A Bit Of Dirt On The Boys Of "Gold Rush: Alaska"

As reported in the News-Miner of Fairbanks, an incident on the show Gold Rush: Alaska is not what was portrayed on the show. In one episode, miners shot a black bear "in defense of life and property." Purportedly, it was the same bear that invaded the mining camp.

Trouble is, the bear that did so was brown - so the black bear couldn't be the same bear. Also, state wildlife officials determined that the brown bear came into the camp because of rotting fish left on the ground by the miners.

In addition to thse facts, the report contains an interesting complaint about the show's stars:

The slap-dash clueless approach to mining portrayed on this show is not representative of the mining industry in Alaska, but viewers of the show in the Lower 48 won’t know that. Like it or not, this program reflects poorly on Alaska placer miners....

So far the TV miners have not applied for a permit, so perhaps the show won’t have a second season. We can only hope.

The article also notes that recreational hunting is typically forbidden to lessees of mining claims, but the permit issued to the Oregon miners inadvertently omitted that codicil. The shooters all have their hunting licenses and some bear tags, so they didn't break Alaska law.