1 00:00:02,758 --> 00:00:05,275 [grinding] 2 00:00:11,724 --> 00:00:13,275 JOHNNY: Ooh, yeah, that's sharp. 3 00:00:14,310 --> 00:00:15,931 A safe axe is a sharp axe. 4 00:00:16,000 --> 00:00:17,172 You ready? 5 00:00:19,000 --> 00:00:22,482 Knowing how to make stuff is important when you live this 6 00:00:22,551 --> 00:00:24,137 far away from society. 7 00:00:32,931 --> 00:00:35,068 JOHNNY: There's one hunting tool that I think all hunters 8 00:00:35,137 --> 00:00:38,586 should know how to use and I think that's a bow and arrow. 9 00:00:38,655 --> 00:00:40,413 And I'm gonna make a bow and arrow from what I have laying 10 00:00:40,482 --> 00:00:43,206 around my camp. 11 00:00:43,275 --> 00:00:46,310 This log right here I'm gonna turn into the riser, 12 00:00:46,379 --> 00:00:48,068 which is the handle part. 13 00:00:48,137 --> 00:00:49,310 Gotta cut it down a little bit 'cause it's 14 00:00:49,379 --> 00:00:51,103 way too big and cumbersome. 15 00:00:51,172 --> 00:00:55,068 So, this will be essentially a takedown recurve bow. 16 00:00:59,827 --> 00:01:01,931 I've never made a bow before. 17 00:01:02,000 --> 00:01:04,620 But if something was to happen where I lost a gun or 18 00:01:04,689 --> 00:01:07,827 I ran out of ammunition, when times call for it, 19 00:01:07,896 --> 00:01:10,689 you gotta know how to make hunting tools because out here 20 00:01:10,758 --> 00:01:14,482 there's nothing but me to fend for myself. 21 00:01:15,344 --> 00:01:16,689 I hope this log works. 22 00:01:16,758 --> 00:01:18,586 I can see that the grain's pretty twisted. 23 00:01:18,655 --> 00:01:20,758 It's almost a 30-degree twist. 24 00:01:20,827 --> 00:01:23,344 That's not necessarily what I'm looking for, 25 00:01:23,413 --> 00:01:25,551 but I'm gonna take some more bark off and 26 00:01:25,620 --> 00:01:28,103 see what's going on with it. 27 00:01:28,172 --> 00:01:30,206 It's important to see what you can make with your 28 00:01:30,275 --> 00:01:33,275 hands from what's around you from the land. 29 00:01:33,344 --> 00:01:36,620 That's what this experience is all about, being resourceful. 30 00:01:40,965 --> 00:01:42,551 Let's check this guy out. 31 00:01:44,965 --> 00:01:46,344 It doesn't look too bad. 32 00:01:46,413 --> 00:01:47,655 I think it's gonna work. 33 00:01:47,724 --> 00:01:50,172 Went from a log to now, a piece of lumber. 34 00:01:50,241 --> 00:01:52,448 And now I gotta take it from a piece of lumber 35 00:01:52,517 --> 00:01:55,034 to a bow riser, which will have a handle here. 36 00:01:55,103 --> 00:01:57,689 And then I can finish making the bow and arrow. 37 00:02:01,517 --> 00:02:03,344 What the hell are you doing? 38 00:02:04,310 --> 00:02:05,586 Getting cozy? 39 00:02:09,068 --> 00:02:12,137 CHEVIE: Out here we live a subsistence lifestyle. 40 00:02:12,206 --> 00:02:16,517 Trapping, hunting, it's not about money. 41 00:02:16,586 --> 00:02:18,482 It's what the land provides. 42 00:02:20,241 --> 00:02:23,206 CHEVIE: And that's where you get your riches from. 43 00:02:23,275 --> 00:02:25,206 Let's load up and see if we can catch some blackfish. 44 00:02:25,275 --> 00:02:26,862 It's such a nice day. 45 00:02:30,793 --> 00:02:34,413 There's only one fish that you could fish with a trap 46 00:02:34,482 --> 00:02:37,103 in the winter months and that's the blackfish. 47 00:02:37,172 --> 00:02:38,931 And as the sun starts getting higher in the 48 00:02:39,000 --> 00:02:41,827 skies the blackfish holes start opening up. 49 00:02:43,310 --> 00:02:45,827 We need to get out there and catch our supply of 50 00:02:45,896 --> 00:02:48,275 blackfish for the year. 51 00:02:48,344 --> 00:02:51,586 So, we have to share that food with elders and the community. 52 00:02:56,862 --> 00:02:59,172 Sydney, grab me that ice pick. 53 00:02:59,241 --> 00:03:00,413 I'll check this ice first and make sure 54 00:03:00,482 --> 00:03:02,896 it's safe, all right? 55 00:03:02,965 --> 00:03:05,689 Sometimes the ice is rotten around blackfish holes, right? 56 00:03:05,758 --> 00:03:07,275 SYDNEY: Yeah. 57 00:03:10,103 --> 00:03:11,551 CHEVIE: My name's Chevie Roach. 58 00:03:11,620 --> 00:03:14,000 I grew up in Tok, Alaska, 59 00:03:14,068 --> 00:03:16,965 90 miles from the Canadian border. 60 00:03:17,034 --> 00:03:21,620 I first came to Shageluk when I was about 20 years old. 61 00:03:21,689 --> 00:03:23,689 Not only is it a really harsh environment, 62 00:03:23,758 --> 00:03:25,448 but it's a really giving environment too, 63 00:03:25,517 --> 00:03:28,034 but you have to know when to get it. 64 00:03:30,620 --> 00:03:33,034 Those old guys say if you can hit it twice then 65 00:03:33,103 --> 00:03:36,448 you can walk on it. 66 00:03:36,517 --> 00:03:38,068 You kids can come over here but just don't go 67 00:03:38,137 --> 00:03:40,103 past right here, okay? 68 00:03:40,172 --> 00:03:41,344 SYDNEY: Okay. 69 00:03:41,413 --> 00:03:43,310 CHEVIE: Why don't you guys grab a trap. 70 00:03:43,379 --> 00:03:46,206 We built two fish traps, a traditional fish trap 71 00:03:46,275 --> 00:03:50,000 and a new more Western style steel fish trap. 72 00:03:51,724 --> 00:03:53,344 Now you guys, go on your knees, 73 00:03:53,413 --> 00:03:54,793 go in front of me. 74 00:03:54,862 --> 00:03:56,137 Now listen, what we've learned about this ice, right? 75 00:03:56,206 --> 00:03:57,413 Go on your knees. 76 00:03:57,482 --> 00:03:59,206 SYDNEY: Uh-hmm. CHEVIE: Kay, get closer. 77 00:03:59,275 --> 00:04:00,655 Now you guys are old enough, you gotta respect where you're 78 00:04:00,724 --> 00:04:02,344 at but you also gotta be confident, okay? 79 00:04:02,413 --> 00:04:04,482 Go ahead and push it in a little bit. 80 00:04:07,517 --> 00:04:09,827 SONTA: Oh, it's moving down. 81 00:04:09,896 --> 00:04:11,206 Nice. 82 00:04:11,275 --> 00:04:12,482 SYDNEY: Yeah. 83 00:04:14,310 --> 00:04:16,310 CHEVIE: Let's get this one in the water. 84 00:04:16,379 --> 00:04:19,103 SONTA: There's not many people in our communities, 85 00:04:19,172 --> 00:04:20,862 our surrounding communities that continue to make 86 00:04:20,931 --> 00:04:22,965 traditional fish traps. 87 00:04:23,034 --> 00:04:24,448 Okay, guys, this is really exciting, 88 00:04:24,517 --> 00:04:27,586 this is the first time we've had a fish trap like this 89 00:04:27,655 --> 00:04:29,448 traditionally made for blackfish in many 90 00:04:29,517 --> 00:04:31,103 years from our area, 91 00:04:31,172 --> 00:04:33,689 so I'm really excited you guys are here to see this 92 00:04:33,758 --> 00:04:35,931 and we'll see what we catch. 93 00:04:36,000 --> 00:04:37,827 I'm Sonta Hamilton Roach. 94 00:04:37,896 --> 00:04:40,206 I'm Deg Hit'an Athabaskan. 95 00:04:40,275 --> 00:04:44,103 My husband and I have three kids and one on the way. 96 00:04:44,172 --> 00:04:46,172 I grew up in Shageluk. 97 00:04:46,241 --> 00:04:50,413 Living out here, it's a responsibility to who I am as 98 00:04:50,482 --> 00:04:51,896 a Deg Hit'an person. 99 00:04:51,965 --> 00:04:55,551 It's a responsibility to our kids. 100 00:04:55,620 --> 00:04:58,172 Let's put it in. 101 00:04:58,241 --> 00:05:02,482 But it's also a responsibility that our ancestors gave us. 102 00:05:04,068 --> 00:05:06,172 Woo-hoo you're under the ice, that's good. 103 00:05:06,241 --> 00:05:07,413 We'll see what we catch. 104 00:05:07,482 --> 00:05:08,827 CHEVIE: See if we get lucky. 105 00:05:08,896 --> 00:05:10,172 All right, let's just let those traps sit and 106 00:05:10,241 --> 00:05:11,586 do what they do. 107 00:05:11,655 --> 00:05:13,793 They're gonna produce for us while we're at home 108 00:05:13,862 --> 00:05:15,310 sleeping in our beds, that's pretty cool. 109 00:05:15,379 --> 00:05:16,655 That's what traps do. 110 00:05:16,724 --> 00:05:19,000 SONTA: Cool, this is exciting guys. 111 00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:24,448 ALEX: Since I moved here to Deadman Lake. 112 00:05:24,517 --> 00:05:27,896 The cold is the most dangerous thing I'm facing. 113 00:05:27,965 --> 00:05:30,758 Mother Nature always pushes me. 114 00:05:30,827 --> 00:05:33,689 The lessons she gives me always make me better, you know. 115 00:05:36,275 --> 00:05:38,827 Okay, so this one might be rotten, but, uh... 116 00:05:41,413 --> 00:05:43,413 Oh, it might be good. 117 00:05:48,103 --> 00:05:49,724 ALEX: Okay, that's pretty good. 118 00:05:49,793 --> 00:05:53,206 Cutting dry wood with an axe is a little bit slower. 119 00:05:53,275 --> 00:05:54,896 I may use a saw to finish here. 120 00:05:57,241 --> 00:05:59,551 Since I moved here, I've been in the emergency zone with 121 00:05:59,620 --> 00:06:01,034 firewood the whole time. 122 00:06:01,103 --> 00:06:03,551 It's been pretty extreme; the coldest winter I've had 123 00:06:03,620 --> 00:06:05,103 here in Alaska. 124 00:06:05,172 --> 00:06:07,344 If I'm gonna survive next winter, like, 125 00:06:07,413 --> 00:06:08,620 I have to get this wood now otherwise I'm 126 00:06:08,689 --> 00:06:10,896 just not gonna have wood. 127 00:06:10,965 --> 00:06:12,413 So, what I gotta do is cut down trees, 128 00:06:12,482 --> 00:06:15,103 go ahead and split them up and then they need to 129 00:06:15,172 --> 00:06:16,931 dry all summer. 130 00:06:17,000 --> 00:06:18,275 There we go. 131 00:06:18,344 --> 00:06:19,586 By the time that next winter comes around... 132 00:06:19,655 --> 00:06:21,206 Whoa! 133 00:06:21,275 --> 00:06:22,931 That will be the best quality firewood you can 134 00:06:23,000 --> 00:06:24,620 get in Alaska. 135 00:06:26,482 --> 00:06:28,862 But now is the time I just gotta work. 136 00:06:28,931 --> 00:06:31,379 [chopping] 137 00:06:32,793 --> 00:06:35,965 The first time I did any work I was 16 years old. 138 00:06:36,034 --> 00:06:38,344 My dad made me mow the lawn and it was like the most 139 00:06:38,413 --> 00:06:40,586 challenging thing of my life. 140 00:06:40,655 --> 00:06:42,620 With a gas-powered push mower, 141 00:06:42,689 --> 00:06:45,137 it was so hard for me 'cause all I did before that 142 00:06:45,206 --> 00:06:47,413 was play video games. 143 00:06:47,482 --> 00:06:48,965 Oof! 144 00:06:50,344 --> 00:06:54,172 So, I want this real big one here. 145 00:06:54,241 --> 00:06:56,172 It's got a split in the middle because it's growing 146 00:06:56,241 --> 00:06:57,758 into two trees. 147 00:06:57,827 --> 00:07:00,551 I think this tree kinda grew too big for his own britches. 148 00:07:00,620 --> 00:07:02,034 I think he's in great pain so I'm gonna put him 149 00:07:02,103 --> 00:07:03,655 out of his misery. 150 00:07:05,206 --> 00:07:07,034 Pretty much any way I try to make that tree fall, 151 00:07:07,103 --> 00:07:09,172 it's gonna hang up on another one. 152 00:07:09,241 --> 00:07:12,000 So, I'm cutting down some other trees first. 153 00:07:12,068 --> 00:07:13,896 I got this one out of the way. 154 00:07:13,965 --> 00:07:15,448 Now I can get that one, 155 00:07:15,517 --> 00:07:17,931 pull it towards the one I just cut down. 156 00:07:18,000 --> 00:07:19,344 I gotta make sure I'm not gonna hit any other 157 00:07:19,413 --> 00:07:20,827 ones with it too. 158 00:07:20,896 --> 00:07:23,965 So, it's kinda like I'm doing a puzzle here. 159 00:07:24,034 --> 00:07:26,482 Playing Mother Nature's video game. 160 00:07:29,275 --> 00:07:32,103 And that's kind of the big boss I'm working towards. 161 00:07:33,551 --> 00:07:36,206 That could be half my winter firewood right there. 162 00:07:37,655 --> 00:07:39,689 I think it's about to go. 163 00:07:41,172 --> 00:07:42,655 Perfect. 164 00:07:44,448 --> 00:07:47,517 Now big boss tree should be able to come clean right 165 00:07:47,586 --> 00:07:49,034 to me here. 166 00:07:49,103 --> 00:07:51,724 It's got a nice clear fall path. 167 00:07:51,793 --> 00:07:54,448 I'm set up to cut that big tree down. 168 00:07:59,413 --> 00:08:02,068 It's just been kinda tough. 169 00:08:02,137 --> 00:08:03,586 Do I wanna live the same way next winter as 170 00:08:03,655 --> 00:08:05,344 I did this winter? 171 00:08:05,413 --> 00:08:07,655 Nah, I wanna do a little bit better. 172 00:08:09,896 --> 00:08:12,379 Nature always compels me to do that. 173 00:08:16,413 --> 00:08:18,586 It's cracking a little bit. 174 00:08:19,413 --> 00:08:21,000 Oh, it's going. 175 00:08:27,758 --> 00:08:28,965 Oof! 176 00:08:31,000 --> 00:08:32,689 Well, that's, that's probably the biggest birch tree 177 00:08:32,758 --> 00:08:34,137 I've ever cut down. 178 00:08:35,655 --> 00:08:37,103 This was the fun part, now I got a mountain of 179 00:08:37,172 --> 00:08:38,931 work ahead of me. 180 00:08:41,689 --> 00:08:43,206 CHRIS: Everything's just kinda held together with 181 00:08:43,275 --> 00:08:44,827 luck and hard work. 182 00:08:44,896 --> 00:08:46,862 Hope for the best. 183 00:08:46,931 --> 00:08:48,586 If only there was a book written on how to build 184 00:08:48,655 --> 00:08:51,275 [bleep] without [bleep]. 185 00:08:51,344 --> 00:08:54,551 'Cause that's what we do out here. 186 00:08:54,620 --> 00:08:58,620 JESSI: I love the bathhouse, but last night with that wind. 187 00:08:58,689 --> 00:09:00,758 It was kinda like "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride" meets 188 00:09:00,827 --> 00:09:03,000 like, Treehouse of Horrors. 189 00:09:03,068 --> 00:09:04,517 CHRIS: Yeah. No kidding. 190 00:09:04,586 --> 00:09:07,137 JESSI: I was like going with the trees and creaking and I 191 00:09:07,206 --> 00:09:10,379 was just sure that whole thing was gonna end up in the river. 192 00:09:10,448 --> 00:09:14,517 It's, I think it's time to rebuild the bathhouse. 193 00:09:15,862 --> 00:09:18,000 CHRIS: Yeah, this is what worries me the most. 194 00:09:19,103 --> 00:09:21,758 Just look underneath. 195 00:09:21,827 --> 00:09:24,551 You can see all the band-aids I scabbed in there. 196 00:09:24,620 --> 00:09:26,862 JESSI: That's what's holding this thing up. 197 00:09:26,931 --> 00:09:29,896 As soon as that ice thaws out and spring comes and it rains, 198 00:09:29,965 --> 00:09:32,655 that's all gonna wash away. 199 00:09:32,724 --> 00:09:35,413 This thing here, look at this space. 200 00:09:35,482 --> 00:09:37,137 That's far past band-aiding. 201 00:09:37,206 --> 00:09:42,034 We've been band-aiding this thing for five or six years. 202 00:09:42,103 --> 00:09:43,482 CHRIS: I've been worrying about this bathhouse for over 203 00:09:43,551 --> 00:09:44,758 a year now. 204 00:09:44,827 --> 00:09:46,172 Every time I'm in this bathhouse I feel 205 00:09:46,241 --> 00:09:47,586 like that's it. 206 00:09:47,655 --> 00:09:49,517 We just gotta tear it down before someone gets hurt. 207 00:09:49,586 --> 00:09:51,689 Well, let's start taking it apart and see where we end up. 208 00:09:51,758 --> 00:09:55,000 JESSI: Where things fall down. CHRIS: What was I doing here? 209 00:09:59,310 --> 00:10:01,137 JESSI: When Chris and I built this bathhouse we 210 00:10:01,206 --> 00:10:02,793 were so stoked. 211 00:10:05,275 --> 00:10:08,068 Start taking this apart. 212 00:10:08,137 --> 00:10:12,000 It became like a real spa, a real treat to have. 213 00:10:12,068 --> 00:10:14,965 It was a total turning point for Chris and I 214 00:10:15,034 --> 00:10:16,862 out at the Cosna. 215 00:10:16,931 --> 00:10:18,931 Showering outside at 40 below, 216 00:10:19,000 --> 00:10:20,413 it's just not an option. 217 00:10:20,482 --> 00:10:22,827 You've got to have an area that you can keep 218 00:10:22,896 --> 00:10:24,689 warm to bathe out here. 219 00:10:27,034 --> 00:10:28,724 Yeah. Kay. 220 00:10:28,793 --> 00:10:31,034 But it's way past repair. 221 00:10:34,103 --> 00:10:35,620 CHRIS: Come pick up right there. 222 00:10:35,689 --> 00:10:38,758 JESSI: Both of us? In the bathhouse? 223 00:10:38,827 --> 00:10:40,034 CHRIS: Yeah, just push up like right there and see if 224 00:10:40,103 --> 00:10:42,068 I can get this out. 225 00:10:42,137 --> 00:10:43,586 There it goes. 226 00:10:43,655 --> 00:10:46,620 JESSI: Woo! Here we go. 227 00:10:46,689 --> 00:10:47,793 Okay. 228 00:10:47,862 --> 00:10:49,586 CHRIS: I'll hand it to you out here. 229 00:10:49,655 --> 00:10:51,758 Okay. 230 00:10:51,827 --> 00:10:54,448 JESSI: Nice. One full window. 231 00:10:54,517 --> 00:10:57,344 Definitely reusing these. 232 00:10:57,413 --> 00:11:00,068 A lot of the stuff that we use out here I would've thought were 233 00:11:00,137 --> 00:11:04,793 absolute trash, but there's no wasting anything out here. 234 00:11:07,206 --> 00:11:09,896 The meaning of trash is totally different. 235 00:11:11,482 --> 00:11:13,379 It's just all inventory. 236 00:11:17,172 --> 00:11:19,344 All right, it's free. 237 00:11:19,413 --> 00:11:22,344 We're gonna reuse all the glass 'cause that is a 238 00:11:22,413 --> 00:11:24,275 precious commodity all the way out here. 239 00:11:27,206 --> 00:11:30,103 CHRIS: That thing got stuck on this piece of wood. 240 00:11:30,172 --> 00:11:31,586 Yeah. 241 00:11:31,655 --> 00:11:34,000 JESSI: Ooh, load bearing. 242 00:11:34,068 --> 00:11:35,758 I have a feeling that's gonna come toppling down. 243 00:11:35,827 --> 00:11:39,413 CHRIS: It might. Hammer. Please. 244 00:11:39,482 --> 00:11:40,655 JESSI: Got you. 245 00:11:40,724 --> 00:11:42,965 Careful, love. Okay. 246 00:11:43,862 --> 00:11:45,620 Almost come down. 247 00:11:45,689 --> 00:11:47,172 Right and... 248 00:11:56,103 --> 00:11:57,793 CHRIS: Like that. JESSI: Very nice. 249 00:11:59,724 --> 00:12:01,551 CHRIS: Oh, hi, Toze. 250 00:12:01,620 --> 00:12:03,448 All right. 251 00:12:03,517 --> 00:12:05,517 JESSI: Let's try to take off and be as easy as we can on 252 00:12:05,586 --> 00:12:07,758 what's remaining on the floor. 253 00:12:07,827 --> 00:12:08,896 CHRIS: Okay. 254 00:12:11,275 --> 00:12:13,551 JESSI: Like to use as much as we can from the old bathhouse 255 00:12:13,620 --> 00:12:16,068 just 'cause I loved it so much. 256 00:12:16,137 --> 00:12:19,379 You know, everything out here has got its own character. 257 00:12:19,448 --> 00:12:22,827 Having our bathhouse made with all of these reused materials, 258 00:12:22,896 --> 00:12:25,827 these are all wonderful gifts from the past. 259 00:12:25,896 --> 00:12:27,655 CHRIS: Ooh! Look at this, Jess. 260 00:12:29,068 --> 00:12:30,896 Go ahead and pull this out. 261 00:12:30,965 --> 00:12:32,000 JESSI: Ooh. 262 00:12:32,068 --> 00:12:33,413 CHRIS: With like two fingers. 263 00:12:33,482 --> 00:12:34,689 That was nothing. 264 00:12:34,758 --> 00:12:35,862 JESSI: Aw, that was nothing. 265 00:12:35,931 --> 00:12:37,551 Look at that. 266 00:12:37,620 --> 00:12:39,758 CHRIS: We were moments away from going down. 267 00:12:39,827 --> 00:12:43,896 JESSI: Yeah, I mean, that's pretty bad. 268 00:12:43,965 --> 00:12:46,517 Next step will be building a new bathhouse, right? 269 00:12:50,344 --> 00:12:52,827 JOHNNY: This isn't town life where everything's 270 00:12:52,896 --> 00:12:55,448 set up for you. 271 00:12:55,517 --> 00:12:57,103 Everything out here wants you to fail. 272 00:12:57,172 --> 00:12:58,724 It's natural selection. 273 00:12:58,793 --> 00:13:00,379 You just gotta find your way. 274 00:13:00,448 --> 00:13:03,241 You gotta navigate through it all and figure out your place. 275 00:13:10,620 --> 00:13:14,758 JOHNNY: I have the block of wood that I manufactured from 276 00:13:14,827 --> 00:13:18,034 a log and now it's time to carve this into the 277 00:13:18,103 --> 00:13:21,344 handle of the bow, better known as a riser. 278 00:13:24,758 --> 00:13:28,034 It's kind of a long process of just shaping, manipulating, 279 00:13:29,137 --> 00:13:31,689 sawing, chipping, 280 00:13:33,241 --> 00:13:35,275 but eventually it will take, take its shape and 281 00:13:35,344 --> 00:13:37,137 take its form. 282 00:13:40,000 --> 00:13:42,413 This is the riser of the bow that I'm making, 283 00:13:42,482 --> 00:13:44,379 and I just got done carving out the handle which 284 00:13:44,448 --> 00:13:46,275 is right here. 285 00:13:46,344 --> 00:13:48,620 I got a little window that I can see so when I pull the 286 00:13:48,689 --> 00:13:53,551 string back, I can see what I'm shooting at. 287 00:13:53,620 --> 00:13:57,793 The next thing I gotta do here is strap some limbs on it. 288 00:14:03,068 --> 00:14:04,724 That's where these come in. 289 00:14:04,793 --> 00:14:09,448 I'm gonna use these old, useless cross-country skis 290 00:14:09,517 --> 00:14:11,206 that were given to me. 291 00:14:11,275 --> 00:14:13,413 I knew I could make something with them out here. 292 00:14:20,241 --> 00:14:24,689 This is how old these are, they're made in Yugoslavia. 293 00:14:24,758 --> 00:14:27,793 Yugoslavia is not even a country. 294 00:14:27,862 --> 00:14:29,896 These skis you know, they could be sitting in a landfill 295 00:14:29,965 --> 00:14:32,758 just rotting but there's no use in that. 296 00:14:32,827 --> 00:14:37,275 So, to take them and repurpose them and give them new life? 297 00:14:37,344 --> 00:14:40,724 To me these are Alaskan attributes. 298 00:14:40,793 --> 00:14:44,310 Just having the skills and the knowledge to make hunting 299 00:14:44,379 --> 00:14:47,724 tools I think is important to have in my back pocket should 300 00:14:47,793 --> 00:14:50,103 something go wrong. 301 00:14:55,068 --> 00:14:56,379 I think it's done. 302 00:14:59,310 --> 00:15:01,551 Oh yeah. 303 00:15:01,620 --> 00:15:03,206 It's pretty sweet. 304 00:15:03,275 --> 00:15:05,379 Yup, I'm gonna wrap this up for today and tomorrow I'm 305 00:15:05,448 --> 00:15:08,586 gonna come back out, put a string across here, 306 00:15:08,655 --> 00:15:10,965 make a couple of arrows and fling some of 'em. 307 00:15:11,034 --> 00:15:13,965 Hopefully it will shoot good. 308 00:15:14,034 --> 00:15:16,551 Java are you gonna help me carry these tools inside? 309 00:15:16,620 --> 00:15:17,965 Don't give me those eyes. 310 00:15:18,034 --> 00:15:19,310 What's wrong with you? 311 00:15:22,137 --> 00:15:25,827 SONTA: Here in Shageluk, we're a very remote community. 312 00:15:25,896 --> 00:15:28,689 It's the last Deg Hit'an village on the Innoko River. 313 00:15:32,724 --> 00:15:36,344 The only way to access Shageluk is really by air, 314 00:15:36,413 --> 00:15:39,586 by boat, or by snow machine in the winter. 315 00:15:50,758 --> 00:15:51,931 CHEVIE: I think we made the right call not 316 00:15:52,000 --> 00:15:53,413 bringing the kids. 317 00:15:56,965 --> 00:15:58,862 SONTA: How is it? 318 00:15:58,931 --> 00:16:01,034 CHEVIE: It's a little soft, but just wanna make sure it 319 00:16:01,103 --> 00:16:03,344 doesn't open up by that hole there. 320 00:16:04,448 --> 00:16:06,689 It's really warm. 321 00:16:06,758 --> 00:16:08,655 SONTA: It definitely is really soft compared to just 322 00:16:08,724 --> 00:16:10,275 yesterday even. 323 00:16:10,344 --> 00:16:13,000 CHEVIE: Yup. Come on. 324 00:16:14,724 --> 00:16:17,172 Fish trap. 325 00:16:17,241 --> 00:16:21,275 I know there's a lot of people waiting for some blackfish. 326 00:16:21,344 --> 00:16:25,000 So, people been asking, so we gotta keep on fishing, 327 00:16:25,068 --> 00:16:26,896 I guess. 328 00:16:26,965 --> 00:16:30,827 To survive out here in the winter months we have to catch blackfish, 329 00:16:30,896 --> 00:16:33,275 and as a hunter and gatherer it's part of 330 00:16:33,344 --> 00:16:36,103 your responsibility to give to those that don't 331 00:16:36,172 --> 00:16:38,655 hunt or gather. 332 00:16:38,724 --> 00:16:42,448 The more you give the more you'll get back. 333 00:16:42,517 --> 00:16:43,724 You want me to shovel that out or are you, are you. 334 00:16:43,793 --> 00:16:44,724 SONTA: Yeah, maybe. 335 00:16:44,793 --> 00:16:46,206 CHEVIE: Okay. 336 00:16:46,275 --> 00:16:47,206 SOTNA: I'm just a little leery about going so close. 337 00:16:47,275 --> 00:16:48,551 CHEVIE: All right. 338 00:16:48,620 --> 00:16:50,206 SONTA: You don't want your pregnant wife down, 339 00:16:50,275 --> 00:16:51,586 getting all soaking wet. 340 00:16:51,655 --> 00:16:53,103 CHEVIE: Yeah. No. 341 00:16:57,034 --> 00:16:58,724 Okay. 342 00:17:01,827 --> 00:17:03,517 SONTA: Let's see. 343 00:17:05,724 --> 00:17:07,103 Not a thing! 344 00:17:07,172 --> 00:17:10,586 CHEVIE: Not a damn thing. Maybe this is a bad spot. 345 00:17:11,965 --> 00:17:13,310 SONTA: Let's go check yours out now... 346 00:17:13,379 --> 00:17:14,620 CHEVIE: Let's see what happens. 347 00:17:14,689 --> 00:17:16,000 SONTA: Just to see what happens with yours. 348 00:17:21,620 --> 00:17:24,517 Exciting, let's see. 349 00:17:24,586 --> 00:17:27,000 A lot of elders are waiting to see what we got. 350 00:17:37,172 --> 00:17:41,344 SONTA: Action Jackson? CHEVIE: I don't think so. 351 00:17:41,413 --> 00:17:43,758 SONTA: Oh, really? 352 00:17:43,827 --> 00:17:46,413 You got some of them beetles again. 353 00:17:47,413 --> 00:17:48,586 CHEVIE: Totally skunked, 354 00:17:48,655 --> 00:17:49,896 I don't see one little blackfish... 355 00:17:49,965 --> 00:17:52,482 SONTA: You're skunked on both sides today. 356 00:17:52,551 --> 00:17:54,931 Them beetles are moving around though. 357 00:17:55,000 --> 00:17:57,689 CHEVIE: You could eat those, too, in a pinch. 358 00:17:57,758 --> 00:17:59,448 SONTA: Yeah, throw 'em in the deep fryer. 359 00:17:59,517 --> 00:18:00,862 CHEVIE: Couldn't convince me to eat 'em. 360 00:18:00,931 --> 00:18:02,137 SONTA: I would. 361 00:18:02,206 --> 00:18:04,413 CHEVIE: Yeah, my ass. SONTA: I would! 362 00:18:04,482 --> 00:18:06,000 CHEVIE: Let's find another place to fish. 363 00:18:06,068 --> 00:18:07,413 SONTA: Yeah. 364 00:18:17,000 --> 00:18:19,620 CHEVIE: We've caught fish here in the past, 365 00:18:19,689 --> 00:18:22,310 we found this place again. 366 00:18:22,379 --> 00:18:25,034 We're gonna try to get everybody enough blackfish. 367 00:18:38,103 --> 00:18:40,034 What's going on with that trap? 368 00:18:40,103 --> 00:18:41,586 SONTA: It looks pretty loose. CHEVIE: It is, yeah. 369 00:18:41,655 --> 00:18:43,689 SONTA: Yeah. Need to tighten it up. 370 00:18:46,310 --> 00:18:48,896 I wonder if we could just, if this rope will be any good for 371 00:18:48,965 --> 00:18:52,413 a temporary fix to just close it up a bit. 372 00:18:54,172 --> 00:18:57,551 Subsistence is a way of life for native people here. 373 00:18:57,620 --> 00:19:00,413 It might be kind of difficult, you know the weather 374 00:19:00,482 --> 00:19:02,758 conditions are bad and it's not comfortable. 375 00:19:02,827 --> 00:19:05,103 But after a while you see that your hard work pays off. 376 00:19:09,586 --> 00:19:10,655 CHEVIE: I think that's pretty good, don't you? 377 00:19:10,724 --> 00:19:12,275 SONTA: Yeah. 378 00:19:14,448 --> 00:19:18,103 CHEVIE: Blackfish tomorrow. SONTA: Blackfish nation. 379 00:19:23,551 --> 00:19:26,724 ALEX: You know sometimes life here is so hard that you just 380 00:19:26,793 --> 00:19:29,137 want to move somewhere else. 381 00:19:29,206 --> 00:19:32,344 But uh, it's definitely never boring. 382 00:19:32,413 --> 00:19:33,689 You know 'cause I can't say I, 383 00:19:33,758 --> 00:19:35,413 I've never had a boring winter here. 384 00:19:38,103 --> 00:19:40,517 Gotta be careful. 385 00:19:40,586 --> 00:19:43,517 Uh, one missed swing with an axe you cut your leg. 386 00:19:43,586 --> 00:19:49,275 And, uh, if I cut my leg bad even a, 387 00:19:49,344 --> 00:19:53,517 even a helicopter might not be enough to save me, so. 388 00:19:54,758 --> 00:19:56,965 ALEX: Now is the real work. 389 00:19:57,034 --> 00:20:00,172 What I gotta do today is process all these trees. 390 00:20:00,241 --> 00:20:02,137 This is a big one. 391 00:20:03,827 --> 00:20:06,758 Okay I think the rest of this we'll just cut off with a saw. 392 00:20:08,172 --> 00:20:11,103 So, the sawing is really monotonous. 393 00:20:11,172 --> 00:20:15,068 A bow saw takes about ten times as long as a chainsaw. 394 00:20:15,137 --> 00:20:18,689 If I did it that way, yeah, 395 00:20:18,758 --> 00:20:22,000 I would get the work done faster but it doesn't create 396 00:20:22,068 --> 00:20:24,206 a need for me to change myself. 397 00:20:29,655 --> 00:20:31,655 By using the manual tools, 398 00:20:32,793 --> 00:20:35,551 I had to learn to be more patient. 399 00:20:35,620 --> 00:20:38,620 Let my body go on auto pilot. 400 00:20:38,689 --> 00:20:41,068 Just let the arm just go and go and go. 401 00:20:41,137 --> 00:20:43,137 Okay, last one here. 402 00:20:43,206 --> 00:20:44,931 Because the work has to get done. 403 00:20:46,517 --> 00:20:48,448 Biggest one. 404 00:20:48,517 --> 00:20:51,551 It's gonna take a while. 405 00:20:51,620 --> 00:20:53,137 Let me see if I can wedge that, 406 00:20:53,206 --> 00:20:56,068 it might just a little bit left and then I can 407 00:20:56,137 --> 00:21:00,655 just break it. 408 00:21:00,724 --> 00:21:02,896 I have to have the firewood, otherwise I'm going to die. 409 00:21:02,965 --> 00:21:06,655 So, I'll find a way to become more patient. 410 00:21:08,827 --> 00:21:10,000 [laughs] 411 00:21:11,551 --> 00:21:13,862 It's a lot more working cutting through this than I'm used to, 412 00:21:13,931 --> 00:21:15,275 but I know it's going to pay off because that's the 413 00:21:15,344 --> 00:21:19,413 best wood you can get here in Alaska is this birch, so. 414 00:21:19,482 --> 00:21:21,344 [sighs] 415 00:21:21,413 --> 00:21:24,206 All right, so just grab all these pieces, 416 00:21:24,275 --> 00:21:27,034 load them on my sled, I can set up a chopping block 417 00:21:27,103 --> 00:21:30,724 station over here and just to get this tree done. 418 00:21:30,793 --> 00:21:33,827 Saw out the next one, split it so they can dry out. 419 00:21:38,620 --> 00:21:41,103 It's thousands and thousands of pounds that I have to move, 420 00:21:41,172 --> 00:21:43,758 you know just one sled load at a time. 421 00:21:43,827 --> 00:21:46,413 If I want to get better wood I gotta do more work. 422 00:21:46,482 --> 00:21:48,896 There's, like, no freebies. 423 00:21:50,931 --> 00:21:52,793 Son of a [bleep]. 424 00:21:54,310 --> 00:21:56,655 I gotta make sure that I give myself the best chance 425 00:21:56,724 --> 00:21:59,586 possible for this wood to dry out and be ready for next year. 426 00:22:02,310 --> 00:22:05,517 Whew, all right splitting time. 427 00:22:15,758 --> 00:22:17,724 All-righty. 428 00:22:17,793 --> 00:22:20,344 That's a pretty good start right there. 429 00:22:22,482 --> 00:22:25,655 So, this is, this, this was the big boss tree. 430 00:22:25,724 --> 00:22:27,482 Now it's all firewood. 431 00:22:29,620 --> 00:22:33,413 That's one tree down, I got three to go. 432 00:22:38,862 --> 00:22:42,724 JESSI: Learning stuff out here just by trial and error 433 00:22:42,793 --> 00:22:44,931 is so much more rewarding. 434 00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:47,448 Than learning something in a classroom. 435 00:22:47,517 --> 00:22:50,172 Because this is nature's classroom, 436 00:22:50,241 --> 00:22:52,482 and she's the best teacher there is. 437 00:22:54,965 --> 00:22:57,310 I'm glad you're doing this and I'm not. 438 00:23:06,034 --> 00:23:07,965 JESSI: I'm right here if you need anything. 439 00:23:09,862 --> 00:23:16,275 Whew! Great! Wow, look at that. 440 00:23:17,862 --> 00:23:19,103 CHRIS: Any other ones or is that it? 441 00:23:19,172 --> 00:23:20,724 JESSI: I think that's it. 442 00:23:20,793 --> 00:23:22,310 CHRIS: Okay. 443 00:23:24,827 --> 00:23:27,206 CHRIS: All right. Get to work? 444 00:23:27,275 --> 00:23:28,793 JESSI: Yeah, let's get the roof up. 445 00:23:28,862 --> 00:23:32,586 I wanna get this thing done. 446 00:23:32,655 --> 00:23:35,896 Everything that we have out here is reused or recycled. 447 00:23:37,724 --> 00:23:41,241 Or will be reused and recycled in one way or the other. 448 00:23:41,310 --> 00:23:44,241 I mean, this tin is older than the house is. 449 00:23:44,310 --> 00:23:46,689 CHRIS: Kay, slide it a little bit. 450 00:23:46,758 --> 00:23:48,413 That's some real [bleep]. 451 00:23:48,482 --> 00:23:50,413 JESSI: It was probably sent to the Cos Jacket 452 00:23:50,482 --> 00:23:53,655 sometime between 1920 and 1950. 453 00:23:53,724 --> 00:23:56,310 And then, it was repurposed multiple times and it found 454 00:23:56,379 --> 00:24:00,862 its way 50 miles up the Cosna, right here at our homestead. 455 00:24:00,931 --> 00:24:02,413 CHRIS: There it is. 456 00:24:02,482 --> 00:24:04,103 JESSI: Great. 457 00:24:04,172 --> 00:24:06,862 Where'd you learn to cut tin like that, love? 458 00:24:06,931 --> 00:24:08,517 CHRIS: Believe it or not when I was an apprentice 459 00:24:08,586 --> 00:24:11,344 at the state. 460 00:24:11,413 --> 00:24:13,241 JESSI: Good ol' Alaska. 461 00:24:21,000 --> 00:24:22,931 CHRIS: There we go. 462 00:24:23,000 --> 00:24:24,413 How's that fit? 463 00:24:24,482 --> 00:24:26,137 JESSI: Great. CHRIS: Looks great. 464 00:24:26,206 --> 00:24:28,793 JESSI: Okay, so we just need to figure out how to nail that in. 465 00:24:31,793 --> 00:24:33,689 CHRIS: Oh, this isn't sketch at all. 466 00:24:33,758 --> 00:24:35,344 JESSI: Yeah... 467 00:24:35,413 --> 00:24:37,379 Most amount of sketch. 468 00:24:38,758 --> 00:24:40,862 CHRIS: Wow this is a [bleep] spot, huh? 469 00:24:40,931 --> 00:24:43,103 I don't think it's going anywhere. 470 00:24:43,172 --> 00:24:44,620 I don't think it can go anywhere. 471 00:24:50,344 --> 00:24:52,793 Oh, yeah, perfect. 472 00:24:52,862 --> 00:24:54,103 JESSI: Legit? 473 00:24:54,172 --> 00:24:56,068 CHRIS: Eh, I wouldn't use those words. 474 00:24:59,310 --> 00:25:01,827 Kay, go ahead and take the ladder out. 475 00:25:04,413 --> 00:25:06,482 Much better. 476 00:25:06,551 --> 00:25:08,034 JESSI: Ooh. 477 00:25:08,103 --> 00:25:09,482 CHRIS: What's wrong? 478 00:25:09,551 --> 00:25:11,689 JESSI: Just the spot that your, you know, foot's on. 479 00:25:11,758 --> 00:25:13,206 CHRIS: I'm trying to put, get down, too. 480 00:25:13,275 --> 00:25:14,724 JESSI: Okay, great. 481 00:25:14,793 --> 00:25:16,896 Just don't put all of your weight on that top branch. 482 00:25:16,965 --> 00:25:19,172 CHRIS: I'm not. 483 00:25:21,758 --> 00:25:23,724 Watch out! 484 00:25:23,793 --> 00:25:25,827 Kay, well, unfortunately I think I have to get up on this 485 00:25:25,896 --> 00:25:28,965 roof which I'm not super stoked about. 486 00:25:30,896 --> 00:25:33,413 JESSI: Not much holding you up, love. 487 00:25:33,482 --> 00:25:35,275 CHRIS: No [bleep]. 488 00:25:38,482 --> 00:25:40,275 Hey, Jess, how's everything look down there? 489 00:25:40,344 --> 00:25:41,862 Is everything moving? I can't see anything, 490 00:25:41,931 --> 00:25:43,379 and I don't like being on this. 491 00:25:43,448 --> 00:25:45,068 But it looks pretty solid? 492 00:25:45,137 --> 00:25:46,551 JESSI: It's looking pretty stout, I think. 493 00:25:46,620 --> 00:25:48,896 CHRIS: Okay, gonna kinda come out on it. 494 00:25:48,965 --> 00:25:51,655 Oh, my God I'm terrified of heights. 495 00:25:55,379 --> 00:25:57,034 [groans]. 496 00:25:58,275 --> 00:25:59,448 CHRIS: Okay. 497 00:25:59,517 --> 00:26:00,965 Do you wanna hand me that piece up? 498 00:26:01,034 --> 00:26:03,172 Or, put it in place there, whatever. 499 00:26:08,551 --> 00:26:10,517 Okay. 500 00:26:10,586 --> 00:26:12,965 The name of the game here, displace my weight. 501 00:26:13,034 --> 00:26:14,448 I'm gonna lay down on this, but I want you to come out in 502 00:26:14,517 --> 00:26:18,482 case I die, I don't kill you as well. 503 00:26:18,551 --> 00:26:20,517 JESSI: In case I die you don't come with me. 504 00:26:20,586 --> 00:26:21,896 CHRIS: Yeah. 505 00:26:21,965 --> 00:26:23,551 Tell me if you see anything start to move, 506 00:26:23,620 --> 00:26:26,000 but I'm pretty displaced here. 507 00:26:29,137 --> 00:26:30,241 Awesome. 508 00:26:30,310 --> 00:26:33,862 Got it. Nice. 509 00:26:33,931 --> 00:26:36,965 I'm just gonna chuck my hammer down, watch your head. 510 00:26:37,034 --> 00:26:38,241 JESSI: Where are you? 511 00:26:38,310 --> 00:26:40,103 Okay. 512 00:26:40,172 --> 00:26:42,103 CHRIS: I'm up on top of the roof. 513 00:26:45,482 --> 00:26:48,344 JOHNNY: I take on challenges out here 'cause it keeps my mind occupied, 514 00:26:48,413 --> 00:26:50,275 it keeps my mind safe. 515 00:26:50,344 --> 00:26:52,655 You can't be holed up in your cabin with a book and 516 00:26:52,724 --> 00:26:55,310 a warm fire... 517 00:26:55,379 --> 00:26:56,931 It's unrealistic. 518 00:26:57,000 --> 00:26:58,758 Java, come on. 519 00:27:03,482 --> 00:27:05,965 All right, so the next part for the bow and arrow project 520 00:27:06,034 --> 00:27:07,931 is the arrows. 521 00:27:08,000 --> 00:27:09,448 The fletchings are the feathers, 522 00:27:09,517 --> 00:27:11,655 those are from some ducks that I harvested 523 00:27:11,724 --> 00:27:13,000 earlier in the year. 524 00:27:13,068 --> 00:27:15,172 Wanna cut these down to size. 525 00:27:17,620 --> 00:27:20,068 I'm using willow sticks because they grow straight and 526 00:27:20,137 --> 00:27:23,000 they're lightweight. 527 00:27:23,068 --> 00:27:25,517 I'm gonna skin these arrows and get all the little buds 528 00:27:25,586 --> 00:27:28,655 and stuff that might cause drag when they're flying 529 00:27:28,724 --> 00:27:30,965 through the air, and just try to make them a little bit more 530 00:27:31,034 --> 00:27:33,000 cylindrical and straight. 531 00:27:36,448 --> 00:27:40,103 I think it'd be, you know, a dream come true if I could 532 00:27:40,172 --> 00:27:43,034 make a bow that I could actually hunt with. 533 00:27:43,103 --> 00:27:44,620 I think that'd be amazing. 534 00:27:44,689 --> 00:27:46,620 You know the first deer that I'd ever harvested 535 00:27:46,689 --> 00:27:49,655 was with a bow and arrow. 536 00:27:49,724 --> 00:27:53,137 I'm removing the, the bark off of these, 537 00:27:53,206 --> 00:27:56,448 and the more I remove it the thinner they get. 538 00:27:56,517 --> 00:27:59,206 I'm thinking they're gonna be too thin. 539 00:27:59,275 --> 00:28:01,310 Fool me once, fool me twice. 540 00:28:01,379 --> 00:28:02,517 I'm gonna pivot. 541 00:28:02,586 --> 00:28:04,310 I'm gonna remove these from the table. 542 00:28:04,379 --> 00:28:08,724 I've got some stuff laying around the cabin that could 543 00:28:08,793 --> 00:28:10,344 potentially work so I'm gonna have a peek. 544 00:28:12,793 --> 00:28:14,517 These are both pretty straight. 545 00:28:19,344 --> 00:28:21,310 Cool. 546 00:28:21,379 --> 00:28:24,379 So, when I made hunter skis earlier in the winter, 547 00:28:24,448 --> 00:28:27,172 they were pretty wide, and I cut a chunk off, 548 00:28:27,241 --> 00:28:28,482 and that's what this is. 549 00:28:28,551 --> 00:28:30,344 And I'm gonna start kind of shaping it down, 550 00:28:30,413 --> 00:28:32,448 hopefully getting more of an arrow-like shape, 551 00:28:32,517 --> 00:28:33,827 more cylindrical. 552 00:28:40,000 --> 00:28:41,310 When I was a little kid, 553 00:28:41,379 --> 00:28:44,103 I used to make bows with just a stick. 554 00:28:44,172 --> 00:28:46,931 I would find a curved stick and I would tie rubber bands 555 00:28:47,000 --> 00:28:50,275 for the string. 556 00:28:50,344 --> 00:28:51,965 And try to shoot little sticks, you know, 557 00:28:52,034 --> 00:28:53,689 ten feet or something like that. 558 00:28:53,758 --> 00:28:55,344 I did it all the time as a little kid, 559 00:28:57,586 --> 00:28:59,793 and here I am doing it as an adult. 560 00:28:59,862 --> 00:29:01,241 How cool is that? 561 00:29:05,620 --> 00:29:07,103 Yeah, I think it's gonna fly. 562 00:29:12,172 --> 00:29:14,931 Arrows are complete. 563 00:29:15,000 --> 00:29:17,310 Make some good target practice arrows. 564 00:29:17,379 --> 00:29:19,482 I really want to shoot 'em. 565 00:29:19,551 --> 00:29:20,965 Yeah, I'm excited to shoot these. 566 00:29:21,034 --> 00:29:22,655 I'm excited to try these out. 567 00:29:27,448 --> 00:29:30,310 ALEX: Like if I'm in the city for a little bit. 568 00:29:30,379 --> 00:29:33,241 And then I come back out here, the first thing I notice is 569 00:29:33,310 --> 00:29:35,965 that I'm almost never sitting here. 570 00:29:36,034 --> 00:29:38,551 Pretty much everything I do is exercise. 571 00:29:40,931 --> 00:29:44,068 The wood won't dry at all if it's getting wet all year long, you know? 572 00:29:52,862 --> 00:29:55,068 So, my wood's protected. 573 00:29:55,137 --> 00:29:56,827 Uh, now I'm just gonna grab my axe, 574 00:29:56,896 --> 00:29:59,931 and I'm gonna go get some spruce poles. 575 00:30:01,758 --> 00:30:05,413 So, I've done all this hard work to prepare for next winter. 576 00:30:05,482 --> 00:30:08,310 Now I can focus on my next task. 577 00:30:10,413 --> 00:30:12,344 So, I'm gonna try and make a homemade teepee. 578 00:30:12,413 --> 00:30:14,896 If I'm gonna be, you know, more like a subsistence hunter 579 00:30:14,965 --> 00:30:17,310 what I need to do is be able to travel a lot. 580 00:30:17,379 --> 00:30:19,241 I'm gonna need lots of camps down at different places that 581 00:30:19,310 --> 00:30:20,344 I travel to. 582 00:30:20,413 --> 00:30:22,551 There's one. 583 00:30:22,620 --> 00:30:24,172 So, I might have a fish camp. 584 00:30:24,241 --> 00:30:26,413 I might have a moose hunting camp. 585 00:30:32,827 --> 00:30:35,000 Uh, in order to travel well I want to make sure 586 00:30:35,068 --> 00:30:37,620 I got a good portable shelter to take with me. 587 00:30:39,724 --> 00:30:41,517 [sighs] 588 00:30:41,586 --> 00:30:43,310 Gonna need a couple tools. 589 00:30:43,379 --> 00:30:45,827 Grab my tarp, grab some cord, 590 00:30:47,137 --> 00:30:49,275 and then I'll get this kinda tripod made. 591 00:30:51,137 --> 00:30:52,758 I've never made a teepee, 592 00:30:52,827 --> 00:30:54,758 and so it's good to test it out here at camp 593 00:30:54,827 --> 00:30:57,551 first before I go out into the field with it. 594 00:30:57,620 --> 00:30:59,068 Well, this won't be good enough, 595 00:30:59,137 --> 00:31:01,137 but I'm just gonna kinda, just wanna kinda play with it 596 00:31:01,206 --> 00:31:04,000 and see how it's gonna work. 597 00:31:05,724 --> 00:31:08,620 The whole thing is it should it's something that should be able to, 598 00:31:08,689 --> 00:31:11,965 I can carry it on sleds easily, you know. 599 00:31:12,034 --> 00:31:15,379 Even with this really simple lashing right there I can 600 00:31:15,448 --> 00:31:17,551 probably go ahead and put the canvas on it, 601 00:31:17,620 --> 00:31:19,551 just to kind of get a sense of the size. 602 00:31:22,206 --> 00:31:23,931 I don't wanna be a masochist down here. 603 00:31:24,000 --> 00:31:25,172 I like to work hard. 604 00:31:25,241 --> 00:31:28,793 I like to throw myself into the elements, 605 00:31:28,862 --> 00:31:31,827 but I wanna overcome them and find ways to 606 00:31:31,896 --> 00:31:33,689 be comfortable in them. 607 00:31:33,758 --> 00:31:35,620 So, that's the whole point of doing these preparations. 608 00:31:40,931 --> 00:31:42,827 That's really tiny. 609 00:31:42,896 --> 00:31:44,137 That's like an outhouse. 610 00:31:44,206 --> 00:31:46,172 It's way too small. 611 00:31:46,241 --> 00:31:47,931 Obviously, the teepee's been around forever. 612 00:31:48,000 --> 00:31:49,034 I don't think a teepee's a bad idea, 613 00:31:49,103 --> 00:31:50,931 but just given the materials I have 614 00:31:51,000 --> 00:31:52,793 I don't think it makes sense. 615 00:31:52,862 --> 00:31:56,137 Now I got over 100 pounds of stuff. 616 00:31:56,206 --> 00:31:58,448 And it's not gonna make sense for what I'm actually trying 617 00:31:58,517 --> 00:31:59,793 to accomplish. 618 00:31:59,862 --> 00:32:01,241 So, I'm gonna have to compromise a little bit. 619 00:32:01,310 --> 00:32:03,275 So, I'm just gonna grab a few more tools and, uh, 620 00:32:03,344 --> 00:32:05,241 and then test it out. 621 00:32:09,172 --> 00:32:11,724 CHEVIE: Out here you're just a drop in the bucket compared to 622 00:32:11,793 --> 00:32:14,896 all the natural resources that provide for us. 623 00:32:14,965 --> 00:32:17,275 That allow us to be able to do the things that 624 00:32:17,344 --> 00:32:18,689 we love to do, 625 00:32:18,758 --> 00:32:20,137 because everything we love to do is right 626 00:32:20,206 --> 00:32:21,827 out our front door. 627 00:32:29,862 --> 00:32:31,655 SONTA: This is definitely more the time to do 628 00:32:31,724 --> 00:32:33,793 some blackfish trapping. 629 00:32:33,862 --> 00:32:36,931 Because things are melting and so it's a really good time to 630 00:32:37,000 --> 00:32:39,724 access the good fishing spots. 631 00:32:39,793 --> 00:32:43,620 I'm always interested in being able to put food on the table 632 00:32:43,689 --> 00:32:46,896 in some way and blackfish is a very awesome resource. 633 00:32:48,517 --> 00:32:50,827 We'll see what we get today everybody. 634 00:32:50,896 --> 00:32:56,551 CHEVIE: What do you see? SONTA: Well, I don't know. CHEVIE: How does your net look? 635 00:32:56,620 --> 00:32:59,241 SONTA: Good! At least it survived, I'm happy about that. 636 00:32:59,310 --> 00:33:00,724 Should we check it out? 637 00:33:04,103 --> 00:33:05,034 Oh! 638 00:33:05,103 --> 00:33:06,413 SYDNEY: And nothing. 639 00:33:06,482 --> 00:33:07,965 SONTA: Nothing at all. 640 00:33:08,034 --> 00:33:10,068 So, we probably just have to go a little deeper, 641 00:33:10,137 --> 00:33:13,068 so we should check yours first and see if deeper is better. 642 00:33:13,137 --> 00:33:15,413 CHEVIE: Yeah, we'll see, hopefully I got something. 643 00:33:17,103 --> 00:33:19,689 SYDNEY: Let's see what yours will have. 644 00:33:21,172 --> 00:33:22,965 SONTA: Feel heavy? 645 00:33:27,379 --> 00:33:28,551 CHEVIE: All right, there we go. 646 00:33:28,620 --> 00:33:29,896 SYDNEY: Yes! 647 00:33:29,965 --> 00:33:31,413 Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. 648 00:33:31,482 --> 00:33:35,275 SONTA: Oh, good! Wow! That's what we're looking for. 649 00:33:35,344 --> 00:33:37,862 CHEVIE: That's what we're looking for, right there. 650 00:33:39,172 --> 00:33:41,172 It was a huge success. 651 00:33:41,241 --> 00:33:43,241 All right, it looks like we probably got 652 00:33:43,310 --> 00:33:45,655 50 fish or so, I bet. 653 00:33:45,724 --> 00:33:48,034 And at the end of it, it's always a win. 654 00:33:48,103 --> 00:33:51,862 There's not a failure when you try new productive things; 655 00:33:51,931 --> 00:33:54,586 especially with our kids involved. 656 00:33:54,655 --> 00:33:55,931 SONTA: Sydney, what do you think about fishing 657 00:33:56,000 --> 00:33:57,068 in the wintertime? 658 00:33:57,137 --> 00:33:59,275 SYDNEY: I think it's awesome. 659 00:33:59,344 --> 00:34:01,068 SONTA: Ready to go see grandpa and bring him some fish? 660 00:34:01,137 --> 00:34:02,793 SYDNEY: Yeah! 661 00:34:06,206 --> 00:34:09,344 JESSI: Everywhere you look around the Cosna, 662 00:34:09,413 --> 00:34:12,103 you're surrounded by all of this beauty, 663 00:34:12,172 --> 00:34:15,965 and all of these lines that kind of move around and twist 664 00:34:16,034 --> 00:34:18,827 and turn just like the river itself. 665 00:34:26,275 --> 00:34:30,172 CHRIS: Got this random beam in here to deal with. 666 00:34:34,793 --> 00:34:38,275 Just gonna kinda trace around it a little bit to kind of. 667 00:34:38,344 --> 00:34:40,827 JESSI: Are we gonna put a hole through our wall? 668 00:34:42,551 --> 00:34:44,241 Eh, I'm feeling pretty good about it. 669 00:34:48,000 --> 00:34:49,965 CHRIS: All right. 670 00:34:50,034 --> 00:34:52,137 JESSI: Let's just remember this mess that you did. 671 00:34:52,206 --> 00:34:53,482 This hole. 672 00:34:53,551 --> 00:34:55,862 CHRIS: It's not my fault that beam's out there. 673 00:34:58,586 --> 00:35:01,000 JESSI: Oh my. 674 00:35:03,137 --> 00:35:05,586 Even though we're just building a bathhouse, 675 00:35:05,655 --> 00:35:07,517 this is just how things go. 676 00:35:07,586 --> 00:35:09,448 CHRIS: Where'd you go? JESSI: I'm right here. 677 00:35:09,517 --> 00:35:10,896 You know, we don't know what we're doing. 678 00:35:10,965 --> 00:35:13,448 We're doing kinda trial-and-error out here. 679 00:35:13,517 --> 00:35:15,448 I don't know what else to say, I mean, 680 00:35:15,517 --> 00:35:19,793 maybe it just would be too plain without that hole coming out through the side. 681 00:35:19,862 --> 00:35:21,172 CHRIS: Okay. 682 00:35:24,379 --> 00:35:25,689 JESSI: Okay. 683 00:35:27,103 --> 00:35:29,724 Here I am, worried that we're gonna be too city. 684 00:35:29,793 --> 00:35:30,827 [chuckles] 685 00:35:32,793 --> 00:35:34,482 CHRIS: Beautiful chaos. 686 00:35:36,310 --> 00:35:37,689 JESSI: Check out what I brought home from the 687 00:35:37,758 --> 00:35:39,241 hardware store, love. 688 00:35:39,310 --> 00:35:40,517 CHRIS: Damn, that's a triple-pane, man. 689 00:35:40,586 --> 00:35:41,896 JESSI: Oh, okay. 690 00:35:41,965 --> 00:35:43,344 CHRIS: That's like what goes in a cabin, man. 691 00:35:43,413 --> 00:35:46,206 That's like a, that's a really nice window. 692 00:35:46,275 --> 00:35:48,103 JESSI: It's a really nice bathhouse. 693 00:35:48,172 --> 00:35:49,413 CHRIS: It's not that nice. 694 00:35:49,482 --> 00:35:51,103 JESSI: Oh. 695 00:35:51,172 --> 00:35:53,000 CHRIS: I like that funky thing. 696 00:35:53,068 --> 00:35:54,620 That came out of the old bathhouse. 697 00:35:54,689 --> 00:35:55,896 Put it in here. 698 00:35:55,965 --> 00:35:57,206 That looks like the perfect size. 699 00:36:01,000 --> 00:36:02,517 This one'll mount up. 700 00:36:02,586 --> 00:36:05,620 JESSI: Um, if we can get that, that would be cool. 701 00:36:05,689 --> 00:36:07,137 CHRIS: I can get that in. 702 00:36:07,206 --> 00:36:09,896 JESSI: Awesome. 703 00:36:09,965 --> 00:36:11,448 The bathhouse is coming together. 704 00:36:11,517 --> 00:36:14,172 It has its little eccentricities and just these 705 00:36:14,241 --> 00:36:15,620 little things about it. 706 00:36:17,482 --> 00:36:18,827 Nothing's straight. 707 00:36:18,896 --> 00:36:20,172 CHRIS: What do you think? 708 00:36:20,241 --> 00:36:23,931 JESSI: It's wonderfully eclectic. 709 00:36:24,000 --> 00:36:25,448 CHRIS: Are you using big words because you know I don't know 710 00:36:25,517 --> 00:36:26,965 what it means? 711 00:36:27,034 --> 00:36:29,310 JESSI: Oh, no, I know what those words mean, love. 712 00:36:29,379 --> 00:36:30,344 CHRIS: I don't. 713 00:36:30,413 --> 00:36:31,586 JESSI: Eclectic? 714 00:36:33,758 --> 00:36:35,758 Nothing is perfectly level. 715 00:36:35,827 --> 00:36:39,724 Everything is angled in, kind of, the wrong way, 716 00:36:39,793 --> 00:36:42,896 but that's not what the Cosna has ever been. 717 00:36:44,724 --> 00:36:47,000 We are moments away. 718 00:36:47,068 --> 00:36:48,379 This is perfect. 719 00:36:48,448 --> 00:36:50,793 This will be really great for when it gets cold, 720 00:36:50,862 --> 00:36:54,586 and we need to get a roaring fire in here and have a bathhouse. 721 00:36:58,413 --> 00:37:00,586 JOHNNY: Alaska ignites a lot within my soul. 722 00:37:00,655 --> 00:37:06,310 It gives me an opportunity to live a life free of a lot of 723 00:37:06,379 --> 00:37:08,620 stuff that's weighed me down in my past. 724 00:37:16,827 --> 00:37:19,931 JOHNNY: The string I'm using for this bow is 725 00:37:20,000 --> 00:37:21,758 just micro-paracord. 726 00:37:24,758 --> 00:37:27,068 I don't know if it's gonna work but there's only one way 727 00:37:27,137 --> 00:37:28,448 to find out. 728 00:37:28,517 --> 00:37:30,103 It's what I have laying around the cabin, 729 00:37:30,172 --> 00:37:34,172 and that's what this bow-build is all about. 730 00:37:44,758 --> 00:37:46,793 And the bow's done. It's complete. 731 00:37:48,724 --> 00:37:50,103 Oh, yeah. 732 00:37:52,724 --> 00:37:55,206 So, I'm ready to grab my arrows, grab my target, 733 00:37:55,275 --> 00:37:57,137 head down to the lake and start flinging some arrows 734 00:37:57,206 --> 00:37:59,448 at that target. 735 00:38:01,344 --> 00:38:04,448 I take on challenges out here 'cause it keeps my mind busy. 736 00:38:04,517 --> 00:38:06,931 You know, it keeps my mind safe. 737 00:38:07,000 --> 00:38:08,862 'Cause that's how you have to live out here. 738 00:38:08,931 --> 00:38:10,758 The lifestyle is getting out there. 739 00:38:10,827 --> 00:38:12,482 It's just about challenging yourself, 740 00:38:12,551 --> 00:38:15,241 seeing what rejects you and what doesn't. 741 00:38:15,310 --> 00:38:17,448 I'm just setting up the target. 742 00:38:17,517 --> 00:38:19,655 It's pretty windy out here right now, 743 00:38:21,620 --> 00:38:24,172 probably not the best day to be using a bow and arrow for 744 00:38:24,241 --> 00:38:27,275 the first time but I'm pretty excited to try it out, 745 00:38:27,344 --> 00:38:29,827 so I'm just gonna go with it. 746 00:38:29,896 --> 00:38:32,310 Try this bad boy out. 747 00:38:32,379 --> 00:38:35,724 It's been a lot of work making this thing. 748 00:38:35,793 --> 00:38:38,896 I spent endless hours carving out this handle, 749 00:38:38,965 --> 00:38:41,275 cutting up these old skis, and I'm ready to start 750 00:38:41,344 --> 00:38:43,344 shooting some arrows. 751 00:38:48,275 --> 00:38:50,172 I hope it's gonna shoot good. 752 00:38:58,172 --> 00:39:02,172 ♪ ♪ 753 00:39:02,241 --> 00:39:04,379 JOHNNY: All right, it's not a bullseye, but that's a target hit. 754 00:39:04,448 --> 00:39:06,206 I'll take it. 755 00:39:08,172 --> 00:39:09,172 Let's try another one. 756 00:39:12,413 --> 00:39:14,793 Woo-hoo! 757 00:39:14,862 --> 00:39:17,758 It's a cool feeling to string up that arrow, 758 00:39:17,827 --> 00:39:19,344 pull it back, 759 00:39:19,413 --> 00:39:22,379 and just kinda feel that arrow sliding along my finger. 760 00:39:25,689 --> 00:39:27,137 It's awesome. 761 00:39:27,206 --> 00:39:29,034 It's really cool, a really good feeling to know that I 762 00:39:29,103 --> 00:39:30,965 can construct a bow from just what I have laying 763 00:39:31,034 --> 00:39:32,448 around my camp. 764 00:39:35,172 --> 00:39:38,172 You ready? Come on. Let's go. 765 00:39:43,931 --> 00:39:46,689 SONTA: A really important part that we do in our culture 766 00:39:46,758 --> 00:39:48,344 is giving that food away. 767 00:39:48,413 --> 00:39:50,655 We bring that to elders in the community and their 768 00:39:50,724 --> 00:39:53,827 grandparents who are really thankful for it. 769 00:39:53,896 --> 00:39:56,620 GRANDPA HAMILTON: Thank you, thank you, thank you for the fish. 770 00:39:58,482 --> 00:40:00,931 Some were way bigger? 771 00:40:01,000 --> 00:40:02,206 SONTA: Oh, wow. 772 00:40:02,275 --> 00:40:03,862 RYDER: Okay, I'm cold. 773 00:40:03,931 --> 00:40:05,275 GRANDPA HAMILTON: Looks good, thank you, thank you. 774 00:40:05,344 --> 00:40:07,310 SYDNEY: Welcome. 775 00:40:07,379 --> 00:40:09,241 SONTA: It's really great to see the kids interact with 776 00:40:09,310 --> 00:40:12,310 their grandpa and see the joy on their grandpa's face 777 00:40:12,379 --> 00:40:13,793 when they brought it to him. 778 00:40:13,862 --> 00:40:16,034 And so that generational exchange is always really 779 00:40:16,103 --> 00:40:17,586 exciting to see. 780 00:40:17,655 --> 00:40:18,827 Say goodnight, Grandpa. 781 00:40:18,896 --> 00:40:20,206 SYDNEY: Goodnight, Grandpa. 782 00:40:20,275 --> 00:40:21,827 GRANDPA HAMILTON: Okay, goodnight. Thank you. 783 00:40:21,896 --> 00:40:23,724 SONTA: Thank you. 784 00:40:25,034 --> 00:40:27,000 Are you guys excited to try some blackfish? 785 00:40:27,068 --> 00:40:28,827 KID: Yes. SYDNEY: Yeah. 786 00:40:28,896 --> 00:40:30,724 SONTA: This is really a delicacy that those elders 787 00:40:30,793 --> 00:40:32,724 love to have. 788 00:40:32,793 --> 00:40:34,413 So, let's see what happens, huh? 789 00:40:36,413 --> 00:40:38,000 CHEVIE: It's always cool to know where your food came from 790 00:40:38,068 --> 00:40:39,379 and how you got it. 791 00:40:39,448 --> 00:40:41,413 Instead of pulling it out of a plastic wrapper. 792 00:40:43,551 --> 00:40:46,413 The steel trap ended up catching a lot more fish, 793 00:40:46,482 --> 00:40:48,758 but we learned a lot more about that traditional trap 794 00:40:48,827 --> 00:40:50,620 than we did the steel trap so. 795 00:40:50,689 --> 00:40:51,965 SONTA: Yeah, for sure. 796 00:40:52,034 --> 00:40:53,172 CHEVIE: We're gonna be able to, uh, 797 00:40:53,241 --> 00:40:55,310 make it better the next time. 798 00:40:55,379 --> 00:40:59,068 SONTA: Looking good. They're ready to eat. 799 00:41:00,793 --> 00:41:03,862 Self-sufficiency and hard work is one of the values of 800 00:41:03,931 --> 00:41:09,413 Athabascan people and to see that knowledge passed down, 801 00:41:09,482 --> 00:41:12,206 it's really important. 802 00:41:12,275 --> 00:41:14,103 CHEVIE: I expect all of that blackfish to be gone, 803 00:41:14,172 --> 00:41:15,724 just like that hot chocolate. 804 00:41:17,448 --> 00:41:20,931 SONTA: Out here, building, hunting, 805 00:41:21,000 --> 00:41:25,517 nothing is really seen as a failure but an opportunity to improve. 806 00:41:27,896 --> 00:41:31,068 JESSI: Check it out. Boom. Boom. Boom. 807 00:41:31,137 --> 00:41:34,034 Yeah. Totally doable. 808 00:41:38,517 --> 00:41:40,172 All right, ready? 809 00:41:40,241 --> 00:41:42,034 CHRIS: Uh-hmm. JESSI: From here. CHRIS: Yep. 810 00:41:42,103 --> 00:41:44,896 JESSI: Over to here, right? 811 00:41:44,965 --> 00:41:46,689 CHRIS: Yep. I'll get it cut out. 812 00:41:48,068 --> 00:41:50,517 Our first time we had this was like utilitarian. 813 00:41:50,586 --> 00:41:52,068 We needed it done. 814 00:41:52,137 --> 00:41:54,413 We needed to have a shower, but now having a bathhouse is 815 00:41:54,482 --> 00:41:57,275 almost like our symbol of our livelihood out here. 816 00:41:58,655 --> 00:42:01,241 It's pretty cool. 817 00:42:02,275 --> 00:42:03,413 It's like a jack-o-lantern. 818 00:42:03,482 --> 00:42:04,586 JESSI: It is. 819 00:42:04,655 --> 00:42:05,965 CHRIS: That you worked on one side, 820 00:42:06,034 --> 00:42:07,758 and I worked on the other. 821 00:42:07,827 --> 00:42:10,482 JESSI: I think it's looking great. 822 00:42:10,551 --> 00:42:11,758 CHRIS: When I was a young man, 823 00:42:11,827 --> 00:42:13,862 I wanted to have a really good job, 824 00:42:13,931 --> 00:42:17,724 a wife, and kids, do the normal American thing. 825 00:42:17,793 --> 00:42:20,103 That seemed really important to me, 826 00:42:20,172 --> 00:42:22,551 and the more time I spend with Jessi and the more time 827 00:42:22,620 --> 00:42:24,827 we spend out at the Cosna, I'm starting to realize that 828 00:42:24,896 --> 00:42:28,551 there's a lot more to life, and that's just living. 829 00:42:28,620 --> 00:42:30,206 JESSI: Christopher. 830 00:42:32,586 --> 00:42:34,172 ALEX: That's what it's all about. 831 00:42:35,482 --> 00:42:36,896 Just living. 832 00:42:38,103 --> 00:42:41,793 So, I got a few kinda things here. 833 00:42:41,862 --> 00:42:44,241 In order to do a proper teepee, 834 00:42:44,310 --> 00:42:46,655 I'll need some materials that I just don't have here. 835 00:42:46,724 --> 00:42:49,172 These heavy tarps aren't gonna work. 836 00:42:49,241 --> 00:42:51,724 So, I was just hit with an inspiration, 837 00:42:51,793 --> 00:42:53,413 I'll do an A-frame. 838 00:42:53,482 --> 00:42:55,793 So, I think I can do this with just one tarp, 839 00:42:55,862 --> 00:42:57,689 and then just a few ropes. 840 00:43:01,689 --> 00:43:04,068 The big thing about Alaska is you're always getting 841 00:43:04,137 --> 00:43:05,827 ready for the future. 842 00:43:05,896 --> 00:43:08,344 I mean that's why I admire the indigenous people 843 00:43:08,413 --> 00:43:10,482 who lived here before European settlers. 844 00:43:11,862 --> 00:43:13,517 I don't think there's any other people in the world who 845 00:43:13,586 --> 00:43:16,137 had to think so far ahead in time, you know? 846 00:43:18,482 --> 00:43:20,275 A lot of times, if we're talking about being prepared, 847 00:43:20,344 --> 00:43:21,724 you know, it just means, 848 00:43:21,793 --> 00:43:23,551 "Oh I gotta prepare for that meeting next week or 849 00:43:23,620 --> 00:43:24,931 something like that, right?" 850 00:43:27,310 --> 00:43:29,379 But here you, you have to think, you know, 851 00:43:29,448 --> 00:43:32,344 an entire year in advance sometimes and if you don't... 852 00:43:32,413 --> 00:43:34,620 you can actually get yourself into a dire 853 00:43:34,689 --> 00:43:38,206 almost unescapable situation. 854 00:43:42,413 --> 00:43:44,448 ALEX: And, uh, it's just something I'll have to keep at, 855 00:43:44,517 --> 00:43:46,758 you know, from year-to-year. 856 00:43:46,827 --> 00:43:50,344 So that's a simple shelter, but what I like about it is 857 00:43:50,413 --> 00:43:52,482 all you gotta do is take this tarp and this rope and, 858 00:43:52,551 --> 00:43:54,000 and that's it. 859 00:43:55,344 --> 00:43:56,793 You know, there's no guarantees. 860 00:43:56,862 --> 00:43:57,896 Oh, yeah. 861 00:43:57,965 --> 00:43:59,793 But, you know, if I wanted things where 862 00:43:59,862 --> 00:44:01,310 there's a guaranteed outcome, 863 00:44:01,379 --> 00:44:03,310 I'd just stay home and play video games, right? 864 00:44:05,931 --> 00:44:07,965 Captioned by Cotter Media Group