Original subtitles

The bears are probably running this trail every night.

Salmon coming up off the main channel,

and they lay their eggs up here and spawn.

And the bears come here to catch the fish.

Your first --

when you see a bunch of bear tracks,

if you want to avoid the bear,

you want to make noise so it knows you're here.

But if you're hunting moose,

you don't want to do that, you know?

Because you're trying to be stealthy.

And...i don't know if any --

any moose in its right mind would hang around right here

or not.

That explains all the bear tracks.

This -- this is what they're after,

these tasty salmon.

It's, like, basically dead, you know?

But there's still part of its brain

that's telling it to move.

Those salmon are so tough, just this crazy tenacity.

Just unstoppable will to stay alive.

It's come a long way.

It's at least 800 miles from the ocean.

Come all the way up here into the arctic to spawn,

you know?

Pretty neat.

The arctic refuge is roughly the size

of the state of south Carolina.

You go for hundreds, thousands of miles

without roads -- nothing.

Our permits only go up

until the death of our last child.

Within 100 years, there's gonna be nobody.

We are the last.

Every man wants to provide for his family.

In the arctic like this, you have to work much harder.

This far, this remote, the land is your food source.

To stay out in the woods... You gotta hunt.

Out here, having meat, it's like the difference

between being poor and being rich.

I'm just another predator out here.

Living in an extreme environment,

shaking off civilization.

I feel like I'm more a part of the circle of life.

You have to kill in order to survive.

It's a little bit high.

I tied this up because bears.

We'd like to get a caribou, you know?

That would last us two weeks.

There. got that off.

Three miles up the river, ere's a bluff.

I'm gonna to sit at the bluff.

It's usually pretty good for caribou.

That's why I'm getting the boat ready, you know?

I'm looking for -- for logs for the cabin,

trying to find bigger pieces.

That's ready to go.

Rhonda and coleen are up here now.

And, um, the other two girls are gonna be here,

Millie and krin,

the oldest one and the younger one.

They'll be up here to help us finish the cabin.

It's been 20 years ago, I think,

when they were all together here.

And it's going to be...Nice to have th aemll together,

as long as they don't argue.

And it is a special occasion.

Me and heimo are excited to have them all here.

You know, now I'm shooting

for a whole family again instead of just me.

Meat, for us, is very vital.

You know, every day, you know,

this far north of the arctic circle

and this cold, you need the meat.

And you need the fat.

You need that meat. You need that fat.

You need it.

And out here, it doesn't come to you.

You gotta get it.

Yeah. this is the first time

in over 20 years

everybody's gonna be together out here.

Hopefully, soon we'll have meat.

Yeah. this is our cache.

So it's like the store.

Gotta go to the general store.

So these are the bags that we have

that have all of the stuff we dehydrate from our garden

in the summertime to bring up here.

It doesn't seem like a lot because it's all dehydrated.

But like, if it was all wet weight,

it'd probably be, nook je,

like, 300 pounds of food.

Like, you have no idea how many tomatoes are in a bag like this.

Like, lots and lots of tomatoes here.

They're, like, super-condensed.

We eat vegetables every meal we want and as many as I want.

So that's pretty good for living in the bush.

Dii dn't grow up using guns.

But Tyler does have a lot of hunting experience.

He's -- he is a good hunter.

We can't go to the grocery store.

So there's definitely, like,

larger consequences involved if we didn't have moose.

Tyler's been gone downriver.

We're still looking for the moose.

And I sure hope he comes home with one.

Right here.

Right here.

Those are moose tracks.

They're not too old.

They weren't made too long ago.

Now, it's all about walk, as far as I'm concerned.

Is that a gray Jay?

Camp robber.

They follow people around... Like the ravens, you know?

The scavenging birds.

They, like, rely on the success

of other predators to kill, you know?

So I'm sure they're really hoping we get a moose, too.

A lot of these animals are living right there on the edge.

They live in a extreme environment.

They're basically on the verge of being desperate for food.

But that's just part of the daily existence out here.

We're just like these animals,

always looking for something to eat.

It's nice back here because you can actually hear.

Hunting is a pretty frustrating activity most of the time.

Keep moving.

Just grinding away, you know, trying to find something.

But just think about how good the meat's gonna taste

and how -- how much it's gonna mean to you to have.

Yeah.

These are super-fresh tracks right here.

You n catell 'cause there's --

he just came right out of the water down there.

And they're still wet.

There's still water droplets in the sand.

He's in there somewhere.

Oh, it's a... It's a big one.

I love the river.

God's blessed my socks off up here.

I'm going back to the cabin with my daughter, talicia.

She hasn't been up in the camp for 20 years.

We're gonna stop for lunch.

Beautiful river, ain't it?

Yeah.

Whoa.

Dad, here.

There's no water in that -- this coffee pot.

I know.

My daughter, talicia,

she's an awesome girl, tough.

She was a hotshot firefighter before the accident.

A big vehicle slid right into her,

Bo th feet...Crushed.

Her head hit the windshield.

She could've been dead.

She has a hard time getting around.

But she never gives up.

She's got the strength.

I'm just worried about her footing.

What are we eating for lunch?

Food.

That's g aood answer.

That water is crystal clear.

You can drink it straight all you want.

And it doesn't fill you up.

It's so pure,

you can drink it like wine.

It was awesome being young

and growing up in the woods.

It was a wonderful forest,

all green and super plush.

And it was beautiful.

And we'd have picnic lunches out there, me and my mom.

And the sunlight would be going through the trees.

I am so excited.

I can't wait to see the cabin with my dad.

When my wife was here, and the kids were here,

thatas w the best years of my life.

I concentrated on the meat,

earning a moose to bring back and share with family.

And my wife did all the rest.

And, uh, she was a good cook.

And we were living good.

Depending on the land to support you.

Thanks.

Dear Jesus, thank you for isth food.

And thank you for my dad.

And thank you for my dog.

And thanks for the boat working.

Amen.

Amen.

Getting up to the cabin

is important for me to provide for her.

Hunting, fishing, taking care of meat.

I hope we make it today.

Oh, we will.

It's rlleay good, dad.

Chef Bob-ardee is back.

We're going to the old cabin

so I can pick up a couple of pots that we need.

A lot of memories around here when the girls were small.

This was one of their marks, right here.

When they were younger, heimo would always tell them,

"if you were going out chopping,

put a Blaze Mark

so you know where you're going to

so you won't get lost."

We have four daughters.

The oldest one was Millie.

And the next one is Rhonda.

And the last one is krin.

But before Rhonda, we had coleen.

She drowned when she was 2 years old.

This is where coleen used to start walking

when we first built this one

because we put big bells on her.

And she'd just stop, go far, she'd look around.

And then when we're not looking, she'll just take off.

You could hear the bells going cling, cling

and then stop.

I wouldn't want to leave the place at all

where we got all the memories as family.

These are our old broken-down traps.

You gotta have meat out here.

I think meat is the most important thing for this family.

It's hard, very hard,

when you don't have much food.

That's why we lost our daughter.

We were at the upper cabin.

And we kind of run out of food.

We were coming down here

because at this cabin, we have food.

The water was so high, it pushed us against the bank.

The boat tip us over.

And, uh, coleen, she drowned.

And we almost lost Millie, too.

Millie was turning purple.

And we keep shaking her and telling her to wake up

because we couldn't reach our youngest daughter.

It's kind of hard.

That's why I emphasize,

"you gotta have meat."

You gotta... That's the only way

to have meat here.

I'm sorry. I can't.

I'm sorry. No, no.

I'm sorry, Edna. I'm sorry.

When I think about it, I thought

"i must be so dumb and stupid,

running out of everything."

That's why we emphasize,

"you gotta be prepared all the time."

Conserve what you have

and always save some for tomorrow.

I hope these will work at the tent site.

And we'll be good.

A lot of memories here.

Aw, man. We're close, close to the cabin.

Here we go.

Yay.

Aw, man.

What a relief.

No doubt.

Home is where the hartes are.

Let that dog loose.

He already is.

-Is he? -Yep.

Man.

I haven't been up here in like 20 years.

Good, no bear.

I picked this spot.

I started building the cabin.

It took me a month.

And wai s in business.

And it's held up 40 years so far.

This is the best cabin on the whole river.

Period.

It's the Hilton.

Everything I need is right here.

Aw. didn't I give that to you?

Or did mom?

That's been there for years.

Nice.

I gotta get the shutter off the window.

Oh. fresh air is needed.

Yay.

I wanted this place warm.

I want the dog happy.

I want talicia happy.

It won't be long.

Whoa. I'm living.

I'm living again.

Holy mackerel.

I'm happy, happy to be home.

Hey, ruger.

Are you happy you're here?

You don't need this on you no more.

No bear trouble.

The cabin's in shape.

Yeah. there's a moose back here.

It's a big one.

Holy

pret styure that was a gunshot.

Tyler's hunting downriver.

M i'hoping it's a moose.

I mean, if we get a moose,

I'm hoping it's not too late in the day

to start cutting one up.

Aw, man.

I'm excited to see him.

Holy

you gotta be kidding me.

Oh, my god.

He's down. We got a bull right there.

Tracked him right to his little --

little bed.

That's crazy.

When something like that works out,

that is insane.

It's all the meat we need for the winter and more.

Look at him.

Massive.

Massive animal.

Yeah. we got lucky.

You go from being discouraged one minute

to being meat-rich the next, you know?

It's funny how life works that way.

I'd say, I mean, it's over 1,000 pounds.

I mean, it's...

You know, that's a -- that's a wide --

wide rack.

I'm grateful.

Maybe, you know, 30 years from now, I could walk back here,

and that thing is still there.

That'd be pretty neat, you know?

Maybe someday, you know, you could take your --

take your kids back here and show 'em.

You know, "there's that.... That's the bullet

that killed that moose that, you know, your mom and I ate."

-Hey. -hey.

What happened?

Got one.

Woo-hoo.

Look ahit m.

Yeah. big guy.

Oh, my gosh.

Oh, that's exciting, isn't it?

I know.

Oh, boy.

Look at him.

Good job.

Well, we got some work ahead of us, don't we?

Yeah. we need to get to it.

Well, all's I need right now

is just, uh, is just one caribou.

That'd be great.

I see some tracks there, but they're from a week ago.

You know, this is a pretty big herd.

I mean, it's almost 200,000 animal.

But there's a -- but they have such a huge area.

I mean, thousands of miles -- square miles of area.

They usually come through here

because they like to feed up in the mountainsides, you know,

to get away from the bugs.

And so a lot of times,

the bugs determine where they're gonna be.

I'm gonna head up to the bluff.

Winter's coming soon, so I need to get meat.

And this year to have the three girls, you know,

krin, Millie and Rhonda out here,

the first time in 21 years, it's important.

This is one spot.

I'm going to sit here for a while,

see what's around.

Any kind of movement, that's what I'm looking for.

And caribou move a lot.

A lot of times i listen to caribou,

I hear 'em.

You know, a brush breaking and sometimes snorting

and clicking of the hoof.

Nothing.

They usually come from over there.

And then they follow the edge of the trees.

And they cut across here.

I mean, this is one of my favorite spots

when we're at the lower cabin here, is right here.

There's a lot of history here, a lot.

Family history.

Before I got married, I thought, "i don't ever want girls."

I remember that. I remember thinking that.

My dad said, "girls are moody.

Boys, you just smack 'em around, you know.

Girl, you really can't do that."

For some reason, I always thought I'd have boys.

It's just... I wanted a son so bad.

But I -- I never had a boy.

On our firstborn, coleen, you know, once she died...

Well, then after that, i just wanted girls.

I just wanted girls.

I don't know. I don't know.

I just...I don't know.

I can't --

I really can't explain that.

You know, I just wanted girls.

When Rhonda was born, we got an ultrasound.

And they said it was a boy.

You know, so then all of the sudden here, boom.

Out she pops out a girl.

But I remember I cried because it was a girl.

I was so happy it was a girl.

And now I got, you know, just girls.

I said, "well, you know what?

They're going to be raised like boys,"

because out here they got to.

So when you wanted water, you --

you carried water. You know?

If you wanted to go out and eat something,

take the gun and go out and shoot something.

You know, and they did all of that.

And they just did it.

It was good for them in the long run.

And, uh, well, Rhonda named her firstborn child

after our daughter that passed.

You know -- you know, i didn't think anything of it.

But it's good, though. I'm glad she did.

That you know, even though she never even saw her

that she thinks about her.

But, uh, but there is many, many times

I wish coleen was still here.

I mean, our daughter, you know?

Many times.

Children are so precious, you know?

They are.

Losing your own child,

it's the most horriblest feeling in the world.

Anyways, I'll just sit and wait up here.

Look how thick that hide is.

-Oh, my gosh. -It's like a half-an-inch.

Yeah.

We're going to cut these legs off.

Just pop that ball joint.

And you go up with it. -Yeah.

Oh. sorry about that.

Oh, my god. It's just ricudilously awkward.

Backstrap. -watch it.

Don't set it down on that side.

I know. I know.

D'oh.

There we go.

So right now, like 100 pounds of guts are in there.

And all the bacteria are still alive in the guts, you know?

They're basically cooking.

And we want to get it butchered fast

so that it doesn't overheat.

Your meat worries are totally over now, you know.

Things are looking good.

Every animal we harvest, i feel sensitive towards it.

But, you know, I'm -- I'm thankful.

I'm thankful it was there.

I'm thankful that everything in the ecosystem

is working right in order for me to live this life.

So thanks, moose.

Sorry, and thank you. You know?

It's a big animal, you know?

Its a consequential thing

to take the life of an animal like th.Is

you know? It's not...

You should stop and think about what you did, you know?

And...just to be grateful.

-Oh, they're hungry jays. -Yeah.

It doesn't take them long to find it.

Right around here, the ravens,

they'll be circling before long.

Uh, if we leave the guts here, you know, the other animals

will come along and eat the guts.

There's predators, and there's prey.

And the predators celebrate death, you know?

To them, death is life.

I mean, I just secured all the meat

that Ashley and I need for the rest of the year.

You can make moose stew...

Moose stew. Moose kabobs.

...moose steak. Moose and macaroni.

Moose burger.

Moose is for dinner tonight.

Chili with moose. -Chili con moosé.

Yeah.

Hey, mom. I need your head.

Yeah.

There. sun's on it.

Perfect.

Come on.

I'm looking for caribou up in the mountaintop.

It's a two-man job.

I don't have a tripod. So...

Don't even laugh, mom.

I see tundra,

lots of tundra, lots of tundra.

I don't see no caribou.

Nothing.

Nothing.

No luck at all.

Nothing.

It's...

It's off I go...

Hi, monster.

I love you.

No caribou.

I didn't bring down any dinner.

I love you.

Hello.

We already felt raindrops.

Did you?

Krin and Millie are going to be here pretty soon.

Maybe it'll clear up later on today.

And the wind will blow.

There we go.

Catching some grayling, tasty fish.

And I need at least one more fish.

It's a pleasure being back here,

coming back to the country.

Lets you calm down, get a different perspective.

See what's real, what isn't.

Learn your limitations.

Learn what you know, need to know.

Here we go.

I'm so happy to be here.

Some meat, finally.

One, two, three.

Ah!

Weighs about 100 pounds or so.

-Got it? -Yeah.

Feeling okay?

Yeah. yep.

Okay.

Not really.

But it's good, I got it.

There, that's pretty good.

Yeah.

The dogs are excited, I'm sure.

They're always so happy to see meat

coming in the yard like this.

They just look at us like we're gods.

If only they could carry it for us.

No kidding.

Hey, the airplane!

Here they come.

Yes, yes, yes.

They're landing. They're landing.

Hurry up. Hurry up. Hurry up. Come on.

Stay close.

Woo-hoo. -oh.

Oh. bouncy.

-There's auntie! -There's auntie krin.

Hurry up. Hurry up. Run up there, coleen.

-Hey, coleen. -I missed you.

-Hi. -hi.

Let me help you.

-Hey, Timmy. -Ah!

Hey. hey, what's your name?

-Hi. -hey.

I just love my girls, our daughters.

Hi, dad.

-To have them with me... -How are you guys?

...I'm happy.

It makes you feel good, feel happy.

Well, we're going to go swimming.

I want to go! I want to go swimming.

-Well, we'll all go, honey. -Auntie Millie...

The perfect moment of my life

would be me and Edna and the girls

and the grandkids sitting out here,

nice camp and everybody laughing, telling stories

and jokes, you know what I mean?

That would be --

that would be, uh, almost utopia, you know?

That would be perfect.

One, two...

This year, we're really depending upon the girls

to provide meat for us while we build the cabin.

All right. You be careful.

Love you.

I'm just hoping that they'll get something.

Right here. See that?

Curiosity kills the cat.

Hey, grizz, coming in.

Sometimes bears will just lay there, hide.

Big day for me.

Love of my life coming back up here.

He's not healthy. He's not doing well.

And he knows it.

Aw, Bob.

Still can't believe she's here.