"The Motherlode" (also called "Gold Rush Live!") is the 16th episode of Season 3, and the Season Finale. It is a two hour episode that originally aired on February 22, 2013.
Story[]
Filmed live in front of an audience and hosted by Christo Doyle, the episode featured the also moments of the mining season, and interviews from the miners.
In Indian River, the ground has become to frozen to mine. With a last second decision by Jack Hoffman, Todd and Dave Turin set a chunk of land on fire to melt the ground, and they are able to scoop up enough dirt to run.
In Porcupine Creek, "Dakota" Fred tries to get his last bit of dirt from the road he traveled down. However, the road begins to give way, and he must abandon. On a final move, Dustin Hurt and Melody Tallis dredge the bottom for some gold.
After finding out he needs $45,000 to pay bills, Parker Schnabel digs the rest he can to get 30 oz to pay them off. He runs what he cans, and is forced to run the dirt by hand. He locks up the mine, possibly for the final time, and hands the keys to his grandfather, John Schnabel.
With all of the miners in studio, they all go through interviews and are questioned on their futures. Fred reveals he plans to mine an area high up on Cahoon Creek that he owns, but is only reachable by helicopter. Parker reveals he may lease land from Tony Beets to mine on Scrivener Creek.. The Hoffman Crew has many announcements. First, Chris Doumitt reveals he is retiring and will not be mining. Greg Remsburg reveals he will be moving on and not mining the next year. Finally, Todd reveals he has begun mining in South America to get gold during the offseason.
Finally, the final gold counts are revealed. The Dakota Boys got 24oz in their final clean out, bringing them over their goal of 160oz. Parker got 31oz in his final clean out, putting him over his goal of 190oz. Finally, he Hoffman Crew's final clean out was 80oz, putting them just over 800oz total, short of the 1000oz goal.
Finally, Christo reveals that the production crew will follow Todd to South America in Gold Rush: The Offseason, set to air in the summer.