All language subtitles for Life.Below.Zero.S02E06.Thin.Ice.720p.NF.WEB-DL

NARRATOR: On this episode
of Life Below Zero,

strange weather spreads
across the Arctic,

putting Alaska on thin ice.

CHIP: Two inches ice.

AGNES: Whoa! Fuck that!

NARRATOR: Arctic predators
come knocking at Sue's door.

The bears,
their main food source

is anything they can
get their paws on.

NARRATOR: The search is on
for an elusive Arctic fur.

Got a wolf right there.

And a novice
to life in the bush
makes a rookie mistake.

Anything can happen out there.

Whoa!

-(WIND BLOWING)
-(ICE CRACKLING)

CHIP: This freeze-up
is basically a month late.

We should've been
already almost
done fishing by now,

and now it's warming
back up again after it froze.

So, I'm worried about the ice
still staying thin,

the weather warming up
like it has, and falling
through the ice.

That's my concern.

And it's only got
a couple inches of ice,
which isn't very safe.

It's safe to walk over,
but not to put a load on,

and if we have adults working,

and we're piling up a net

which weighs
hundreds of pounds,

and on top of that
piles of fish,

we're really looking
to just kill ourselves.

Let's go down
to the ice hole, I guess.

The weather rules everything,

and I'm not saying
the weather's messing with me,

but I'm trying to
roll with the weather,

and it's not doing
what I want it to do.
(CHUCKLES)

NARRATOR: For the Hailstones,
ice fishing is a vital
yet dangerous way of life.

Until the ice
is safe to fish on,

the family will be
without a key winter currency.

CHIP: We got a lot of fish
from this summer.

We got a lot of caribou.
What we don't have is extra.

And when it comes
to making money
or making good trade

-this would be, kind of,
a financial loss to us.
-(DOG BARKS)

You know, we're halfway
through our lives.

We're middle-aged. We know it.

Every little instance
that we have to watch out for,

we know every little instance
that we have to make up for,

and we know what
our monthly goals are
for income,

and not only
maintaining our life,
but improving our life.

So, we'll see what happens.

AGNES: This is
the Kobuk River.
It's deep. It's wide.

We've been just watching
the conditions for the
last couple few days

and watching
the ice conditions here.

(CRACKING)

Whoa!

I don't like
that crackling sound.
It's just fuckin'...

CHIP: Here's how thick it is.

AGNES: Right there.

-There's a rule about
working on ice that thin.
-(CLANGING)

I wouldn't want to put
the weight of the fish,

and the weight of the net
on this.

That's just not gonna work.

Ice is between an inch
and two inches thick,

and we have a two-inch rule
for walking over.

We have four-inch rule
for doing any kind
of work whatsoever.

And I want six inches,

because I definitely
wanna be able
to put a pile of fish

and do my work
without worrying about
the whole thing collapsing in,

people dying.

Yeah. See?

You can see
how the different layers...
It's like shale.

So when you're dealing
with that kind of ice

you're not dealing
with ice that has integrity.

Every sign we see
is just danger.

So, we just have to
keep waiting and play it safe.

There's no money
worth dying for.

There's no trade
worth dying for, so...

I ain't having
no part of this.

CHIP: So ends
this day of fishing.

We will return when the ice
is happy and thick.

AGNES: One more day
should be good, huh?

CHIP: Yeah, one more day.

(STARTS ENGINE)

SUE: Looking at
the signs of nature,
looking at the animals,

looking at things,

I predict this is gonna be
one hell of a bad winter.

SUE: Time to do
a little maintenance.

Time for me
to change my oil
on my generator.

This year, winter came in
with a roar.

The caribou, everything
migrated out a month,
month and a half early,

and then all of a sudden
up comes the South-Pacific air

in what's called
the Pineapple Express,
and I warmed right back up.

With the warm weather
that's happening,
I'm having to run my generator

to keep all my frozen food
frozen far longer than normal.

It's not the 20, or 30,
or 40 below it should be.

I don't want to waste food,

but I can't afford to keep
this generator running solely
to keep food frozen.

NARRATOR: Warmer temperatures
are not only wreaking
havoc on Sue,

but could also be
upsetting the behaviour
of local predators.

Animals need it to be
well below zero
so they can hibernate.

Without it being cold enough,

they're using up
precious resources
that they need.

They need to be asleep.
They need to hibernate.

As crazy as it sounds,
we depend on it getting cold.

Only being 15-20 miles,

you know, up to 30 miles
away from the Arctic Ocean,

I've got polar bears
that hang out at the coast.

I now could very well
be in the sights
of those polar bears.

-(GRUNTS) Piece of...
-(STARTS MOTOR)

Usually this time of year
I'm 20-30 below zero or more.

Garbage, frozen stuff
isn't gonna give off a smell,

but this year, you know,
it's 40°.

Now I'm 70° above
where I normally am.

It's a fluke.

So, the garbage is gonna
give off a smell.

That's like becoming
a bait station.

So, another way
of arming yourself with safety
is get it burnt.

It's something
you, kind of, want to layer.

(CLATTERING)

The bears,
their main food source,

which is caribou, long gone.

So, what are they eating?

Anything they can
get their paws on.

Bears smell
from ten miles away.

Fifteen miles or so away
I've got usually
quite a few polar bears.

The sea ice,
the pack ice isn't in.

So, the polar bears
are starting to get
a little bit upset about that.

They want their food.

I need to burn this stuff,
and I need to use
enough accelerant

that it's not sitting there
smelling like leftover salmon
or leftover food

that they might be
interested in.

I don't think a person
is a polar bear's
natural diet,

but they can't get out
and get their natural diet
right now.

So, I don't want to
leave myself open for some
unprecedented attention.

(CLATTERING)

ANDY: You gotta be
a proactive person
to live this lifestyle.

If you're submissive,

if you're waiting for
other people to do it for you,

you ain't gonna get it.

ANDY: What do you think, Berg?

-Wanna go to a new spot today?
-(BERG BARKS)

KATE: So, you're loosening up
the doghouses.

You think we can move
those doghouses today?

-Yeah. It's time.
-I've got a list
of where to put 'em.

Yeah.

Winter lot.

-Hey, Cody!
-CODY: Yeah?

-Wanna move some dog houses?
-CODY: Yes, ma'am!

Today's a big day.
We're gonna move
our dog houses

with the help of Cody,
our new student.

He's here to learn
about dog mushing,

subsistence living,
bush skills.

For 20 or 30 years,
I've been dog mushing,

but what goes along with that
is not just sitting
in the sled.

It's learning how to
take care of dogs.

You want to go to
the winter dog lot, Iceberg?

NARRATOR:
In Eagle, a lack of snowfall

has delayed the start
of dog mushing season.

-ANDY: It's really late. We're
already into mid-November.
-(DOG SQUEAKING)

We're about
two to three weeks behind
where I normally would be.

Climate change
is really screwing with us
up here in the north.

If there's one thing
you can count on,

it's that you can't ever
count on the weather.

-So, it's time to start
getting these dogs in shape.
-(DOG SQUEAKING)

I have someone young here.
He's never done it.

It's gonna be fun for me
to teach him how to do it.

At the same time,
it's gonna benefit me
by getting more dogs out.

-The dogs are excited.
They know what's going on.
-(BARKING)

They know it's time to start
getting serious
about dog mushing.

What we usually do, Cody,
is in the summertime,
sled dogs love to dig.

CODY: Yeah.

We want our winter lot
to be hole-free.

Because when they dig holes
like this you slip and fall
with a bucket of food,

or twist your ankle, whatever.

It's just an accident
waiting to happen.

CODY: My intentions
coming out here, mainly,

is to just try and learn
as much as I can
from Andy and Kate,

and a lot of that,
I don't know what
I'm going to be learning.

I just know
I want to live out here,

and I want to know
what it takes
to live out here.

-So, anyway, let's get moving.
-KATE: Burning daylight, guys.

ANDY: Kate's got the list.

So, you guys can just go ahead
and start moving those.

I'll, kind of, work these
towards the front.

KATE: Okay, Stoli's going
next to Vixen,
front row, second last.

(DOGS BARKING,
SQUEAKING AND HOWLING)

CODY: Do you have to
have them spaced out

and placed in certain areas?

Well, there's certain ones
that are really good friends,

and some are like
roommates that should
never be living together.

ANDY: Topaz, your house
is coming apart.

This is why
I'm only five foot eight.

KATE: Okay, guys!

CODY: Hey, everybody!

-(DOG SQUEAKING)
-(WHOOPING)

-(TIA BARKS)
-Tia! Good girl.

Good, come, Ti.

Somebody...

Is this Rupee right here?

-That's Vixen right there.
-(EXHALING) Okay.

CODY: As far as
what's going on right now,

it, kind of, seems
like a preschool.

Whole bunch of rowdy kids on

just about
a 15-minute recess,
and got to go play,

and now we gotta rile them up
to all get back into class.

It's really fun though.

These seem like
the happiest animals
I've ever met.

Come here, Rupe.

CODY: These dogs are
pretty much people here.

I mean, they're just
really hard working people.

They probably work harder
than we do half the time.

I think first thing
tomorrow morning

-I want to start teaching you
how to mush.
-Okay.

Get a good night's
sleep tonight,

and then we'll start
bright and early as soon

as the sun's up tomorrow,
and spend the day dog mushing,

and picking you up
out of the snow.

(BOTH LAUGHING)

ANDY: Everybody's in
their new house!

Oh, boy! New spots.

ERIK: I don't have a boss,
so there's nobody to tell me

I need to do anything
on a given day.

It's all just
being self-motivated

and getting done
whatever needs to get done.

The Brooks Range in Wiseman,
where I live is uh...

The climate is very different
and the terrain
is a lot different.

Trapping is something
that I do commercially,

you know, in the winter
after the guiding season
is over.

I'm ready to spend
a little bit of time
in the woods on my own.

Seen some wolf sign around
and I'm just hoping,

just hoping that I'll be able
to call in a wolf.

NARRATOR: Cooler temperatures
herald the start
of fur-trapping season,

an important source
of income for Erik.

As one of Alaska's
apex predators,

the coat of a wolf
could be worth up to $1500
on the open market.

ERIK: I've got my AR.
I've got my predator call.

I'm gonna head out and see
if I can sneak up into a spot

and set up
and make a good calling set.

So, we'll see what happens.

(ENGINE REVVS UP)

You know, a lot
of people sit in front
of a TV all winter

and, kind of, get fat.
(CHUCKLES)

Hunting fur and calling fur,
it's, kind of, my
little winter obsession

that I beat the blues
of the dark and the cold with.

Wolves are the alpha predators
in the area, except for man,

and they're really
intelligent animals,

and they realise
that men have firearms.

And if I make
any kind of noise
when I make my set,

I won't have any luck.

So, I gotta park the sled,
walk a good distance,
wait awhile, and hopefully,

just hopefully I can get
some wolves in the area.

What the...

NARRATOR: Erik has spotted
a pack of wolves
1,000 yards away.

Each wolf coat
is worth up to $1,500.

If he can make the shot,

this could be his
most rewarding
haul of the season.

(GUNSHOT FIRING)

(GUNSHOT FIRING)

(GUNSHOT FIRING)

One thousand yards, man.

Not having a whole lot of luck
with the wolves, this year.

Seem to hit everything else
just fine.

Wolves zero for,
I'd rather not say.

I'm gonna hop
back on the Snow-Go
and keep on rolling.

CHIP: Where I live and
how I live, the weather
rules everything.

Knowing your weather
and how to work
around your weather

is really important here,
and it's one of the skills
me and my wife both have.

CHIP: This is frozen
beyond belief.

AGNES: I'm just gonna try
to see if we could
untangle it a little bit.

Where's the end? Right here?

Oh, man!

The bottom is frozen!
Look like ice-hard.

CHIP: This is iced-up
from being rained on.

NARRATOR: A late freeze
has delayed the Hailstones'
ice-fishing harvest.

In the hope the river
is safe enough
to fish tomorrow,

thawing the 150-foot net
is top priority.

If we take it,
put it in a shed,
close the outside door,

build a big fire,
and thaw out the bottom,

it'll just feed right out
real easy.

-You know what I mean?
-AGNES: Yeah.

Well, you know,
when we put these things away

we put them away
in a fairly organised manner,

and we roll the tarps up
and protect them
as best as we can,

but when we went to get it,
we come to find out

that the continuous rains
that happened until freeze-up

had leaked enough in here
that there's couple of inches
of ice on the bottom.

And it has
all the webbing
froze together.

So, there's no way
we can stretch this thing out
without damaging it.

So, we're gonna thaw it,

and then we'll be able to
stretch it out
and do our thing.

You ready to work, son?

AGNES: All together.
One, two, three, go!

One, two, three, go!

(CHUCKLING) Wait,
we're not pulling together.

CHIP: Probably, weighs
about 800-900 pounds.

Feels like we're trying
to lift a snow machine.

AGNES: One, two, three.

One, two, three, roll!
(GRUNTING)

It always helps
to have a big family.

Cousins, sons,
daughters, wives.

(SQUEAKING)

MAN: (GRUNTING)
I got it. I got it.

If I needed to I could call
on my neighbours around here.

They'd help me
as soon as I'd help them.
No problem.

-AGNES: Go help
with your dad, Jon.
-I got it, I'm doing good.

Okay.

You guys just try
lifting this way.

-(GRUNTING) Okay.
-There we go.

One, two, three, go!

-Oh, yeah.
-Keep going. Keep going.

(PANTING)

-Up, up, up, up.
-I'm lifting. Lifting.

There you go.

-Here it comes.
-(SQUEALING)

Come on in, my blob.

-(PANTING)
-(AGNES CHUCKLING)

-Oh, thank goodness.
-CHIP: Is it in?

AGNES: Not enough
to close the door.

CHIP: Just put
an old sleeping bag up.

-(HAMMERING)
-AGNES: On this side.

This work we're doing
takes a lot of energy.

So, we like to eat
real good food.

So, the real good food
right now is under the ice,

and hopefully by morning
it will be thawed out,

and we'll go
throw it out there.

And by then the ice
should be thick enough,

and then I'll get
a sled-load of fish,
couple hundred fish hopefully,

and be set
for the real extreme cold
with fish 'til springtime.

ANDY: It takes imagination,
determination,
and follow through.

Those three things
usually will get you by
out here.

Okay, Cody, so today
we're gonna do
your first dog mushing lesson.

-You ready for it?
-I think so. I hope so.

-No, I know so! There you go.
-I know so. I know so.

I'm gonna give you
the basics today.

For a lot of people,
the first time you do this
it's pretty intimidating.

They don't realise
how much power and speed
the dogs have.

It takes about
one hundred miles of mushing

to really get a good feel
of what you're doing.

The most important thing
to remember is just
try and be relaxed.

Especially this year
with no snow,
the sled's gonna move a lot.

It's gonna bounce
this way and that way,
and you need to let it do it.

Don't go with it completely.

If it happens, it happens.

-The important thing
is you don't get hurt, right?
-Okay.

Well, here's
to not falling off.

Well, if you've never
fallen off a dog sled,

you've never driven
a dog sled.

We're gonna go out
and run around,

go through some woods trails,
go out onto the lake,
run around the lake.

Just give you
your first introduction to it.

You're gonna have
a four-dog team,

so you're only gonna
have a sled, two wheel dogs,
a swing dog.

-Okay.
-And then your lead dog
in front of you.

-Okay.
-This is Tia. (CHUCKLES)

She's a pretty good lead dog.
She's pretty steady.

It's gonna take her
a little bit
to get to know you.

So, we're gonna take Topaz
as your swing dog.

Come here, Tope. Come, yeah.

Yeah, you can see
she's really...
She's really not very shy.

So, then let's go get
your wheel dogs here.

Gilligan is
extremely excitable.

He'll tune into you
pretty quick I think.

He's kind of a soft head,
but he's a really nice dog.

And then we'll take Alt,
and Alt is this big fat boy
over here.

Attaboy.

He's, kind of, what I call
the no-nonsense dog.

Yeah, seems like
everybody else
is all riled up,

-and he was just
chilling in his house.
-Yeah.

This'll be a really nice
beginner team for you,

and then as you get
better and better
we'll just add some more dogs

or maybe go
to some little bit
higher-powered dogs.

-Okay?
-Okay.

I'll take care of you
if you take care of me.

(DOGS BARKING AND HOWLING)

Go ahead
and take the coat off first.

Undo the chain.

And then that has to come up
through the neck part.

-So, on the backside
or the front?
-No, the front, so it's free.

There you go.
I've given Cody a hell of
a lot of information.

I think he'll do well.
I expect to see him lose it
a couple of times.

If he doesn't, all the better,

but most people
do the first couple of days
that they mush.

That's upside down.

Just right off the bat
it's a lot to take in
all at once,

and when he starts, kind of,
talking about
what I have to do

if I get
knocked off a sled, or...

I mean, I'm, kind of, nervous.

Just because,
I mean, these are
Andy and Kate's babies,

and they're trusting me
to go out with them.

And there's a lot
that could go wrong,

but it seems, like,
with everything Andy told me,

as long as I can, kind of,
keep it somewhat in order,
I'll be okay out there.

There you go. Just go
and just walk her over there.

Or maybe she'll walk you
over there.

Thank you
for being so cooperative.

All your brothers and sisters
are a pain-in-the-butt.
You know that?

It's a mad house!

Okay, let's go.
Up, up. Let's go.

It's my first time ever
on a dog sled.

First time, you know,
on a sled in general.

I don't know
how's it's gonna go,
but let's see what happens.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

Easy.

Whoop.

Straight ahead.

This is my first time ever
on a dog sled.

Something new to me.

Any time you're moving
over 10 mph,

and you got trees
all around you,

you keep it in
the back of your head

that you could run
into one of those very easy,

and without hospitals around
small injuries
can become big things.

Whoa, whoa.

-Easy, easy.
-ANDY: Come on!

I got a tangle.

ANDY: Welcome to the bush.

-(CODY SNIFFING)
-(DOG SQUEAKING)

No, you're doing good, buddy.

-Topaz decided
to take a poop halfway.
-ANDY: Yeah.

And then Gilligan decided
to tangle his arm
over the yellow line.

ANDY: Yeah. I know.
Topaz is famous for that.

(CHUCKLES)

-ANDY: We need about
a foot of snow.
-Yeah.

That'd probably
make everything
a little bit softer.

It gets real good
if you get some snow on it.
This is pretty rough.

You gotta let the sled
just move underneath of you.

If you go with the sled
it just throws you right off.

CODY: Okay, why don't you
get on your sled,

and we'll pull on out there
and get back on the track.
Chi-chi.

CODY: Life begins at the end
of your comfort zone,

and if you're sitting
comfortable somewhere

you just get complacent,
bored, lazy.

But when you get out
to something like this,

if you're pushing yourself
every day to survive
and keep yourself going,

and to me it's amazing.

ANDY: Good G.

Good boy.

Ooh!

All right, good boys.

Let's see how Cody does.

(LAUGHS) Whoa, whoa, whoa.
Good spot.

Go give them all
a pat on the head.

-(CHUCKLES)
-(HOWLING)

All right.

We did our first run today
with Cody.

Everything went
pretty darn good actually.

He was picking it up
pretty quick.

All in all, a first good run,
but you know, dog mushing,

it's one thing
when you're following someone

and the dogs are just
going down the trail.

It's a totally different
ball game when you're
out on your own.

So, I think probably
the next thing for him to do
is to take a little team out,

and, kind of, do the same run
that we did today,

and just see
how he does on his own.

-Yeah. I'm gonna put you up.
-(BARKS)

SUE: There are challenges here

that there are no longer
in the rest of the
contiguous United States.

If you want to test yourself,
no matter what
your personality,

there's an area of Alaska
that will do it.

BOB (OVER RADIO):
Nine, five, delta, go for Sue.

Hey, Bob!

(SPEAKING OVER RADIO)

All right, I'll see you
in a minute.

BOB: (OVER RADIO) Okay.

(REVERBERATING)

SUE: That's an
awesome surprise.

I get a mail delivery
once every few months,

and this time of year
I don't expect it 'til June.

So, this is pretty cool.

(WHIRRING)

-Hey, hi there!
-BOB: Sue! Hey!

-Hey, how you doing?
-Good. How are you?

How's life at Kavik?

It's okay, getting cool again.

I mean, it's nowhere near
as what it should be.

It's been one hell
of a warm winter.
Weird winter so far.

It's nice and cold today.

-It's getting there.
-Arctic Coastal Plane.

-I got you a bunch of stuff.
-Cool!

SUE: I wasn't
expecting Bob today.
So, that's pretty cool.

It's cleared up.
It's pretty nice.

And while he's here
I'm gonna ask him to see

if he can't get me
up in the air

for doing a perimeter check
on my predators.

NARRATOR: The unusual
weather could be affecting

the migration patterns
of predators in the area.

But the clear skies afford
her the opportunity to scout
dangers from above.

SUE: I'm pretty interested.
It's been unseasonably warm.

It's getting cooler today,

but it'll be interesting
just to get a bird's eye view

of what's going on
in my neck of the tundra.

(SUE TALKING)

(BOB TALKING)

(SUE TALKING)

(BOB TALKING)

(SUE TALKING)

Oh, wow.

Bob, look down there.

What do you got?

I got, it looks
like polar bears.

(BOB TALKING)

(SUE TALKING)

SUE: So, yeah, I'll have to
definitely stay aware
for a little while longer.

I mean, to see
the polar bears that close,

I mean, that's not
even thirty miles away.

I mean, hell, they can
swim sixty miles a day.

That's definitely
a real threat to my area.

ERIK: As somebody who's
dedicated their whole life
to hunting and guiding,

there really is no more
exhilarating moment

than when you're reflecting
on the hunt you just completed

and you have another
just irreplaceable experience

that you just lived
in the outdoors.

NARRATOR: At fifteen
hundred dollars apiece,

wolf fur is a crucial
source of income for Erik.

While he's come up
empty thus far,

his luck takes
a fortunate turn

when he spots a lone
wolf just off his trail.

There's a wolf right there.

Sitting down on
the ice right there.

I knew I heard a wolf
howl down there.

It's about 700-800 yards away,

but I think
I can cut the distance,

put that berm
in between me and him

and get a 400-500 yard shot.

Looks like a big male.
Nice, grey wolf.

I'm gonna go for it.

I've snuck up here as
close as I dare go
without spooking him.

It's about a 450-yard shot.

He's kinda obscured
behind a little knob here.

So, all I need him to do
is move just a few feet
in either direction,

come out from behind
that little river bank,

and then he'll be
exposed for a shot.

I'm hoping
I can pull this off.

Here he goes.
He's moving right now.

(FIRES GUN)

(FIRES GUN)

(FIRES GUN)

He's down.

ERIK: Definitely some hard
earned, uh, satisfaction here.

Really gratifying
to, uh, to get a wolf down

and feel like I really
got something done.

What we have
here is basically
the symbol of wilderness.

Even though I believe very
strongly in predator control,

it's always a mixed emotion
for me whenever
I kill a wolf like this.

I mean, they're beautiful.

The first shot, I caught
him a little far back
and slowed him up.

Second shot, I hit him
right here in the neck
and killed him instantly.

I'm gonna load
this wolf up in my sled,
and head back home,

and get him skinned out.

This is the sixth wolf
that I've seen since
trapping season opened,

and the first one
I've harvested.

So, after a lot of heartbreak
over the last few days,

finally came right
with this big male.

Of all the thousands
of days in my life
that I spend in the outdoors,

it's the days that
I just get to see wolves,

let alone be fortunate
enough to harvest one,

that I think I'll remember
up in my later years.

CODY: Everything
cycles in life

and in generation
to generation.

And I'm hoping we can get back
to a cycle where people try

and become
a little more self-sufficient.

All right.

There's Tia.

There's Topaz.

Ah, today's a big day
for me. (SNIFFLES)

I'm, uh, taking a team
out by myself.

Andy's, kinda, wanting me
to build the confidence

a little bit more
with the dogs,

and get a little bit better
relationship with them.

And, kinda, see how I do
out there on my own.

With how cold it is out today
compared to the last time,

I gotta kinda be on
my game a little bit.

Some of the coldest
temps it's been
since I've been out here.

I'm excited and scared
at the same time. (LAUGHS)

I just want to go
get this started
and see how it goes.

Good girl.

This is why you're a lead dog,

'cause all your
brothers and sisters
going crazy out there.

Who's next?

Hey! You're already
back over here?

Tia, come on.

Tighten up. Go. Tighten up.

Stay. Stay.

Tia, stay.

You're gonna make this
difficult on me, aren't you?

I'll be back.

Okay.

You are gonna stay
calm and not drag me
across the whole yard.

(DOGS BARKING)

Dang it.

No, no. Stay. Hey.

All right, we ready to go?

(DOGS BARKING)

Hey!

All right.

That wrestling match is over.

Give me kisses.

Thank you.

Look at you, Alt!

That's my boy.

Look at all these guys,
they're going crazy.

You're just like,
"Yeah, I'm going, whatever.

"I'm the man."

(DOGS WAILING)

All right. Let's go
have some fun!

Mush! Mush!

The last time
I went dog mushing

it was one of
the greatest things
I've ever done in my life,

but it was also
really comforting to have
Andy out there with me.

Whoa, shit.

I'm really worried.
I don't want
anything to go wrong.

Like, you know,
I don't want to
get lost out there.

And I don't want
the dogs, you know,

getting scared or
something just happening.

I mean, anything can
happen out there.

Come on, guys! Mush! Mush!

Oh! Good dogs.

Whoa, whoa, whoa.

Everybody okay?

First run coming
out to the lake,

I had a little bit of an issue

where I think I just
had the wrong lean
coming up over a hill,

and felt everything
going over.

And instead of
trying to save it
I kinda just ditched off

into the soft snow hoping
everything would be okay.

And jumped right back up

and the dogs actually
kind of stopped
and waited for me.

I was kinda surprised by that.
I thought they were gonna
be gone when I looked up.

Today's quite a bit colder
than last time we were out.

I can definitely feel it
on my face when we're going.

But there's no wind out.

It's just mainly that
negative frostbite feeling.

Yeah, all you want
to do is play.

Hopefully, I can figure out
where I got in here.

I mean, there's plenty
of snow so I can probably
just track my trail back.

So, we're gonna try
and get around the lake

and get these guys
some exercise.

Yeah, we'll go from there.

Topaz, come here.

All right.

And this is not gonna be fun.

The dogs tangled themselves
up here a little bit,

and I don't know if I'll be
able to get them undone

without unhooking
one or two here.

(SIGHS)

You guys are trying to
freak me out here.

We're out here by ourselves.
Don't do this to me.

Hey, whoa, whoa, whoa.

Let's go! Come on, Tia!

Little haw! Little haw!

Little haw, Tia! Let's go!

Let's go!

Come on, Tia! Let's go!

You got it, Tia!
Come on, good girl!

Tighten up, Tia! Gee, gee!

Little gee!
Little gee! Little gee!

Where you go?

Mush! Mush!

Come on! Let's go!

Let's go! Let's go!

Almost home! Almost home!

Let's go!

Whoa, whoa, whoa.

Well, first trip out
there by myself,

and it's definitely
a lot different
being out by myself,

without Andy out there.

These dogs are not machines.

They don't just
respond to any command

or any button push
that you give them.

They each got their own
individual personalities

and it's definitely gonna
take some more time
getting to know them

and getting to know them
out on the trail a bit more

before we all, kinda,
get settled in together.

That was just about
the hardest freaking day
I've had out here so far.

(SIGHS)

It's all part of the life.

But for sure I'm glad
to be back safe
and sound with them.

There you go.

CHIP: Subsistence living to
me is my ability to go out

and get the materials
I need to feed, eat, clothe,
and make money from.

And these folks around here
know how to do things
to make a good living.

It's not survival,
it's living.

Honda's warmed up.

-Whoa!
-Whoa!

Warmed up and in
first gear! (LAUGHS)

We're gonna go
check out the ice
and see if it's safe enough

to get out and put a net on.

I know it'll bear our weight,
I know we can walk out on it.

But that doesn't mean we can
make a pile of fish on it

or take 700 or 800
pounds of net on it.

And if that ain't happening,
then we certainly ain't
bringing our kids out on it.

So, we're just gonna make sure
it's safe the way we know how.

NARRATOR: Ice fishing is
crucial to the Hailstone's
winter trade stock.

But a late freeze
of the Kobuk River

has so far prevented
the family from cashing in.

If you don't do things right,
you're gonna end up dying.

If we don't know
how to check the ice

and we don't know
what the thickness is,

and the dangers are,
we could get killed.

If you don't do it correctly,
you just get removed
from the gene pool.

CHIP: Even if we have to
wait an extra day,

instead of running
just a 50-foot net

and getting a potential
of 10 or 20 fish
for ourselves,

we're trying to run
at least 100, 150 foot net.

And we're gonna try
to get enough, enough fish
that we're secure.

Then we'll be able to
trade fish all winter.

So, it's gonna be
more than just
a personal fishery,

it's gonna have a lot to do
with being able to trade.

It's gonna have a lot
to be able to do
with giving away.

And it's gonna have
a lot to do with us eating.

AGNES: What it look like?
Four inches?

This stuff's okay,
but over here is worse.

Thinner, thinner, thinner.

I'm going all the
way through, Agnes.

Two inches of ice.

Whoa! Fuck that.

Oh, fuck. Same deal.

The snow cover
that we had here

didn't allow this ice
to thicken so well.

See, it's just water.

The thing is
it just gets thinner

as we head out
towards the centre
of the river.

This is thin ice, Agnes.

Whoa! Fuck that!

AGNES: I don't really
like going on the ice,

but it's something
I have to do.

And it's been 21
years and three weeks

since my mother went out
fishing her last time.

We ran two nets.

We had one here
and we had one further up.

And me, my dad,
and my younger sister,

we were just like five miles
away from each other.

And they were
on their way back

from the fishing hole
and this old man,

he comes cruising along
the edge and he's like,

"Some people
fell through the ice,
and I don't know who it is."

And then I was like,
"What the hell?"

And then I thought
for a minute,
and I turned around,

and I went back up
to the house and I
say, "Where's my mom?

"Where's my brother?
Did they get back yet?"

And they were like,
"No, they never came back,
they're still out fishing."

And right there
I fucking knew it.

And my brother
was right under my mom

and we never did find
my brother's girlfriend.

My mom taught me to be tough.
My mom taught me to be strong.

Try not to show my fear
to my younger girls,

but I caution them and
I tell them to always know

the safety in their
surrounding areas where
they're working at.

And always be safe
because even though
you think it's safe,

and you go over it yesterday,
and the day before,
and the day before,

it's still not safe.

So it's just
a scary fucking thing.

I don't fuck around
when it comes to ice.

Yesterday, we didn't
even go out this far.

We were just along the edge.

CHIP: It's safe to walk on.

It's not safe to
take a lot of weight.

If we're gonna have
several people here,

we're gonna have
a net that weighs
several hundred pounds,

and we're gonna bring out
several hundred pounds of fish

along with the net
all into the same place

where we're all
working together,
this is gonna be a disaster.

So we're not gonna
put a net in.

Nothing we want
to do today.
That's for sure.

Sometimes, this is what
nature does to you.

Sometimes these things happen.
You don't get a choice.

You just roll with it.

I think we're just
gonna have to wait

and hope that the good
weather comes back.

It's just, kinda, like
going to the store

and not being able
to find lettuce when
you really crave a salad.

Ice fishing this year
just isn't a happening deal.

Water!

ANDY: If you spend one year
in the bush up here,

you will learn
more about yourself
in that one year

than you will
in a lifetime of living
where there's distractions,

and compromises,
and all these
other things in life.

CODY: Okay, something smells
kinda fishy over here.

KATE: You think
it could be fish?

You can take one
and I'll take another.

All right. Ten fish.

I remember holding up
six one time and holy cow.

-Is it heavy?
-Yeah, a little bit.

Of course, you're gonna
take that one and make me
look like a wuss, aren't you?

(KATE LAUGHS)

So, how are you connecting
with the dogs do you feel?

That's one thing
I really have to say is
like when I was falling off

I wasn't even trying
to "Whoa" the dogs.

I was just, like,
"Whoa, whoa, I'm falling!"

And I was up in a heartbeat
thinking I was gonna be

chasing dogs for miles
down the lake, but no,
she stopped right away.

That's one thing
I noticed with Tia.

She's always
looking back at me.

Like, it always, kind of,
calms me a little bit.

It's like,
as much as I feel like

I'm taking care
of them out there,

they were really making
sure to take care of me.

We've had a lot
of clients come and go,

and there's not
a lot of people
that you would trust

to actually take your
dogs and go alone.

Cody's been one of those
that you, you know...

I got a deep down feeling
in my gut that that boy's
got what it takes.

Okay, guys! Who wants fish?

Sit!

Hey, good job today,
buddy. Good job.

You earned that.

Who gets one?
Who's still hungry?

People refer to a dog
as man's best friend
all the time

and I don't think
they truly know
what that means.

I mean, these aren't just
sled dogs they're a family,

and I kinda look at
them more and more
as people every day.

Okay. I want you to be
very quiet now, Cody.

That's the sound
of a lot of happy dogs.

Right now, I don't know
if words can really
express how I feel.

I mean, I'm 26 years old.

I spent a good portion
of the last ten years,

kinda trying to figure out
(SNIFFLING) who I am,
what I'm supposed to do.

Coming out here,
I thought it was just gonna be

a really hard
substinence lifestyle,

but I'm coming to find out
it's something I feel
like I was born to do.

I love this.

I mean, there is absolutely
nothing else I'd rather
be doing right now.

I don't think I'm ever
going to be able to
call anywhere else home.