Gold Rush - Season 1

First aired: 12/3/2010 10 episodes

Watch as Todd, his father Jack and four other unemployed greenhorns leave their homes in search for a better life. While leasing a gold claim in Alaska, Todd and company must ward off bears, build homes for their families, and keep the operation running as they take fate into their own hands with a make or break venture that will change their lives forever.

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Episodes

1. No Guts, No Glory

Aired: 12/3/2010

Six recession-hit patriots from Oregon stake everything on mining and head north to Alaska to dig for gold and save themselves from financial ruin. The team of greenhorns beg, borrow and build all the equipment they need to mine for gold. Loaded with supplies, they leave their loved ones behind and drive from Oregon to southeast Alaska in a Klondike convoy.

2. Gold, Guns, and Bears

Aired: 12/10/2010

The stakes get higher at the Porcupine Creek prospect as reality sets in about just how little time they have to get to their gold. The miners start to rebuild the mining ghost town but the bears aren't so keen on their new neighbors — and they let them know it.

3. Running Dirt

Aired: 12/17/2010

The crew races to set up the mining plant and start running dirt. When the families arrive from Oregon and question the lack of gold — and master mechanic Harness becomes dangerously ill — the tension builds so high that Dorsey and Todd almost come to blows.

4. The Ultimate Price

Aired: 1/7/2011

The team attempts to finally run potential pay dirt through the wash plant. But a visit from the Department of Fish and Game reveals a violation, jeopardizing their vital water supply to the mine. Then disaster strikes as Todd's daughter fights for her life.

5. The Pain Barrier

Aired: 1/14/2011

The miners continue to run dirt but an equipment malfunction brings the operation to a halt. Meanwhile, James Harness collapses and Jimmy Dorsey drives a wedge between himself and the crew when he takes on an extra job to earn cash. But hard work late into the night finally hits a pay streak.

6. Gold Fever

Aired: 1/21/2011

The miners' futures are on the line at Porcupine Creek. After 80 days, the miners are behind schedule, and the Hoffmans have run out of money and deliver the crew an ultimatum: find $10,000 worth of gold in the next two days, or the families have to head home to Oregon. Meanwhile, after Dorsey struggles with the wave table, tensions flare and fists fly.

7. Going For Broke

Aired: 1/28/2011

With winter weather closing in, a gold recovery expert comes to help the rookies. Todd discovers a major design flaw in the equipment and is forced to make huge modifications. With the credit cards maxed out, he is forced to take desperate measures.

8. Bad Blood

Aired: 2/4/2011

The crew remains in deep financial hole. Veteran miner "Dakota" Fred thinks he can turn things around and he cranks up production faster than ever before. But when things start falling apart, tensions mount and Harness can't keep his frustration in.

9. Bedrock or Bust

Aired: 2/11/2011

Desperate to get to bedrock and large quantities of gold, Todd and Jack throw caution to the wind and dig deeper than ever before. With the brutal Alaskan winter threatening, they battle floods, cave-ins and equipment breakdowns.

10. Never Say Die

Aired: 2/18/2011

With the arctic winter looming, the crew races against the clock. Rain and thawing snow flood the mine and Jack puts his life on the line as the glory hole caves in around the massive 100,000 pound excavator.