1 00:00:04,862 --> 00:00:06,241 You got a few minutes? 2 00:00:07,655 --> 00:00:09,034 What's up? 3 00:00:09,068 --> 00:00:11,310 Well, my biggest thing is, 4 00:00:11,344 --> 00:00:12,965 you know, we're getting pretty late into this trip. 5 00:00:13,000 --> 00:00:15,172 We've seen some pretty good stuff, but, uh, 6 00:00:15,206 --> 00:00:16,620 we haven't jumped on anything yet. 7 00:00:16,655 --> 00:00:18,689 And it's, uh, got me kinda worried. 8 00:00:18,724 --> 00:00:20,931 Your season's coming pretty fast. 9 00:00:20,965 --> 00:00:22,827 Listen, the thing is, man, 10 00:00:22,862 --> 00:00:26,655 the reality is, you still haven't actually chosen what type of plant you want. 11 00:00:26,689 --> 00:00:29,724 We should probably be at that stage by now. 12 00:00:29,758 --> 00:00:32,068 If I knew which one I want, we wouldn't be in the country. 13 00:00:32,793 --> 00:00:34,172 That's why we're on this trip. 14 00:00:34,206 --> 00:00:35,689 Oh, I know it is, but... 15 00:00:36,655 --> 00:00:38,379 ...we're quite a long way into it. 16 00:00:38,413 --> 00:00:41,206 Surely, like, if you can make that decision, 17 00:00:41,241 --> 00:00:43,620 then we can move on to the next step 18 00:00:43,655 --> 00:00:45,862 and, like, get the ball rolling, right? 19 00:00:47,034 --> 00:00:48,137 I'm leaving. 20 00:00:49,517 --> 00:00:52,034 Don't tell me what to do, Danny. 21 00:01:09,758 --> 00:01:12,482 This is the most time I've ever spent anywhere that was, like, 22 00:01:12,517 --> 00:01:14,896 next to the open ocean. 23 00:01:14,931 --> 00:01:18,275 Yeah, Alaska's all, like, inner coast, you know, like, 24 00:01:18,310 --> 00:01:19,482 inlets and fjords. 25 00:01:21,344 --> 00:01:23,482 Nine years ago, Parker Schnabel 26 00:01:23,517 --> 00:01:25,655 left his grandpa's claim in Alaska 27 00:01:25,689 --> 00:01:28,379 to find big gold in the Yukon. 28 00:01:28,413 --> 00:01:30,689 3,362. 29 00:01:30,724 --> 00:01:33,482 Good job, buddy. 30 00:01:33,517 --> 00:01:37,620 Now, after mining over $70 million in gold, 31 00:01:37,655 --> 00:01:40,344 he's betting his fortune and reputation 32 00:01:40,379 --> 00:01:43,586 on a new venture back home in Alaska. 33 00:01:43,620 --> 00:01:45,241 It's a weird point where... 34 00:01:46,655 --> 00:01:48,655 you have to decide to quit while you're ahead, 35 00:01:48,689 --> 00:01:51,689 or do you double down and get lean and mean? 36 00:01:52,724 --> 00:01:54,758 And that starts with a wash plant. 37 00:01:54,793 --> 00:01:56,689 You know, wash plant's the heart of your operation. 38 00:01:57,896 --> 00:02:00,206 Are we gonna go visit our favorite South African today? 39 00:02:00,241 --> 00:02:02,793 You know shaker decks inside out, so why do you wanna see this one? 40 00:02:02,827 --> 00:02:05,793 I'd like to cut... talk myself out of a trommel if I could, 41 00:02:05,827 --> 00:02:09,689 because they're more complicated than a screen deck is. 42 00:02:09,724 --> 00:02:13,862 After four weeks searching for the perfect plant in New Zealand, 43 00:02:13,896 --> 00:02:16,586 Parker still hasn't pulled the trigger. 44 00:02:16,620 --> 00:02:19,793 Fairbanks is gonna be full of a whole lot of surprises, 45 00:02:19,827 --> 00:02:23,241 lots of clay, lots of very difficult-to-recover gold. 46 00:02:23,275 --> 00:02:25,793 And, you know, to buy the wash plant 47 00:02:25,827 --> 00:02:27,310 that can deal with all of that, 48 00:02:27,344 --> 00:02:30,689 be... hype production, and be portable... 49 00:02:32,724 --> 00:02:35,655 ...you know, it's a huge challenge. 50 00:02:35,689 --> 00:02:39,241 So far, Parker has looked exclusively at trommels, 51 00:02:39,275 --> 00:02:43,172 known for their ability to handle clay-laden ground. 52 00:02:43,206 --> 00:02:46,344 This sets a very high standard for what we're looking for. 53 00:02:47,344 --> 00:02:48,827 But... 54 00:02:48,862 --> 00:02:51,586 - Oh, You've got two more plants running here. - Yeah. 55 00:02:51,620 --> 00:02:55,551 ...after spotting a shaker deck at miner Louis Nel's, 56 00:02:55,586 --> 00:02:57,344 Parker is wavering. 57 00:02:59,068 --> 00:03:02,137 I think we should come back. I'd like to see a screen deck. 58 00:03:03,793 --> 00:03:05,724 You and I both know screens inside and out. 59 00:03:07,068 --> 00:03:09,068 Parker really likes shaker decks. 60 00:03:09,103 --> 00:03:12,344 But, if he starts to sort of change his mind 61 00:03:12,379 --> 00:03:15,103 about the way he wants to mine Alaska now, 62 00:03:15,137 --> 00:03:17,793 it will be quite a big U-turn. 63 00:03:17,827 --> 00:03:20,758 And that could have ramifications down the line. 64 00:03:25,655 --> 00:03:27,931 The team are returning to Louis Nel's 65 00:03:27,965 --> 00:03:31,379 gold-rich, 500-acre claim near Ruatapu. 66 00:03:32,551 --> 00:03:34,793 All right. Let's go find Louis. 67 00:03:38,172 --> 00:03:40,137 You guys see what I'm saying? 68 00:03:40,172 --> 00:03:42,758 Yeah, yeah. 69 00:03:44,103 --> 00:03:45,482 - Yes. - Good. 70 00:03:45,517 --> 00:03:47,275 I know, we just couldn't resist coming back and checking out 71 00:03:47,310 --> 00:03:49,137 - some of your other wash plants. - Oh? 72 00:03:49,172 --> 00:03:51,448 You got so many of them running around here. 73 00:03:56,103 --> 00:03:58,689 Kiwi miners favor trommels to process 74 00:03:58,724 --> 00:04:01,827 the country's clay-ridden pay. 75 00:04:01,862 --> 00:04:05,517 Louis is the only miner they've met who uses a shaker deck. 76 00:04:16,344 --> 00:04:18,965 Our screen decks in the Yukon have gotten pretty, like, specialized 77 00:04:19,000 --> 00:04:22,206 and they're all very similar, and I wanna see if you've done anything different. 78 00:04:22,241 --> 00:04:25,862 Mind if I hop up there and check it out? 79 00:04:25,896 --> 00:04:28,517 Shaker decks are renowned for their durability 80 00:04:28,551 --> 00:04:30,241 and compact design. 81 00:04:30,275 --> 00:04:32,965 Spray bars mounted on the vibrating decks 82 00:04:33,000 --> 00:04:35,206 wash the gold from the rocks, 83 00:04:35,241 --> 00:04:38,068 which is then sorted through a series of screens. 84 00:04:39,137 --> 00:04:42,000 Shakers often struggle to wash sticky clay. 85 00:04:43,103 --> 00:04:45,310 And tailings can be expelled 86 00:04:45,344 --> 00:04:47,482 before all the gold has been recovered. 87 00:04:53,206 --> 00:04:54,241 Right. 88 00:04:58,137 --> 00:05:00,793 Well, there's no way to see them run like running them yourself. 89 00:05:00,827 --> 00:05:02,379 Do you mind if I hop in there? 90 00:05:06,620 --> 00:05:09,413 It sounds like they probably use this for mostly, for like, 91 00:05:09,448 --> 00:05:11,758 material that's pretty easy to wash. 92 00:05:11,793 --> 00:05:14,827 - Cleaner material. - Yeah, but once I get in the hoe here, 93 00:05:14,862 --> 00:05:17,517 I've gotta run and get in, but ask him about 94 00:05:17,551 --> 00:05:18,965 if they'll send a couple loads 95 00:05:19,000 --> 00:05:20,965 - of the dirtier clay stuff. - See what it does? 96 00:05:21,000 --> 00:05:23,689 Yeah. He might not want to, but ask him. 97 00:05:23,724 --> 00:05:25,000 Yeah. No, I'll ask him for sure. 98 00:05:32,068 --> 00:05:35,000 I know Parker's got some ground, you know, 99 00:05:35,034 --> 00:05:36,655 in Alaska and it's got clay in it, 100 00:05:36,689 --> 00:05:39,379 and I was curious if maybe we can run some ground through here 101 00:05:39,413 --> 00:05:40,793 - with a bit of clay in it. - Yep. 102 00:05:40,827 --> 00:05:43,206 Perfect, well, we'll let him run this and we'll go grab some. 103 00:05:43,965 --> 00:05:44,931 Yeah. 104 00:05:48,275 --> 00:05:51,482 If you're on ground that's difficult to wash, 105 00:05:51,517 --> 00:05:54,206 then everybody's gonna say, "Get a trommel". 106 00:05:54,241 --> 00:05:56,758 But, screen decks are what we know. 107 00:05:56,793 --> 00:05:59,896 A lot of our parts would be... interchangeable, 108 00:05:59,931 --> 00:06:03,793 but ultimately gold recovery has to overshadow those things. 109 00:06:03,827 --> 00:06:05,689 You know, the ground in Fairbanks, 110 00:06:05,724 --> 00:06:07,896 there is one spot where we hit this, like, 111 00:06:07,931 --> 00:06:10,551 kind of a false bedrock layer with quite a bit of gold in it. 112 00:06:10,586 --> 00:06:14,275 And that was, like, really sticky, nasty clay. 113 00:06:14,310 --> 00:06:19,000 And recovery with a screen deck is gonna suffer. 114 00:06:19,034 --> 00:06:20,931 You know, you get a lot more bang for your buck 115 00:06:20,965 --> 00:06:23,827 in terms of yards an hour our of a screen cage, too, like, 116 00:06:23,862 --> 00:06:27,551 the equivalent size screen versus a trommel, 117 00:06:27,586 --> 00:06:29,551 is a huge factor difference. 118 00:06:33,034 --> 00:06:35,068 So, this material down here 119 00:06:35,103 --> 00:06:37,137 is the closest I think we're gonna get 120 00:06:37,172 --> 00:06:39,172 - to the ground of Parker's up in Alaska. - Yeah. 121 00:06:39,206 --> 00:06:41,793 Can we take some of this and run it through the shaker? 122 00:06:42,655 --> 00:06:43,655 Perfect. 123 00:06:46,827 --> 00:06:49,965 Oh, yeah. Perfect. There's the good stuff. 124 00:06:52,655 --> 00:06:53,862 Right on. 125 00:06:55,724 --> 00:06:57,103 Hey, uh, Parker. 126 00:06:57,137 --> 00:07:00,344 Um, I've got some, uh, ground from the, uh, bottom pit there. 127 00:07:00,379 --> 00:07:02,310 Do you wanna start running that through now, 128 00:07:02,344 --> 00:07:04,206 we'll start doing a bit of, uh, tests, see how it does? 129 00:07:04,241 --> 00:07:05,413 Copy that. 130 00:07:07,413 --> 00:07:09,793 Parker has just three weeks left 131 00:07:09,827 --> 00:07:12,241 to find the perfect plant and ship it home 132 00:07:12,275 --> 00:07:16,206 in time for the start of Alaska's mining season. 133 00:07:16,241 --> 00:07:18,068 Starting to feel a little bit of pressure, 134 00:07:18,103 --> 00:07:20,034 so is Jeff, so is Danny. 135 00:07:20,068 --> 00:07:21,241 We don't have time to waste. 136 00:07:21,275 --> 00:07:24,344 If Parker wants to start mining in Alaska this year, 137 00:07:24,379 --> 00:07:26,827 he has to start making some big decisions and ASAP, 138 00:07:26,862 --> 00:07:28,068 and he's just not doing that. 139 00:07:28,103 --> 00:07:29,724 I'm just hoping that after today, 140 00:07:29,758 --> 00:07:33,068 we can at least narrow it down in some way or another. 141 00:07:33,103 --> 00:07:36,965 This place is the best opportunity to make some decisions 142 00:07:37,000 --> 00:07:38,620 about what the wash plant is. 143 00:07:38,655 --> 00:07:41,379 So if we can't, then I think we've got problems. 144 00:07:43,827 --> 00:07:44,965 Or Parker has problems. 145 00:07:50,862 --> 00:07:52,689 Danny! Danny, come look at this. 146 00:07:52,724 --> 00:07:54,344 - Come here! - What is it? 147 00:07:55,586 --> 00:07:58,655 - Gold? - No, look at it. 148 00:08:02,793 --> 00:08:04,482 - Oh, wow. - How stunning is that? 149 00:08:04,517 --> 00:08:05,758 That's quite a lump, huh? 150 00:08:05,793 --> 00:08:07,620 - Yeah. - It's huge. 151 00:08:07,655 --> 00:08:09,137 What's the deal with that? Is that a little, 152 00:08:09,172 --> 00:08:11,413 - a little bobby bonus, Louis? - No. 153 00:08:16,655 --> 00:08:18,517 Oh, wow. Does it mean a lot to them? 154 00:08:22,206 --> 00:08:23,482 - Oh, gotcha. - Yeah. 155 00:08:23,517 --> 00:08:25,172 So are you taking it back to him now, is that what the... 156 00:08:29,000 --> 00:08:29,931 Yeah. 157 00:08:32,482 --> 00:08:33,620 I can take it if you want. 158 00:08:34,655 --> 00:08:35,931 You're busy with the... I can do it. 159 00:08:38,379 --> 00:08:40,172 - Yay. Dan, you wanna come? - Yeah. 160 00:08:40,206 --> 00:08:41,517 - Nice. - Go ahead, grab it. 161 00:08:41,551 --> 00:08:42,724 How heavy is it? 162 00:08:49,551 --> 00:08:53,724 - Don't drop that. Is it heavy? - heavy. 163 00:08:53,758 --> 00:08:56,000 Are they gonna be, like, super pleased to see this, Louis? 164 00:08:58,241 --> 00:08:59,482 - Oh, really? - Yeah. 165 00:08:59,517 --> 00:09:01,034 Is that worth, is that worth a few quid? 166 00:09:02,034 --> 00:09:03,310 Like, thousands? 167 00:09:05,724 --> 00:09:06,689 Yeah, okay. 168 00:09:08,379 --> 00:09:10,344 - All right. - Let's do it. 169 00:09:10,379 --> 00:09:11,482 Hit the road. 170 00:09:11,517 --> 00:09:14,413 I'm excited. What a nice little adventure. 171 00:09:14,448 --> 00:09:16,620 Sacred to the Maori people, 172 00:09:16,655 --> 00:09:19,655 the green stone gives the South Island its name, 173 00:09:19,689 --> 00:09:23,206 Te Waipounamu, the place of pounamu. 174 00:09:24,413 --> 00:09:25,655 In 1997, 175 00:09:25,689 --> 00:09:29,000 the government decreed it was owned by the Maori 176 00:09:29,034 --> 00:09:31,827 and any found must be returned to them. 177 00:09:34,655 --> 00:09:35,862 This the right way? 178 00:09:35,896 --> 00:09:37,344 So, it's down this road. 179 00:09:37,379 --> 00:09:39,137 I think that's gonna be a hill coming up, we're gonna head down it. 180 00:09:41,137 --> 00:09:42,931 Wow, we are out in it. 181 00:09:42,965 --> 00:09:46,137 - Look at that. - We are in the sticks. 182 00:09:46,172 --> 00:09:49,896 Tyler and Danny head deep into the Kaimata River valley 183 00:09:49,931 --> 00:09:53,482 to locate Maori pounamu hunter Te Rua. 184 00:09:55,241 --> 00:09:56,310 All right. 185 00:09:58,275 --> 00:10:00,758 A little bit. 186 00:10:02,241 --> 00:10:03,206 Hello? 187 00:10:05,379 --> 00:10:06,379 Te Rua? 188 00:10:08,620 --> 00:10:09,620 Hello? 189 00:10:17,620 --> 00:10:19,655 This is a bit small, but... 190 00:10:21,172 --> 00:10:22,206 ...it's a nice little plant. 191 00:10:23,655 --> 00:10:25,068 I'd like to make it work. 192 00:10:27,517 --> 00:10:28,655 At Louis Nel's, 193 00:10:28,689 --> 00:10:30,896 Parker is running a test to determine 194 00:10:30,931 --> 00:10:33,137 if the shaker deck can recover gold 195 00:10:33,172 --> 00:10:34,689 from clay-ridden pay. 196 00:10:37,103 --> 00:10:39,655 On Indian River, we usually don't run into too much, 197 00:10:39,689 --> 00:10:42,344 like, really sticky material, but... 198 00:10:42,379 --> 00:10:44,758 ...it's like this kind of stuff when we do, 199 00:10:44,793 --> 00:10:46,482 springs don't like it much. 200 00:10:51,413 --> 00:10:52,827 I'd like to see what the tailings look like, 201 00:10:52,862 --> 00:10:54,275 coming off the end of the conveyor. 202 00:10:54,310 --> 00:10:55,827 Then we'll know if it's working or not. 203 00:11:01,931 --> 00:11:04,758 There's quite a bit of, uh, grit left on there. 204 00:11:08,379 --> 00:11:11,275 This is what happens when, uh, we're not getting a good enough wash. 205 00:11:11,310 --> 00:11:14,172 Um, it actually leaves material behind on these. 206 00:11:14,206 --> 00:11:17,034 And over a course of a day, that's quite a bit of material you're losing, 207 00:11:17,068 --> 00:11:18,482 so you could lose a lot of gold. 208 00:11:30,551 --> 00:11:32,206 If you can get the material washed, 209 00:11:32,896 --> 00:11:36,896 screens are the way to go. 210 00:11:36,931 --> 00:11:40,551 Parker Schnabel and wash plant engineer Jeff Turnell 211 00:11:40,586 --> 00:11:42,103 are testing a shaker deck 212 00:11:42,137 --> 00:11:44,655 to see if can process clay-ridden pay. 213 00:11:46,344 --> 00:11:48,689 But so far, the results aren't good. 214 00:11:50,241 --> 00:11:52,689 Been watching the material go through. 215 00:11:52,724 --> 00:11:53,965 And, you know, there's a few rocks 216 00:11:54,000 --> 00:11:56,000 with a bit of, uh, material still left on them. 217 00:11:56,034 --> 00:11:58,724 And, obviously, you know, over a course of a day, that's... 218 00:11:59,931 --> 00:12:01,310 ...possibly a bit of a loss, right? 219 00:12:01,344 --> 00:12:03,827 - Well, the problem is on bedrock. - Mmm-hmm. 220 00:12:03,862 --> 00:12:06,068 That's where the gold's sitting, right? 221 00:12:06,103 --> 00:12:07,310 Kinda had a look at the machine, 222 00:12:07,344 --> 00:12:09,172 and I think I can come up with a bit of a concept 223 00:12:09,206 --> 00:12:11,448 to get a little bit more wash up top. 224 00:12:11,482 --> 00:12:13,931 See if we can eliminate some of this, just to see. 225 00:12:13,965 --> 00:12:15,931 - That's why we're here, man. Try out. - Yeah. 226 00:12:18,724 --> 00:12:21,000 I personally like shaker decks more than trommels. 227 00:12:21,034 --> 00:12:24,241 And I know Parker really does like shaker decks. 228 00:12:24,275 --> 00:12:28,137 So I think if I can prove to him that it can wash that material as well, 229 00:12:28,172 --> 00:12:29,172 then he might consider it. 230 00:12:41,793 --> 00:12:44,620 Louis's shaker has a series of spray bars 231 00:12:44,655 --> 00:12:46,551 that loosens pay from the rocks. 232 00:12:46,586 --> 00:12:50,793 Jeff plans to add a pre-wash with much higher pressure, 233 00:12:50,827 --> 00:12:54,482 that should break up the clay and wash the rocks clean. 234 00:12:57,034 --> 00:12:58,896 The thought process is that... 235 00:12:59,793 --> 00:13:01,862 ...if you can get the material washed 236 00:13:01,896 --> 00:13:03,931 before it gets to the screen deck, 237 00:13:03,965 --> 00:13:06,827 then the screen deck is just classifying the material. 238 00:13:06,862 --> 00:13:09,103 And so what Jeff's talking about doing, 239 00:13:09,137 --> 00:13:12,275 is a very valid experiment to be running. 240 00:13:14,793 --> 00:13:16,344 All right, so, an inch and a half hose, 241 00:13:16,379 --> 00:13:17,758 that's kinda the first thing I'm looking for. 242 00:13:22,103 --> 00:13:24,586 Short on time, Jeff must improvise. 243 00:13:27,896 --> 00:13:31,482 Um, do you have any nozzles or any pipe fittings or anything? 244 00:13:35,172 --> 00:13:36,172 That'll work. 245 00:13:36,206 --> 00:13:38,586 Can I bend this up a little bit? 246 00:13:44,448 --> 00:13:46,517 Parker's brought me here to be his wash plant guy. 247 00:13:46,551 --> 00:13:48,000 If we go through this trip 248 00:13:48,034 --> 00:13:50,275 and we don't find what Parker's looking for, 249 00:13:50,310 --> 00:13:52,689 it's a ton of pressure. It adds a lot of pressure. 250 00:13:52,724 --> 00:13:54,448 Let's try that. Fit in there. 251 00:13:58,172 --> 00:13:59,793 Yeah, I mean, it's not ideal, 252 00:13:59,827 --> 00:14:03,068 but I just wanna show Parker that if we get a little bit more pressure 253 00:14:03,103 --> 00:14:05,206 - in there, a little more water volume. - Yeah. 254 00:14:05,241 --> 00:14:07,310 It will, uh, it will help. Yeah. 255 00:14:07,344 --> 00:14:09,448 Maybe we'll be able to shoot Parker from here. 256 00:14:12,241 --> 00:14:13,206 Perfect. 257 00:14:16,344 --> 00:14:17,310 Hello? 258 00:14:19,862 --> 00:14:21,551 Te Rua? 259 00:14:21,586 --> 00:14:23,482 30 miles from Louis's claim, 260 00:14:23,517 --> 00:14:26,172 on the banks of the Kaimata River, 261 00:14:26,206 --> 00:14:30,275 Tyler and Danny search for pounamu hunter Te Rua. 262 00:14:30,310 --> 00:14:31,310 Look, there he is, down there. 263 00:14:33,620 --> 00:14:34,620 Oh, yeah. 264 00:14:36,172 --> 00:14:39,344 - Hello. - Greetings. 265 00:14:39,379 --> 00:14:42,068 - I'm Tyler. - Te Rua. You can call me T. 266 00:14:42,103 --> 00:14:43,827 - Nice to meet you, T. - That's what I'm told. 267 00:14:43,862 --> 00:14:46,413 The reason we're actually here is because we found 268 00:14:46,448 --> 00:14:49,068 - a quite impressive pounamu stone. - Oh, yeah? 269 00:14:49,103 --> 00:14:51,586 I'll be willing to receive it on behalf of our people. 270 00:14:51,620 --> 00:14:53,103 What is it about pounamu? 271 00:14:53,137 --> 00:14:55,482 'Cause it has such a strong connection to your culture, doesn't it? 272 00:14:55,517 --> 00:14:58,413 Pounamu is, um, brought through all of our histories. 273 00:14:58,448 --> 00:15:00,034 We started as a nomadic people, 274 00:15:00,068 --> 00:15:03,379 a lot of heirlooms have been passed down, are all created out of pounamu, 275 00:15:03,413 --> 00:15:07,068 and was all, um, transferred of that energy through the pounamu, 276 00:15:07,103 --> 00:15:09,275 handed down from generation to generation to generation, 277 00:15:09,310 --> 00:15:10,862 to, uh, where we are here today. 278 00:15:10,896 --> 00:15:13,448 And your tattoos are impressive. 279 00:15:13,482 --> 00:15:16,000 - Yes, they are, thank you. - Must be a lot of meaning behind them. 280 00:15:16,034 --> 00:15:19,517 My facial one talks about, um, our family connection to the pounamu. 281 00:15:20,241 --> 00:15:21,310 - Wow. - Um, so. 282 00:15:21,344 --> 00:15:23,206 - Can we show it to you, then? - Yeah. 283 00:15:23,241 --> 00:15:25,551 So, it's just here. 284 00:15:25,586 --> 00:15:28,034 - Is that a good sized one? - Yeah, that's nice pounamu. 285 00:15:29,379 --> 00:15:31,517 On behalf of our people, I'd like to thank you very much. 286 00:15:31,551 --> 00:15:33,137 Thank you. 287 00:15:33,172 --> 00:15:36,931 It'd be cool while we're here, we actually got to go prospecting for pounamu. 288 00:15:36,965 --> 00:15:38,793 - Would that be possible? - Yeah, I think so. 289 00:15:38,827 --> 00:15:40,137 It's a good day for it. 290 00:15:40,172 --> 00:15:41,413 How do you come upon it? 291 00:15:41,448 --> 00:15:43,758 You're looking for those splashes of green, 292 00:15:43,793 --> 00:15:45,655 where somebody's just got a paintbrush and just flicked it. 293 00:15:45,689 --> 00:15:49,034 But, you know, without it being a hocus-pocus sort of story, it's, uh, 294 00:15:49,068 --> 00:15:50,172 sort of like love. 295 00:15:50,206 --> 00:15:51,793 Some people can search for it their whole life 296 00:15:51,827 --> 00:15:53,655 and they'll never understand what it's about. 297 00:15:53,689 --> 00:15:55,482 But when looking for a piece of pounamu, 298 00:15:55,517 --> 00:15:58,862 once you find it, there's a connection between you and the stone. 299 00:15:58,896 --> 00:16:00,275 It's just something that's meant to be. 300 00:16:00,310 --> 00:16:04,206 Is it true that pounamu and gold are found together often? 301 00:16:04,241 --> 00:16:05,482 Uh, that seems to be the way. 302 00:16:05,517 --> 00:16:07,620 Do you mind, actually, if I get my metal detector out 303 00:16:07,655 --> 00:16:09,827 and have a prospect for gold? 304 00:16:09,862 --> 00:16:12,000 I think it'll be a perfect opportunity. 305 00:16:12,034 --> 00:16:13,137 Cool. 306 00:16:13,172 --> 00:16:14,517 All right, I'm gonna turn this on. 307 00:16:16,310 --> 00:16:17,862 Well, just make your way up around here 308 00:16:17,896 --> 00:16:20,310 and you can have a bit of a hunt. You might get lucky. 309 00:16:20,344 --> 00:16:22,793 Awesome, I'll follow your lead. 310 00:16:22,827 --> 00:16:25,724 This will be cool if we could find some gold and some pounamu. 311 00:16:27,344 --> 00:16:28,896 Gold and pounamu 312 00:16:28,931 --> 00:16:32,620 formed around the fault line between tectonic plates. 313 00:16:32,655 --> 00:16:35,172 When these collided to create the Southern Alps, 314 00:16:35,206 --> 00:16:38,689 the gold and pounamu were also pushed up. 315 00:16:38,724 --> 00:16:42,344 Since then, glaciers have plucked both from the rocks, 316 00:16:42,379 --> 00:16:45,551 carrying them down to the rivers together. 317 00:16:45,586 --> 00:16:47,206 So when the big floods come through, 318 00:16:47,241 --> 00:16:49,965 - it must just refresh it all. - Yup, refreshes it, start again. 319 00:16:50,000 --> 00:16:51,827 So after big rains, you guys tend to come down? 320 00:16:51,862 --> 00:16:53,517 - Definitely. - Do you ring the boss up and say, 321 00:16:53,551 --> 00:16:55,965 "I'm not going to work, I'm going hunting"? 322 00:16:56,000 --> 00:16:57,931 Well, no, I tell the boss that I'm sick. 323 00:17:01,689 --> 00:17:03,517 Oh. 324 00:17:05,689 --> 00:17:07,586 Oh, goodness, I've actually got a signal. 325 00:17:07,620 --> 00:17:09,586 Well, I didn't think we're in nugget country. 326 00:17:09,620 --> 00:17:11,931 - Do people find nuggets here? - We're in nugget country. 327 00:17:11,965 --> 00:17:14,034 - Are we? - Yes, we are. 328 00:17:17,241 --> 00:17:18,551 We'll just scrape it. 329 00:17:21,172 --> 00:17:23,620 - Oh, - Oh, there it is, eh? 330 00:17:23,655 --> 00:17:26,758 What is that? 331 00:17:26,793 --> 00:17:29,793 It's like an anchor or something. 332 00:17:29,827 --> 00:17:31,379 Okay, I'm just gonna have a break from that. 333 00:17:31,413 --> 00:17:32,793 I wanna concentrate on the pounamu, 334 00:17:32,827 --> 00:17:34,344 I can't do two things at... oh! 335 00:17:34,379 --> 00:17:35,344 Oh, that's a leaf. 336 00:17:43,896 --> 00:17:45,586 Big plan here is to make sure that 337 00:17:45,620 --> 00:17:47,000 the material comes out a lot more clean. 338 00:17:47,034 --> 00:17:49,793 Hopefully it works for Parker. 339 00:17:49,827 --> 00:17:52,689 To find out if the shaker deck can process clay, 340 00:17:52,724 --> 00:17:55,206 Jeff is rigging a pre-wash system 341 00:17:55,241 --> 00:17:57,103 using a high-pressure water jet. 342 00:17:58,172 --> 00:18:00,103 I'm actually really torn about 343 00:18:00,137 --> 00:18:02,310 screen decks versus trommels, 344 00:18:02,344 --> 00:18:04,827 because screens, to me, 345 00:18:04,862 --> 00:18:08,482 are more simple and easier to work on. 346 00:18:08,517 --> 00:18:11,862 And those are two of the biggest factors 347 00:18:11,896 --> 00:18:13,379 that we need to consider. 348 00:18:13,413 --> 00:18:15,482 To clean the sticky clay, 349 00:18:15,517 --> 00:18:19,068 the jet must hit the rocks with a force of 50 psi. 350 00:18:28,000 --> 00:18:29,586 That's not gonna be enough pressure. 351 00:18:31,103 --> 00:18:32,965 I was hoping for, like, a jet, 352 00:18:33,000 --> 00:18:34,172 not like a piss stream. 353 00:18:34,724 --> 00:18:35,862 Nice try, Jeff. 354 00:18:36,551 --> 00:18:37,896 Oh, what a pain. 355 00:18:39,482 --> 00:18:41,103 Looks like they have some real water problems. 356 00:18:45,482 --> 00:18:47,448 I get what Jeff is trying to do. 357 00:18:47,482 --> 00:18:49,793 But you just can't do that with a garden hose. 358 00:18:56,620 --> 00:18:58,689 Brought in the reinforcements. 359 00:18:59,586 --> 00:19:01,034 Once we ran the hose to the top 360 00:19:01,068 --> 00:19:03,103 there just wasn't enough pressure, so Plan B. 361 00:19:05,965 --> 00:19:07,793 Jeff's called in Louis's water truck, 362 00:19:07,827 --> 00:19:10,137 equipped with a high pressure pump. 363 00:19:23,793 --> 00:19:24,793 There we go. 364 00:19:56,931 --> 00:19:57,931 Yeah. 365 00:20:07,448 --> 00:20:09,206 Proof of the test's success 366 00:20:09,241 --> 00:20:11,137 will be in the tailings. 367 00:20:11,172 --> 00:20:12,724 The biggest problem we've got right now 368 00:20:12,758 --> 00:20:14,206 is we're up against it for time. 369 00:20:14,241 --> 00:20:17,689 Like, if we don't find a plant in-country to buy, 370 00:20:17,724 --> 00:20:20,034 that we can move to Fairbanks in time, 371 00:20:20,068 --> 00:20:21,034 it's gonna be a disaster. 372 00:20:31,068 --> 00:20:32,827 I guess once you have an eye for it, 373 00:20:32,862 --> 00:20:34,206 - it becomes a lot easier. - Yep. 374 00:20:34,241 --> 00:20:35,827 It's about having an eye in. 375 00:20:35,862 --> 00:20:39,137 It takes people their whole life to sometimes get their eye, 376 00:20:39,172 --> 00:20:40,310 some don't even get it. 377 00:20:40,344 --> 00:20:41,620 At the foot 378 00:20:41,655 --> 00:20:43,517 of New Zealand's Southern Alps, 379 00:20:43,551 --> 00:20:48,517 Te Rua, Tyler and Danny are hunting for valuable green stone. 380 00:20:49,793 --> 00:20:51,206 Even if you don't find anything, 381 00:20:51,241 --> 00:20:54,000 it's just beautiful being out here and listening to the... 382 00:20:54,034 --> 00:20:56,310 listening to the sounds of the water. Um... 383 00:20:56,344 --> 00:20:57,586 You sound a lot like my dad. 384 00:20:57,620 --> 00:20:59,034 He always says when you're out wandering 385 00:20:59,068 --> 00:21:01,689 in the bush and just enjoying the nature and everything, 386 00:21:01,724 --> 00:21:03,068 that's when you come across gold. 387 00:21:03,103 --> 00:21:04,896 Exactly the same with the pounamu. 388 00:21:04,931 --> 00:21:06,068 You've gotta be like water. 389 00:21:06,103 --> 00:21:07,000 You gotta become it. 390 00:21:08,379 --> 00:21:10,344 And so, the particular sort of stone that we're 391 00:21:10,379 --> 00:21:12,724 looking for is, um, is either gonna be 392 00:21:12,758 --> 00:21:15,310 a beautiful dock leaf green 393 00:21:15,344 --> 00:21:18,379 or it's gonna be a chalky white. 394 00:21:18,413 --> 00:21:20,896 - That's chalky. - Yep, now you're getting your eye. 395 00:21:20,931 --> 00:21:22,413 You're getting closer. You're getting closer. 396 00:21:22,448 --> 00:21:23,620 But that's not quite chalky enough. 397 00:21:23,655 --> 00:21:25,241 No, that's not chalky enough. 398 00:21:25,275 --> 00:21:28,379 That speckled look isn't it, is it? 399 00:21:28,413 --> 00:21:30,241 No, no. That's, that's not it. 400 00:21:30,275 --> 00:21:32,206 This is kind of chalky. 401 00:21:32,241 --> 00:21:34,000 It's a bit big, isn't it? 402 00:21:34,034 --> 00:21:35,344 Yep, you wanna know what color? 403 00:21:35,379 --> 00:21:37,620 That's exactly what we're looking for right there. 404 00:21:37,655 --> 00:21:39,379 No way! 405 00:21:39,413 --> 00:21:41,241 That's exactly what we're looking for right there. 406 00:21:41,275 --> 00:21:43,344 - Oh, my That's green. - Yes. 407 00:21:44,241 --> 00:21:45,413 Oh, my 408 00:21:45,448 --> 00:21:47,206 So that's, that's the white, that's the, um, 409 00:21:47,241 --> 00:21:49,448 the smoothness and that chalkiness 410 00:21:49,482 --> 00:21:50,689 right there that we're talking about. 411 00:21:50,724 --> 00:21:52,310 That's white. 412 00:21:52,344 --> 00:21:55,034 - We're in the money. - It's huge! 413 00:21:56,827 --> 00:21:58,689 When whenever we find a smaller one, 414 00:21:58,724 --> 00:22:00,413 we always look around and ask ourselves, 415 00:22:00,448 --> 00:22:01,793 "Where's your big brother or something?" 416 00:22:01,827 --> 00:22:03,241 Oh, yeah. 417 00:22:03,275 --> 00:22:04,862 - But, um... - Surely this is as big as they get. 418 00:22:04,896 --> 00:22:06,758 It looks like we found the big brother. 419 00:22:06,793 --> 00:22:08,862 Um... 420 00:22:08,896 --> 00:22:10,206 So how much is it worth? 421 00:22:10,241 --> 00:22:11,689 In this instance, uh, we're looking 422 00:22:11,724 --> 00:22:13,068 at a couple hundred pound, easy. 423 00:22:13,103 --> 00:22:16,344 That could range anywhere from $10,000 to $15,000 raw. 424 00:22:16,379 --> 00:22:17,689 - Far out. - Yeah. 425 00:22:19,103 --> 00:22:21,862 Worth up to $10,000 US dollars, 426 00:22:21,896 --> 00:22:25,482 the pounamu is carved into unique pieces of jewelry 427 00:22:25,517 --> 00:22:27,137 by Te Rua's tribe, 428 00:22:27,172 --> 00:22:29,413 potentially tripling its value. 429 00:22:31,793 --> 00:22:33,586 I think the best way to acknowledge this, 430 00:22:33,620 --> 00:22:35,000 it's just, uh, it's just to give thanks 431 00:22:35,034 --> 00:22:36,000 to this place here. 432 00:22:47,413 --> 00:22:49,448 I'd like to give you a hongi, Tyler. 433 00:22:49,482 --> 00:22:51,000 So when we have a hongi... 434 00:22:51,034 --> 00:22:53,137 So it's just, uh, a light touching of the nose 435 00:22:53,172 --> 00:22:54,896 and of our foreheads. 436 00:22:54,931 --> 00:22:58,137 And just a slight inhaling, just through the nose, 437 00:22:58,172 --> 00:22:59,068 the breath of life. 438 00:23:15,000 --> 00:23:16,344 Yeah. 439 00:23:16,379 --> 00:23:18,517 Before Parker can decide if Louis' 440 00:23:18,551 --> 00:23:20,275 shaker deck is the one, 441 00:23:20,310 --> 00:23:22,655 he needs to see if Jeff's bush fix 442 00:23:22,689 --> 00:23:24,758 successfully washed away the clay. 443 00:23:29,137 --> 00:23:31,275 As you can see they're definitely a lot cleaner. 444 00:23:31,310 --> 00:23:33,206 - The task did work. - Sweet. 445 00:23:33,241 --> 00:23:36,413 And obviously in a perfect world, we'd do a few modifications 446 00:23:36,448 --> 00:23:37,517 to make that a lot better, 447 00:23:37,551 --> 00:23:39,448 but it, uh, gets the concept across. 448 00:23:39,482 --> 00:23:43,344 I mean, It does make me start to lean towards a screen a bit more 449 00:23:43,379 --> 00:23:45,000 because you can get the throughput 450 00:23:45,034 --> 00:23:46,551 in a smaller footprint, you know. 451 00:23:46,586 --> 00:23:48,965 - Yep. - Trommels are huge 452 00:23:49,000 --> 00:23:51,206 to get a 180 or more yards an hour 453 00:23:51,241 --> 00:23:52,241 - out of. - They are. 454 00:23:52,275 --> 00:23:54,448 If you can combine the wash 455 00:23:54,482 --> 00:23:56,413 that you get out of trommel with a screen deck 456 00:23:56,448 --> 00:23:57,379 by just hammering water to it, 457 00:23:57,413 --> 00:24:00,551 you're getting all that broken up. 458 00:24:00,586 --> 00:24:02,275 You get the throughput of a screen deck 459 00:24:02,310 --> 00:24:03,551 with the wash of a trommel... 460 00:24:04,551 --> 00:24:06,517 Sounds like a win-win. 461 00:24:06,551 --> 00:24:07,965 Yeah, the problem is we're not gonna 462 00:24:08,000 --> 00:24:11,000 - find that plant for sale. - No. 463 00:24:11,034 --> 00:24:14,620 So we might still be better off getting something that works 464 00:24:14,655 --> 00:24:17,517 that's in time, rather than what's perfect. 465 00:24:17,551 --> 00:24:18,620 - Right? - Hmm-mmm. 466 00:24:22,034 --> 00:24:23,517 If Parker bought this shaker deck here, 467 00:24:23,551 --> 00:24:26,344 he would have to do quite a bit of modifications 468 00:24:26,379 --> 00:24:27,931 to make it work for his ground. 469 00:24:27,965 --> 00:24:32,241 So I'm not sure whether or not he's decided himself 470 00:24:32,275 --> 00:24:35,000 whether he wants a trommel or a shaker deck. 471 00:24:35,034 --> 00:24:39,275 I came on this trip thinking that while it's a good thing that there's lots of trommels 472 00:24:39,310 --> 00:24:40,965 in New Zealand 'cause I want a trommel 473 00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:45,655 and now I'm like maybe we want a screen deck. 474 00:24:45,689 --> 00:24:47,620 If I was forced to make a decision today, 475 00:24:48,379 --> 00:24:49,241 I'd be like... 476 00:24:50,413 --> 00:24:51,965 screen deck. 477 00:24:52,000 --> 00:24:54,103 But yesterday, I was trying to buy a trommel. 478 00:24:54,137 --> 00:24:57,551 We've got still a few other sites and plants to look at, 479 00:24:57,586 --> 00:24:58,689 but I've got your number. 480 00:24:58,724 --> 00:25:00,517 Thanks for everything. 481 00:25:00,551 --> 00:25:02,551 - Really appreciate it. - Thanks, Louis. That was awesome 482 00:25:02,586 --> 00:25:04,379 Thanks for letting me do those tests. 483 00:25:04,413 --> 00:25:06,931 We better go find, um, Old Danny and Tyler. 484 00:25:09,551 --> 00:25:12,137 The worst decision that I could possibly make is no decision. 485 00:25:13,862 --> 00:25:15,758 Can't stand indecision. 486 00:25:21,310 --> 00:25:22,379 Did you bring beer? 487 00:25:29,448 --> 00:25:31,241 It's getting dark. 488 00:25:31,275 --> 00:25:35,241 With the sun setting, the team head to a nearby farm. 489 00:25:40,172 --> 00:25:41,275 - Hello! - How is it going? 490 00:25:41,310 --> 00:25:42,724 Where are you all going? 491 00:25:42,758 --> 00:25:45,620 Uh, well, we were actually just looking for a place to camp. 492 00:25:47,103 --> 00:25:48,689 Oh, yeah. 493 00:25:48,724 --> 00:25:51,206 I could put you somewhere where you can go for a camp for the night. 494 00:25:56,724 --> 00:25:58,827 - Now, if you wanna follow me. - Thank you. 495 00:26:06,413 --> 00:26:09,172 Or he's taking us to a place to kill us all. 496 00:26:09,206 --> 00:26:11,689 - I think it's a puzzle. - Parker, could you please not do this to me 497 00:26:11,724 --> 00:26:14,206 'cause I have anxiety about being murdered 498 00:26:14,241 --> 00:26:15,586 - Do you? - Yes. 499 00:26:15,620 --> 00:26:17,517 - Well, this is how it happens, okay? - Oh, definitely. 500 00:26:17,551 --> 00:26:19,413 You could get buried out here and you'd have no idea. 501 00:26:27,241 --> 00:26:30,068 Guys, this is textbook Wolf Creek Murder. 502 00:26:30,103 --> 00:26:33,379 The cows will leave you alone, but, other than that, try and keep warm and... 503 00:26:33,413 --> 00:26:34,413 Yeah. 504 00:26:44,000 --> 00:26:45,344 Where should we set up camp? 505 00:26:55,965 --> 00:26:59,586 Tyler, I put a wrench in the back of the seat on your side. 506 00:26:59,620 --> 00:27:01,758 Can you just see if you can grab that? 507 00:27:09,068 --> 00:27:10,034 That was good. 508 00:27:13,103 --> 00:27:14,482 I weed myself. 509 00:27:15,482 --> 00:27:16,724 Ah! 510 00:27:16,758 --> 00:27:17,827 and then peed yourself. 511 00:27:19,482 --> 00:27:20,413 Oh, wow. 512 00:27:22,413 --> 00:27:25,310 Today it was really nice that Danny and I got to split away 513 00:27:25,344 --> 00:27:27,724 from that wash plant talk and go and do something different. 514 00:27:27,758 --> 00:27:30,448 Um, and I kind of feel like it refreshed the team 515 00:27:30,482 --> 00:27:31,862 once we do get back together, but... 516 00:27:32,896 --> 00:27:36,206 to be honest though, I was hoping 517 00:27:36,241 --> 00:27:38,379 that we'd leave Louis Nel's for the final time 518 00:27:39,275 --> 00:27:41,413 with a really clear direction. 519 00:27:41,448 --> 00:27:45,689 Parker's gonna still humming and hawing 520 00:27:45,724 --> 00:27:48,275 whether it's a trommel or it's a shaker. 521 00:27:48,310 --> 00:27:50,758 And personally, it's starting to stress me out. 522 00:27:50,793 --> 00:27:53,068 Um, 'cause I've never really seen Parker like this. 523 00:27:53,103 --> 00:27:57,758 The Parker I know is fiercely... fierce with his decision making. 524 00:27:57,793 --> 00:28:00,000 He's hard and fast. He knows what he wants. 525 00:28:00,034 --> 00:28:03,034 We're gonna have to wait to see what he... wait to see what he does. 526 00:28:06,206 --> 00:28:07,482 Hopefully it's not too late. 527 00:28:20,034 --> 00:28:21,241 Where we're off to, then, Tyler? 528 00:28:21,275 --> 00:28:23,310 Um, so we're gonna see a wash plant for sale. 529 00:28:23,344 --> 00:28:24,482 It's Groundhog Day. 530 00:28:26,172 --> 00:28:29,482 With only seven weeks until the start of the season, 531 00:28:29,517 --> 00:28:32,379 Parker is still undecided on a wash plant 532 00:28:32,413 --> 00:28:34,310 for his new Alaskan venture. 533 00:28:35,517 --> 00:28:37,724 Now we're chewing through these viewings now. 534 00:28:37,758 --> 00:28:41,310 And it's not really about quantity as much as it is quality. 535 00:28:41,344 --> 00:28:43,310 Well, yeah, but I think it's fair to say there was 536 00:28:43,344 --> 00:28:45,137 a fair bit of quality at Louis Nel's. 537 00:28:45,172 --> 00:28:47,689 I am worried that it doesn't really get better than Louis Nel's. 538 00:28:47,724 --> 00:28:51,413 So just a head's up, Parker, around here it's gonna be slim pickings. 539 00:28:51,448 --> 00:28:53,758 Anything special about this one we're gonna see. 540 00:28:53,793 --> 00:28:56,034 I think it's got hydraulic legs. 541 00:28:56,068 --> 00:28:58,068 - Is it another trommel? - Another trommel. 542 00:28:58,103 --> 00:29:00,275 We have seen a lot of trommels now. 543 00:29:00,310 --> 00:29:02,344 There's just not a lot of shaker decks. 544 00:29:02,379 --> 00:29:05,000 Have you thought anymore about that, Parker? 545 00:29:05,034 --> 00:29:06,448 Yeah, I've thought about it. 546 00:29:10,206 --> 00:29:14,068 From Ruatapu, Tyler's final plant on the West Coast 547 00:29:14,103 --> 00:29:19,413 is 18 miles northeast, near the historic goldmining town of Kumara. 548 00:29:24,793 --> 00:29:26,344 - Hello! - Hello. 549 00:29:26,379 --> 00:29:27,551 Nice to meet you. 550 00:29:27,586 --> 00:29:30,551 - What's your name? - Thomas, but everyone calls me TC. 551 00:29:30,586 --> 00:29:32,379 - How long have you worked here? - A year and a half. 552 00:29:32,413 --> 00:29:34,551 - What did you do before that? - Coal mining. 553 00:29:34,586 --> 00:29:36,172 Big tractors. 554 00:29:36,206 --> 00:29:38,551 Uh, the head of big tractor up there are 475. 555 00:29:38,586 --> 00:29:41,310 - But you didn't get to use it. - No, unfortunately I wasn't that age yet at 50. 556 00:29:41,344 --> 00:29:44,137 - Some old grumpy guy got to run the 475, right? - Yep. 557 00:29:44,172 --> 00:29:45,724 But you're not old and grumpy, right? Are you? 558 00:29:45,758 --> 00:29:47,103 - I don't run a tractor. - No. 559 00:29:48,655 --> 00:29:50,827 Is there a lot of gold in this ground? 560 00:29:50,862 --> 00:29:52,206 Ah, there is a bit, yeah. 561 00:29:52,241 --> 00:29:54,620 We've, um, we come across a lot up against the road edge there. 562 00:29:54,655 --> 00:29:56,586 It's a bit, it's a bit deeper than we like to do normally. 563 00:29:56,620 --> 00:29:58,137 Right. 564 00:29:58,172 --> 00:29:59,689 - But, um... - Tell me you've just told us more 565 00:29:59,724 --> 00:30:02,827 about how much gold you're catching than all the other miners combined 566 00:30:02,862 --> 00:30:04,586 that we've filmed since being in New Zealand. 567 00:30:04,620 --> 00:30:06,137 I didn't tell you how much. 568 00:30:06,172 --> 00:30:10,137 - You've said a lot. - You're making him really nervous. 569 00:30:12,689 --> 00:30:14,931 I spoke to your boss on the phone and he said this was for sale. 570 00:30:14,965 --> 00:30:16,344 Sure is. 571 00:30:16,379 --> 00:30:19,793 - How old is it? - It's same as for your dash. I'll say that much. 572 00:30:19,827 --> 00:30:21,827 But so we catch this gold, so... 573 00:30:21,862 --> 00:30:24,137 - That's what matters, right? - Exactly. 574 00:30:24,172 --> 00:30:25,655 - Moves pretty easily. - Pretty mobile, yeah. 575 00:30:25,689 --> 00:30:27,758 - Yeah? - Hydraulic legs, right? 576 00:30:27,793 --> 00:30:29,655 Yeah, they make it really easy to level. 577 00:30:30,137 --> 00:30:31,000 Good stuff. 578 00:30:33,068 --> 00:30:37,137 Parker needs a wash plant that is mobile for his claim in Alaska. 579 00:30:37,172 --> 00:30:42,896 This 20-ton trommel has a price tag of $190,000. 580 00:30:42,931 --> 00:30:46,655 Built on skids for maximum movability. 581 00:30:46,689 --> 00:30:52,241 It's USP is four hydraulic legs to level the plant easily and quickly. 582 00:30:54,551 --> 00:30:56,724 But, like, if you're gonna see it running, we gotta move it. 583 00:30:56,758 --> 00:30:59,000 - All right, well, can we give you a hand? - Yeah. 584 00:30:59,413 --> 00:31:01,413 All right, sweet. 585 00:31:01,448 --> 00:31:04,620 One thing that Parker wanted to see a lot of was mobility. 586 00:31:04,655 --> 00:31:07,103 This is good because we get to see it moving and the fact 587 00:31:07,137 --> 00:31:09,827 it's got the hydraulics on the bottom of it is a plus. 588 00:31:09,862 --> 00:31:12,689 The only problem is it's got a heavy stacker on it, so when we turn it 589 00:31:12,724 --> 00:31:14,793 we have to try stop it from, uh, falling over. 590 00:31:14,827 --> 00:31:16,275 Oh, no. 591 00:31:18,655 --> 00:31:20,862 I'll give you the nice new one. 592 00:31:20,896 --> 00:31:22,620 - Well, we'll see what happens. - Yeah. 593 00:31:24,896 --> 00:31:26,620 I've seen a couple plant moves. 594 00:31:26,655 --> 00:31:28,413 But they always make me a little bit nervous, you know. 595 00:31:28,448 --> 00:31:29,482 There's a lot that could go wrong. 596 00:31:29,517 --> 00:31:31,379 It's a heavy thing to be moving around 597 00:31:31,413 --> 00:31:33,448 and there's a lot of parts coming off of it and stuff. 598 00:31:33,482 --> 00:31:36,241 And especially, when you need two diggers to move the one plant 599 00:31:36,275 --> 00:31:39,241 is you know, double the space for error. 600 00:31:39,275 --> 00:31:40,448 Here they come. 601 00:31:41,206 --> 00:31:42,758 Brother and sister. 602 00:31:45,551 --> 00:31:46,862 Which side do you want? 603 00:31:46,896 --> 00:31:48,310 I'll go in the back and lift the back up. 604 00:31:48,344 --> 00:31:50,586 I'll move over there. Then you jump on that front corner. 605 00:31:50,620 --> 00:31:51,724 And pull her around. 606 00:31:53,103 --> 00:31:55,896 - You got some, uh, shackles. - Yeah. 607 00:31:55,931 --> 00:32:00,137 To move the 19-foot tall, 20-ton plant uphill 608 00:32:00,172 --> 00:32:02,206 to the new mining pad, 609 00:32:02,241 --> 00:32:04,620 Parker's excavator will pull from the front, 610 00:32:04,655 --> 00:32:08,413 while TC steers at the back. 611 00:32:08,448 --> 00:32:12,275 So, yeah, the only thing really to watch out for is the stacker, obviously. 612 00:32:12,310 --> 00:32:13,689 - Yeah, don't hit the stacker. - Don't hit the stacker. 613 00:32:13,724 --> 00:32:14,655 Got it. 614 00:32:14,689 --> 00:32:16,862 Um, I see it's already a little bit bent. 615 00:32:18,137 --> 00:32:20,103 - That wasn't me. - Yeah, alrighty then. 616 00:32:20,862 --> 00:32:22,275 I break it. I buy it? 617 00:32:22,310 --> 00:32:23,931 You break it. You buy it. That's for sure. 618 00:32:29,586 --> 00:32:31,034 All right, Parker. Are you ready? 619 00:32:31,068 --> 00:32:32,034 Yep! 620 00:32:43,620 --> 00:32:45,793 So much pressure on those chains. 621 00:32:46,965 --> 00:32:48,413 One thing with the chains is you can 622 00:32:48,448 --> 00:32:49,862 never tell where it's gonna break. 623 00:32:49,896 --> 00:32:51,034 They just break. 624 00:32:51,068 --> 00:32:53,172 Make them fire off to the side. 625 00:32:53,206 --> 00:32:54,896 Oh, you don't wanna be in the bait. 626 00:33:10,068 --> 00:33:12,689 - Just right there. - And that looks good. 627 00:33:16,103 --> 00:33:17,482 Went super good. 628 00:33:17,517 --> 00:33:20,413 Nice, easy pullout. Nice, easy pull back. A little bit of a twist. 629 00:33:20,448 --> 00:33:22,379 - All right, what's next? - We gotta level up. 630 00:33:22,413 --> 00:33:23,586 The fun part. 631 00:33:23,620 --> 00:33:25,034 Some meaty jacks! 632 00:33:25,068 --> 00:33:26,689 Some meaty jacks. Yeah. They're off for digging. 633 00:33:26,724 --> 00:33:29,000 I was just gonna say they're off an excavator, aren't they? 634 00:33:32,344 --> 00:33:34,379 Yeah, it's stooping down in the back. 635 00:33:34,413 --> 00:33:35,379 And then, we're... 636 00:33:35,965 --> 00:33:37,310 We're high on that side. 637 00:33:37,344 --> 00:33:40,586 Wash plants must run as level as possible. 638 00:33:40,620 --> 00:33:44,275 Running off-center unevenly packs the sluice box 639 00:33:44,310 --> 00:33:47,241 preventing the gold from being caught in the riffles 640 00:33:47,275 --> 00:33:49,310 and lost off the end of the sluice. 641 00:33:58,379 --> 00:34:02,103 It takes Parker a day to level his Yukon plants. 642 00:34:02,137 --> 00:34:06,310 The hydraulic legs can achieve the same results in minutes. 643 00:34:08,275 --> 00:34:11,344 - That's level there. - That was relatively easy. 644 00:34:11,379 --> 00:34:13,965 Jeff, that's sweet. 645 00:34:14,000 --> 00:34:15,448 - That's pretty sweet. - Yeah. 646 00:34:15,482 --> 00:34:17,758 Way overbuilt. Super simple. 647 00:34:18,862 --> 00:34:20,172 Okay, let's get this water going. 648 00:34:21,586 --> 00:34:23,310 This pipeline is getting hooked up to that hose? 649 00:34:23,344 --> 00:34:24,206 Yeah. 650 00:34:25,620 --> 00:34:27,206 So now we just need to get it running. 651 00:34:27,827 --> 00:34:29,379 Get Jeff's eyes on it. 652 00:34:29,413 --> 00:34:30,793 And who knows. Parker might wanna buy it. 653 00:34:33,379 --> 00:34:36,034 These little plants like this are super easy to move. 654 00:34:36,068 --> 00:34:40,896 I mean, this actually really does fit the bill in terms of portability. 655 00:34:40,931 --> 00:34:42,724 Cheap as peanuts to run too. 656 00:34:46,724 --> 00:34:50,965 Yeah, I like how slick those leveling jacks are. 657 00:34:51,000 --> 00:34:53,517 Like they're actually x-ramps off an excavator. 658 00:34:53,551 --> 00:34:56,793 Um, excavator is just like super heavy duty, 659 00:34:56,827 --> 00:35:00,620 like you could pick up a plant twice the size with those jacks. 660 00:35:01,517 --> 00:35:02,965 All right, what now? 661 00:35:05,689 --> 00:35:06,793 Sweet! 662 00:35:13,586 --> 00:35:14,965 Here comes the water. 663 00:35:23,275 --> 00:35:26,379 At the moment, I think he might still be considering buying this plant, 664 00:35:26,413 --> 00:35:29,586 but, uh, we never know what Parker is thinking. 665 00:35:29,620 --> 00:35:32,517 And until we get his word, everything is gonna be at a standstill 666 00:35:32,551 --> 00:35:33,896 for the start of next season. 667 00:35:33,931 --> 00:35:36,068 So I want him to hurry the up so we can get this going. 668 00:35:37,586 --> 00:35:38,793 You got a few minutes? 669 00:35:38,827 --> 00:35:40,620 - What's up? - Come take a look. 670 00:35:41,310 --> 00:35:42,551 Yeah, hey. 671 00:35:42,586 --> 00:35:45,551 - TC, will you run this? - Yeah, I'll run that. Yeah. 672 00:35:45,586 --> 00:35:46,655 Trade you out. 673 00:35:49,517 --> 00:35:52,586 - What's up? - Well, I just had a good look around. 674 00:35:53,413 --> 00:35:55,000 Everything looks pretty good. 675 00:35:55,034 --> 00:35:56,517 It's got the leveling jacks. 676 00:35:57,000 --> 00:35:58,000 Got a conveyor. 677 00:35:58,862 --> 00:36:01,827 Got a self-cleaning system up top. 678 00:36:01,862 --> 00:36:03,413 What do you, uh... What do you think? 679 00:36:08,034 --> 00:36:10,000 - Too small. - Uh... 680 00:36:10,034 --> 00:36:11,206 It's a little bit small. 681 00:36:25,896 --> 00:36:26,689 Here we are. 682 00:36:27,689 --> 00:36:29,517 Kiwi Wild Lodge. 683 00:36:31,827 --> 00:36:33,517 Unique to New Zealand, 684 00:36:33,551 --> 00:36:37,793 Kiwi birds are on the endangered list. 685 00:36:37,827 --> 00:36:41,034 I'm gonna shine a light in here and tell me if you can see it. 686 00:36:41,068 --> 00:36:42,965 Flightless and nocturnal, 687 00:36:43,000 --> 00:36:47,206 Kiwis have an unexpected feature to help navigate the dark. 688 00:36:47,241 --> 00:36:49,379 It's got like whiskers. 689 00:36:49,413 --> 00:36:51,620 If you'd like to, you can touch this kiwi. 690 00:36:51,655 --> 00:36:53,758 Have a little feel, feel this, just gently. 691 00:36:56,862 --> 00:36:59,482 Despite being born ready to run, 692 00:36:59,517 --> 00:37:04,758 only 2% of these defenseless birds make it to adulthood. 693 00:37:04,793 --> 00:37:06,655 Slide kiwi back in there. 694 00:37:12,620 --> 00:37:13,862 It's a little bit small. 695 00:37:15,379 --> 00:37:16,655 Is that something you can work around? 696 00:37:17,655 --> 00:37:19,000 - No. - No? 697 00:37:20,517 --> 00:37:22,275 Midway through the run, 698 00:37:22,310 --> 00:37:25,275 Parker shuts down the test of TC's trommel. 699 00:37:25,310 --> 00:37:28,000 Like it's perfect. It's just too small. 700 00:37:28,034 --> 00:37:30,689 Gunning for a big pay day in Alaska, 701 00:37:30,724 --> 00:37:33,896 Parker needs a plant that can chew through the ground. 702 00:37:36,206 --> 00:37:39,758 Well, my biggest thing is, you know, we're getting pretty late into this trip. 703 00:37:39,793 --> 00:37:42,034 We've seen some pretty good stuff, 704 00:37:42,068 --> 00:37:44,931 but, uh, we haven't jump on anything yet. 705 00:37:44,965 --> 00:37:47,310 It's, uh... It's got me kind of worried for timing right now. 706 00:37:48,206 --> 00:37:50,551 New season is coming pretty fast. 707 00:37:50,586 --> 00:37:54,413 I feel like I'm starting to get at the end of my contact list. 708 00:37:54,448 --> 00:37:55,620 It's getting hard. 709 00:37:55,655 --> 00:37:58,206 Like I'm scrapping the bottom of the barrel here. 710 00:37:58,241 --> 00:38:00,344 Listen, the thing is, man. 711 00:38:00,379 --> 00:38:02,517 The reality here is you still haven't actually chosen 712 00:38:02,551 --> 00:38:04,344 what type of plant you want. 713 00:38:04,379 --> 00:38:07,344 You should probably be at that stage by now. 714 00:38:07,379 --> 00:38:09,689 If I knew which one I want, we wouldn't be in this country. 715 00:38:10,413 --> 00:38:12,172 That's why we're on this trip. 716 00:38:12,206 --> 00:38:14,068 Well, I know it is, but... 717 00:38:14,103 --> 00:38:16,000 we're quite a long way into it. 718 00:38:16,034 --> 00:38:18,827 Surely, like, if you, if you could make that decision, 719 00:38:18,862 --> 00:38:21,172 then we can move on to the next step. 720 00:38:21,206 --> 00:38:23,448 And that gets the ball rolling, right? 721 00:38:24,586 --> 00:38:25,655 I'm leaving. 722 00:38:27,206 --> 00:38:29,896 Don't tell me what the to do, Danny. 723 00:38:35,310 --> 00:38:36,310 That didn't go great. 724 00:38:37,310 --> 00:38:38,413 No, it didn't. 725 00:38:42,172 --> 00:38:43,931 I feel like I'm losing this battle here. 726 00:38:46,724 --> 00:38:49,689 This plant is decent. It would do the job for him. 727 00:38:49,724 --> 00:38:51,172 So, yeah. 728 00:38:51,206 --> 00:38:54,310 It's kind of a bit of a blow that he's not interested in this one. 729 00:38:54,344 --> 00:38:56,689 So that's that. It's got me a bit worried. 730 00:38:56,724 --> 00:38:58,758 We need a plant for our season coming. 731 00:38:58,793 --> 00:39:01,896 We've been out here for, you know, quite a while now. 732 00:39:01,931 --> 00:39:03,517 We've seen quite a few wash plants. 733 00:39:03,551 --> 00:39:05,034 He's not buying them. 734 00:39:05,068 --> 00:39:08,241 They're not meeting his requirements or his standards. 735 00:39:08,275 --> 00:39:10,689 So we need to carry on looking. 736 00:39:10,724 --> 00:39:13,310 But we also need to nail down what he wants. 737 00:39:13,344 --> 00:39:14,103 Otherwise... 738 00:39:15,551 --> 00:39:17,827 I don't think Alaska is going to be a thing. 739 00:39:29,137 --> 00:39:30,965 We've seen a lot of wash plants now. 740 00:39:31,000 --> 00:39:33,034 Don't you think sometimes you might have bitten off a little bit 741 00:39:33,068 --> 00:39:34,655 more than you can chew. 742 00:39:34,689 --> 00:39:36,068 Sometimes. 743 00:39:36,103 --> 00:39:39,896 Um, I wouldn't say that I've bitten off more than we can chew. 744 00:39:39,931 --> 00:39:43,379 I'm more scared of just like to pull the trigger on anything. 745 00:39:44,896 --> 00:39:47,068 I haven't pulled at any triggers 746 00:39:47,103 --> 00:39:49,206 on any big ticket item for Fairbanks, yet 747 00:39:49,241 --> 00:39:50,206 because I'm like [bleep], 748 00:39:50,241 --> 00:39:53,275 do I really want to spend that $5 million? 749 00:39:54,724 --> 00:39:57,793 It will spend before we pull an ounce of gold out of the ground. 750 00:39:59,344 --> 00:40:00,793 Like you could retire with that. 751 00:40:00,827 --> 00:40:02,482 It's a lot of money. Mmm. 752 00:40:02,517 --> 00:40:06,517 It's just like do you really want to dump it all back into the next project? 753 00:40:06,551 --> 00:40:08,172 - You know. - Hmm-mmm. 754 00:40:08,206 --> 00:40:09,655 Do you think you're making decisions like that 755 00:40:09,689 --> 00:40:11,034 because it's kind of in your blood? 756 00:40:11,068 --> 00:40:13,620 It's definitely... It's a part of this family thing. 757 00:40:13,655 --> 00:40:17,413 My grandpa and my dad never paid themselves anything out of the companies. 758 00:40:17,448 --> 00:40:20,241 And just like pumped it all back into the business. 759 00:40:20,275 --> 00:40:22,896 My grandpa didn't work the last time he did it, right? 760 00:40:22,931 --> 00:40:25,241 Like his sawmill went bankrupt. 761 00:40:26,241 --> 00:40:28,000 But, yeah, I don't know. 762 00:40:28,034 --> 00:40:31,931 I really, in the next, like, while I'm on this trip, I have to start making the decision 763 00:40:31,965 --> 00:40:33,689 and start spending lots of money. 764 00:40:33,724 --> 00:40:35,206 Like Jeff's pushing me. 765 00:40:35,241 --> 00:40:37,793 - I don't wanna push you hard 'cause I know you know. - I know. 766 00:40:37,827 --> 00:40:39,758 - And I know. - I know. I know that you know that I know. 767 00:40:39,793 --> 00:40:40,689 Yeah. 768 00:40:40,724 --> 00:40:42,793 That's like skydiving. 769 00:40:42,827 --> 00:40:45,103 I need somebody to boot me out the door 770 00:40:45,137 --> 00:40:45,965 and then we're flying. 771 00:40:46,000 --> 00:40:46,931 I'll do it. 772 00:40:46,965 --> 00:40:48,310 Perfect. 773 00:40:48,344 --> 00:40:50,586 I'm going to bed. 774 00:40:50,620 --> 00:40:52,379 - Cheers, mate. - Cheers. 775 00:40:52,413 --> 00:40:55,896 Dan got me thinking tonight about the whole Fairbanks project. 776 00:40:55,931 --> 00:40:59,793 And just like, you know, the financial side of it. 777 00:41:02,931 --> 00:41:04,275 It's definitely, um... 778 00:41:06,724 --> 00:41:07,896 a bit daunting. 779 00:41:07,931 --> 00:41:09,482 Like I'm used to spending a lot of money, 780 00:41:09,517 --> 00:41:13,827 but there's also, you know, a lot of money coming in. 781 00:41:13,862 --> 00:41:17,482 Um, when you're setting up a new project, it's like... 782 00:41:17,517 --> 00:41:20,034 that money is just to step foot on the ground. 783 00:41:20,068 --> 00:41:22,275 Mentally, it's, uh... 784 00:41:24,310 --> 00:41:25,793 ...a challenge. 785 00:41:25,827 --> 00:41:29,000 Like I have to start making the big decisions in spending the big money. 786 00:41:31,827 --> 00:41:33,310 Yeah, time's ticking away.