Indian River, Yukon — Gold Rush legend Tony Beets is going old school in a big way, reviving his 350-ton dredge to chase down the only thawed pay dirt left this late in the season. After sitting idle for six weeks, the massive machine was maneuvered 300 feet across challenging raised bedrock to reach gold-rich ground beneath a nearby pond.
The operation wasn’t easy. Onboard winches lacked the power to pull the dredge free from the bedrock. Beets turned to his trusty D7 anchor dozers and longtime right-hand man Greg Mason to haul the giant back into action. With multiple cables attached, tension rose as the crew coordinated their movements.
“Everybody clear? Good. Then I gotta drive this ahead,” Tony called out as the dredge inched forward. Greg and Mike worked both ends of the cable lines, carefully guiding the behemoth machine into position. “She’s coming! Bingo! You floating,” Tony cheered as the dredge finally broke free.
Once settled, the legendary dredge roared back to life. “Four scoops of dirt — go!” Tony commanded, officially restarting dredging operations at Indian River for the first time in over a month. Morale was high, with Tony joking, “So excited I could just piss my pants!”
With gold now being processed, Beets is banking on the dredge’s return to help close in on his 5,000-ounce season goal. As he put it with a grin, “Now them boys can play in there — and we’ll see if they’re going to make some money.”
