

Yeah, like, I'm feeling pretty
serious about doing this.

- Oh, I agree.

- Zach and I are looking
at buying more trucks

and going all-in together.

[wind howling]

narrator: While Riley and Zach
make plans

to take over the company...

[tense music]

♪

Shaun's remembering
why he loves it.

- Yeah. Look at the wheels
on that loader.

[laughs]

When the ass end of the loader
comes off the ground like that,

it's absolutely heavy.

We just hauled that here
over the ice.

We were at absolute
max capacity.

And just a hair over.

But we made her back on time.

Everything was good,
everything arrived safe.

Once more, we did something
nobody else wanted to do.

I love being the last guy out.
I take pride in that.

Can you make one more run?

The road is closed,
but can you make another run?

Absolutely.

We're the only loaded truck
coming in today.

That's a telltale sign that
the season's come to an end.

[wind howling]

♪

- Look at that sunset, buddy.

- Beautiful.

narrator:
Shutting off the lights

and running for the door...

- You know, we haven't
met anybody coming in.

narrator:
Scooter and Muskie Todd

are the last trucks out.

- Yes, man.

Like, you think
we should have passed

some kind of rig coming in.

[epic dramatic music]

♪

[tense music]

- Something's up.

♪

Will the nightmare ever end?

♪

narrator: But with the
darkness comes the nightmares.

- [groans] Um, yeah,
I'm going to have to stop here.

Wheel looks like
she's locking up.

- Yeah, the wrong luck.
- [laughs]

- We're under the gun
in the middle of nowhere.

We are on our own.

Can you just tell me
if my middle axles turn?

♪

- Locked up.

♪

- What the [bleep]?

- Yeah.

- Try rolling it.

♪

narrator: Scooter's
trailer brakes are locked.

- [groans]
Come on.

narrator: And pushing on
will rip open the tires

and destroy the axles, brakes,
and suspension.

- [groans]

♪

- [bleep] dragging her.

It looked like it was
only this tire.

[bleep] brakes
are freaking frozen up.

narrator: Despite rising
daytime temperatures...

- That brake is
definitely frozen.

narrator: Winter still
packs a punch after dark,

and buildup of snow and ice
has frozen Scooter's brakes.

- I hate my life right now.

I'll go grab a hammer, see
if we can give it a good tap.

narrator: And as usual,
the driver's first try:

a little
percussive maintenance.

- [coughs] You want to drive--
move forward?

See if it does anything?

- [groans]

♪

- There's not a damn thing
I can do

to help you guys up there.

- Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Come on.

- Oh, the tire's moving.

♪

[groans]

It's rolling,
then it stopped rolling again.

This is going
to be a nightmare.

[sighs]

[tense music]

narrator: Stuck
in the freezing darkness...

- It's rolling,
then it stopped rolling again.

It don't make sense.

narrator: Scooter's trying
to knock his brakes free

from the clutches
of the northern wilderness.

[hammer banging]

- Go at it.

I gotta get the hole open.

narrator:
With temperatures dropping

and out of options,

Scooter resorts
to caging the brakes,

manually releasing the
brake pads using a cage tool.

- Hold my glove.

[bleep] bare-handing.
Burn my hand, I don't care.

narrator: Screwing in the bolt
compresses a spring

that holds the brakes open,
allowing the tire to spin.

- Holy [bleep].
I'm almost there.

narrator: This is
his last shot to get home.

[metallic clank]
[Scooter grunts]

- I just wanted to check in
with you girls.

Miss you.

- I'm genuinely
so proud of you, Dad.

We all appreciate you so much.

♪

- I love my life.

[upbeat music]

I should have paid attention
better in school.

- [laughing]
- I think I got it.

All right.
Hope this works.

♪

Come on, buddy.
You can do it.

[tense music]

Yeah.
Let's get going.

♪

I appreciate the help big time,
man.

- No problem.

[upbeat rock music]

- Let's go home.

[tense music]

narrator: In the warming
northern frontier...

- This is what it's all about.

[engine buzzing]

narrator:
The Harris family has

one final mission on the ice.

♪

- Try and catch some fish.

Put some hooks in the water.

narrator: Catching dinner.

[suspenseful western music]

♪

- I wouldn't want to be
anywhere else right now.

It was a challenging year.

- Absolutely.

- Oh.
Holy [bleep].

Yeah, I'm going to need
a little tug here.

♪

- Got him.

- Mother Nature really
threw us a curveball.

This year wasn't cold and
the ice wouldn't thicken up.

[tense music]

This road is very vital.

It's the only lifeline in the
wintertime for this community.

We had to go out of
our comfort zone to find work.

One five axle off
the overland, onto the ice.

You guys are going
to Uranium City.

If we want to stay competitive

and keep growing
this business,

we have to look elsewhere.

And I mean,
the proof is in the pudding

that here we are,
the season's done.

People are already trying
to book us for next year.

I'm very proud
of what you guys did.

If I had ten guys like you,

we could take over
the [bleep] world.

- Mm.

Well, we got three.
[laughter]

- Honest to God, this was the
most fun I've had up north

in decades because
I got to do it with you two.

I loved every minute of it.

And I want us to do more of it.

So I'm not ready to retire.

I'm ready
to go shoulder-to-shoulder

and get right at her.

Take over the world.

♪

- He says he wants us to take
over and he wants to retire.

But I know for a fact
he'll never, ever retire.

[laughter]

- To hear the boys
be as excited as they are,

no, I don't want to retire.

I want to stay
and help these guys.

So if you guys will have me,

I want to be involved again
next winter.

- Silent partner though, right?

[laughter]

- He wants to work with us
and help us grow.

I think it's great.

Like, I want to keep
working with my dad.

- Here's to a great year
this year

and to bigger and better things
next year.

[upbeat rock music]

♪

[tense music]

[jet engines howling]

♪

- Hey, Bill.
How's it going, buddy?

- I didn't get to catch you
before you left.

- I know.
I'm just kind of in a rush.

And with the season being over
and being a little homesick,

I'm just trying to get home
to the family.

Being back on the ice roads
felt amazing.

The ice road just brings out
that fight inside of you.

I got all my loads delivered.

All right!
There it is.

Slide a whole pallet
at one time.

[metallic crashing]

I was able to do
a lot of bush fixes.

[laughter]

Big nuts going on.
That's what I'm talking about.

I've made some
amazing new friends.

I've been lonely from my wife.
- Hold him, Lisa!

[laughter]

But I really missed my family
quite a bit this year.

So it makes a guy wonder,
you know,

is this what I want to continue
to keep doing every year?

- I want to thank you
and really appreciate you

joining the team this year.

- I mean, I really enjoy
doing the ice roads,

but I also love being
home with my family.

- Hopefully
we'll get you back next year.

- OK, Bill. I'm not--

you know, I don't know what
I'm going to do this next year.

You know, right now,
I'm just focused

on getting home to my family.

When next season
starts getting closer,

I'll decide what
I want to do, buddy.

So I really don't know
what the future holds.

- Definitely stay in touch.

And yeah,
expect a phone call from me

getting closer
to that season, eh?

- I look forward
to talking to you soon.

- All right. Cheers.
- All right, buddy.

[suspenseful music]

♪

[train tracks clacking]

♪

- We had a very good season.

- Good.

- Whoa, whoa, whoa,
whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!

[metallic clattering]

- I know
it's not the easiest job.

You guys were able
to handle the workload

and sometimes
chaotic scenarios.

- That's an understatement,
but.

[groans]

[tense music]

- You have to be flexible,

adapt to obstacles

that the winter road
throws at you guys.

- My blower motor is out.

- Especially when you guys are

hundreds of kilometers
in the bush.

It's just you

and Mother Nature
and the equipment.

- Holy crap, that's hot.

- [groans]
Come on.

- If you don't know
your way around the truck,

that's life and death.

- Go, go, go.
Don't stop! Don't stop!

You're out, baby!

You're out.

- The teamwork that you
guys executed, it paid off.

Now let's get
to the really interesting part:

your guys' bet.

- I got a proposition.

- OK.

- Let's throw $100 bet down

and see who can run the most
miles this winter road.

- $100?
- Yeah.

[both chuckle]

- So the bet was who
could log the most miles.

- Yep.
- We've calculated the numbers.

And...

[suspenseful music]

- So the bet was who
could log the most miles.

[suspenseful music]

- Yep.

- Brace yourself.

Scooter, you clocked in 9,690.

- Holy crap.
That is so many.

- Lisa, you clocked in 10,389.
- What?

[upbeat rock music]

- Difference of 699.

- [chuckles]
- 699?

- Yep.
- Oh. I'm one off from 700?

- Yeah, just a couple laps
around the yard.

- Yeah.
- [chuckles]

- We'll call it 700.
[laughter]

Yeah.

At the beginning,
I didn't know Scooter or Lisa.

Now that I do, you bet
your ass that next year,

we're going to have
the best ice road season

Muskie Creek has ever seen.

Well, Scooter, looks like
you got to hit the ATM.

So...
- Yep. [sighs]

- Thanks for a great season,
you guys.

- Yeah.
- Oh, we appreciate it.

- Come on.

♪

- Thanks, Bill.
- Thank you guys.

Oh, God.
[bleep].

My truck's on fire.

- [chuckles] Maybe next year,
he'll get it.

- [chuckling] Oh.

Give me two back-to-back
Peawanucks.

- [laughing]
Holy--yeah.

- Oh, yeah, buddy.
- That sounds horrible.

[laughter]

[train horn blasts]

[upbeat country rock music]

♪

- Did you hit up the ATM?

Don't be coming in here
empty-handed.

- Oh, I'm not.
Bet's a bet.

- Holy crap.
Are you serious right now?

- Yeah, it's currency.

- What the heck?
What are these?

- Nickels.

- Jeez Louise.

- Oh, let's throw
$100 bet down,

see who can run the most miles
this winter road.

- $100?
- Yeah.

[groans]

[both chuckle]

Well, I lost the bet,

but I think I got
the last laugh on that one.

- Did the can come with it?

This better not be
one that you've had

in your truck for emergencies.

- [chuckles] You'll never know.

[laughter]

- Scooty Puff,
I just describe 'em

as, like, a big teddy bear.

Like, he's really got
a sweet heart inside.

That's been what's fun about
running with you this year

is, like, we work together
as a team

and it worked out really well,

because that's
not always the case.

This is Trucking 101
for dummies.

Are you worried that
other drivers are

clearly better than you are?

- Oh, it's on.

It is on.

[horn honks]

[exaggerated laughter]

[horn honks rhythmically]

All right.
We got--

aw.

Peanut butter under
my door handle?

Hope it's peanut butter.

♪

- Mm-mm-mm.

- It's about being a team.

And it's hard to find
good people to run with.

- Yeah.
Yeah, we got lucky.

- With Lisa Kelly, we both
kind of clicked really good.

She's easy to get along with,
especially on the road.

- Do you think you'd come back?
Would you do it again?

- Oh, yeah. I'll come back.

- Yeah?
- I'll do it again.

And I'll bet you again.

- I have the bill
for you guys here.

- Hey, thank you.

Can you take these?

- Yes, I do.
- To pay for?

- Yes, I do.
- I'm still counting.

[laughter]
What do you got?

I'll get it.

- Oh, my.

Don't worry about it.
I'll tell you what.

Just because you got all them
nickels, I'll take care of it.

- Oh, [bleep].

I don't want to count out
that many nickels.

- I didn't think so.
[laughter]

Don't worry, Princess.
I got your money in the truck.

♪

♪