'Gold Rush: White Water' Season 3 Episode 2 sees 'Dakota' Fred avoid mutiny as Dustin finally strikes gold at new spot
In episode 2 of Discovery Channel’s ‘Gold Rush: White Water’ Season 3, we saw Dustin Hurt and his team prospecting a new dive site in Alaska’s Chilkat mountains to find gold. In the previous episode, we saw Dustin faced some disappointment with his first two picks -- one was too dangerous and the other one was already used up.
Will luck favor Dustin and his friend Carlos Minor this time? As it turned out, yes. They found a small waterfall -- supposedly conducive to gold mining -- at a perfect spot closer to the source of Cahoon Creek.
“This right here is the spot that’s gonna make me rich,” said Dustin, naming the spot “Rainbow’s End”. Back at ‘Dakota’ Fred’s dive site at Two Fish Creek, we saw a new addition to the team. Joining ‘Dakota’ Fred, his step-daughter Kayla and her fiance Paul Richardson was Ryan Cardoza, an experienced gold-miner.
The crew looked hopeful, not only about finding some gold but also beating Dustin’s crew. But Fred wasn’t the only one getting more hands. Dustin hired a man called James Hamm. The problem was, neither Dustin nor the rest of his crew knew Hamm well enough.
Hamm, who claimed to have dredged rivers, creeks and even the seas for gold before, is still a nervous fit in the team. But for Dustin and his team, that was a problem. At “Rainbow’s End”, the water was dangerous -- potentially fatal.
Sure enough, Carlos, their most experienced diver almost got caught in the heavy flow of the water right at the base of the fall. Thankfully, they were able to pull him out in time. While Dustin and his crew were getting desperate -- they were already behind schedule -- Fred too was ill at ease.
The problem at Two Fish Creek was a tricky one; they had to figure out a way to get rid of the big rock. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be able to dredge the waters. Even with a plan in hand, tempers ran high. Fred exchanged heated words with both Ryan and Kayla, impatient over how much time the operation took.
It wasn’t helped when the equipment Kayla was handling got stuck, leading to another angry outburst from Fred. Kayla too was curt. She told Fred he could not talk to her that way. In the previous episode, spirits were high as they found some gold. But now, a rebellion seemed to be brewing in Fred’s camp.
But as the problem got fixed and the work began again, everyone's mood lightened visibly. It was also a good opportunity for Ryan to prove his worth. And he did. Ryan found his first piece of gold.
But a quarter of a mile up the stream, would Hamm prove to be of similar caliber? After some initial setbacks -- he got stuck under the hose for a bit -- Hamm managed to acclimate.
With a little pep-talk from Carlos, Hamm got over his fear and did something extraordinary: he cleared more than four feet for gravel, getting the crew closer to the promised gold at the bedrock. What's more, as they looked through the dredge, they found a few flecks of gold, that only raised their spirits.
Both father and son found some luck after a lot of adversity. But will their lucky streak continue? ‘Gold Rush: White Water’ airs on The Discovery Channel every Sunday at 10 p.m. ET.
