Some Gold Rush: White Water stars may have gotten into the game for the sake of family legacy or even the promise of a new adventure. For star Dustin Hurt, though, he found a swift water destination that he knew would have a huge payout. And since then he’s been trolling the icy waters of Alaska for flecks of gold among the worn-down rocks.
Hurt and his father Fred have made a huge name for the Hurt family in the white water rapids of the 49th state. Together, the father-son duo has generated a collective net worth of $7 million. Before their resounding success, Dustin’s career began with a hunch about a waterfall that he knew had hidden treasures.
“There’s a giant waterfall, a 50-foot waterfall that lured me to all of this, and I wanted to tackle that, and I haven’t yet made an approach to tackle that,” the Gold Rush: White Water star told Looper. “I think that’s the difference between when I started and now. That I thought I would be able to just jump straight into that, but it’s a bigger job than I thought it was gonna be. So I think for the payoff, I think that’s going to be the big waterfall that I haven’t been able to attack.”
‘Gold Rush: White Water’ Now Owns Inspiring Waterfall
Like any high-risk high-reward job, gold mining takes a lot more than just sticking a pan into the water and collecting the nuggets of precious metal. Before Hurt and his fellow Gold Rush: White Water stars can even step foot onto the riverbed, they have to obtain proper authorization and permits. Not to mention they also need to build up the funds to purchase equipment and also recruit a reliable team. It’s a long process that requires a lot of patience, endurance, and flexibility.
Even when the Gold Rush: White Water teams are able to start dredging through the rocky earth beneath the water, there’s no guarantee they’ll find enough to make it worth all of the effort. And Dustin should know – especially now that he owns that 50-foot waterfall known as McKinley Falls.
According to the gold miner, before he staked his claim on the area, a team before him had great success in finding gold, but unfortunately, their efforts washed away with some unexpected flooding. Since calling McKinley Falls his own, Hurt has been waiting for the right opportunity to start dredging for gold.
“I now own that waterfall and I’d love to get after it, and I think that’s going to be life-altering,” the Gold Rush: White Water star shared. “Just haven’t made enough gold to actually go ahead and get after it.”
