Original subtitles

Way up north in the Klondike, Todd Hoffman and his crew are into their second season

mining for gold.

I do love our country.

They are risking it all to strike it rich.

Gold mining is one of America's greatest dreams.

After losing Porcupine Creek, they refuse to give up their dream.

Now, the Hoffman crew must build a new mine from the ground up.

We will not have another chance at this.

And they are way behind.

21 days of the 150-day mining season already behind them.

What the frick?

The pressure to salvage the season pushes Jack to his breaking point.

I don't give a shit.

Better for me to just leave.

Back in Porcupine Creek, Dakota Fred puts his crew in harm's way to pull apart the old

Hoffman wash plant.

Get that thing out of here!

Just as high school student Parker pulls further and further ahead in the race for gold.

In one week, we almost got in half of what the Hoffmans got all year.

At the Quartz Creek claim in the Klondike, Todd Hoffman and his crew are on the hunt

for the boundary of their new gold claim.

We're looking for the corner posts on the mine.

Let me go look at this post here and see what number it is.

We're trying to figure out exactly where the claim is.

You do not want to start driving equipment and making cuts in something that's not yours.

The whole key is just getting those posts found.

They are looking in this forest for seven-foot wooden posts used to mark this claim 40 years ago.

You find one?

I see a ribbon tied down there.

The posts will outline an area that landowner Greg McNeil believes holds millions of dollars

in gold.

There it is, I think.

Maybe.

Nope.

That is not it.

Somebody else's.

At the start of their second mining season, the Hoffman crew lost their Porcupine Creek

claim to rival Dakota Fred.

The Dakota boys own Porcupine Creek claim.

I'm going to mine this claim this year.

The Hoffmans had no choice but to head north to the Klondike, and in the middle of a modern-day

gold rush finally secured a new claim.

This is Quartz Creek.

Awesome.

A gold claim with virgin ground.

It's never been touched by any kind of machine, ever.

But Quartz Creek is a big risk.

The Hoffmans had no time to test the claim's soil for gold.

Their dream now rests on the word of claim owner Greg McNeil.

At some point, we've got to trust somebody somewhere.

We don't have much time.

I got a feeling it's right here.

The Hoffman crew is already 21 days into the 150-day season.

Todd has to map his new claim before he can even move in his equipment.

There's a couple more flags over here.

Man, oh man, I should have came over here and located this thing.

It's going to be real close.

Hey Dave, Greg, come here.

Yeah, I'm thinking that might be ours.

The Hoffman crew get their first break of the season.

This is post number one, and then straight up it will be number two.

I'm going to walk straight through here and see if I can find that other post.

I think that's it.

This is looking good.

There it is, right there, number two.

So here's what you guys have got all the way up to here, of almost about a mile.

That's several years' worth of mining right there.

The Hoffman's new land covers two 500 by 1,000 foot claims.

They will mine the ground east of the creek, where they hope the virgin ground is.

And on the west side of the creek, they'll clear the land and move in their mining equipment.

We're mining here, camp's there, we're ready to go.

And this is good stuff.

This is good stuff.

I think we've got a plan.

Yep, we've got a plan.

600 miles south, in Porcupine Creek, Alaska, Dakota Fred looks over the Hoffman's old

wash plant.

Gold mining's got a lot to do with differences of opinion.

And whoever's running the show, their opinion is the most important.

Fred bought the wash plant and other equipment from the Hoffman's for $80,000 when they abruptly

left Porcupine earlier in the season.

But Fred is not a fan.

And I'll be happy to be rid of it.

From the moment Fred arrived at Porcupine Creek last season, he wanted to alter the

Hoffman's wash plant.

He clashed with mechanic James Harness.

But now you've destroyed this thing.

I totally, absolutely disagree.

Now that he has taken over Porcupine, he wants to lose the Hoffman wash plant altogether.

We did feel this is way too inefficient, too prone to break down.

So we're going to go with our system.

Already 22 days into the season, Fred has to start mining.

He has a radical plan to overhaul the mine.

Fellas, we've got some big news this morning.

We've taken all this crap out of here.

I don't want nothing left.

We're going to have to move everything.

Out with the Hoffman's and in with the Dakota boys.

First on the list, the shaker.

Holding it in place is a steel bulkhead.

It's buried deep in the dirt and secured with steel cables.

It's not going anywhere without a lot of work.

Here's a couple of little cables tied around this thing.

Probably going to have to dig it out.

Cut clear?

Yes, sir.

The four sides of the bulkhead are disconnected.

Now they need to remove the front to slide the shaker out.

But Fred and rigger Darren are getting nowhere with their shovels.

Just wasting time.

Fred takes charge and jumps into the 270 excavator.

Hold on, Fred.

What do I need to do?

Fred decides to use brute force.

Just run the chain underneath it so when he pulls on it, it should pull it straight out

on the Hoffman in theory.

Don't cut the chain.

The chain's breaking point is 2,000 pounds.

But the crew has no idea just how deep the bulkhead is buried.

A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.

If a chain has been stretched, then somewhere in that chain, that weakest link is going

to be the first thing to snap.

Are you guys ready?

If you get hit with a chain that snaps, it will very easily take a leg completely off.

It will cut the meat, the bone, the tendon, everything.

All right, everybody set?

Let's go.

That chain is going to pull on.

Whoa!

What'd you break, chain?

Damn, that didn't work so well.

Ah.

Pull the chain out of there.

The chain just misses Darren.

The bulkhead didn't budge, and Fred reverts to the slow but safer approach.

Dig it out.

But instead of shovels, this time they use the 270.

A little welding.

All right, Justin.

Drag some iron out there.

Here we go.

In no time at all, the 270 excavator easily drags out the 25,000 pound shaker.

Just walk it over the jug pile.

While he doesn't plan to use it, Fred does plan to sell the wash plant.

Fred needs the cash.

Every day he doesn't find gold.

He loses money.

While Dakota Fred exercises the demons of last year, Parker Schnabel's operation across

the creek, the Big Nugget Mine, is running.

I try to do five loads an hour, but usually I don't get that many.

The dirt running through Parker's plant is tailings, material that his grandpa discarded

20 years ago.

Running the old tailings is all part of his master plan to turn the mine around.

Oh, oh.

There we go.

It's working.

They're getting bigger.

Three weeks ago, 16-year-old Parker took over the mine from his 91-year-old grandpa.

Thanks, grandpa.

His first decision to recycle old tailings was risky.

Hopefully there's a pile of gold.

But after only one day running the old material, he found gold.

That's nice.

Today was a good day.

Three-fifths of an ounce, which is about $800.

But Parker needs a lot more gold to turn a profit at the Big Nugget Mine.

July 1st, I'm going to run out of money.

So it's kind of important to have gold.

So it's kind of important to have a good month here.

At the end of another day, the crew has run dirt for eight hours.

But there's still a pile of tailings to load.

There's no sense in doing stuff around here that can be done while the plant's running

when there's other work to be done.

You two, you guys have a half hour, don't you?

This crew has answered to Grandpa John for 10 years.

Parker is finding it hard to earn their respect.

Yeah, you can run the excavator and Gary, you can run the truck.

I guess that's a no.

Makes me not feel like the boss.

It is 22 days into the season, and if Parker can't win over his crew soon,

he'll turn Big Nugget around.

Up ahead, young Parker shows up as mining elders.

That nugget's a third of an ounce.

Dakota Fred gets sweet justice finding gold and dirt the Hoffmans left behind.

Push him with that effort and run into the freaking hole.

And after falling further behind in their make or break mining season,

father and son have a big falling out.

Frustrating.

To call it quits.

I'm not the kind of person that you push around.

Okay, guys, this is the big one.

If you have to, slow it down.

Up north in the Klondike, Todd Hoffman heads to his gold claim at Quartz Creek.

There's a big rock sticking out.

Be careful.

With Todd's new gold claim mapped out and ready to be mined,

he leads trucker Tom Fenton along a treacherous mountain road down to the claim.

Tom is hauling a piece of equipment that is key to their success.

I'm liking the looks of it so far.

The thing looks pretty good.

This is it, huh?

In the off season...

This is it.

...Todd bought a D8 dozer to clear the land.

It cost $37,000.

Man, we'll take it.

Very good.

It put Todd even deeper in the hole.

But this year, Todd has to find gold or the dream is over.

We'll get the gold in the end.

We just have to keep the faith.

The Hoffmans have lost 23 days of the mining season.

The arrival of the D8 is a welcome sight.

Yeah, it feels good.

I didn't feel like I was really mining until I actually get the dozer here.

Running the D8 will cost Todd hundreds of dollars every day.

That is sweet.

The pressure is on.

It's a do-or-die situation for a lot of these guys.

And for me also.

I want it to work.

If we don't get gold this time, we're in trouble.

Champing at the bit, Jack starts up the D8.

The land on the west side of Quartz Creek needs to be cleared

so they can set up the wash plant near the virgin ground.

But after an hour, the ground still isn't flat.

It's a mess.

My dad's not a planner.

He's up there.

He's pivoting.

He did a 360 over there.

He came over here.

He can't just get on there because he's fun to drive it.

We all want to do that.

But not this year.

So, tough.

I'm putting up with it.

Please tell me you're done.

There's a big soft hole there.

You're back dragging it, making it nice and pretty.

Great.

Push some of that effing rock into the freaking hole.

And I'll shove rock over there.

Greg's coming over and I need you off.

There's no rhyme or reason.

I'm trying to figure out what's wrong with you.

Listen, that is a frozen hole.

No shoot, Sherlock, and you're in there pivoting on it.

Go ahead, I don't give a f***.

Screw it up.

I love you, Dad.

You're done.

We'll rest your back.

The pressure to get mining has driven a wedge

between father and son.

It's just frustrating.

Todd and I both own that D8.

It shows disrespect, you know,

to tell me that I can't use my own piece of equipment.

You know, say screw them.

While Jack cools off,

Greg Remsburg takes over.

I love my dad.

I'm not trying to get me, but he doesn't have a...

We lay out a plan and we got to stick to it.

Without warning,

Jack loads up and speeds off the claim.

Todd and I, we've had our ups and downs,

but I'm not the kind of person that you push around,

you know.

I will not have disrespect on it.

You know, I won't put up with it.

You know, and it won't carry on.

It's better for me to just leave.

While the Hoffman crew implodes,

600 miles south at the Big Nugget mine,

Parker Schnabel rallies his crew.

24 hours after they ignored his order to run dirt,

Parker proposes a plan to boost profits.

I think my grandpa's always given you

a $2 an hour bonus

at the end of the year if you stay the season.

Mm-hmm.

And, you know,

I think that's a good thing.

Mm-hmm.

And I'm gonna go ahead and keep that policy as minimum.

If we have a good season,

we'll do a 10% profit share,

so 5% for each of you.

Cool.

It really gives us a good incentive to work.

That makes it a challenge

to see if we can strike something good.

I think that it will make a big difference.

I think that we'll see them

get a little more personal

and try to make us some money.

In just four days,

Parker will do his weekly clean-out.

His crew waste no time,

loading more of the 20-year-old tailings

they know hold gold.

It is morning at Quartz Creek,

and Jack is nowhere to be found.

Lord, thanks for another day.

I just ask that you would

keep Jack safe on the road.

I don't know where my dad went.

He got mad at me last night.

I think I might have been a little disrespectful to him,

and I feel bad about that,

but maybe I was right,

but I probably did it in the wrong way.

I ask that you give Todd strength as our leader.

Thanks for this day. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Amen.

This is our last chance.

You know, this is it.

So I want it done right.

It's for him, you know, not just for me.

It's his dream.

Jim Thurber heads off to find Jack.

Trying to get a hold of Jack

and try to calm him down

and see exactly what went on,

and I mean, we've got to resolve it.

It'd be a total disaster if he leaves.

Jim faces foreclosure on his home in Oregon

if he doesn't find gold this year.

This is my livelihood.

We're all living here and got to deal with this stuff,

but hopefully I can talk him down.

But it may be too late.

Jack has spent the night 45 miles away

in a Dawson City motel.

Todd and I have our ups and downs,

but, you know, as far as it goes,

if it turns into a conflict

where I'm going to be so pissed off at him,

you know, or he gets pissed off at me,

you know, I'm not going to stay there.

It's Jack's dream to strike it rich

mining for gold.

Todd and the rest of the crew

left their lives behind to follow him.

They found almost nothing last season

and are 24 days into the second season

with no gold in sight.

If Jack and Todd can't settle their differences,

this could be the end of the road.

With the old in with the new.

In Porcupine Creek,

Dakota Fred and his crew remove the old trommel.

It's just too inefficient,

too wimpy for what we're going to be doing.

It's the last piece of the Hoffman's wash plant.

It's now history as far as we're concerned.

It's out of here.

Crank that dude up.

There, watch it, watch it, watch it.

Fred plans to put in his own system,

but his new wash plant is still on the way up to the claim.

The only piece of equipment he has at Porcupine

is a small clean-out trommel,

but it just might be enough to get Fred started.

Now we're just setting up this clean-up trommel.

We've got our housekeeping stuff done,

and we're ready to see some gold stuff.

Fred found dirt in the Hoffman's junked wash plant.

Pay dirt that Todd and Jack didn't process

before they left the claim.

The Hoffman's left us a little gift,

a little housewarming gift in this material,

and maybe there's a little gold in there.

This is free gold because we didn't do anything to get to it.

We're just going to process it.

This is just leftover sitting around stuff.

Maybe a little gold in there.

With crew on site,

Fred's burning $700 a day.

He needs gold,

and running dirt the Hoffman's didn't process

could be a quick fix.

While Fred gets set to run the Hoffman's dirt,

Todd and Jack's dream of striking it rich is in jeopardy.

Now 25 days into the season,

they are nowhere close to mining.

As Todd levels the ground,

Jack is still not on the claim.

It has been 24 hours since he abruptly left.

I hope he didn't head home or something

because he gets to where he kind of goes his own way.

It's his dream, you know,

so it's become all of our dream too.

And it wouldn't be right if we went ahead without him.

The Hoffman crew has yet to see a flake of gold this season,

and time is running out.

I don't want to look back and say,

well, we could have done that.

But finally,

Jim Thurber returns from his trip to find Jack,

and he's not alone.

Well, I'm going to go talk to Todd.

We're going to put an end to this.

If the Hoffman's crew has any chance of getting back on track,

Todd and Jack have to resolve their differences.

Hey, your pop, he's waiting for you.

You guys need to talk.

I'll be over there in a little while,

as soon as I get done here.

All right.

For Jim, it's especially hard to see Jack and Todd fight.

I brought you some food.

Well, it's pretty tough to see

father and son do what you guys are doing.

Thank you for caring.

It just brings back memories that I can't fix.

My dad and I were going to talk things out.

Next thing I get a call from the hospital

that my dad is dying in ICU.

Yep.

You got to take the opportunities that you get,

you know, you never know.

Might not be another chance, you know.

I don't mean to get in your business,

but it affects all of us, so.

Oh, I feel bad.

Me and him got in a fight, so.

Hey, I just wanted to apologize.

I was a little out of line yesterday

and disrespected you, and I didn't mean to.

I just want this done right.

Last year was basically mostly my fault,

and I'm not going to lose again this year.

I understand that, and I'll tell you what,

here's the way I look at it, too.

If it turns into an argument, I'm just going to walk away,

because I just don't want that.

It's not worth it, and so, you know, that's the deal.

No arguing, I don't want to do it.

You know what, I was pretty disrespectful to my father.

I love him, and we love each other,

and that's more important than stupid gold mining,

but gold mining isn't stupid.

With things patched up for now,

Todd and Jack head to the trailer.

In Jack's absence, Todd has run the numbers.

Here's the long and the short of it, Dad.

We made a lot of mistakes last year,

and I don't want to do that again.

I want us to come out of here winners.

I do, too.

We got to run it a little leaner, a little meaner.

That's why I want to figure out what it's going to take

just to break even.

So running costs, I'm guessing an average of $1,000 a day,

and then I'm guessing we got 125 days of mining.

So you got $125,000.

What does that figure out in gold? What are we getting?

You're looking at about 65 to 70 ounces.

That would work, yeah, but that's just a minimum.

I know. That's just running costs,

and beyond that, it's just all profit.

I'd like to get way beyond, you know, 100 ounces.

This is it. I've thrown all my cards in that pot, so...

Yep, I'm with you, so let's do it.

All right.

For the Hoffman crew to make any money this season,

they need to dig up over 70 ounces in gold

from the Quartz Creek claim.

The only problem is they have no idea where that gold is.

Up at Quartz Creek in the Klondike,

the race is on to get to the gold.

The Hoffman crew needs at least 70 ounces,

and their season is slowly slipping away.

What do you think?

Their new $40,000 wash plant is on site,

but it's on the wrong side of the claim.

I thought I could grab the plant and drag it down

so we could put it together.

The wash plant sits just off the Quartz Creek Road.

The Hoffmans have to move it next to the creek,

near the virgin ground they plan to mine.

There are 300 yards of rocky terrain

to its final resting spot.

But Jack is convinced there is a shorter route

through mud and trees.

24 hours after they're falling out,

Todd and Jack's truce is put to the test.

Yeah, they kind of think we should go through the rock, man.

No, it'll go just fine there.

Through that muck, I guarantee it.

The dozer barely gets through there.

No, it just goes right through.

We'll find out.

Let's get going.

This is the direct path.

I tried to talk him into going over the rock,

but he said he thinks it'll go through here better.

I don't know about that.

Hold up. Hold up!

Stop! Stop! Stop!

Oh, mother crap.

Ah!

This isn't working very well.

The front end of the wash plant gets stuck in the deep muck.

I got to look.

Hey, you got to lift that blade up.

All you got to do is lift this one side up over here.

But this time, father and son are able to work together.

You wanted to keep that blade high, so get in a little closer.

Okay.

Stand back.

That's what we're going to do. Everybody clear?

There it goes.

Now we're getting someone.

Yes!

Yeah!

It's working, man.

It's working. Look at that.

I guarantee it right now,

we're the only idiots in the world right now at this point in time

dragging the wash plant through the jungle.

This isn't like standard operating procedures for anything.

Bring it over here.

The plan works,

and the wash plant is pushed the last few yards

into its final position for the season.

Keep going.

That's pretty good right there.

How's that?

I like it.

This looks freaking sweet.

I got to be honest with you,

I didn't think that the muddy route was going to work,

but the old man pulled it off.

You learn how to be more of an encourager

than just a complainer.

At Porcupine Creek,

Dakota Fred is convinced there's a big payday

in the dirt the Hoffman's left behind.

But his water pump is not fitting his small clean-out trouble.

We have another pump.

Paul's looking to see if he can make some modifications.

He's up there trying to change parts on it right now.

It needs a part he doesn't have.

Without a working pump,

Fred won't be able to wash any gold from the dirt.

We're living out here in the middle of the woods.

It's not like you could just run over to your local hardware store

and pick something up.

It doesn't work that way.

Fred heads across the creek to Big Nugget Mine

to see if 16-year-old Parker Schnabel has the spare part he needs.

What's up? You got it running?

Yeah.

All right.

Look, man, I need a favor.

What do you need?

You got anything like an inch and a quarter nipple?

It's a gold mine!

In 25 years of mining,

the Schnabels have amassed a stockpile of parts.

Let's see what you got right...

Oh, there it is.

I think that's an inch and a quarter.

That is exactly what I need, right there.

Perfect.

Perfect. Got it.

No problem. Thank you.

Good luck.

You gonna be running soon?

No, not right now. We're just trying to get things set up.

Thank you, now.

Fred's a good guy.

He gets himself in trouble sometimes.

But that's just the way Fred is.

So just being that close, it's competitive.

I'm hoping to see it work,

and I want to see some gold for the first time.

Got it.

Parker's part fits.

There we go.

And the water finally flows

through the clean-out trommel.

We feed it in this chamber here.

It goes into an inner chamber.

Then it goes out into an outer chamber,

comes forward,

drops out,

and goes into this school spot right here.

25 days into the short

Alaskan mining season,

Fred and his crew just might find

their first gold of the year

in a pile of the Hoffman's old dirt.

After this is all over with,

we'll take that concentrate

and we'll pan it out.

We hope we got a little gold in it, too.

27 days into the mining season,

Parker Schnabel runs

the last dirt of the week

at the Big Nugget mine.

It's Friday today,

so we're going to clean out the whole plant.

Four days since offering his crew

a pay incentive,

they've loaded a hundred buckets

of grandpa's old tailings

into the wash plant.

We're going to clean out the whole plant.

We're going to clean out the whole plant.

We're going to clean out the whole plant.

This is the wash plant.

I'm washing the gold out of the bearings

through the screen into the pan below.

It takes a little bit of

eye practice

to discern the gold from the yellow rocks.

I've been doing it enough

now that I'm confident

that I'm picking all of it.

This is Parker's

first weekly clean out

with the boss of the Big Nugget mine.

Parker's decision to run the dirt

his grandpa threw away 20 years ago

looks like it's paying off.

It is addictive after you see

the results of the gold come out of the material.

It makes it all worth it.

I think the profit-sharing

thing this year is a very exciting

thing for us, and I think it makes

us a good team.

This is our first full week of running

and we've gotten six or seven ounces.

In one week

we've almost gotten half

of what the Hoffmans got all year.

So that's not bad.

In their rookie

season of mining at Porcupine Creek

the Hoffmans made just $20,000.

Sixteen-year-old

Parker has made

almost $11,000

in just his first week.

He's on track to make nearly $200,000

in his first full season

as the boss of the Big Nugget mine.

While Parker

counts his gold, the Hoffmans

scramble to catch up back in Quartz

Creek. Their new wash plant

is still in pieces.

Todd positions the hydraulic riffles

that he hopes will collect fine gold

from the dirt they run.

If I drop one of these

we're straight screwed.

You're looking at a week or two

to rebuild this.

Any more delays and the season could be

over. The Hoffmans need $1,000

a day in gold just to cover

their operating costs for the year.

This is all the stuff I wanted to have

done before we brought this up here,

but it's just the way it is.

We don't have extra parts

up here, so we've got to take

care of what we've got.

To attach the hydraulic riffles,

the miners must lower pipes on either

side into semi-circular cups

on the wash plant frame.

This pivot point will allow for

movement and support

when the plant is operational.

Okay, stay clear. Come up, Thurb.

Coming down.

Easy.

Keep coming.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

Slow down.

Not quite.

Watch it, watch it. Whoa!

What's wrong? It's hitting.

The pipe connection on the riffle

is hitting the support beam on the wash

plant.

Sorry in the heck.

The support, or

I-beam, is part of the frame

that gives the wash plant its strength.

Jack comes up with a radical

solution. Cut out a chunk

of the beam so the riffle can slide

into place.

My dad's doing something.

I don't know what he's doing.

What's he doing, Greg?

You're not going to be happy when you see it.

Is it going to hurt the

machine?

Well, we didn't really need the

I-beams anyway, did we?

He's not cutting into the I-beam. There's no way.

Cutting the I-beam

could compromise the wash plant's

structural integrity.

But Jack is on a mission.

What the frick?

That's a main I-beam there, Dad.

Stop.

That looks like part of the structure

there.

I mean, I'm an old rocket scientist, but

that's the I-beam, Dad.

Yeah, no kidding.

Another fallout between father and son

could be disastrous for the crew.

You know what? I'm just not going to say

anything.

I'm just going to

forget it. Not good.

Looks like a

fiasco, but

for the sake of unity,

I'm not going to say anything.

Due to the

soaring gold price,

prospectors staked a record

85,000 claims in the Klondike

area near Quartz Creek

between January and August 2011.

It is

27 days

into the Hoffman crew's second

mining season, and time

is running out.

Todd and Jack have to get 70 ounces

of gold before they can even

think of turning a profit.

But they can't mine without a working

wash plant.

That's a main I-beam there, Dad.

Stop.

They can't fit their hydraulic

reels into the water.

They can't fit their hydraulic

riffles into the machine.

No, just let her down.

Okay.

I'm doing good.

She's going to be calm.

Take her easy.

Jack stops cutting into the I-beam,

one of the wash plant's main supports,

as Jim Thurber has another

solution.

That one's just too far back.

To match that side, it needs to be

right. So you want to cut this off

and move it back.

If Jim is right,

the short pipe on the riffle

is in the wrong place. Jack

cuts it off. Quarter.

Here, let me get 15 and a quarter.

Okay, coming up.

Coming in.

Getting close, Drake.

Yeah. About two more

inches in.

Rewelding the pipe further forward

allows the hydraulic riffle to slip

into place.

That should do it.

Turn it into a bigger deal than what we thought.

But it's on there.

It looks good.

It'll work.

At

Porcupine

Creek, Dakota

Fred and his crew have processed

the dirt the Hoffmans left behind.

They pan it

looking for their first payday.

Watch this technique here.

Fred shows Greenhorn's Dustin

and Darren how to pan.

Are they more comfortable using both

hands? It's killing you. You can't

not touch it. No.

I mean, like that.

There you go.

You got something going. I don't know what

I'm doing. I'm starting to learn though.

I don't want to let nothing get over

the edge on me. And they both

learn fast.

What is this?

You find something? It is.

Oh, there it is.

Look at that. A picker.

Holy ****. That's what you call

a picker. Yeah.

Look at that. That's what

gold looks like right there.

So that's why I'm here.

Bring it out here.

This gold will only cover

costs for the day. But

finding the first gold of the season

in the Hoffman's dirt is sweet

for the Dakota boys.

Man, it's been a

hard day.

That was a good ending to a hard day though.

Yeah, for you.

Look, it's Parker.

What, we got a visit?

Parker's going to show us what they've been collecting.

Oh, no!

What's up there, fellow miner?

Parker Schnabel

stops by to show Fred and his crew

what a real gold haul is.

Now that's

a nice day.

That nugget's a third of an ounce.

I'd love to be able to get a pan

of gold like that for even

in a week right now.

As far as I can tell.

It's pretty encouraging to see a lot of gold out here

just up the creek.

He's coming with his nugget.

Dakota, Fred and his crew may have

had their first payday.

But they've got a long way to go to catch up

to Parker's seven ounce one week haul.

Six hundred miles north at Quartz

Creek, the only gold the

Hoffmans have found is in the pans of

Todd's sons, Hunter and Hudson.

See that?

That's a piece of gold.

The kid's gold is proof that there is

gold in this ground.

But the Hoffman crew is still far

from mining it.

I have a lot of pressure

on me because I've got to make

this blue wash plant make us a lot

of money this year.

Because more than just me, there's a lot of guys

and a lot of families counting on us.

They dragged their wash plant

across the claim and attached

the hydraulic riffles, but haven't

checked any of the other moving parts.

They may still be weeks away

from a clean out.

Basically, this is our last chance.

We're running out of money and we've got to

do well. And so if we don't

make it this summer, we're done.

About to begin their fifth week of the

mining season, the Hoffman crew

is only slightly closer to finding

gold. In a make or break

year, this is not where any of these

men had expected to be.

If there's no gold here, that means that

I may be stuck here in the Yukon.

Me and my boy. You know, I can't even

afford to get home.

It's not just about me,

but that's my situation.

You know, we go to a new place. It's all

a matter of getting set up.

And you know, it takes some time.

I might lose half my year. I might have to

go back home.

It's been a struggle already this year.

So, we don't

need more of a struggle.

Right now, this is

this is really it.

This is all I have in my future.

You kind of find the measure of a man when things are

down. It might take a little longer

than I thought. There'll be maybe a few more

fights, but you know what?

We're gonna make it happen, man.