Sarah Palin's Alaska (2010) s01e08 Episode Script
Gold Mining and Oil
Sarah: Alaska -- I love this state like I love my family.
The last few years have been pretty busy, So this summer, we're setting aside time To spend with family and friends, Doing what we love to do.
And that's exploring alaska.
This weekend, we're heading to nome on a quest for gold, Just like the miners of old.
Mom, bring your bucket! Hurry! When I was a kid, Family adventures were part of what made me a real alaskan.
And now it's time to pass that tradition on to piper.
All this gold is all mine.
Piper! I'm selling it on ebay.
No.
No.
Yeah, I am.
On this trip, we'll uncover some of alaska's hidden jewels.
On water Holy moly! And on land on a truly alaskan adventure.
Don't hit the iceberg, piper.
That's like the titanic.
Whoa! [ laughs .]
Whoa, this is cool! There they go.
[ gasps .]
Wow.
I feel like we're on an african safari.
you need a place to be your sanctuary follow me there come on, follow me there where love, like a river, flows peace like you've never known and joy never-ending lives won't you follow me there? won't you follow me there? where love, like a river, flows peace like you've never known and joy never-ending lives a place where faith can find hope that will never die follow me there come on, follow me there -- Captions by vitac -- Captions paid for by discovery communications Are you riding with him or us? You know, growing up in a really tiny town in wasilla, Family becomes a big part of your social life, And I want my parents to be a big part Of my kids' lives as well.
So today my dad and I are taking piper On a little adventure to valdez, nome.
So, do we have all the kids? But first, we're heading over to the local reindeer farm To spend some time with the whole family.
It's party time.
You guys think you're ready to feed reindeer? Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! Oh, wow.
To feed a reindeer, it's simple.
You put your hands out like this.
Will they bite you? Oh, they can't bite you Because they don't have any top teeth.
Here's your cup.
Food, girls.
Sarah: Grandma, don't get run over by a reindeer.
Are we ready? Chuck: Oh, I just love to go out with my kids and my grandkids And it brings back a lot of fond memories, Especially with sarah.
And she's still my little girl.
[ food rattling in cups .]
sarah: Come on.
Oh, my gosh.
Hello! [ laughter .]
Do they kick in the back? Do they kick in the back? [ indistinct conversation .]
There you go, big guy.
Aah! Yeah, it does.
[ screams .]
Okay, this one's really, really hungry.
Uh-huh.
Hello, love.
Geez, todd.
Well, what do you do when you run out of these things? [ laughs .]
That's it.
Sorry.
Tom: Never go in a pen with a moose -- never.
'cause they're so mean and dangerous.
Sarah: Wow.
How old is it, tom? 2 years old.
And the way you kiss a moose Watch this, guys.
Oh, my gosh.
Who's the brave soul in the palin-heath family? Oh, I wasn't too much into "kissing the moose" thing.
No.
But feeding from a distance -- that was good enough for me.
Hey, tom, one of these girls is gonna kiss the moose.
Come on, do it, sister.
Tom: He won't bite.
He just wants the banana.
Sarah: Don't scream, either, willow.
[ screams .]
I just said don't s-- Let it kiss you.
You wasted a banana, kid.
[ laughter .]
Moose kissers, kiss now or forever hold your peace.
Okay, this is gonna be a blast.
We're going to valdez.
It'll be good.
My dad is the perfect alaskan guide.
All the quirky adventures he took me on as a kid Really taught me how to think for myself, Work hard, and embrace challenges, And now it's piper's turn.
Today we're taking her and her cousin kier On a quirky little expedition To retrace the steps of alaska's gold prospectors.
Our first stop is valdez, Where the original gold rush began.
So, piper, we're gonna look for valdez glacier.
Let's get a bird's-eye view of it Because we're gonna kayak around the base Of the valdez glacier today.
And also, we're gonna look down here see a part Of that 800-mile-long trans-alaska oil pipeline, too.
My teacher -- she taught us about it.
It flows through 800 miles of pipeline, And it goes over 3 different mountain ranges, And where does it end up? In the water.
No.
Heaven forbid! We went to valdez a lot as kids.
My dad -- he was my coach in basketball.
We would drive over nine-hour trips In freezing-cold school buses with no heaters, Bundled up in down sleeping bags, To get to valdez to play our basketball games.
I was really excited to show piper valdez today.
Welcome.
Sarah: So, this is your home, huh? This is my office right here.
This is beautiful.
Sam: So, welcome to the valdez glacial lake.
This is beautiful.
Wow.
In the 1880s, 1890s, Prospectors were coming to valdez In the hopes that this would be an easy route to the klondike.
Chuck: Can you imagine trekking up this thing with -- Sarah: Carrying a thousand pounds of something, dragging it? No.
No, thanks.
Only 400 of them got rich.
Out of how many? Over 100,000.
Oh, my gosh.
I was lucky growing up with my dad as a schoolteacher.
I'd get to bail on my own class, And I'd get to hook up with dad's classroom And travel all over the state On all of his really cool field trips.
And I'm glad piper is getting to experience that, too.
Piper: Mom, have you got wet? Sarah: No, not at all.
Aah! You got me wet! [ laughs .]
We have to get her.
Man: You deserved that.
[ laughing .]
ow! We're getting hit! [ laughter .]
Chuck: Should we ram them? Sarah: Bumper kayaks.
[ laughter .]
What are you guys doing? [ piper laughs .]
Don't hit the iceberg, piper.
That's like the titanic.
Sam: So, guys, I just want to point out a couple things.
You see this rock right here? We don't want to go under at rock.
It could slide this way.
Look how it's just balanced, dad, on a chunk of ice.
It's kind of scary.
So, you're gonna want to stay on this side Of this little channel.
There's gonna be lots of little things coming down.
So we'll try to stay out of the fall zone.
Chuck: Don't get too close.
[ chuckles .]
Whoa.
Those are like pieces of shrapnel.
The little thing I wanted to look at Is right at the back of this here.
Oh, yeah.
Wow.
It's really coming down at the mouth of that thing, too.
Oh, it is.
Definitely hard-hat area.
Piper: Can we go under the rain? Heck yeah, we can.
[ laughs .]
Okay.
Here we go.
Chuck: We going back in there? We're backing it.
"beep! Beep! Back it up," In the words of george costanza.
"beep!" crap! Nice.
Ooh, this is cool, though.
Sam: Now, don't bash your head on the ice.
I know, man.
That would put me in a bad mood.
[ laughs .]
Piper: Kayaking was fun.
And I went under a cave, And we could touch the ceiling, And it looked like it was raining.
It was really cool.
This is awesome, though.
Hey, gr-- Aah! Whoa.
Let's get the heck out of here.
Chuck: Okay, sarah.
Let's get out of here fast.
Sarah: My dad is amazing.
He's 72 years old.
Wow! Did you see that chunk fall, though? I learned from him when I was a little girl That, you know, this isn't a dress rehearsal.
We want to seize the moment.
We want to get out there and enjoy, See it firsthand.
What I'm doing is passing on the tradition To our children now.
[ chuckles .]
That was pretty cool.
That was one of those freezing-cold carnival rides -- Splash mountain.
We're not in the fall zone.
Sarah: You can't stay under there very long If you want to stay alive.
How could it not just make you cry, Just get that lump in your throat And this enormous appreciation for america's finest? What are you doing? We'll get one floating.
[ laughing .]
I'm trying to get over there.
Okay, I'm not gonna do a thing.
You get over there.
Here we go.
[ piper laughing .]
Piper? [ both laughing .]
You're messing with the rudder.
Piper, you're a meanie.
Did you? No, that was nerd.
He put his paddle under and flipped it.
[ laughter .]
Don't laugh! Sarah: One of the first memories that I have Of being out on the water with my dad was duck hunting.
And I used to think, "man, I wonder if any other 1st graders Out there at 3:00 or 4:0 in the morning in a marsh, Out paddling around with their dad, Looking for ducks so that they can have a nice dinner.
" Sam: See that there? [ whistles .]
Uh-huh.
Basically, we're gonna try to get out on this iceberg.
But I don't want you to just hop right out like this is land.
Okay? We can't assume there's anything in the water to stand on.
Be very careful.
We're on ice, okay? So just move nice and slow.
Sarah: The thing about this terrain is that it's unpredictable.
And all this melting ice Can be an accident waiting to happen.
But that was a risk we were willing to take, Because we weren't about to leave Without walking the same route that the prospectors took.
Careful, pipe.
Piper: Come on.
Okay.
I'm old.
Well, then hurry up.
Oh, my gosh.
You're freaking me out.
Sam: We're like the prospectors of old, making our way.
Let's kind of work our way right over to the tunnel here And just take a look, see what it looks like.
So, guys, I just want to point out again That there's these few rocks.
Kier, back up.
We want to make sure that we're not in the fall zone.
Sarah: We saw the ice chunks And gravel pieces of all sizes overhehead.
The other day, this rock fell off of the roof.
Holy moly.
I know.
So, you can't stay under there very long If you want to stay alive.
Can I go in there? Well, basically, either in or out.
I'm gonna go in.
Okay, one, two, three, go.
Sam: Be careful.
It's really slippery in there, too.
Kier: Whoa.
Whoa.
Chuck jr: Really wet.
If you fell in there, you would never come back up, So don't go over there too close.
Oh, man.
I know.
Be careful.
Just hold on to mama.
I think we should leave now.
Sam: Okay.
We probably ought to get off this iceberg.
Chuck jr: You don't have to go so fast.
We have to go fast.
We're in a race.
Oh, you guys want to race to shore? Here we go.
Paddle, piper.
Paddle.
Grandpa, slow down.
Slow down! Sarah: It's in our nature.
We have to compete.
Chuck: Speed up.
Let's catch them, piper.
Paddle.
Let's beat sarah and grandpa.
They think they're gonna beat us.
Piper: Get her! Get her! Hurry.
Come on, piper.
I'm gonna beat you.
Hurry.
We're catching up.
Piper had so much fun, and I was very proud of her That she kind of wanted to show that she was gonna be tough out there And she wasn't gonna complain no matter how tired she got.
And it's really cool to see a kid out in nature, Just loving it so much.
Oh, my gosh.
We have to get her.
Get her.
Get her! Oh, my gosh.
The final seconds.
No! No! Come on, piper.
Chuck: You're too slow, piper.
Sarah: We won.
Piper: No, they didn't.
We won.
Didn't we, grandpa? Chuck: We won.
He said we did, and we did.
Piper: First the worst, second the best.
That's a good lollipop.
Zero calories.
I couldn't leave valdez without showing the kids the end Of the 800-mile-long trans-alaska pipeline.
And since there's no access by road, The best way to see it is by boat.
This is awesome! Over there there is a sea lion Piper: Where? It's huge.
Oh, my gosh.
I've never seen valdez so pretty.
Piper, there's that seal.
Behind you.
[ imitates barking .]
What are baby seals called? I forgot.
Pups.
I have a beautiful sealskin purse An eskimo lady way up in tatitlek made me.
Man: You see these sea lions? People say that man's activity Prohibits wildlife from enjoying their habitat.
No, they're enjoying man's activities right there.
Brad: Let's go make a loop around here, Going by the pipeline.
Sure.
Would you like to be a driver? You guys can take a turn.
Let's go.
Holy moly! We'll set you up at the wheel.
We're risking our lives.
Okay, pipe.
Jump in there.
Don't hit that boat in front of you, And don't run over any sea lions.
Can I make it faster? No.
Sarah: Todd -- for many years, He owned an outdoor-recreation shop.
So when we were running that, You know, the kids were around the boats.
So piper -- she's a little motorhead.
So, yeah, an opportunity to get to steer the wheel, Piper seized that.
What is that? That's the end of the pipeline, you guys.
After 800 miles from prudhoe bay, That's where the oil flows, and it lands here.
Kier: That's cool.
Sarah: The oil industry is 85% of alaska's economy.
It's huge for us, And it's providing a lot of well-paying jobs For a lot of alaskan families, including our own.
Todd started working up on the north slope back in 1989, And many family members have worked here in valdez.
Oh.
This is heaven.
The next stop on our adventure is nome, A town that's had a case of gold fever since 1898.
Our plan is to visit some locals at a mining camp And do a little prospecting of our own.
My parents' anniversary is coming up, so we thought, "wouldn't it be neat to give my mom a piece of jewelry Made from alaskan gold that we found ourselves?" Beautiful day, huh? Wow.
You must be big john.
Little john.
I'm little john.
Hi, chuck.
How are you, sir? How you doing? Chuck: When we arrived in nome, Little john from the gold-mining camp picked us up.
We're going out to cripple river camp.
Chuck: You know the way? I know the way.
[ laughing .]
little john isn't very big.
I'd say he's about 5'4" And probably weighs about 110 pounds.
I kept calling him "big john" to kind of flatter him.
Little john: It's a beautiful day today.
Sarah: I know! Who would have thought in nome it could be even this warm? I love it! Nome is a really unique place to prospect Because gold from the arctic ocean Washes right up on the beach.
So, even though some people Run serious underwater mining operations, All you really need to strike gold here Is a shovel and a patch of sand.
Chuck jr.
: Look out to the left over there, That floating barge with the excavator on it.
They're mining right there.
That's crazy.
They'll put you to work here.
Sarah: Nice.
Chuck: I'd heard about the camp before.
I expected john wayne To come galloping down the road on his horse.
It looked like an old western town.
Sarah: Whoo-hoo! Hey.
Hi, guys.
Welcome to cripple.
Hi.
Nice to see you.
You too.
Chuck jr.
: So, what do you got planned for us today, tom? Well, we got some four-wheelers over here.
We're gonna hop on the four-wheelers And go down to my secret spot on the beach down there.
I can pretty much guarantee you we're gonna find gold.
How much? I don't know.
But there's gold down there on that beach, And it's always there.
It's consistent.
Sarah: This is awesome.
Let's go hop on the four-wheelers And get started, huh? Sarah, if you want to ride in my machine, it's a 700.
It's a pretty mean machine.
Is it all automatic? It's all automatic.
Well, then, of course.
But there's a lot in the throttle.
I will be careful.
Piper, you want to ride with me? You're missing out! [ piper laughs .]
Whoo! Bring your bucket! Hurry! I can't keep up with her.
All this gold is all mine.
Piper! I'm selling it on ebay.
No.
Yeah, I am.
We haven't discussed anything like that.
Well, I am.
Sarah: My family and I just arrived At the cripple river mining camp, And we're really excited to jump on some atvs And tear down to the beach to begin our search for gold.
Sarah: Piper, you want to ride with me? You're missing out! [ piper laughs .]
Whoo! We're going into the sunshine.
Yahoo! When we got down to the beach, we saw dozens of people Oh, awesome! All of them shoveling sand into beach boxes, Which separate out the gold.
I can't wait to get out there with piper and my dad And dig, baby, dig.
[ laughs .]
This does have power.
I like it.
Tom: Go get some gold! These are the beach boxes.
Okay.
When you go to digging, go after the black dirt And slowly feed it in.
And when the pump comes on, it's gonna shoot water And extract the gold out of the material.
The matting in here is really what is special.
See how it's got the riffles in here? And these are specially designed for catching fine gold, Small particles of gold.
Run that through your box, and that's got gold in it.
Piper: Whoo-hoo! Does it come down to who works harder or who's luckiest? I think it comes down to both, But the best prospectors I know are ladies.
Yeah! There's no doubt about it.
Yeah, let's compete.
Life is competition.
You guys can be on that box.
Chuck jr.
: Okay.
And the girls are over here.
And we'll see who gets the most gold.
Ooh! I think the separating of teams here To incorporate some healthy family competition To see who gets the most gold -- It seems like our family always ends up doing that.
Somehow, someway, we involve some competition.
Well, let's get rich.
Chuck jr.
: All right.
Dig in that black sand.
We'll load them into the buckets And then haul them down there.
Piper, do you see what we're doing? We're gonna put sand in these buckets.
Yeah, get down into that black stuff here.
Piper: You have to help your dad because he's blind.
He's color blind.
So, he's blind and grandpa's deaf, And between the two Chuck: And piper's wild.
And piper's wild.
And you're crazy.
Right here, sister, look.
I love it.
I love it.
Dig, dig, dig! Dig, dig, dig, dig, dig! One more scoop.
Can you carry that? Go, go, go.
We got to figure out how to do this.
Chuck: When we were on the beach, Piper and kier just worked their tails off.
The competition was immense between them.
I never saw those two little guys work so hard.
All this gold is all mine.
Sarah: Piper! What can I sell it on? What can you sell it on? Yeah.
You mean, like, ebay-ish? Yeah.
No.
I'm selling it on ebay.
No.
Yeah, I am.
We haven't discussed anything like that.
Hoo-hoo-hoo! Yay! Sarah: Whoo-hoo! Go, baby.
Go.
Chuck jr.
: You should see all our gold, piper.
Our box is so full of gold, you can't even believe it.
Piper: Hurry up! Piper, be nice! You come get some sand.
All right.
Mom, bring your bucket! Hurry! I'm coming! I can't keep up with her.
Are you selling your gold? Are you? Yeah.
All of it? Uh-huh.
How much are you gonna sell it for? I'm selling mine for something-thousand.
I'm gonna sell mine for about 80.
$80,000? $80.
Sarah: Whoo-hoo! If we have enough at the end, know what we should just do? Hmm? Make it into one coin.
[ gasps .]
that's the goal, anyway, right? All right.
That's the last of the buckets.
Now we'll let it all clear out.
Piper: I think I'm gonna be rich.
Chuck jr.
: We shut off the pump, and it's time to clean up.
I was pretty confident that we were gonna win the competition, Because I figured I could shovel faster than sarah could.
Sarah: Wow! Look at that gold! Look at that! Whoa! Chuck jr.
: You got way bigger stuff.
We didn't get any of that big stuff.
Cindy: The girls look pretty good here.
Do you concede? Okay, I concede.
Okay.
Thank you.
Thank you.
I finally beat chuck at something.
Tom: Okay.
That's a few hundred dollars in gold right there.
That's a little bit of cripple river beach gold.
Sarah: Thank you, guys, very much.
Piper: It was really fun spending time with my mom and grandpa.
I love to be in the outdoors.
Dear lord, I ask that we have a safe day on the bottom.
Sarah: It's freezing-cold water down there.
Anything could go wronggg at any time.
So if we walk any closer, we'd spook them, you think? Chuck: Walk up there real slow.
There they go.
Kier, crawl in there and hand me that sleeping bag.
Hurry up.
Sarah: Camping on the beach in nome was spectacular.
Chuck jr.
: Sarah, there's bacon over here.
Some headlines talk about me being such a diva, you know, And we just crack up with at one, going, "yeah, this is all diva all the time up here in alaska.
" What are you doing? Piper: Getting dressed.
No one come in or look.
Nobody wants to look, sister.
Chuck jr.
: Don't put that sunscreen away.
Leave it out today 'cause we're gonna need it out on the water.
Sarah: We didn't get enough gold for my mom's anniversary gift On the beach yesterday, So today we're trying something different.
Some locals are taking us out on their dredge To do some underwater mining.
Hey.
Good morning, everybody.
Sarah: Morning.
How are you? Oh, outstanding.
How was your night on the beach on the bering sea? It was beautiful.
Chuck jr.
: We'll get this broken down as quick as we can And get on the water and start finding some gold.
How are you? Good, sarah.
You all right? This type of mining can get very dangerous, So the kids are gonna stay on shore with my dad.
Oh, this is gonna be fun.
As we rode out to the dredge, I saw all kinds Of other homemade gold-mining contraptions.
Nick: You guys can just step out.
We'll hold the boat for you.
Bob: Make sure you gra a good rail or that rope there.
All right.
Welcome to the gold dredge.
Sarah: Thank you.
This is it.
Well, what's happening here is, we have this motor here That runs a high-pressure water pump Which is sucking the seawater up.
The hose is on the bottom of the ocean, And that's where we're gonna be down there.
And we're gonna be vacuuming up the bottom of the sea out here, And then we'll recover our gold.
Right behind sarah, we have the hot water heater That's gonna make hot water for us So that we can pump hot water into our suits to keep us warm.
Chuck jr.
: Okay.
All right, sarah, so we're gonna be working on top, Making sure the guys down below Got air, water, hot water going in -- Everything they need.
If anything happens, We're tethered to them with this umbilical cord.
That's hot water and air going right down to the diver.
These are our two air pumps.
Sarah: Okay.
You got to make sure those are running.
And we're just gonna watch bubbles, Make sure that bubbles are coming up, You know the guys are getting good air.
Okay.
That's about it.
Any questions? No, just anxious to see them get down there.
Awesome.
Chuck jr.
: Our life is in your hands, sarah.
Just don't forget that.
Sarah: Since I'm not a diver, I'm gonna stay up on deck while my brother goes underwater.
This is dangerous for even the most veteran divers Because as calm as the water looks from up here, Down below, it would only take one strong current For chuck to be ripped from his oxygen supply And carried away.
Chuck, let's pray -- god's hand of protection.
Dear lord, I ask that we have a safe day on the bottom.
Please look out for all our family and keep us all safe.
Amen.
Amen.
Amen.
All right.
All right, let's do it.
Mm-hmm.
Sarah: Okay.
Very careful.
Sarah: The water in the arctic ocean is very cold.
If something were to go wrong with the hot-water line, It would only be a matter of minutes Before hypothermia kicked in.
But these divers are willing to take the risk Because, on a good day, They can bring in more than $2,000 worth of gold every hour.
Nick: What is happening is, on the bottom, That 8-inch suction line Is actually like a huge vacuum cleaner.
It's sucking everything they can.
They're down there pumping that into the ground And sucking up every speck of dirt that'll come up.
All this material is just getting moved A couple -- maybe 20, 30 yards.
It's going right back to the bottom.
The gold's heavy, So it doesn't make it out the end.
It actually gets stuck right in this box.
Chuck jr.
: As I'm actually dredging, The whole goal is to get down to this clay layer.
And as soon as you get to that layer You start to see the gold.
And it literally looks like somebody took a salt shaker And just shook little specks of gold All over that clay layer.
So once you start really working, You're not paying attention to how tired you are.
You just want to move boulders as fast as you can.
Sarah: I know that this is very, very dangerous work That these guys are engaged in.
Nick: You can almost see them down there.
You can see where the bubbles are coming from.
Yeah.
With the hoses, with the air supply, It's freezing-cold water down there.
Anything could go wrong at any time.
Good? Good.
Did you find any gold? Yep.
Plenty of gold.
Take a look and see what we got over here.
Look.
Right here.
We should run some water over this.
Just lift that up.
I see a couple of flakes over there.
They're beautiful.
Man: Yeah, a big one.
Holy moly.
Look at that.
Nick: You know, a good miner wwuld put that right in his lip.
[ sarah laughs .]
And there it is.
Now you know where it's at the whole time.
You don't get worried.
Have you held one that big, sarah? Let me see this.
Not every day do we find those.
Yeah.
That's neat.
That's great.
Beautiful piece.
That's beautiful.
What a successful day, what a beautiful day.
Anxious to see how much gold we got.
Hopefully it's enough for the gift That we want to present to my mom.
Bob: All right.
Thanks a lot, bob.
It was a great experience.
Piper, I really like this rock for some reason.
Piper: Can you put these in your pocket? Yeah.
Or hold them.
Ooh, I wonder if there's blueberries on those hills.
Piper? This is blueberry country.
Chuck jr.
: Look up on the bank, Up on your left further up, sarah.
Yeah.
I want to go right up there.
Piper: No! I want to go back.
Okay, we'll walk this way, piper.
Kier, run up to the top of there And see if there's any fresh blueberries.
Okay, piper diaper.
Gross.
What, honey? It's mud.
Let's find blueberries, kier.
We're looking for this right here, kier.
Bingo.
Sarah: Do you want to get on dry ground? Yea.
Come.
No, that's mud! Should I carry you? Look, all through here, These are fresh ripe blueberries.
Here's a perfect spot to cross.
Wait! Go slow.
Here's a nice green one for you.
I dare you to eat that one.
Go.
Be nice.
See? Go where the land is dry.
They're delicious, much better than you can buy in a store.
I I I I I I think it's an adventure.
That's poo.
Sarah: I think you need a nap.
Hey, lookit.
Piper, come.
I love musk-ox.
Come take a picture.
These are awesome animals.
Do you see the babies? There's babies.
If somebody's gonna come threaten One of the baby musk-ox, All the adults surround the baby.
The musk-ox behavior is fascinating, And, in fact, in my last address as governor, I use the example Of how they circle and they protect their young.
And I thought, "I'm probably the only governor in the nation "who knows what a musk-ox's all about "and how it's applicable To how I think that we should be as a society.
" You got to remember, they're a prehistoric animal.
They ran around with the mammoths And the mastodons and saber-toothed tigers.
Sarah: They still look it.
They survived.
They're a weird animal.
They are odd.
Come take a picture.
Can you see it? Can you see the musk-ox behind us? So, if we walked any closer, we'd spook them, you think? They're gonna run.
Let's walk up there a little bit.
These are awesome animals.
Let's see.
Chuck, you want me to take a picture? I'll take a picture of you.
See? They're protecting their babies.
Watch.
They're gonna surround their little ones.
Oh! I love them! Let's go up a little ways.
Piper, come.
We'll do what the musk-ox do.
We'll surround you.
You get behind us.
I'll be the mama musk-ox.
These are the coolest animals.
There they go.
There they go.
That was cool.
I feel like we're on an african safari.
I'm honored to meet you! Honored to meet you.
How could it not just make you cry, Just get that lump in your throat And this enormous appreciation for america's finest? Oh! Overwhelming.
I can die and go to heaven now.
Sarah: Our trip to nome was great.
And it was a fun opportunity For piper to spend some time with my dad.
But now we need to get home So we can meet up with todd at the annual anchorage air show.
Todd has a serious passion for aviation.
And I really get a kick out of seeing him share that With piper.
How could it not just make you cry, Just get that lump in your throat And this enormous appreciation for america's finest? Todd: Air shows in alaska are huge Because 1 out of every 80 alaskans Have their private pilot's license.
Myself, being a pilot -- Only other pilots could understand, you know, The difficulty and the hours and hours of practicing That these pilots -- Some of the best pilots in the world -- are showing us.
[ cheers and applause .]
Hello.
I'm sabrina.
So nice to meet you.
I'm with the blue angels.
How are you doing? Oh, my gosh.
I'm honored to meet you! I'm honored to meet you.
Todd: Watching the blue angels perform is one thing.
And it's another when we get to meet the pilots And their whole team.
What'd you guys think? Oh! Overwhelming.
I can die and go to heaven now.
Todd: We're so proud of our military, appreciate their service.
Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you.
Thank you, guys.
And these guys are the best of the best.
One, two, and three.
All right! Good job.
Thank you, guys.
Thank you.
Sarah: Tonight we're celebrating my parents' anniversary, And piper's really gonna have fun Taking all that gold we dug up And turning it into a special gift for my mom.
Dave: Hello.
Hello.
Welcome to the production room at the alaska mint.
Did you do good? Did you get a lot of gold? Chuck jr.
: We got a little bit.
Yeah? Let's see what you have.
Sarah: So, does this look good? This looks really good, yeah.
Let's start by weighing this batch right here.
And there's gonna be a little stuck in here.
Right now we've got just over an ounce.
You know, that's about $1,150 worth of gold right there.
That is a good day's work right here.
We were blessed out there.
Exactly.
We've got a couple of different examples Of some jewelry we can make.
Oh, something with the bear on it, you guys.
Piper: Paw.
Chuck jr.
: You like the paw? Sarah: The paw's kind of cool.
That's consensus.
Looks like it's the paw.
Hey, would grandpa ever wear a pinkie ring? No.
Grandpa? I don't think so.
We had some extra gold left over, Which meant we could make my dad a gift, too.
Piper: We should get that one.
Yeah, let's do the sheep, 'cause then we have a sheep and a bear.
My dad has been a sheep-hunting guide for many years, And the kids chose a dall sheep for their grandpa.
Only touch what he tells you guys to touch, pipe.
How hot does it have to be? In order to melt the gold, We're gonna get it up to 1,950 degrees fahrenheit.
Okay, so now we've got the gold in there.
And I'm just gonna hold it right there, real steady.
Oh, this is pretty fascinating.
Okay, so there's the gold all melted right there.
See that? That looks like the northern lights.
Beautiful.
All right.
You want to handle this torch? Piper: I've never done this in my life.
No? It was exciting to see the gold melt for grandma's present.
Dave: Try and get it up to the higher area.
There you go.
And it was interesting to do it mostly by myself.
Dave: Now, this will pop a little bit 'cause there's more gold in there, And the impurities will pop like popcorn.
Sarah: Careful, pipe.
Here.
Back off, kids.
Wow! Dave: See how shiny it is now? Boh! Piper, do you have their present? Now aren't you glad you married me? Isn't that special! Dave: Okay.
That's okay.
[ laughs .]
Now, what we'll do is, we'll turn off the oxygen, And it'll start back up.
Can I try? Not enough flame.
Let me get that torch back started.
Here.
Back off, kids.
I want to do it.
Okay, go ahead.
Piper: Small circle.
Sarah: A small circle.
Look at all that gold.
Wow! Getting to help melt the gold, That was kind of a special thing to get to do.
Ooh! It's looking pretty.
So we got to have some hands-on, some ownership, Making a nice, little piece of jewelry That we're looking forward to giving to my parents.
And this is gary, the minter.
Gary, it's nice to see you.
Piper has some gold.
Okay.
I thought that they would be using Something more computerized, more high-tech, And it was neat to see, Nah, this was just hands-on, blue-collar work To get this gold produced into something really pretty.
It's a surprise for grandma.
So, this time, we are going to press the design of the Dall sheep.
Dall sheep.
For grandpa.
54 All: 321.
Boh! Oh! Beautiful! Isn't it gorgeous? Piper: Can we turn it into a ring? I think so.
Okay, let's go.
Sarah: We got to choose where we wanted those medallions set.
Dave: See how shiny it is now? We chose a ring for my mom, And we chose a plaque for my dad, 'cause my dad isn't one to wear his bling-bling.
That's classy.
Chuck jr.
: Nice job, you guys.
Thank you so much.
Thank you.
This whole trip was a really great experience for piper.
I think she learned that in alaska When you're giving a gift, You don't always need to go to a store.
Sometimes you just need to get outdoors.
Trig Thanks, guys.
All right.
See you soon.
Hey, mom! Sarah: Aloha.
Hi, trigsie! [ gasps .]
how was it? I know.
It was amazing! Aaah! Yes, it was amazing.
How was it? Oh, I'm so glad you made it safely.
Sarah: Right after the alaska mint, We wanted to stop by mom and dad's To present them their anniversary gift.
You guys, 50 years they've been married.
Aah! Happy hands! Happy hands! 49 years of marital bliss.
[ smooches .]
Piper? Piper, do you have their present? Okay, listen.
This is the 50th year of you two being together.
The 50th year is the golden anniversary.
We thought that we'd take a little of the gold that we found And see if we could make it into something for you.
[ trig screaming .]
sally: [ laughing .]
now, just a minute.
Oh, look.
Chuck: Show the kids, yeah.
Sarah: Show the kids.
Willow, are you looking? Chuck: Sally was very excited, very shocked.
You know, sally's a humble, caring person, And when she received that, She thoroughly, thoroughly was amazed and enjoyed that.
This is not real.
They made that.
It's real gold, that point is.
Honey.
Chuck jr.
: Grandpa This is the actual gold that we pulled out out of the ocean, The bottom of the ocean from nome.
Did you find some gold there? And we melted it, And we turned it into a solid-gold half ounce.
Oh, my goodness! That's what you got when you dredged? Chuck jr.
: That is, honest to goodness, the gold that we found.
Sarah: 24 hours ago, that was gold That no man had ever touched before.
Now aren't you glad you married me? Isn't that special! Sarah: You know, when I look at my brother and my parents and todd, I just feel so blessed.
When critics say what they're gonna say, I can let it roll off my back Like a duck lets water roll off its back, Because I have a great alaskan family.
And there's a lot of strength in that.
And I'm glad to pass that on to my daughter piper.
What a special treat.
Now, youuys can't imagine how much this means.
Chuck jr.
: Well, happy anniversary.
Oh, thank you, guys.
Thanks for bringing us into the world.
Thank you.
Yeah, thanks for hanging in there for 50 years.
Chuck jr.
: And, sarah, read that plaque.
It says, "thanks for the alaskan experience.
Happy 50th.
" That's what we appreciate.
The last few years have been pretty busy, So this summer, we're setting aside time To spend with family and friends, Doing what we love to do.
And that's exploring alaska.
This weekend, we're heading to nome on a quest for gold, Just like the miners of old.
Mom, bring your bucket! Hurry! When I was a kid, Family adventures were part of what made me a real alaskan.
And now it's time to pass that tradition on to piper.
All this gold is all mine.
Piper! I'm selling it on ebay.
No.
No.
Yeah, I am.
On this trip, we'll uncover some of alaska's hidden jewels.
On water Holy moly! And on land on a truly alaskan adventure.
Don't hit the iceberg, piper.
That's like the titanic.
Whoa! [ laughs .]
Whoa, this is cool! There they go.
[ gasps .]
Wow.
I feel like we're on an african safari.
you need a place to be your sanctuary follow me there come on, follow me there where love, like a river, flows peace like you've never known and joy never-ending lives won't you follow me there? won't you follow me there? where love, like a river, flows peace like you've never known and joy never-ending lives a place where faith can find hope that will never die follow me there come on, follow me there -- Captions by vitac -- Captions paid for by discovery communications Are you riding with him or us? You know, growing up in a really tiny town in wasilla, Family becomes a big part of your social life, And I want my parents to be a big part Of my kids' lives as well.
So today my dad and I are taking piper On a little adventure to valdez, nome.
So, do we have all the kids? But first, we're heading over to the local reindeer farm To spend some time with the whole family.
It's party time.
You guys think you're ready to feed reindeer? Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! Oh, wow.
To feed a reindeer, it's simple.
You put your hands out like this.
Will they bite you? Oh, they can't bite you Because they don't have any top teeth.
Here's your cup.
Food, girls.
Sarah: Grandma, don't get run over by a reindeer.
Are we ready? Chuck: Oh, I just love to go out with my kids and my grandkids And it brings back a lot of fond memories, Especially with sarah.
And she's still my little girl.
[ food rattling in cups .]
sarah: Come on.
Oh, my gosh.
Hello! [ laughter .]
Do they kick in the back? Do they kick in the back? [ indistinct conversation .]
There you go, big guy.
Aah! Yeah, it does.
[ screams .]
Okay, this one's really, really hungry.
Uh-huh.
Hello, love.
Geez, todd.
Well, what do you do when you run out of these things? [ laughs .]
That's it.
Sorry.
Tom: Never go in a pen with a moose -- never.
'cause they're so mean and dangerous.
Sarah: Wow.
How old is it, tom? 2 years old.
And the way you kiss a moose Watch this, guys.
Oh, my gosh.
Who's the brave soul in the palin-heath family? Oh, I wasn't too much into "kissing the moose" thing.
No.
But feeding from a distance -- that was good enough for me.
Hey, tom, one of these girls is gonna kiss the moose.
Come on, do it, sister.
Tom: He won't bite.
He just wants the banana.
Sarah: Don't scream, either, willow.
[ screams .]
I just said don't s-- Let it kiss you.
You wasted a banana, kid.
[ laughter .]
Moose kissers, kiss now or forever hold your peace.
Okay, this is gonna be a blast.
We're going to valdez.
It'll be good.
My dad is the perfect alaskan guide.
All the quirky adventures he took me on as a kid Really taught me how to think for myself, Work hard, and embrace challenges, And now it's piper's turn.
Today we're taking her and her cousin kier On a quirky little expedition To retrace the steps of alaska's gold prospectors.
Our first stop is valdez, Where the original gold rush began.
So, piper, we're gonna look for valdez glacier.
Let's get a bird's-eye view of it Because we're gonna kayak around the base Of the valdez glacier today.
And also, we're gonna look down here see a part Of that 800-mile-long trans-alaska oil pipeline, too.
My teacher -- she taught us about it.
It flows through 800 miles of pipeline, And it goes over 3 different mountain ranges, And where does it end up? In the water.
No.
Heaven forbid! We went to valdez a lot as kids.
My dad -- he was my coach in basketball.
We would drive over nine-hour trips In freezing-cold school buses with no heaters, Bundled up in down sleeping bags, To get to valdez to play our basketball games.
I was really excited to show piper valdez today.
Welcome.
Sarah: So, this is your home, huh? This is my office right here.
This is beautiful.
Sam: So, welcome to the valdez glacial lake.
This is beautiful.
Wow.
In the 1880s, 1890s, Prospectors were coming to valdez In the hopes that this would be an easy route to the klondike.
Chuck: Can you imagine trekking up this thing with -- Sarah: Carrying a thousand pounds of something, dragging it? No.
No, thanks.
Only 400 of them got rich.
Out of how many? Over 100,000.
Oh, my gosh.
I was lucky growing up with my dad as a schoolteacher.
I'd get to bail on my own class, And I'd get to hook up with dad's classroom And travel all over the state On all of his really cool field trips.
And I'm glad piper is getting to experience that, too.
Piper: Mom, have you got wet? Sarah: No, not at all.
Aah! You got me wet! [ laughs .]
We have to get her.
Man: You deserved that.
[ laughing .]
ow! We're getting hit! [ laughter .]
Chuck: Should we ram them? Sarah: Bumper kayaks.
[ laughter .]
What are you guys doing? [ piper laughs .]
Don't hit the iceberg, piper.
That's like the titanic.
Sam: So, guys, I just want to point out a couple things.
You see this rock right here? We don't want to go under at rock.
It could slide this way.
Look how it's just balanced, dad, on a chunk of ice.
It's kind of scary.
So, you're gonna want to stay on this side Of this little channel.
There's gonna be lots of little things coming down.
So we'll try to stay out of the fall zone.
Chuck: Don't get too close.
[ chuckles .]
Whoa.
Those are like pieces of shrapnel.
The little thing I wanted to look at Is right at the back of this here.
Oh, yeah.
Wow.
It's really coming down at the mouth of that thing, too.
Oh, it is.
Definitely hard-hat area.
Piper: Can we go under the rain? Heck yeah, we can.
[ laughs .]
Okay.
Here we go.
Chuck: We going back in there? We're backing it.
"beep! Beep! Back it up," In the words of george costanza.
"beep!" crap! Nice.
Ooh, this is cool, though.
Sam: Now, don't bash your head on the ice.
I know, man.
That would put me in a bad mood.
[ laughs .]
Piper: Kayaking was fun.
And I went under a cave, And we could touch the ceiling, And it looked like it was raining.
It was really cool.
This is awesome, though.
Hey, gr-- Aah! Whoa.
Let's get the heck out of here.
Chuck: Okay, sarah.
Let's get out of here fast.
Sarah: My dad is amazing.
He's 72 years old.
Wow! Did you see that chunk fall, though? I learned from him when I was a little girl That, you know, this isn't a dress rehearsal.
We want to seize the moment.
We want to get out there and enjoy, See it firsthand.
What I'm doing is passing on the tradition To our children now.
[ chuckles .]
That was pretty cool.
That was one of those freezing-cold carnival rides -- Splash mountain.
We're not in the fall zone.
Sarah: You can't stay under there very long If you want to stay alive.
How could it not just make you cry, Just get that lump in your throat And this enormous appreciation for america's finest? What are you doing? We'll get one floating.
[ laughing .]
I'm trying to get over there.
Okay, I'm not gonna do a thing.
You get over there.
Here we go.
[ piper laughing .]
Piper? [ both laughing .]
You're messing with the rudder.
Piper, you're a meanie.
Did you? No, that was nerd.
He put his paddle under and flipped it.
[ laughter .]
Don't laugh! Sarah: One of the first memories that I have Of being out on the water with my dad was duck hunting.
And I used to think, "man, I wonder if any other 1st graders Out there at 3:00 or 4:0 in the morning in a marsh, Out paddling around with their dad, Looking for ducks so that they can have a nice dinner.
" Sam: See that there? [ whistles .]
Uh-huh.
Basically, we're gonna try to get out on this iceberg.
But I don't want you to just hop right out like this is land.
Okay? We can't assume there's anything in the water to stand on.
Be very careful.
We're on ice, okay? So just move nice and slow.
Sarah: The thing about this terrain is that it's unpredictable.
And all this melting ice Can be an accident waiting to happen.
But that was a risk we were willing to take, Because we weren't about to leave Without walking the same route that the prospectors took.
Careful, pipe.
Piper: Come on.
Okay.
I'm old.
Well, then hurry up.
Oh, my gosh.
You're freaking me out.
Sam: We're like the prospectors of old, making our way.
Let's kind of work our way right over to the tunnel here And just take a look, see what it looks like.
So, guys, I just want to point out again That there's these few rocks.
Kier, back up.
We want to make sure that we're not in the fall zone.
Sarah: We saw the ice chunks And gravel pieces of all sizes overhehead.
The other day, this rock fell off of the roof.
Holy moly.
I know.
So, you can't stay under there very long If you want to stay alive.
Can I go in there? Well, basically, either in or out.
I'm gonna go in.
Okay, one, two, three, go.
Sam: Be careful.
It's really slippery in there, too.
Kier: Whoa.
Whoa.
Chuck jr: Really wet.
If you fell in there, you would never come back up, So don't go over there too close.
Oh, man.
I know.
Be careful.
Just hold on to mama.
I think we should leave now.
Sam: Okay.
We probably ought to get off this iceberg.
Chuck jr: You don't have to go so fast.
We have to go fast.
We're in a race.
Oh, you guys want to race to shore? Here we go.
Paddle, piper.
Paddle.
Grandpa, slow down.
Slow down! Sarah: It's in our nature.
We have to compete.
Chuck: Speed up.
Let's catch them, piper.
Paddle.
Let's beat sarah and grandpa.
They think they're gonna beat us.
Piper: Get her! Get her! Hurry.
Come on, piper.
I'm gonna beat you.
Hurry.
We're catching up.
Piper had so much fun, and I was very proud of her That she kind of wanted to show that she was gonna be tough out there And she wasn't gonna complain no matter how tired she got.
And it's really cool to see a kid out in nature, Just loving it so much.
Oh, my gosh.
We have to get her.
Get her.
Get her! Oh, my gosh.
The final seconds.
No! No! Come on, piper.
Chuck: You're too slow, piper.
Sarah: We won.
Piper: No, they didn't.
We won.
Didn't we, grandpa? Chuck: We won.
He said we did, and we did.
Piper: First the worst, second the best.
That's a good lollipop.
Zero calories.
I couldn't leave valdez without showing the kids the end Of the 800-mile-long trans-alaska pipeline.
And since there's no access by road, The best way to see it is by boat.
This is awesome! Over there there is a sea lion Piper: Where? It's huge.
Oh, my gosh.
I've never seen valdez so pretty.
Piper, there's that seal.
Behind you.
[ imitates barking .]
What are baby seals called? I forgot.
Pups.
I have a beautiful sealskin purse An eskimo lady way up in tatitlek made me.
Man: You see these sea lions? People say that man's activity Prohibits wildlife from enjoying their habitat.
No, they're enjoying man's activities right there.
Brad: Let's go make a loop around here, Going by the pipeline.
Sure.
Would you like to be a driver? You guys can take a turn.
Let's go.
Holy moly! We'll set you up at the wheel.
We're risking our lives.
Okay, pipe.
Jump in there.
Don't hit that boat in front of you, And don't run over any sea lions.
Can I make it faster? No.
Sarah: Todd -- for many years, He owned an outdoor-recreation shop.
So when we were running that, You know, the kids were around the boats.
So piper -- she's a little motorhead.
So, yeah, an opportunity to get to steer the wheel, Piper seized that.
What is that? That's the end of the pipeline, you guys.
After 800 miles from prudhoe bay, That's where the oil flows, and it lands here.
Kier: That's cool.
Sarah: The oil industry is 85% of alaska's economy.
It's huge for us, And it's providing a lot of well-paying jobs For a lot of alaskan families, including our own.
Todd started working up on the north slope back in 1989, And many family members have worked here in valdez.
Oh.
This is heaven.
The next stop on our adventure is nome, A town that's had a case of gold fever since 1898.
Our plan is to visit some locals at a mining camp And do a little prospecting of our own.
My parents' anniversary is coming up, so we thought, "wouldn't it be neat to give my mom a piece of jewelry Made from alaskan gold that we found ourselves?" Beautiful day, huh? Wow.
You must be big john.
Little john.
I'm little john.
Hi, chuck.
How are you, sir? How you doing? Chuck: When we arrived in nome, Little john from the gold-mining camp picked us up.
We're going out to cripple river camp.
Chuck: You know the way? I know the way.
[ laughing .]
little john isn't very big.
I'd say he's about 5'4" And probably weighs about 110 pounds.
I kept calling him "big john" to kind of flatter him.
Little john: It's a beautiful day today.
Sarah: I know! Who would have thought in nome it could be even this warm? I love it! Nome is a really unique place to prospect Because gold from the arctic ocean Washes right up on the beach.
So, even though some people Run serious underwater mining operations, All you really need to strike gold here Is a shovel and a patch of sand.
Chuck jr.
: Look out to the left over there, That floating barge with the excavator on it.
They're mining right there.
That's crazy.
They'll put you to work here.
Sarah: Nice.
Chuck: I'd heard about the camp before.
I expected john wayne To come galloping down the road on his horse.
It looked like an old western town.
Sarah: Whoo-hoo! Hey.
Hi, guys.
Welcome to cripple.
Hi.
Nice to see you.
You too.
Chuck jr.
: So, what do you got planned for us today, tom? Well, we got some four-wheelers over here.
We're gonna hop on the four-wheelers And go down to my secret spot on the beach down there.
I can pretty much guarantee you we're gonna find gold.
How much? I don't know.
But there's gold down there on that beach, And it's always there.
It's consistent.
Sarah: This is awesome.
Let's go hop on the four-wheelers And get started, huh? Sarah, if you want to ride in my machine, it's a 700.
It's a pretty mean machine.
Is it all automatic? It's all automatic.
Well, then, of course.
But there's a lot in the throttle.
I will be careful.
Piper, you want to ride with me? You're missing out! [ piper laughs .]
Whoo! Bring your bucket! Hurry! I can't keep up with her.
All this gold is all mine.
Piper! I'm selling it on ebay.
No.
Yeah, I am.
We haven't discussed anything like that.
Well, I am.
Sarah: My family and I just arrived At the cripple river mining camp, And we're really excited to jump on some atvs And tear down to the beach to begin our search for gold.
Sarah: Piper, you want to ride with me? You're missing out! [ piper laughs .]
Whoo! We're going into the sunshine.
Yahoo! When we got down to the beach, we saw dozens of people Oh, awesome! All of them shoveling sand into beach boxes, Which separate out the gold.
I can't wait to get out there with piper and my dad And dig, baby, dig.
[ laughs .]
This does have power.
I like it.
Tom: Go get some gold! These are the beach boxes.
Okay.
When you go to digging, go after the black dirt And slowly feed it in.
And when the pump comes on, it's gonna shoot water And extract the gold out of the material.
The matting in here is really what is special.
See how it's got the riffles in here? And these are specially designed for catching fine gold, Small particles of gold.
Run that through your box, and that's got gold in it.
Piper: Whoo-hoo! Does it come down to who works harder or who's luckiest? I think it comes down to both, But the best prospectors I know are ladies.
Yeah! There's no doubt about it.
Yeah, let's compete.
Life is competition.
You guys can be on that box.
Chuck jr.
: Okay.
And the girls are over here.
And we'll see who gets the most gold.
Ooh! I think the separating of teams here To incorporate some healthy family competition To see who gets the most gold -- It seems like our family always ends up doing that.
Somehow, someway, we involve some competition.
Well, let's get rich.
Chuck jr.
: All right.
Dig in that black sand.
We'll load them into the buckets And then haul them down there.
Piper, do you see what we're doing? We're gonna put sand in these buckets.
Yeah, get down into that black stuff here.
Piper: You have to help your dad because he's blind.
He's color blind.
So, he's blind and grandpa's deaf, And between the two Chuck: And piper's wild.
And piper's wild.
And you're crazy.
Right here, sister, look.
I love it.
I love it.
Dig, dig, dig! Dig, dig, dig, dig, dig! One more scoop.
Can you carry that? Go, go, go.
We got to figure out how to do this.
Chuck: When we were on the beach, Piper and kier just worked their tails off.
The competition was immense between them.
I never saw those two little guys work so hard.
All this gold is all mine.
Sarah: Piper! What can I sell it on? What can you sell it on? Yeah.
You mean, like, ebay-ish? Yeah.
No.
I'm selling it on ebay.
No.
Yeah, I am.
We haven't discussed anything like that.
Hoo-hoo-hoo! Yay! Sarah: Whoo-hoo! Go, baby.
Go.
Chuck jr.
: You should see all our gold, piper.
Our box is so full of gold, you can't even believe it.
Piper: Hurry up! Piper, be nice! You come get some sand.
All right.
Mom, bring your bucket! Hurry! I'm coming! I can't keep up with her.
Are you selling your gold? Are you? Yeah.
All of it? Uh-huh.
How much are you gonna sell it for? I'm selling mine for something-thousand.
I'm gonna sell mine for about 80.
$80,000? $80.
Sarah: Whoo-hoo! If we have enough at the end, know what we should just do? Hmm? Make it into one coin.
[ gasps .]
that's the goal, anyway, right? All right.
That's the last of the buckets.
Now we'll let it all clear out.
Piper: I think I'm gonna be rich.
Chuck jr.
: We shut off the pump, and it's time to clean up.
I was pretty confident that we were gonna win the competition, Because I figured I could shovel faster than sarah could.
Sarah: Wow! Look at that gold! Look at that! Whoa! Chuck jr.
: You got way bigger stuff.
We didn't get any of that big stuff.
Cindy: The girls look pretty good here.
Do you concede? Okay, I concede.
Okay.
Thank you.
Thank you.
I finally beat chuck at something.
Tom: Okay.
That's a few hundred dollars in gold right there.
That's a little bit of cripple river beach gold.
Sarah: Thank you, guys, very much.
Piper: It was really fun spending time with my mom and grandpa.
I love to be in the outdoors.
Dear lord, I ask that we have a safe day on the bottom.
Sarah: It's freezing-cold water down there.
Anything could go wronggg at any time.
So if we walk any closer, we'd spook them, you think? Chuck: Walk up there real slow.
There they go.
Kier, crawl in there and hand me that sleeping bag.
Hurry up.
Sarah: Camping on the beach in nome was spectacular.
Chuck jr.
: Sarah, there's bacon over here.
Some headlines talk about me being such a diva, you know, And we just crack up with at one, going, "yeah, this is all diva all the time up here in alaska.
" What are you doing? Piper: Getting dressed.
No one come in or look.
Nobody wants to look, sister.
Chuck jr.
: Don't put that sunscreen away.
Leave it out today 'cause we're gonna need it out on the water.
Sarah: We didn't get enough gold for my mom's anniversary gift On the beach yesterday, So today we're trying something different.
Some locals are taking us out on their dredge To do some underwater mining.
Hey.
Good morning, everybody.
Sarah: Morning.
How are you? Oh, outstanding.
How was your night on the beach on the bering sea? It was beautiful.
Chuck jr.
: We'll get this broken down as quick as we can And get on the water and start finding some gold.
How are you? Good, sarah.
You all right? This type of mining can get very dangerous, So the kids are gonna stay on shore with my dad.
Oh, this is gonna be fun.
As we rode out to the dredge, I saw all kinds Of other homemade gold-mining contraptions.
Nick: You guys can just step out.
We'll hold the boat for you.
Bob: Make sure you gra a good rail or that rope there.
All right.
Welcome to the gold dredge.
Sarah: Thank you.
This is it.
Well, what's happening here is, we have this motor here That runs a high-pressure water pump Which is sucking the seawater up.
The hose is on the bottom of the ocean, And that's where we're gonna be down there.
And we're gonna be vacuuming up the bottom of the sea out here, And then we'll recover our gold.
Right behind sarah, we have the hot water heater That's gonna make hot water for us So that we can pump hot water into our suits to keep us warm.
Chuck jr.
: Okay.
All right, sarah, so we're gonna be working on top, Making sure the guys down below Got air, water, hot water going in -- Everything they need.
If anything happens, We're tethered to them with this umbilical cord.
That's hot water and air going right down to the diver.
These are our two air pumps.
Sarah: Okay.
You got to make sure those are running.
And we're just gonna watch bubbles, Make sure that bubbles are coming up, You know the guys are getting good air.
Okay.
That's about it.
Any questions? No, just anxious to see them get down there.
Awesome.
Chuck jr.
: Our life is in your hands, sarah.
Just don't forget that.
Sarah: Since I'm not a diver, I'm gonna stay up on deck while my brother goes underwater.
This is dangerous for even the most veteran divers Because as calm as the water looks from up here, Down below, it would only take one strong current For chuck to be ripped from his oxygen supply And carried away.
Chuck, let's pray -- god's hand of protection.
Dear lord, I ask that we have a safe day on the bottom.
Please look out for all our family and keep us all safe.
Amen.
Amen.
Amen.
All right.
All right, let's do it.
Mm-hmm.
Sarah: Okay.
Very careful.
Sarah: The water in the arctic ocean is very cold.
If something were to go wrong with the hot-water line, It would only be a matter of minutes Before hypothermia kicked in.
But these divers are willing to take the risk Because, on a good day, They can bring in more than $2,000 worth of gold every hour.
Nick: What is happening is, on the bottom, That 8-inch suction line Is actually like a huge vacuum cleaner.
It's sucking everything they can.
They're down there pumping that into the ground And sucking up every speck of dirt that'll come up.
All this material is just getting moved A couple -- maybe 20, 30 yards.
It's going right back to the bottom.
The gold's heavy, So it doesn't make it out the end.
It actually gets stuck right in this box.
Chuck jr.
: As I'm actually dredging, The whole goal is to get down to this clay layer.
And as soon as you get to that layer You start to see the gold.
And it literally looks like somebody took a salt shaker And just shook little specks of gold All over that clay layer.
So once you start really working, You're not paying attention to how tired you are.
You just want to move boulders as fast as you can.
Sarah: I know that this is very, very dangerous work That these guys are engaged in.
Nick: You can almost see them down there.
You can see where the bubbles are coming from.
Yeah.
With the hoses, with the air supply, It's freezing-cold water down there.
Anything could go wrong at any time.
Good? Good.
Did you find any gold? Yep.
Plenty of gold.
Take a look and see what we got over here.
Look.
Right here.
We should run some water over this.
Just lift that up.
I see a couple of flakes over there.
They're beautiful.
Man: Yeah, a big one.
Holy moly.
Look at that.
Nick: You know, a good miner wwuld put that right in his lip.
[ sarah laughs .]
And there it is.
Now you know where it's at the whole time.
You don't get worried.
Have you held one that big, sarah? Let me see this.
Not every day do we find those.
Yeah.
That's neat.
That's great.
Beautiful piece.
That's beautiful.
What a successful day, what a beautiful day.
Anxious to see how much gold we got.
Hopefully it's enough for the gift That we want to present to my mom.
Bob: All right.
Thanks a lot, bob.
It was a great experience.
Piper, I really like this rock for some reason.
Piper: Can you put these in your pocket? Yeah.
Or hold them.
Ooh, I wonder if there's blueberries on those hills.
Piper? This is blueberry country.
Chuck jr.
: Look up on the bank, Up on your left further up, sarah.
Yeah.
I want to go right up there.
Piper: No! I want to go back.
Okay, we'll walk this way, piper.
Kier, run up to the top of there And see if there's any fresh blueberries.
Okay, piper diaper.
Gross.
What, honey? It's mud.
Let's find blueberries, kier.
We're looking for this right here, kier.
Bingo.
Sarah: Do you want to get on dry ground? Yea.
Come.
No, that's mud! Should I carry you? Look, all through here, These are fresh ripe blueberries.
Here's a perfect spot to cross.
Wait! Go slow.
Here's a nice green one for you.
I dare you to eat that one.
Go.
Be nice.
See? Go where the land is dry.
They're delicious, much better than you can buy in a store.
I I I I I I think it's an adventure.
That's poo.
Sarah: I think you need a nap.
Hey, lookit.
Piper, come.
I love musk-ox.
Come take a picture.
These are awesome animals.
Do you see the babies? There's babies.
If somebody's gonna come threaten One of the baby musk-ox, All the adults surround the baby.
The musk-ox behavior is fascinating, And, in fact, in my last address as governor, I use the example Of how they circle and they protect their young.
And I thought, "I'm probably the only governor in the nation "who knows what a musk-ox's all about "and how it's applicable To how I think that we should be as a society.
" You got to remember, they're a prehistoric animal.
They ran around with the mammoths And the mastodons and saber-toothed tigers.
Sarah: They still look it.
They survived.
They're a weird animal.
They are odd.
Come take a picture.
Can you see it? Can you see the musk-ox behind us? So, if we walked any closer, we'd spook them, you think? They're gonna run.
Let's walk up there a little bit.
These are awesome animals.
Let's see.
Chuck, you want me to take a picture? I'll take a picture of you.
See? They're protecting their babies.
Watch.
They're gonna surround their little ones.
Oh! I love them! Let's go up a little ways.
Piper, come.
We'll do what the musk-ox do.
We'll surround you.
You get behind us.
I'll be the mama musk-ox.
These are the coolest animals.
There they go.
There they go.
That was cool.
I feel like we're on an african safari.
I'm honored to meet you! Honored to meet you.
How could it not just make you cry, Just get that lump in your throat And this enormous appreciation for america's finest? Oh! Overwhelming.
I can die and go to heaven now.
Sarah: Our trip to nome was great.
And it was a fun opportunity For piper to spend some time with my dad.
But now we need to get home So we can meet up with todd at the annual anchorage air show.
Todd has a serious passion for aviation.
And I really get a kick out of seeing him share that With piper.
How could it not just make you cry, Just get that lump in your throat And this enormous appreciation for america's finest? Todd: Air shows in alaska are huge Because 1 out of every 80 alaskans Have their private pilot's license.
Myself, being a pilot -- Only other pilots could understand, you know, The difficulty and the hours and hours of practicing That these pilots -- Some of the best pilots in the world -- are showing us.
[ cheers and applause .]
Hello.
I'm sabrina.
So nice to meet you.
I'm with the blue angels.
How are you doing? Oh, my gosh.
I'm honored to meet you! I'm honored to meet you.
Todd: Watching the blue angels perform is one thing.
And it's another when we get to meet the pilots And their whole team.
What'd you guys think? Oh! Overwhelming.
I can die and go to heaven now.
Todd: We're so proud of our military, appreciate their service.
Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you.
Thank you, guys.
And these guys are the best of the best.
One, two, and three.
All right! Good job.
Thank you, guys.
Thank you.
Sarah: Tonight we're celebrating my parents' anniversary, And piper's really gonna have fun Taking all that gold we dug up And turning it into a special gift for my mom.
Dave: Hello.
Hello.
Welcome to the production room at the alaska mint.
Did you do good? Did you get a lot of gold? Chuck jr.
: We got a little bit.
Yeah? Let's see what you have.
Sarah: So, does this look good? This looks really good, yeah.
Let's start by weighing this batch right here.
And there's gonna be a little stuck in here.
Right now we've got just over an ounce.
You know, that's about $1,150 worth of gold right there.
That is a good day's work right here.
We were blessed out there.
Exactly.
We've got a couple of different examples Of some jewelry we can make.
Oh, something with the bear on it, you guys.
Piper: Paw.
Chuck jr.
: You like the paw? Sarah: The paw's kind of cool.
That's consensus.
Looks like it's the paw.
Hey, would grandpa ever wear a pinkie ring? No.
Grandpa? I don't think so.
We had some extra gold left over, Which meant we could make my dad a gift, too.
Piper: We should get that one.
Yeah, let's do the sheep, 'cause then we have a sheep and a bear.
My dad has been a sheep-hunting guide for many years, And the kids chose a dall sheep for their grandpa.
Only touch what he tells you guys to touch, pipe.
How hot does it have to be? In order to melt the gold, We're gonna get it up to 1,950 degrees fahrenheit.
Okay, so now we've got the gold in there.
And I'm just gonna hold it right there, real steady.
Oh, this is pretty fascinating.
Okay, so there's the gold all melted right there.
See that? That looks like the northern lights.
Beautiful.
All right.
You want to handle this torch? Piper: I've never done this in my life.
No? It was exciting to see the gold melt for grandma's present.
Dave: Try and get it up to the higher area.
There you go.
And it was interesting to do it mostly by myself.
Dave: Now, this will pop a little bit 'cause there's more gold in there, And the impurities will pop like popcorn.
Sarah: Careful, pipe.
Here.
Back off, kids.
Wow! Dave: See how shiny it is now? Boh! Piper, do you have their present? Now aren't you glad you married me? Isn't that special! Dave: Okay.
That's okay.
[ laughs .]
Now, what we'll do is, we'll turn off the oxygen, And it'll start back up.
Can I try? Not enough flame.
Let me get that torch back started.
Here.
Back off, kids.
I want to do it.
Okay, go ahead.
Piper: Small circle.
Sarah: A small circle.
Look at all that gold.
Wow! Getting to help melt the gold, That was kind of a special thing to get to do.
Ooh! It's looking pretty.
So we got to have some hands-on, some ownership, Making a nice, little piece of jewelry That we're looking forward to giving to my parents.
And this is gary, the minter.
Gary, it's nice to see you.
Piper has some gold.
Okay.
I thought that they would be using Something more computerized, more high-tech, And it was neat to see, Nah, this was just hands-on, blue-collar work To get this gold produced into something really pretty.
It's a surprise for grandma.
So, this time, we are going to press the design of the Dall sheep.
Dall sheep.
For grandpa.
54 All: 321.
Boh! Oh! Beautiful! Isn't it gorgeous? Piper: Can we turn it into a ring? I think so.
Okay, let's go.
Sarah: We got to choose where we wanted those medallions set.
Dave: See how shiny it is now? We chose a ring for my mom, And we chose a plaque for my dad, 'cause my dad isn't one to wear his bling-bling.
That's classy.
Chuck jr.
: Nice job, you guys.
Thank you so much.
Thank you.
This whole trip was a really great experience for piper.
I think she learned that in alaska When you're giving a gift, You don't always need to go to a store.
Sometimes you just need to get outdoors.
Trig Thanks, guys.
All right.
See you soon.
Hey, mom! Sarah: Aloha.
Hi, trigsie! [ gasps .]
how was it? I know.
It was amazing! Aaah! Yes, it was amazing.
How was it? Oh, I'm so glad you made it safely.
Sarah: Right after the alaska mint, We wanted to stop by mom and dad's To present them their anniversary gift.
You guys, 50 years they've been married.
Aah! Happy hands! Happy hands! 49 years of marital bliss.
[ smooches .]
Piper? Piper, do you have their present? Okay, listen.
This is the 50th year of you two being together.
The 50th year is the golden anniversary.
We thought that we'd take a little of the gold that we found And see if we could make it into something for you.
[ trig screaming .]
sally: [ laughing .]
now, just a minute.
Oh, look.
Chuck: Show the kids, yeah.
Sarah: Show the kids.
Willow, are you looking? Chuck: Sally was very excited, very shocked.
You know, sally's a humble, caring person, And when she received that, She thoroughly, thoroughly was amazed and enjoyed that.
This is not real.
They made that.
It's real gold, that point is.
Honey.
Chuck jr.
: Grandpa This is the actual gold that we pulled out out of the ocean, The bottom of the ocean from nome.
Did you find some gold there? And we melted it, And we turned it into a solid-gold half ounce.
Oh, my goodness! That's what you got when you dredged? Chuck jr.
: That is, honest to goodness, the gold that we found.
Sarah: 24 hours ago, that was gold That no man had ever touched before.
Now aren't you glad you married me? Isn't that special! Sarah: You know, when I look at my brother and my parents and todd, I just feel so blessed.
When critics say what they're gonna say, I can let it roll off my back Like a duck lets water roll off its back, Because I have a great alaskan family.
And there's a lot of strength in that.
And I'm glad to pass that on to my daughter piper.
What a special treat.
Now, youuys can't imagine how much this means.
Chuck jr.
: Well, happy anniversary.
Oh, thank you, guys.
Thanks for bringing us into the world.
Thank you.
Yeah, thanks for hanging in there for 50 years.
Chuck jr.
: And, sarah, read that plaque.
It says, "thanks for the alaskan experience.
Happy 50th.
" That's what we appreciate.