All language subtitles for Life.Below.Zero.S15E05.Past.Lives.720p.WEB-HD.x264-Pahe.ph

[dramatic music]

[wind howling]

Yeah, right now I'm
up on American Summit.

It's about 20, 25
miles from Eagle

and about 30 miles from my home

at Calico Bluff down
on the Yukon River.

I have a lot of connections
to this country.

When I first came
here, this was a place

that provided a lot
of resources for me.

I had zero money, really.

I basically lived on
whatever I could find to eat.

I'd mush dogs up here
a lot in the wintertime

and hunt caribou, bears,
and other things up here

and to collect blueberries.

A lot of connections,
a lot of bonds,

a lot of meaning to
this area for me.

Everywhere I look, I
see places I've been

and experiences I've had.

And I love coming up here,

but it's a harsh place to be.

[soft dramatic music]

[Narrator] Andy Bassich
and Denise Becker

have travelled 20 miles
to American Summit,

an area where Andy has
harvested resources

since his first days in Eagle.

They're in search of food

that will prepare them
for the winter ahead.

But if they are to be
successful in the high country,

they'll need to rely
on their sled dogs

and an ancient tool to
help carry the load.

[Andy] The think this
is a good spot here.

Why don't we get these
packs and stuff on 'em?

[Denise] Okay. Carver, Griz!

Good boys! [laughs]

Come here, Griz! You gotta
put your berry pack on.

One of the things
I'm really enjoying

is teaching one of the
dogs had to use a travois,

which is a really effective way
to move heavy loads up here.

Basically what a travois is

is it's two long poles

that extend out from
the back of the dog.

There's kind of a bridle

that goes over the back
and connects it to Chester

around the neck.

And basically it becomes kind of

like a wheelbarrow
without wheels

for the animal to
drag a heavy load.

Work our way up the hill here

and we'll look for berries.

And I'm gonna stop and
glass from time to time.

Maybe we'll get lucky
and see a caribou.

That'd be great.

My first impression
of American Summit

is the vastness and the beauty

and the freedom that
you feel up here.

I didn't envision
it being so mossy,

tossocky, wet.

That's why you have a travois.

[soft dramatic music]

Here's some berries. [laughs]

You got a good
patch there, Andy?

[Andy] Yeah, they're just
interspersed everywhere,

but, you know, some
years you come up here

and it's like one
pick, one handful.

Not like that this year.

I thought maybe we might
miss some completely.

[Denise] I've never
picked blueberries

in a setting like this.

This is amazing.

I love being up in
the high country.

It's really beautiful up here.

It's kind of a
different experience

when you live down on the Yukon.

Everything kind of
closes in on you.

And when you get up here,

you realise it's a
pretty big world.

[dramatic music]

As a father I'm
told to be perfect,

but I'm not perfect.

[dramatic music]

[soft dramatic music]

Okay, check the depth.

Shallow there. Check it again.

A drop off right there, huh?

Look at it.

[Ricko] Oh, yeah.
That's good and deep.

Bet we can catch a whitefish
or a pike right there.

We're gonna just
use the old stick.

We're gonna put a
new stick next to it.

So that's just gonna
push it that way?

It'll be going along
with the current.

Getting fish is
really important,

because we don't have any
other source of meat right now.

We're not hunting moose.

We're not hunting bears.

We haven't eaten
enough berries yet.

So it's important that I
teach my kids how to fish.

And not only just in the winter

like I've taught them
before, but in summertime,

because this is when
we really need fish.

I just gotta get
this into the dirt.

Ouch. Hard on the hands.

[Skarlett] Is this your new net?

Yeah. This is
brand spanking new.

Smells like new shoes, huh?

Some kids get new Nikes.

Sky gets a new fish net.

Yeah.

I think it's ready to go in.

I'm just tying it off
in the water right here.

[Skylar] Are you putting it low?

[Ricko] Yeah, as low as I can

so it don't pull on
the net too much,

'cause the higher you go,
the more leverage you got.

[Skylar] Yeah.

So hopefully, we
don't lose the net.

Last winter, I put a
net under the ice here.

It was very cold,
very difficult.

And I was by myself, and
it wasn't very pleasant.

So me and the kids should
have an easier time.

Okay, we're gonna
set the net now.

Okay, just push us
out in the current

just a little bit.

There you go. Just like that.

Not too hard.

Just like that.

Okay, I'm gonna use the
current of the river

to string this net out.

[Skarlett] Hey, are we
trying to catch a salmon?

No, we're trying to catch
a big pike or a whitefish.

Keep going, Sky.
You're a lot of help.

Here you go.

Hold onto this net,
and when you get close,

throw this in the river.

On this side?

Yeah. I'll tell you when,

just hang on to it.

Go ahead, toss it in.

[Skylar exclaims]

[water bubbling]

Good job, Sky.

Okay, you guys, jump
in and close that door.

Okay, we'll leave
that net sitting,

and then we'll come
back, check it,

and if we got a bunch of
kings, we'll let them go.

But if we get some
whitefish or pike,

we'll have fish ice cream.

[Skarlett] Ooh, yay!

[dramatic music]

As the girls grow up,

we're passing down
our family traditions.

A blessing to see they
follow our traditional style.

[soft dramatic music]

Shall we go beachcombing
for a little bit

and check out the river?

I already got three
life jackets, Qutan.

Cool.

After all the couple of
weeks of staying in Noorvik

and some people were
starting to get sick,

and there's a couple of people
in our neighbour villages

that passed away from the COVID,

decided to come back to camp

and go do what we do best,

is just live our life
out in our country

with our younger kids.

[Narrator] After isolating at
her home village of Noorvik,

Agnes Hailstone is
reunited with her family

in the remote Kiwalik camp.

With the lack of
abundant resources

in the region this time of year,

they will now turn
to a tradition

that will support
their lifestyle

and carry on their
native Inupiat culture,

making art from
harvested materials.

Chip and I usually fall back

on artwork when we need money,

like we need extra gas or
other things, you know,

we just trade or give as gifts.

As the girls grow up,

they'll be able to fall back

on their artwork
if they have to.

This looks like a good place
to walk for a little bit.

[boat motor roars]

See how it all just fell?

Those are good places to look.

[soft dramatic music]

I just wanna look and see

if there's any kinds of
raw materials or bone

or something we could use

in one of our artwork projects.

It's nice to just go take
a walk once in a while

and look around
what's in the area,

but you gotta be careful.

Sometimes the mud house fall

while you're walking under.

Gotta be careful
not to go in places

where it's gonna fall on you.

This is where me and
your dad usually go walk

and find like mammoth
tusks and mammoth teeth.

Sometimes there's moose antlers

along the top edges and stuff.

[dramatic music]

This time of the year

when we're walking
along the riverbanks

when it's melted and
the land's falling,

we just look for
tracks and bones

and plants, if they're
at the right time.

Walking along riverbanks
is always surprising.

You never know what
you're gonna find.

This tundra right here,

it used to be all flat like this

until the permafrost underneath
the ground started melting.

And then so the ground
started to fall in,

and then the water like
separates the ground

and finds its way
back to the river.

And once it does that, these
huge chunks of dirt and moss,

they fall into the river
and it keeps eroding.

[dramatic music]

[Carol] There's like a
huge crack over here.

I do not recommend
stepping in that.

[Agnes] Yeah, that's
kind of dangerous.

Let's just turn around and
go get the boat, you girls.

[soft dramatic music]

Well, you don't
always find something,

but there's a lot of bones
and pieces we can use

towards our artwork
when we get back home.

[Carol] Yeah, it's pretty
fun just to walk 'em.

There's blueberries.

Could you give me some?

They're really sweet.

[Agnes] Yeah, the
blueberries are about ripe.

Right on, go back to your dad

and Wade Kelly and see
what they're up to.

-[Carol] Yep.
-[Agnes] Sounds good.

[dramatic music]

Come winter time,

you better be prepared out here.

You do things by the
seat of your pants,

you pay for it.

[soft dramatic music]

This is a bunch of wood

that I cut a couple of
years ago in Nenana.

You can see that this
firewood's still got a lot

of moisture in it.

The drier I can
get this firewood

and the more cured I can get it,

the better it's going to
burn for me this winter.

But it needs to stop
getting rained on.

What I need to do right now

is build the
woodshed around this

to get this all enclosed,
no more rain falling on it.

That way, I can be properly
prepared for the winter.

Last winter, it was one of
the most harshest winters

I've ever spent in Alaska.

And there was three weeks

where we never got
above 40 below zero.

Every one of those days,
I had to go haul wood

from my wood yard five
miles away from me.

And that lit a fire
under me to be prepared.

What I'm gonna do right now is,

I got some big timbers that are
leftover from my cabin here,

I'm gonna dig some holes
here, set these posts.

[dramatic music]

Everything I do out here,
I'm gonna do with passion.

I'm gonna make this
thing look nice.

This country out
here, these mountains,

it inspires me.

It drives me.

I don't wanna just
want to survive here,

I want to thrive here.

Okay, I got that straight.

What I'm gonna have to do
is put this log up here.

When it gets up there, it's
gonna be completely unstable.

I'm gonna grab
some two by fours,

put one screw in each
one so it'll pivot.

As I go up, I'll be
able to use those

to brace to keep it
from falling over.

[soft dramatic music]

These logs are
about 17 foot long.

They weigh close to 300 pounds.

It's gonna be a little
bit of a struggle

to get some of these
logs set up right.

Sometimes you just
gotta go for broke.

Okay. I feel like I got
this braced up here now.

I mean, it's not very stable,

but it's stable enough for
me to walk away from it.

I got one post in.

Now I'm gonna get
the other posts set.

[soft dramatic music]

When you're just one person
doing a job like this,

it's a balancing act.

This weighs 300 and
something pounds.

It's dangerous.

Every now and then, I
wish I had three hands,

three arms, four arms.

Four arms would be even better.

I'd say this is my least
favourite part about this build,

digging these holes.

[dramatic music]

Holy shit!

[soft dramatic music]

Fuck. [sighs]

I had just adjusted the log

and finally got it squared up,

but, you know, I got
to keep an eye out

and make sure I keep these
braces a lot better in there.

[soft dramatic music]

That was a real close call,
too close for comfort for me.

I'm gonna take some
extra precautions.

I only had two supports on that.

I'm going to put
four on each side.

Make sure they can't fall over.

Nobody's gonna ensure my
safety out here but me.

All right, I've got
my final post secured.

So far so good.

It's nice when you get to
this point of a project

where you can start seeing it.

Next step is to be
getting some concrete

and start filling
in these holes.

[dramatic music]

This is a very
exciting build for me,

a project that I've really
been looking forward to.

To me it's just another thing

that I gotta figure
out how to do myself.

I find joy doing that.

It makes me rise
to the challenge.

Nobody's going to come
and do this for me.

This is something I'm
gonna do for myself.

All right, I got
my last post set.

Making some quick progress here.

I can really start to see
it all coming together.

Right now, I'm going to have
to let these cure overnight

and then I can get started

with putting up some massive
crosspieces tomorrow.

Gonna I get a good night's rest,

get back at it in the morning.

[soft dramatic music]

[Chip] This place has its
own dangers, but still,

there's a good way that a
person here can make a living.

It's all right here,
if you want it.

[soft dramatic music]

Beluga head. Cool.

This is my family's
collection of bones

that we always just
find and take home

when we go beachcombing
or something.

Or with this, even,
you can just draw.

[Qutan] Cool,
maybe I should draw

since I'm really good at that.

Look, Qutan, all the stuff
we collected over the years.

It's became a lot, yeah?

-Yeah.
-Yeah.

We could do something
with this baleen,

'cause I've never done
anything with baleen.

With this?

[both laugh]

You gonna try and make
something, or what?

[Qutan] Yeah.

[Narrator] For Carol
and Qutan Hailstone,

traditional native
art is crucial

to the survival of
their Inupiat culture,

and a key task to
complete this time of year

when opportunities to
harvest resources are scarce.

What I found, what
I wanna do is draw,

'cause I'm pretty
good at drawing.

So I got the idea
to draw a whale

'cause the baleen comes
from the mouth of the whale.

And my sister wants
to do the same,

so we're gonna see
how this turns out.

Should we go sand the sides?

Yeah, to make them smooth

so they're easier to draw on.

-Let's go.
-Let's go, then.

Today is like a cool
little project day.

While me and Qutan are gonna
be polishing our baleens

until we get them
to where we want,

my dad is making a bow
and arrow for Wade.

-Oh, you knocked it over!
-I got the dot!

That was a good one.

Well, I'd better hurry up
and get this thing done

so you can have a
real bow your size.

[Wade] Hey, hey!

I gotta babysit, so
I'm taking the time

to make the little guy a bow.

These are kind of the toys
he could use around here.

I want him to feel like
he's a little hunter.

I want him to feel like
he's a part of all this.

He's little boy sneaking
up on little birds

and small stuff, like
squirrels and things.

I give him a little
bow and arrow,

and he could go, you
know, 5, 10 feet away.

I think little kids should
all get to play outside lots.

-I just did the dot!
-Make him stronger,

healthier, tougher, faster.

I would say that our
chores and our fun

blurs into our livelihood.

Give him the toys and the
ability at a young age,

and when he's older,
he'll have choices.

That kid there is smart.

[Wade] Yeah!

While I'm working on this,

those girls are
doing some etching.

Right now, they're
learning how to make money.

And they don't have
to go get something

and buy it and go sell it.

They can actually go find it,

make something very unique,

put their name to it,

and somebody will want to
pay the price if they ask.

And our kids have grown up
watching us make artwork,

and now they're
including themselves.

Oh, that's pretty cool.

Looks like a whale.

-Yours is down. Mine is up.
-Mine's a long whale.

I think the more you
draw on one of these,

the better it gets.

[soft dramatic music]

Etching on baleen is kind
of like a traditional thing.

You could always just
make something out

of all these artefacts for
like thousands of years.

A lot of Eskimos
actually do draw these

to draw out stories. [laughs]

Since I was a little
kid, I always grew up

and my parents would
be drawing on baleen

and making a lot
of cool art work.

And I just grew up
watching them do that.

And as I was growing up, it
just became like a little hobby.

I guess you could say
art's in our whole family.

It's just in our
bloodline, I guess.

It's funner, because my
sister is learning too.

And it's just like I'm drawing.

[Qutan] Look.

That's like a short fat one.

This like a skinny long one.

[Carol] Oh, it's
mouth is open, yeah?

Oh, yeah, that's the baleen.

[Carol] I'm pretty
happy about this.

It turned out pretty cool.

[soft dramatic music]

[Chip] There's no gender roles

when you way out
here in the woods.

Everybody gotta play their part.

[dramatic music]

Normally, if there's
fish in that fish net,

you'll see the sinkers
are way down in the water

and you can kind of tell
if you got something in it.

Wait, do, they die
in the fish net?

Some of the fish'll die by
the time we get to them,

but some might still be alive.

Okay. Here's the fish net.

Okay you guys,
let's check the net.

[Skylar] Okay.

Hopefully, we got some
pike or whitefish,

something to make
fish ice cream with.

[Skarlett] Dad, what would
you do if we got salmon?

If we get salmon,
we'll let it go.

A lot of people take pride
in fishing with fishing rods.

But in reality, that's
not what we do out here.

We use fish nets.

You gotta have that
fish net working

while you're working
around the cabin

and doing other things,

especially right now where
there's no moose meat,

no caribou meat.

The beers are skinny.

So if we didn't have fish
nets growing up out here,

we for sure would
have starved to death.

-It just jumped!
-It's moving! See?

[dramatic music]

[Ricko] You're right, there
is something in there.

[Skylar] That's a big one.

[Ricko] A lot of dog
salmon in this net.

Let's push the other one.

[Skarlett] The other one?

That's another dog
salmon. It's big.

[Skylar] Three dog salmon!

[Ricko] We'll let these ones
go if they're still alive.

These things get
real tangled up.

Dad, is that why they're
called dog salmon?

[Ricko] Yeah, I think so.

They have like
big old dog teeth.

[Skarlett] But why
can't we eat them?

Because these things aren't
even good eating right now.

Back river, pike eater country,

we don't have good
salmon out here.

I mean, you could eat
salmon if you have to.

But late July like this,

you're gonna be
really spawned out.

And pike is the way we
really get by out here.

Whitefish, not as many,

but they're always the
biggest treat out here

is good whitefish.

It goes a long ways.

It has a little more
food value than a pike.

Oh, look at that fish.

Oh, it's barely in there.

[Skylar] We got a whitefish!

[Skarlett] I love whitefish.

This is what we're
looking for right here.

They are good eating fish.

I grew up through
some hungry times.

And the kids don't have
to experience that,

but I want them to
learn all the tools

that I used growing up
through the hardest times

to get here today.

And even though times
are easy right now,

if it ever comes to hard times,

these kids will have the tools

and the knowledge to
put food on the table.

Okay. This is the
end of the net.

It's heavy.

-Gee!
-Oh my god!

Holy snap!

-That's humongous.
-Ooh!

That's a good pike right there.

Look, Skyler, it's
almost as big as you.

Ooh, geez.

Okay. Let's get this net out

before we catch more fish.

We're done.

Skyler and Skarlett have
never processed a fish

on their own.

This is gonna be a
learning experience.

They'll learn how to
put a net in the water,

and they'll also learn how to
take care of what they catch.

And that's just as important
as learning how to fish.

[Skylar] Right here?

[Ricko] Yeah, not
too deep. Tilt it up.

There you go. You're doing good.

You know, even if you
cut the guts, it's okay.

[Skylar] No, no, I
don't wanna mess it up.

I'll show you. You go like this.

Pull up on the stomach,
and you just go like that.

The whitefish stomach
is real good eating.

See, you pull it out here.

It looks like a squid.

[Ricko] It is, it's like squid.

That's what it tastes like.

-[gasps] Yes!
-And I like squid.

It's like the Alaskan
squid right here.

[soft dramatic music]

My kids, they're
basically city kids,

but they're really
not city kids anymore.

I've been bringing them
out a lot over the years,

and they're not really sensitive

to the weather and
the bugs and all that.

So my kids are definitely
getting tougher,

and that makes it easier for me

because they're
more comfortable.

Having the kids helped me

was the best way
to do it for me,

because it's a very big job.

And it also gives them
hands-on experience

and they get to see
how it all happens.

And they get to see
what to look out for.

A good spot to clean the
fish right here, huh?

Look, no blood,
nothing. Just all sand.

That's how you want it to look,

'cause if we had
that up on the bank

or by the house, we've
got bear problems.

[dramatic music]

Living in these mountains
teaches you, grows you.

It ages you. It makes
you a better man.

[soft dramatic music]

Okay, that looks like
some pretty good height.

Got my dog truck
situated in a good spot

for me to be able
to put up this log.

And this one's a little
bit further back,

but it's still gonna
give me somewhere

to slide it off and
see what I can do here.

[Narrator] Jesse Holmes
is building a shelter

for his firewood, a crucial
piece of infrastructure

for his new homestead.

But after a close call while
building the foundation,

he must proceed with caution

as he continues to
build from on high.

Now that my posts have cured

with the concrete overnight,

the next part is putting
my crossbeams up.

It's a hard lifts to make,

because this a heavy log

and I don't have
the best footing.

This is no joke, these
are 300 pound logs.

[Jessie grunts]

[dramatic music]

What I do might look
impossible to do,

but it's technique.

I'm not that strong.

I'm using simple bush
ingenuity to get this done,

figuring out how to
do something by myself

that most people will require

two to three people
to do safely.

All right, I've got my beam set.

I'm pretty happy
seeing how this looks,

even from up here.

I know when I get down there,

I'm gonna feel a lot
happier about it.

It's time to start
setting my rafters.

I am building this woodshed

with materials that
have been repurposed

from about five different jobs.

It's great to be able to
repurpose all of this material

and invest it in something

that's gonna keep
me warm this winter.

The way I work is I use
everything that I have.

I don't waste things.

I had to work very hard to
get all this stuff out here.

There's a sense
of pride in that,

but it's also a
sense of survival.

Either I'm gonna go
work for a dollar bill,

or I'm going to work for myself.

Okay, now I've got all
the structural parts

of my roof built.

I've got my rafters.

I've got my blocking in
here to stiffen it up.

One thing left for me to
do here is put my tin on.

Working hard right now

so I don't have to work hard
chasing wood in the winter.

That's going to be
a nice, new feeling,

a big change around here.

[dramatic music]

For me, my whole life,

I've been moving around
from place to place.

Owning this, owning
the title of this land,

starting with it raw,

and knowing that
everything I invest into it

will never be taken away from me

gives me a sense of pride
in everything I do out here.

This place is a place
of inspiration to me,

a place of bright future,

a place that I'm
never gonna let go of.

[soft dramatic music]

All right. I got all
my metal laid out.

It went out real nice.

Next step, putting up
my one by six sides.

That'll hold the wood in.

And then I got a whole
lot of wood around here

to fill this up.

It's gonna be a real nice site.

[soft dramatic music]

[Andy] It's pretty special
to live in a place like this.

I feel really lucky
that I was able

to determine at a
pretty young age

that this was a lifestyle
I wanted to try.

[soft inspirational music]

Come here, boys!

Look it, Carver is doing
really well with that travois.

Come on, Carv!

He's doing super.

Good boy.

American Summit is fairly
high elevation, 3,500 feet.

And the winds are blowing
up here most of the time.

And even on a nice warm
sunny day in the summertime,

it's pretty chilly up here.

A lot of meaning to
this area for me.

I spent a lot of time
when I was a younger man.

A lot of nostalgia
for me to come up here

and look for caribou,
look for berries,

and show Denise a little
bit about this country.

Let's work our
way over this way.

There's a good lookout
point right here.

I'd like to just
take the packs off

and we'll just kind of look
out for a little while.

Okay. Sounds good.

[soft eerie music]

Good boy, Griz.

Good boy, Carver.

There's a whole bunch
of nice big mushrooms.

-Check these out.
-Oh, yeah. Hoo.

Wow, this is great.

They're so big, they don't
fit in the container.

Using the excuse to
pick blueberries,

but really it's a
day for Denise and I

to just come up here

and for her to
explore a little bit.

And if we can find some
resources to bring home,

that's great, you know.

If we see a caribou,
we'll take it.

And we're both starting
to become more interested

in some of the different
types of mushrooms and fungi.

If it's another resource for us

to add to our meals and
dry for the winter time,

it's a great thing.

We're getting quite a load

of berries and
mushrooms already.

Yeah, let's go find the lookout.

Okay. You lead the way.

[soft dramatic music]

This really makes it
feel like a true day off

from the summer work at Calico.

There's a lot of work at
Calico Bluff in the summertime.

It really is nonstop.

Taking advantage
of the good weather

and just leaving
that behind for a day

and getting out here
is just like being able

to just catch our
breath, catch my breath,

get a breath of
fresh air, literally.

-[soft dramatic music]
-[wind whistles]

It's just beautiful.

So glad to finally
be here and see it.

It's a great lookout spot.

[Andy] Yeah, you can see a
lot of country from here.

[Denise] What are you seeing?

A whole lot of barren ground

with no caribou in it.

I mean, I'd love to see some
even if we don't get any.

I'd love to just see some

-out there, but.
-Yeah, exactly.

Well, I think I'm gonna
roam around a little here

and pick some berries,

and I'll watch for
more mushrooms too.

That'd be really good to
get some more mushrooms.

[Andy] Well, I'm
quite comfortable in
my rock-ing chair.

[Denise laughs]

[soft music]

[Denise] Let's see if
there's any over here, guys.

Just seeing the dogs get out

and run around and
explore the country here,

they're having a ball, and
Denise is the same way.

She's an explorer.

She loves to just roam.

She's kind of in hog
heaven up here right now

having a new experience.

And that's a good thing,

because our life down at Calico

is kind of like
living on a ranch

or a farm full of necessary,

but sometimes mundane chores.

And it's kind of nice just to
get a break from the routine.

Do not eat my berries! [laughs]

You're such a good dog.

Yeah, you are.

You knew right when
to chill, don't you?

Up on American Summit here,

you really get the feeling

of the vastness and the
enormity of the land.

It also makes me realise
how confining things can be

in other parts of the world

when there's constant boundaries

and limits to where you can go

and what you can explore freely.

When I look out on the horizon,

there are no limits, and it
just makes me want to explore.

[dramatic music]

My kids having
respect for animals

and for the land is what
makes me the proudest,

because it tells me I'm
doing the right thing.

[soft upbeat music]

We just got a bunch of
fish out of the fishnet.

So now we're gonna
run over here.

There's an old campsite
that I grew up in

until I was 16 years old.

It's down river from
the family cabin,

and just a real walk
through memory lane for me.

And also let those kids see

that part of my history
that they come from.

I talk to my kids a lot about
growing up in the woods.

So this really
gives them a chance

to put a finger on
what I'm talking about.

[soft eerie music]

It's pretty grown in out here,

but it still brings
back a lot of memories.

Here's our old trail that
turned into an animal trail.

This is the most climbed
tree in the area right here.

You know what we called it?

-What?
-Moose tree.

That's what you
were talking about?

Yeah, we'd always
go up in that tree

and sit there and look out

until we'd see a
moose walking by.

And then we tell
our mom or our dad.

I remember my late
mom shooting a moose

right back there
behind that tree.

She shot it one shot with a .44,

a big old bull moose.

Your mom even got a moose?

Yeah, she used to, if
dad was in her hair

or he was out doing something
and a moose came up,

my mom would go get
it with her handgun.

She was a badass.

You know, when we were kids,

we climbed a lot of trees

because we didn't have no toys.

And we were always competing
on who can go where.

And going up trees is hard.

You hook your legs
on just like that.

[Skylar] No way.

No, what the-

I haven't climbed this
tree in probably 30 years.

[soft music]

It's awesome up here.

I really wish my mom and dad

was still around in
moments like this

because they'd be so proud

of watching my kids
do what they're doing

and see me as a parent.

If I'm able to raise
my kids successfully

and raise them to be strong,

it shows a lot to who raised me,

and that's my late mom and dad.

And I'm a little sad
that they aren't here

to see their grandkids and
see how strong they are.

But in a way, it's like
giving tribute to my parents

for raising me to be
strong and independent

and able to pass
that onto my kids.

[Skylar] How did you do that?

[Ricko] You gotta
step straight up

-right here.
-Oh my god.

-Dad!
-You're good.

Step straight up onto
that one, your foot.

[Skylar] But look,
it's gonna break.

[Ricko] Oh, well, just step
further towards the tree.

[Skylar] I'm scared.

No, you're good.

Don't look down, and just
think of where your foot is

and think of where
your hands are.

[Skylar] Oh, okay.

[Ricko] It looks
cool up there, huh?

[Skylar] Yeah.

[soft dramatic music]

Oh, look at this
old moose antler.

This is one of the moose
that fed our family

back in the day.

Holy, this is what we
used to eat growing up.

Pretty amazing it's still here.

This is awesome. Look at this.

It's really like
a big deal to me

to come here with my kids,

because I'm seeing something
I hadn't seen in years,

and it was such a
big part of my life.

It's a surreal feeling

to come back and see it again.

And so it's kind of bringing
it back to reality to me

and it's not a dream anymore.

This here is the old
jungle gym, we called it.

[Skarlett] Did you love it here?

Yeah, I used to
love it out here.

This is my old playground.

I don't know how I
solid this, though.

Pretty rotten.

Nothing what it used to be.

[Skarlett] So we're gonna fall?

[Ricko] No, it's good.

[soft dramatic music]

Ooh, you okay?

[Skarlett] Yes, but
that was fun. [laughs]

[Ricko] [laughs] Gee, Skar.

[Skarlett] You scared me.

[Ricko] You all right?

[Skarlett] I'm good.

I don't wanna fall either.

Skar is always brave.

Just watch your
footing, remember.

Geez, you're brave.

That's one thing about Skarlett.

She don't give up.

She didn't get hurt,
but she got scared,

but then she overcame it.

Okay, let's get out of
there before I fall.

All this toughness out
here kind of wore on them

and they're coming away
a lot stronger kids.

And that's good for me to see,

because it shows I'm doing
my job, raising them strong.

And hopefully they're
learning a lot too.

Okay. You guys ready?

Let's go make some
fish ice cream.

You guys deserve to eat good.

[boat motor roars]

[soft dramatic music]

I want these kids to get an idea

that they can always
improve themselves.

They've got the
talent. It's natural.

I wanna develop it.

[Wade] Is it like not too tight?

It's not too tight.

It's a little boys' bow.

I made it with
cables in the front.

And what we can do later
when you're getting stronger

is we can twist these cables

and make this a higher
poundage of pull.

You can hunt a little
animals with it.

Is it nock?

Oh, I made Wade a little
piece of bow and arrow.

You know, I added
the cables to it,

and the cables give
it more tension.

And as the boy gets bigger, I
can tighten those cables down

and make it more pressure
to pull the thing back.

I'm gonna give him something

that can send an arrow 200 feet.

And probably within
the next year,

he'll be able to do
that with that bow.

He'll be a little
clumsy at first.

It's made his size.

It's not man-sized
like the toy bow.

It's made his size.

Can I shoot it?

[Chip] Like that.

Oh, wow, you made him,

his bow is all done?

Yeah. I made him his own bow.

They don't take too long to make

if you know what you're doing.

You made a bow and I made

-a bowhead whale.
-Wade, these girls

are having artistic hand.

Bowhead whale. Look at that.

That sure is a bowhead whale.

Dang. And they're immense.

How about you?

Oh, you got a Bullhead too!

You know, for your
first scrimshaw,

that is freaking
absolutely amazing.

It sure is. Can give
them away as gifts.

You can sell them.

You can trade them
when me and your dad

need a few bucks or something.

We used to make artwork

and sell, trade or
give them as gifts.

[Carol] Man, this is cool.

I actually, really like it too.

-So do I.
-Yeah, I really like it.

I think I'll hang
it on the wall.

-Yeah.
-Good idea.

That's slick. Check
out your nephew's bow.

-Wow, Wade.
-Here, grandson.

Here, launch an arrow that way

as fast as you can,
as far as you can.

Show them you can use a bow.

[soft music]

[Agnes] Yep. Get into position.

[Chip] Aim at your target.

-[all clapping]
-Oh, good job.

-That's how you do it.
-All right, Wade,

go hunting now.

-Come back with something.
-Good job!

He's gonna be a provider.

Right on.

Gotta keep giving the kids toys

that are like tools that
they can learn with.

And pretty soon he'll
be shooting guns.

And then, you know, it'll
progress from there.

To see Qutan and Carol just
blooming with all the artwork

and their artistic stuff
is real awesome to see.

They've watched me do
it for years and years,

and they watch Chip create
stuff and carve things.

And it's always awesome

to watch each and every one
of our children grow up,

and, you know, they just
pick up that talent also.

And it's good to see they
have my family style.

It makes me happy.

And it makes me know that
they've been paying attention.

It's just great to see

that we're passing down
our family traditions.

[Jessie] I've
finally got a place

where I really
wanna stay in life.

So everything I do is
gonna do with passion,

and I'm going to do it right.

[dramatic music]

Wow, now I can see all the space

that I'm gonna have in
here for all this firewood.

This is going to be a major
improvement to the homestead.

Next step is to get some
enclosure going in on the sides.

I don't wanna
eliminate the air flow,

but I wanna be able to
stack the wood up high.

Pretty socked in with
clouds everywhere.

I think it's gonna rain soon.

It's the most exciting to
me about this new woodshed.

I've never had a
woodshed before.

It means a lot to
me to have a space

that's dedicated
just to dealing with

and processing firewood,

because it's such a
humongous part of my life.

[soft music]

I'm going hard because
then I get to sit back

and enjoy the
fruits of my labour.

This coming winter is
when I'm really gonna get

to experience that.

In the Alaska Range,
winter's always

right around the corner.

There's no comfort to be had
unless you have firewood.

Well, looks like I got this
wood covered up just in time.

Getting to see the benefits
of my hard work here.

At least the wood's nice and
dry that I have under here.

I'm actually nice and dry.

The storm's passing. The
weather's clearing up.

I gotta get back to work.

One of the things that's
the most exciting to me

about this new woodshed,

I've never had a
woodshed before.

It means a lot to
me to have a space

that's dedicated just to
dealing with the firewood

because it's such a
humongous part of my life.

Okay, the last thing I gotta do

is put up this x-brace here,

and it'll keep these
from bowing out.

And then I'm done and I
can start cutting wood.

I got a lot of firewood
out all around my yard.

What I need to do next
is get it all cut up,

stacked up into my woodshed.

The beauty of this is this

is this doesn't just set me
up for this coming winter.

It sets me up for winter
after winter, after winter.

And I don't plan
on going nowhere.

I just envision this
growing and getting bigger.

looking around at all of this,

it's just hard to believe,
because whenever I came here,

there was nothing but
a game trail on here.

I built this all from my own
two hands, by my own back.

That's what I'm doing out here.

I'm making my dream happen.

One step at a time.

And this was a big step.

I got three rows going here

stacked clear to the roof.

I feel a sense of
relief right now

having all this wood ready
and drying for the winter.

This is what I envisioned.

And it's all starting
to come together.

Pretty happy with this.

[soft dramatic music]

The land has changed a lot.

Sometimes you just
got to pick up things

and move to another spot.

And that's part of adapting
to survive out here.

[soft dramatic music]

Basically, it's just boiled pike

Let it drain a little bit.

Most people would think fish
ice cream sounds disgusting.

My kids might even
think it's disgusting.

I wanna see how
they react to it.

But for me, it's
a very good food

and really important
that kids learn

about some of their culture

and especially the
foods in our culture.

We don't want the skin in there.

That's for sure.

What else do we not want here?

-Bones.
-Yeah, we don't want bones.

See these bones right here?

Boom.

[Skylar] Do you have to
freeze fish ice cream?

You don't have to, but you can.

The reason we say ice cream

because we had it in the
winter and we would freeze it.

And then if we go out on
a boat ride or we're going

out cutting wood or
whatever we got to do,

if we bring it with us,

it's real good snacks,
it's got a lot of calories.

It's got a lot of protein.

You'd grab it like this,
squeeze all the water out.

I didn't know you had to
do that for fish ice cream.

[Skarlett] She knows
how to make everything.

Did your mom know how?

Yeah, that's who taught
me how to make this.

[Skarlett] When did you learn?

When I was about your age.

My mom made me cook
when I was young

and I didn't even have to
go out and get the fish.

Just like you guys.

We didn't always
get to make this.

So it was a big deal
when we made this.

Salmon berries, blueberries.

[Skarlett] That's
a lot of berries.

And then we just kind of
mix it in without like,

I don't want to smash
the berries up too much.

I'll put just a little bit
in case you don't like it.

That is good.

It doesn't even taste like fish.

That's so good.

That's what's awesome

about the whole thing, that
we went out to go get fish.

Big walk down memory lane.

You get to learn
about where I grew up.

That's part of who you are.

That's your history.

I like it around here.

That's the magic of
living in the woods,

once you learn, it
just don't forget it.

And you won't go hungry.