Given its name, it should come as no surprise to learn that Gold Rush: White Water is a spin-off of Gold Rush. Said spin-off is centered around “Dakota Fred” and his son Dustin, who are now searching for the precious mineral in a place called McKinley Creek. As a result, while Gold Rush: White Water shares the same premise as its parent series, it promises something new for interested individuals.
What Do We Know About Gold Rush: White Water?
First and foremost, people who have been following Gold Rush for a long time might remember Dakota Fred and his son from the earlier seasons, but the two stopped showing up in the subsequent seasons. What happened seems to have been some sort of dispute between Discovery and Dakota Fred involving money. Simply put, Dakota Fred wanted more money but Discovery wasn’t willing to give him what he wanted. However, it is clear that the two sides have now managed to patch things up, though it is interesting to wonder which of the two sides made the most concessions. After all, Dakota Fred announced at around the time of his departure from Gold Rush that he was planning to create another gold mining series that would be more reality-based, which would have been called All That Glitters. However, since nothing ever came from that announcement, one cannot help but wonder whether that might have played a part in the eventual reconciliation.
Whatever the case, Dakota Fred and his son are now operating in a place called McKinley Creek, which can be found in the state of Alaska. As a result, it is a different sort of environment from those that tend to be covered on the parent series, which in turn, provides the people behind the spin-off with a chance to capture new footage in new settings. It is interesting to note that the marketing has made much mention of the whitewater rapids that can be found at the site, which seems to be an intentional choice to focus on the dangers of searching for gold in such a place. Something that is perhaps unsurprising when the prospect of danger can be used to generate interest in the search for gold.
Further Considerations
Regardless, it remains to be seen how Gold Rush: White Water will perform. There were a fair number of people who remain Dakota Fred and his son from the earlier seasons with fondness, but it will be interesting to see whether that fondness has managed to stand the test of time or not. Furthermore, while Gold Rush: White Water promises a new viewing experience in a new setting, it will be interesting to see whether the people behind the spin-off have managed to capture enough of the elements that made its parent series successful in the current environment for such reality TV shows. As of now, Gold Rush: White Water has started up, meaning that it should be no more than a matter of time until enough numbers come out for a more informative opinion about the matter to be formed.
