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00:00High above the Amazon jungle...
00:04Wow. Kidding me, man?
00:07Three twin-engine prop lanes
00:10carry a group of Alabama construction workers.
00:13Kidding me right there. Kidding me right there!
00:16This is crazy.
00:18Look how big those trees are.
00:20That's awesome, man.
00:23They've left their families and their friends
00:26for one irresistible prize.
00:28Gold.
00:30All right, let's go get this gold now.
00:33Their destination,
00:35the dark heart of the Guyanese jungle,
00:38where billions of dollars of gold
00:40lies trapped 15 feet beneath the surface.
00:48The only thing between them and that treasure...
00:51aggressive jaguars...
00:54deadly snakes...
00:58malarial mosquitoes...
01:00and countless miles of impenetrable jungle mud.
01:05Since Spanish conquistadors first arrived in 1531,
01:09hundreds of men have come here,
01:11searching for the legendary El Dorado.
01:17Hi, guys. We're here.
01:19Welcome home.
01:20Dreaming up a mission like this takes nerve.
01:39But self-made millionaire Tim Evans
01:41has always been willing to gamble.
01:43Everyone that knows me knows I'm a risk taker.
01:46You create your own destiny.
01:51For years, Tim ran a $50 million property business.
01:55One of the most successful in Alabama.
01:57It's not a pretty sight.
01:59Then, Alabama's real estate boom went bust,
02:02and Tim nearly lost everything.
02:04Man, I can't believe this.
02:06The real estate market is drying up here.
02:08Nobody's buying.
02:09Nobody's looking.
02:10You can't give this property away right now.
02:12This is bad.
02:13I guess it's time to just lock the place up.
02:15Tim's not the kind who gives up easily.
02:20Darrell, what I'm thinking about doing
02:21is going to South America.
02:24Through his business connections,
02:25Tim's located one of the last untapped major gold deposits
02:28in the world in a place you'd never expect, Guyana.
02:35Sandwiched between 2 billion-year-old mountains
02:37and rugged lowlands,
02:39the Guyanese jungle is a natural catch basin
02:42for incredibly rich mineral deposits.
02:44The problem is getting to the area is nearly impossible.
02:50There are no roads.
02:51There's no infrastructure.
02:52It is unexplored.
02:53And it is one of the toughest places in the world to get to.
02:56Tim's making his biggest gamble yet,
02:58betting his last million dollars
03:00on the one thing that can make him rich again.
03:03Gold is the only thing that I can see right now
03:06that's increasing in value.
03:08I do have the ability to recognize a good opportunity
03:10when I see one.
03:11The key to Tim's plan, a 24-ton hydraulic excavator
03:18capable of moving 200,000 pounds of earth in an hour.
03:26Back it up.
03:28But machines alone won't guarantee success.
03:32So Tim's rounded up a group of his most trusted former employees.
03:36Heading the team, Tim's go-to guy...
03:39That puts burning around a little bit.
03:41...Daryl Haynes.
03:43A loyal lieutenant, Daryl's worked as Tim's foreman for 10 years.
03:46He'd follow Tim anywhere, even the jungle.
03:49Anything he asks me to do, I don't hesitate.
03:51If there's gold in there, we're going to get it out.
03:53Woo!
03:54Let's head to it.
03:56Working under Daryl will be master carpenter Chris Gamble.
04:00He's hardly been outside of Alabama.
04:03Bam!
04:04Jungle ready.
04:05And he's not taking any chances.
04:07What in the world is that?
04:09I can't go to the jungle with no little big pocket knife.
04:11A man's a jungle man.
04:13Chris has been out of work for months
04:15and is fending off the bill collectors.
04:17I just want to go down and get that going.
04:19When you broke, you do anything.
04:20I sent a memo to the jungle.
04:22Ass whooping's on the way.
04:24I'm ready, baby.
04:26And rounding out the crew, wildcard Clayt McDaniel.
04:30Rolling out, brother, rolling out.
04:32Expert machine operator and yoga enthusiast.
04:36Motivated by something other than money,
04:38he's going to the jungle for one reason,
04:40to get closer to Mother Earth.
04:43Got always dreamed about going into the jungle.
04:46Never really had the opportunity.
04:48I was stoked.
04:49All right.
04:51Back it up. Back it up.
04:53This is the biggest thing we'll ever do in our life.
04:55Are we going to be able to survive?
04:56Are we going to be able to do this?
04:57Because it looks like it's going to be a challenge to me.
05:01Every man that I have invited to join me on this new adventure
05:05is a personal friend of mine.
05:07But they're going to work harder than they ever have in their life.
05:10It's not going to be handed to them.
05:11They're shipping over 64 tons of heavy equipment to the mining site.
05:15It'll take about three weeks for the cargo to get to Guyana by boat.
05:19With luck, the gear will be in place by the time the team arrives.
05:23We've got a jungle waiting on us.
05:25And some gold, baby.
05:27Next stop, South America.
05:33After months of planning, the guys are about to get their first taste
05:37of harsh Amazonian realities.
05:40Where's the excavator?
05:43Junior?
05:44Junior?
05:45There's no excavator.
05:48Just two or three days a week.
05:50Tim's Guyanese foreman, Junior, shares the worst kind of news.
05:55Tim's prized excavator is busted, stuck in the mud,
05:59and abandoned by the local crew.
06:01It's bad.
06:02It's really, really messed up.
06:04It's only day one.
06:06And Tim's quest for gold is already in deep trouble.
06:09And Julius Reed, the team's muscle, isn't happy.
06:12We learned that the excavator wasn't going to be here no time soon,
06:15which kind of pulled a dampen on everybody's parade.
06:18We really need it.
06:19That's the only way we're going to be able to really find any serious gold.
06:22All right, we've had a slight change of plans.
06:24It's the last thing he wants, but Tim has to split the team up.
06:29John and Darrell, you guys take a fast boat, get to your excavator,
06:33and get them out to the river.
06:35Sounds dangerous.
06:36I'm in.
06:37No choice.
06:38We have to go for it.
06:39We got to do it.
06:40Okay.
06:41It's going to be a long ride.
06:44He sends his go-to guide, Darrell, to fix the stuck machine.
06:48Going after the excavator is going to be a tough job.
06:50And if I can't go myself, Darrell's the only one I can send.
06:54Need any help with anything?
06:55Carrying it down?
06:56You good?
06:57Coming up.
06:58Expert heavy equipment operator John Wilson will be with him.
07:01Do I want to separate the team at this point?
07:03No.
07:04It's not ideal.
07:05But it's the only way we're going to get our excavator to camp.
07:08The fact is, I'm behind.
07:09I need an excavator, and I don't have the luxury of keeping the guys together at this
07:13point.
07:14Getting the excavator out of the jungle is only step one for John and Darrell.
07:18I hope we got everything we need, Darrell.
07:20Then they've got to load it up onto a handmade river barge and float it upstream to the mining
07:25site.
07:26You ready?
07:27Time to go.
07:28Here we go.
07:29No fan of nature, Darrell's not looking forward to the journey.
07:32I don't like snakes.
07:33I don't like spiders.
07:34I don't like monkeys.
07:35I don't like monkeys.
07:36The mangy monkeys running around.
07:40It's been a long ride, Darrell.
07:42Long ride.
07:43Man, it's hot.
07:44This is not for the weak at heart.
07:56An hour into their ride, the boys see firsthand just how difficult their mission will be.
08:02I don't want to wind up like that.
08:06Last year, another group of Americans tried to pull off an operation like Tim's.
08:11I don't want to be that guy.
08:13It ended in disaster.
08:15Look at that.
08:18It is so gone.
08:20It's a nice machine, too.
08:21You've got to be careful.
08:22Yeah.
08:23Okay.
08:24It's going to be tough.
08:25It's going to be tough.
08:26It's going to be tough.
08:27It's going to be tough.
08:28It's going to be tough.
08:29It almost died.
08:30Failure is not an option.
08:31We've got a plan.
08:32Yeah.
08:33Let's execute it.
08:38The Bama boys have been in Guyana for less than an hour, and already the mission's
08:43in trouble.
08:44The key to the operation, a brand new excavator is stuck in the mud.
08:49While Daryl and John head downriver to retrieve it, Tim and the rest of the team head deep
08:58into the jungle.
08:59Let's go get this gold.
09:01Traveling 45 miles to their base camp.
09:04Amazing.
09:05They have just six weeks to find gold before the rainy season ends drying these rivers
09:10and leaving them stranded.
09:12Woo!
09:15I'm ready to get to the base camp.
09:17Tim hired some locals, says he's got us a good spot already built.
09:21I'm just really excited to get up here with the guys, drink a beer or two, and go get
09:24this gold in the morning, man.
09:26Look at that, man.
09:27Look at that there.
09:28You can't even describe this place.
09:30Every man on the crew is taking a gamble.
09:33They won't make a dime unless they strike gold.
09:36If they do, they'll share what could be millions of dollars in profits.
09:40We coming, jungle.
09:41Ain't no doubt.
09:42We coming for you.
09:43Hi, guys.
09:44We're here.
09:45Wow.
09:46After a two-hour boat trip in 90-degree heat, Chris is in for a nasty surprise.
10:05This is where you guys are sleeping.
10:06Are you kidding me, man?
10:07This is your primary lodging.
10:08It's day one of the mission, but Chris' confidence in Tim is already shaken.
10:20First is the excavator, which he told us would be here.
10:25Now it's the camp.
10:26This is off the bat.
10:27Two things were not accomplished that he said were going to be accomplished.
10:31We thought we were going to go and hit the trail, find out where this gold is.
10:35But now we've got to build a base camp.
10:37I hope Tim hasn't bit off more than he could chew with this project.
10:41His old trust meter, you know what I mean?
10:44I think I don't have time for all that.
10:47With just four hours till sundown, Tim tries to rally the guys.
10:52Gentlemen, you're less than a half a mile from the largest deposit of gold this world's ever seen.
10:59And that's what you're here for.
11:01Problem is that gold won't give you a place to sleep right in the jungle.
11:04I need the roof on this building today.
11:06Dark's going to catch us.
11:07Let's get ready to start living in this building.
11:09We're going to have to make it happen.
11:10All right, guys.
11:17After four hours on the river, Daryl and John have gotten as close to the stranded excavator as they can by water.
11:26I need to go in there four hours by truck.
11:30Now, they have to trek 12 miles deep into the jungle.
11:36Here we go.
11:43So far, they've glimpsed this jungle from the air and the water.
11:47We are in the jungle.
11:49Now, they're wading into the belly of the beast.
11:52It's just unbelievable.
12:06I've never, never been down a road this bad.
12:09I like it.
12:10Hold on, Daryl.
12:11Whoo!
12:12This fuel right here just flushing that boat so bad it's about to flush it.
12:15Whoa!
12:16This is great.
12:17A lot of cowboys.
12:19Less than halfway there, Daryl and John stop at the jungle version of a gas station.
12:24Tim has arranged for strategically placed fuel drops to make sure the guys never run low.
12:30We're loading up the fuel tank.
12:32Now, we don't know how much fuel's in the excavator, but a full tank will not get us to where we've got to go.
12:37So, stop by the fuel depot.
12:39Getting five barrels of fuel.
12:42With predators everywhere,
12:44they know running out of gas is not an option.
12:51And before they finish loading up,
12:53Uh-oh. Uh-oh.
12:54The guys make a troubling discovery.
12:56Right here.
12:57Look.
12:58Look.
12:59Big cat.
13:00Big cat.
13:01Big cat.
13:02Big cat.
13:03Fresh jaguar tracks.
13:04This ain't a good situation.
13:06Brand new.
13:07We got to go.
13:08The animals down here, they don't know what we are.
13:10They just think we're food.
13:11We don't have anything to defend ourselves.
13:13We're just mobile food to them.
13:15The Amazon jungle is home to the world's largest jaguar population.
13:20These massive cats are ambush hunters who kill with a single bite through the skull.
13:26Big old cat.
13:28Probably not far.
13:29A few years ago, a jaguar mauled and killed a gold miner not far from here.
13:34She's got tracks as big as my fist.
13:36The reason I say she is because there's always some smaller tracks with her.
13:39Oh, Lord.
13:40With all the cub tracks, I got a little nervous about her.
13:42The cub gets scared and starts hunting for her.
13:43What's she going to do?
13:44She's going to light your ass up.
13:45Let's go, y'all.
13:46Let's go, y'all.
13:47Let's go.
13:48Let's go.
13:49Somebody's thinking about gold.
13:50I'm thinking about surviving.
13:51Wow.
13:52Unbelievable.
13:53Don't survive this.
13:54Tough guy.
13:55Meanwhile, back at base camp, master carpenter Chris Gamble and the rest of the Alabama
14:10crew are putting walls on their living quarters, hoping to keep out unwanted intruders.
14:16But in a country that gets upwards of 110 inches of rain in a year, some things are even more important than walls.
14:25Chris, is it really wise for us to be working on the siding when we need the roof on this building so desperately?
14:32I mean, honestly.
14:33We'll get it on.
14:34We'll get it on before dark.
14:35Well, it's 4 o'clock.
14:37It'll be dark in about an hour.
14:39Chris has never run a construction crew before.
14:42But as the most experienced carpenter of the bunch, it's on him to get the roof put up and fast.
14:47All right.
14:48Down to siding.
14:49Let's put the roof on.
14:53Nearly 4 inches of rain can dump down in a single day this time of year.
15:09Welcome to the jungle.
15:14I guess it could be worse.
15:16Could be back at home looking for a job, I guess.
15:19With high voltage cables running through the soaked ground, the risk of electrocution is all too real.
15:25But the guys face a stark choice.
15:27Finish the roof now or sleep unprotected.
15:32Back at home, if it starts raining and you're a carpenter, we call get them up.
15:35Get the cords up.
15:36We're going to the house.
15:37But not out here.
15:38Getting dark.
15:39Night by the kitchen.
15:40A long day, baby.
15:41A long day.
15:42There's nowhere to go.
15:43Home is, I don't know how many thousands of miles away.
15:46I mean, it's frustrating, man.
15:48In my mind, I'm thinking we could be mining for gold instead of building this base camp.
15:52It sucks right now.
15:59While the team at camp struggles with torrential rains, downstream, Daryl and John have finally arrived at the excavator.
16:07Oh, there's a machine.
16:08That's all we got.
16:09Keep fingers crossed.
16:10After a six week jungle trek through brutal rains and deep mud, the brand new machine may be damaged beyond repair.
16:24It's taken a beating.
16:25It's taken a beating.
16:26It's taken a lot of beating.
16:27I didn't like what I saw.
16:28I saw about a half machine sitting there.
16:29Looked beat tall to hell.
16:30She's been rolling hard and put up wet, but I believe she's going to make it though.
16:31She'll make it.
16:32As bad as things look, Daryl can't give up.
16:47His boss, Tim Evans, already sunk a fortune into this operation.
16:51If Daryl can't get this machine up and running, everyone's going home broke.
16:56Excavators rely on hydraulic pressure to raise and lower their arms.
17:09This is where it blowed at right here.
17:10Too much pressure picking up, you know, in the mud.
17:13Without a working hose, the machine is useless.
17:16I hate to say it, but we're going to be shut down for a while.
17:22With the light fading fast and heavy rains approaching, the guys have no choice.
17:27They have to make camp here.
17:30Even though big cats are nearby, and there's nowhere to hide.
17:36Cold.
17:37We've got to be doing something quick because the rain's coming.
17:39Yeah, we've got to make camp here.
17:45I don't know how much sleep I'm going to get tonight, you know, because all this crazy stuff is out there in the jungle lurking around.
17:51I'm going to sleep with one eye open.
18:01Dawn.
18:03Day two.
18:07Daryl and John have made it through their first night in the jungle.
18:10It's just not somewhere you want to be at night.
18:12It's just not somewhere you want to be at night.
18:14Oh, it's going to be a long day.
18:17They wake up to a grim reality.
18:21With a blown hydraulic hose, the excavator is nothing but a quarter million dollar rust bucket.
18:26They need to come up with a solution or their entire mission will come to an early end.
18:31Too big?
18:32Yeah.
18:33This one's very small and this one's more big.
18:35Ain't going to work, Daryl.
18:36Huh?
18:37Ain't going to work.
18:38It don't look good right now.
18:39It don't look good.
18:40Go find the hose and come try it again.
18:42Meanwhile, 100 miles upstream, the temperature at base camp is already a stifling 90 degrees.
18:55The crew got the roof up late last night.
18:58But now, boss man Tim Evans has a new problem.
19:02I'm thinking this barge is not completely ready to go yet.
19:05He's secured a handmade barge to carry the 24-ton excavator back to base camp.
19:10But it hardly looks up to the job.
19:13I had some concerns.
19:15Just didn't look as big as it did when it was drawn out on paper.
19:19Steve.
19:20Luckily, he's brought along the team's MacGyver, Steve Hudson.
19:24He's got a photographic memory and can build complex machines from scratch.
19:28I think we need to see some bracing in here.
19:30Yes.
19:31So when this thing starts twisting, when we go through those waterfalls, the two pontoons
19:35don't try to separate.
19:36Not to mention the possibility that we might even touch a rock in the waterfall.
19:40The barge must be sturdy enough to survive the Coyote River, a minefield of razor sharp
19:47rocks and treacherous rapids.
19:50Reinforcing the barge could take Steve days.
20:00And Tim's got to get it down to pick up the excavator a lot sooner than that.
20:05Right now, we're waiting on you, OK?
20:06Yes, sir.
20:07All right.
20:13100 miles down river, Daryl and John have come up with a plan that must work.
20:19It'll be the same hose.
20:21Daryl finds a hose from an abandoned bulldozer that might fit his excavator.
20:26Let's hope and pray it does.
20:35Look good.
20:36Let's get it going.
20:45That's what I'm talking about, baby.
20:46Woo!
20:47We are back on track.
20:48Let's go!
20:49We got it, Diggs.
20:50Woo!
20:51And now we've got to walk this thing out of here.
20:52Let's get going.
20:53Woo!
20:54Woo!
20:55With the Vader good to go, they'll have to slog through 12 miles of jungle mud back to the
21:01river's edge.
21:02At a top speed of two miles per hour, this journey could take up to six hours, and they're
21:07already behind schedule.
21:08They're running again, isn't it?
21:09We've got a long way to go before we get to camp with this machine, and it's rattling and creaking
21:21and making all kinds of noise.
21:23You're a nervous wreck the whole time this machine is moving.
21:25An excavator is not really designed to travel.
21:27It's designed to do your work, and you load it back up and haul it somewhere else.
21:30It's not a dozer.
21:31It's an excavator.
21:32Every turn in the trail is a sinkhole, threatening to trap Daryl and John in the jungle.
21:38Try to pull that mud, man.
21:39Try it.
21:40It's scary.
21:41We're on pins and needles the whole time.
21:43Those tracks will come off, and then we're just stuck in the mud.
21:47You've got these screaming-ass monkeys hanging out of trees.
21:50They're just ready to pounce on you any time.
21:53I mean, there's a lot more of them than there are of you.
21:55Oh, Lord.
21:56The jungle is hell.
21:57There's just so many different things.
21:59It's the unknowing.
22:00Everything's scary.
22:02Oh!
22:03Oh!
22:04Whoa!
22:05Not walking.
22:06Just brutal.
22:07Back at base camp, the rain's finally stopped.
22:20Tim wants his crew to take advantage of the weather and pick up the pace.
22:26But the crew's not moving fast enough.
22:30And a worried Tim is starting to think he made a wrong call.
22:35I'm starting to wonder if I made a mistake, sending Darryl down the river after the excavator.
22:40Darryl's a good supervisor.
22:41He knows how to talk to these men.
22:43He knows how to motivate them.
22:44In a perfect world, Darryl would be here.
22:46But with the team split in half, it's going to have to be Chris.
22:50But Tim's not making it easy on his inexperienced new foreman.
22:53Hey, Chris.
22:54Let's talk in just a minute.
22:55What's up, man?
22:56Exactly what are you doing right this minute?
23:00Tell me that you're putting boards on the floor so we'll have a place to stay.
23:06Yeah, I'm putting here.
23:07That's what I'm doing.
23:08All right.
23:09Good.
23:10Okay.
23:11It's not the kind of pep talk Chris expected.
23:14And right now, he's feeling the heat.
23:16Tim's riding me pretty hard for some reason right now.
23:18I don't understand what the hell his problem is.
23:20Everywhere I turn around, man, here comes Tim.
23:22Notice how much faster you go if you have somebody open that crack up right there.
23:25Well, won't you help us?
23:26Put your damn coffee cup down and grab this one hammer we got and get busy.
23:30Lay them loose across that floor.
23:33Okay?
23:34I need to be working on finalizing the locations for the mining operation.
23:38And I really don't have time to be supervising these guys.
23:41I guess they're going to go to Holiday Inn tonight.
23:43I'm not sure where they're going to stay.
23:44What they need to understand is we've got to get some semblance of organization here before the sun goes down.
23:49Chris is a good carpenter, but now I need to be a leader.
23:52As Chris struggles at base camp, Daryl and John reach the river's edge after eight hours in the grip of the jungle.
24:09Woo!
24:12God almighty!
24:13It was rough, man.
24:15After two days of misery in the jungle, they can't wait to load the excavator onto the barge and head home.
24:21But there's a big problem.
24:23There ain't no barge here.
24:26There ain't no barge here at all.
24:29Oh, man.
24:30I'm just pretty disgusted right now.
24:31I battled the jungle all day to get into the barge.
24:35Frustrated by the lack of communication, Daryl finally snaps.
24:40Look what the hell they're doing.
24:42All I've heard from day one.
24:43Go get the machine.
24:44We've got to get the machine.
24:45Got to get the machine.
24:46There's the damn machine.
24:47Where's the barge?
24:49I feel like I'm fighting this battle by my damn self.
24:52It's only day two.
24:53But Tim's most loyal lieutenant already feels betrayed.
24:56You know, what the hell's going on?
24:58It's like we're out here by ourselves and nobody gives this what we're doing.
25:01Oh, man.
25:02Let's get dried up, cleaned up, get something to eat.
25:04So I'm gonna probably camp out here tonight.
25:06Another night in the open is something Daryl hoped to avoid.
25:12Tim's go-to guy is almost ready to go home.
25:16After being in the jungle for two days, mud, no sleep, no food.
25:20Everybody just put this monumental task on you, but where's our support?
25:23Nobody's really here to help us, you know?
25:25They don't really give a about us.
25:27As day three begins, Tim's barge is finally ready to leave base camp.
25:38The Bama boys are already behind schedule.
25:41They now have less than six weeks left before the rainy season ends and the river dries up,
25:47stranding them and their equipment deep in the jungle.
25:50Well, it looks good. It's the first time I've seen it since you finished it.
25:53Steve Hudson has managed a miracle, welding the seams and reinforcing the pontoons
25:58by installing steel plates at the critical stress points.
26:01I've done the math to what it would float, and the math don't lie to you.
26:06We built a barge enough to support the weight of two excavators.
26:10It would take well over 100,000 pounds to completely submerge the barge.
26:15Tim's hired two local boat captains to head downriver to meet the excavators.
26:19He's worried.
26:22We're behind on time, so we got a one-shot deal.
26:27I believe it's gonna make it. There ain't no room for doubt.
26:32Brand new barge. Never had any kind of a cargo on this thing.
26:36It scares me to death to think about watching the excavator get loaded onto the barge for the very first time.
26:41Every time I think about it, it sends chills up my spine.
26:46With the barge finally on its way, Tim's focus goes back to the unfinished bunkhouse.
26:54But he lets his new foreman know he's not pleased.
26:58Chris, I know you've been a carp all your life.
27:01The first thing you should have done is built yourself a set of saw benches.
27:04This here cutting on your foot don't make a bit of sense.
27:07In an hour, when I come back, I'm gonna show you how to build them if you don't have them, okay?
27:10I don't see why he ain't over here helping us, giving us a hand.
27:15This warning pops off, build the steps, do all this, get the flooring down and all that stuff.
27:19And then when I'm over here doing it, Chris, you need to build soil.
27:22I don't know. I don't know.
27:23If it keeps going the way it's going, something's gonna go down today.
27:26There's no doubt about that.
27:28After 72 hours of grueling work, Chris finally cracks.
27:33All right, Chris, get your head in the game, baby.
27:44Please, God, forgive me.
27:47And I had to just walk away.
27:50I had to walk away because I would have done something I thought would have been very, very foolish.
27:56Tim's riding Chris pretty hard and it kind of stressed him out a little bit.
27:59It's tough on a lot of people, but you gotta go with the flow and stay positive.
28:04And at the end, everything should work out.
28:08You gotta keep working, though.
28:10With his family deep in debt, Chris knows he can't quit.
28:14You gotta keep working, though.
28:17Sometimes I let my anger get the best of me.
28:19And I just gotta remember what I'm here for and keep staying focused with the goal.
28:29100 miles down river, Daryl and John have survived another terrifying night.
28:36And the barge has finally arrived.
28:39It's finally here.
28:40Thank God.
28:41Happy days.
28:42Happy days.
28:43Captain!
28:44About time you got here.
28:46We've been waiting a long time.
28:47I forgive everybody.
28:48Almost.
28:49I ain't worried about you fast no more.
28:51Move ahead.
28:52But there's no time to celebrate as they face a nerve-wracking task.
28:57Loading the 24-ton excavator onto a barge that's never been tested for weight.
29:03If it breaks, their entire mining operation will be over.
29:08Good luck there, buddy.
29:10Load this damn thing and hit to the mind.
29:15Come on.
29:16Come on.
29:17Come on.
29:18Oh boy.
29:19Everybody was nervous.
29:20I was nervous.
29:21It worried me on the weight.
29:22Bars may not even float.
29:23Try that.
29:24Up.
29:25Woo!
29:26It's an inch by inch battle with millions of dollars at stake.
29:28One wrong move and it's game over.
29:29Whoa!
29:30Whoa!
29:31Whoa!
29:32Go on!
29:33Go on!
29:34Go on!
29:35Go on!
29:36Go on!
29:37Go on!
29:38Go on!
29:39Go on!
29:40Go on!
29:41Go on!
29:42Go on!
29:43Go on!
29:44Go on!
29:45Go on!
29:46Go on!
29:47You need to place that thing exactly where it has to be.
29:49It can tilt either way, and once it starts rock and rolling,
29:51you can't stop it.
29:52Go!
29:53Go forward.
29:54Go!
29:55Go!
29:56Put it on your nose.
30:03Oh, Lord.
30:05I need to go a little more that way.
30:08A little more.
30:09Get in my air.
30:10Get in my air.
30:11Woo!
30:12That's good.
30:13Finally, the excavator rolls on, but its 24-ton weight creates a whole new problem.
30:30The barge is sinking down and could get stuck in the mud.
30:34Hey, Darryl.
30:35The barge.
30:36The barge seems real heavy.
30:38Oh, Lord.
30:39The motions are up and down.
30:41Every time we get close, take two steps forward, five steps backward.
30:45A lot of weight.
30:46A lot of weight.
30:47Go-to guy, Darryl, lives up to his reputation with a quick fix.
30:53He puts the excavator on a crash diet, shedding as many pounds as possible.
30:57That's a lot of weight in that bucket.
30:59That takes a lot of weight off the front of this boat.
31:01John, can we get it off?
31:03That's gonna take maybe 1,000 pounds off the front of this boat.
31:08Dumping the half-ton bucket into a separate boat might work, but there's no way to know
31:13until they get the barge out on the water.
31:15Take that pin loose.
31:20She's ready to go.
31:21She's as ready as she's going to get.
31:22The car I'm driving, I'm gonna drive it home.
31:25Or I'm gonna wreck it.
31:27Bug out.
31:31There we go.
31:34We'll be there in time for half the hour.
31:36It looks good right here.
31:41After three miserable days marooned in the jungle,
31:44Darryl and John are finally headed back to base camp with the excavator.
31:49Bart's holding up well.
31:52It's been two days of smooth sailing.
31:57But a second glimpse of this sunken excavator makes it all too clear what could go wrong.
32:02We can't end up like that.
32:04Oh, Lord.
32:08Darryl begins to realize just how serious this could be.
32:12John!
32:13John!
32:14We got the tough water ahead.
32:16There's some rough waters out there.
32:18They're approaching a vicious stretch of rapids full of jagged boulders.
32:23Oh, Lord.
32:24If the pontoons are pierced or they lose control of the barge and the treacherous currents...
32:29Whoa!
32:30...the excavator can easily topple, ending their quest for gold.
32:34Oh, boy.
32:36The water is backing up, moving all kind of directions.
32:41If we can't make it to the falls, we won't ever make it to camp.
32:44It's gonna be tricky.
32:45If this thing starts bucking at all this pressure, we gotta be careful.
32:48We don't wanna go to the falls nosed over.
32:50I don't wanna make a bad decision today.
32:52I wanna talk to the captain.
32:53Faced with turbulent waters and the rapids lying ahead, the usually confident Darryl stops for advice from the local captain.
33:03Whoa!
33:04We're gonna tie off here now and see what our next move is.
33:07What's your verdict?
33:10Well, I think it is too dangerous.
33:14Oh, boy.
33:15The barge is much too low.
33:16If it was a high barge, no problem.
33:19It's not the answer Darryl's hoping for.
33:22You don't feel comfortable doing it?
33:23No.
33:24We're gonna end up in some problems.
33:27Yeah.
33:30Oh, boy.
33:31That just took the wind right out of my sails.
33:34You're just so close.
33:35You feel like you're so close.
33:37Now Tim's go-to guy has to make a tough choice.
33:41Brave the rapids and risk losing the excavator.
33:44Or unload it and head back into the nightmare of the jungle.
33:50Going over land to get around the rapids adds about 15 miles to their journey.
33:54At two miles an hour, they should be able to do it in a day.
33:59If nothing goes wrong.
34:01It's an impossible decision.
34:03I had to have been in the jungle.
34:04I didn't want to go back in there, but I didn't want to lose the machine either.
34:07It's too big a call to make on his own.
34:10After days without contact, Darryl's finally able to reach his boss.
34:14Darryl, I can hear you, man. How's it going?
34:17Well, we got in the boat this morning and run through the falls,
34:19and that barge rides really low in the water.
34:22Okay.
34:23All these captains tell me the same thing. Don't do it.
34:26Well, what do you think we should do?
34:28The captains, all the captains' guts were telling them don't do it.
34:31They want to walk the damn machine, Tim.
34:33You're there and I'm not. You do what is the best and safest thing.
34:37I'm counting on you to get that machine here as quickly as possible in one piece.
34:41Whatever choice is made will be Darryl's alone,
34:45as Tim makes it all too clear what's at stake.
34:47Yes, sir.
34:48We're not going to mind any gold if we don't have an excavator.
34:50Yes, sir.
34:52All right, brother. Thank you.
34:53How well, Alex?
34:54Hey, can you hear?
34:55Hey, can you hear me?
34:57Damn.
34:58.
35:03As Darryl wrestles with his impossible decision,
35:06Tim makes a critical choice of his own.
35:08He's finally selected a place to start mining and takes three of the crew to check out the site.
35:15We're very, very close. About five minutes away.
35:18He's gambling this dried up creek bed will yield the treasure they came for.
35:22Going down the yellow brick road. We're going to do some legit gold mining today.
35:27Based on geologic maps, Tim believes a rich gold vein runs through these foothills 10 to 15 feet down.
35:34Near the surface, the gold mixes with black sand and other dense minerals.
35:40During the California gold rush, miners called it pay dirt.
35:45Tim's hoping he'll hit some today.
35:48Well, gentlemen, this is your pay dirt.
35:49That's where you'll find the rich as gold.
35:51So we'll get us a few pans of this, check it, see if there's any gold fleck in it.
35:55Panning's one of the oldest forms of gold mining.
35:57Water spills through a pan full of soil, leaving only the heaviest metals behind.
36:03Finding even a flake of gold here would be a good sign.
36:07But as pan after pan comes up empty, the crew loses faith.
36:12Let me give it a try.
36:16You know, the whole time he's been telling us there's gold here.
36:19I don't know what the hell's going on.
36:20I mean, is there gold here for real or not?
36:23I'll ring, I can do it.
36:25Just see what we'll find.
36:27I don't think Tim really understands how much we need this, how much I need this.
36:35I guess that's our fault for trusting in him.
36:39Then, just as Chris is about to give up...
36:43Look at this, Julius.
36:45It's a little like something in it, don't it?
36:47That big.
36:49There's a piece right there.
36:50That's a nugget, duh.
36:51They hit pay dirt.
36:53Are you kidding me?
36:55That's gold?
36:56Tim, he's found gold, dude.
36:58That's gold, dude.
37:00Look, look, look, look.
37:01Look at that one.
37:03Big, nice, nice nuggets.
37:04Crazy, man.
37:05A few hundred dollars right there.
37:07It's not a fortune.
37:09That is not a flight, gentlemen.
37:10That's just really the gifts.
37:11That's a start.
37:12A tantalizing hint of the millions that could come.
37:15You're in the land of milk and honey.
37:17After three days of hard labor in the oppressive jungle,
37:20the crew finally believes their risky gamble could pay off.
37:24We've come a long way to get here, but you're here now.
37:26Thank you for bringing it.
37:27Yeah, Tim.
37:28For real.
37:29I really appreciate it, man.
37:30From this point on, Tim can yell, scream, slap, whatever he wants to do.
37:34As long as he keeps putting us on the gold, I'm good.
37:36I'm gonna write him a I'm sorry card tonight.
37:38I can't comprehend it.
37:40I can't.
37:41I can't wait to get the excavators.
37:46But as gold fever sets in at camp, 50 miles away, Daryl's made a decision that puts everything at risk.
37:54I'm walking machine.
37:55Oh, man.
37:56Instead of floating up river, they'll now have to slog through miles of the jungle's thick mud.
38:07And time's running out.
38:09With just five weeks before the weather forces the end of the mission, Daryl knows any further delay could be a disaster.
38:16Damn.
38:17My life is hell.
38:18My life is pure hell.
38:19Coming up this season on Bamazon, Daryl's decision throws the mission into chaos.
38:35I'm not giving.
38:36Whoa.
38:37This is grease.
38:38Stop.
38:39Stop.
38:40Stop.
38:41Stop.
38:42Stop.
38:43As tempers flare in the jungle heat.
38:45You got something to say?
38:46Just let me know, bro.
38:47The gloves come off.
38:48Why don't you just go get on a plane and go back to Alabama?
38:50Stop right here.
38:51Don't touch me.
38:52You're making a fool out of yourself.
38:53You've been making a fool out of yourself the whole time.
38:54No, sir.
38:55Damn.
38:56And gold fever spreads through camp like a deadly virus.
39:00Let's take everybody out.
39:03Watch your damn.
39:04Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
39:05Stop.
39:06Whoa, look out.
39:07Whoa.
39:08I'm too open, he .
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