Building Alaska

The return of spring in Alaska means the race is on for three builders to begin constructing homes in the remote wilderness before the inevitable return of winter shuts them down. Three builders begin construction on a fishing retreat near Anchorage, a ski hut close to Valdez and a getaway log cabin in the Southeast corner of remote Alaska. Before breaking ground, one builder has to fly to his build site to inspect the piece of land he purchased without ever stepping foot on it, breaking the number one rule of land buying.

The challenges of building homes in remote Alaska continues as Lee orchestrates a massive eighteen-load helicopter drop to deliver the equipment and supplies he'll need to build a two-story cabin on Bulchitna Lake. Elsewhere, Derek handcrafts logs with a scriber and begins the tedious process of cataloging each piece of wood that will eventually be helicoptered over to his build site. Plus, Tony forgets a crucial item back in town that sets him back over a thousand dollars.

Tony Malone's crew outside of Haines, Alaska, get a visit from a hungry bear. Builder Lee Raymond faces challenges when working closely with family. Derek Galbraith reveals the tragic story behind the heli-skiing industry in Valdez, Alaska.

Tony's log cabin getaway is shut down after heavy rains make work too dangerous to continue, while a miscalculation at Lee's two story house on Bulchitna Lake has the crew enraged, and Derek takes his crew fishing on the Copper River basin with the area's only female river guide to reward them for a job well done as their ski hut project continues to thrive.

Challenges persist on the build sites as Lee brings in a pinch hitter they call the Ninja Framer to get his client's project back on schedule. Derek's crew struggles to work on the ski hut through an infestation of mosquitoes, and Tony discovers an expensive mistake that sends him back to the saw yard to cut new logs for his remote cabin getaway.

The builds are growing taller and the work more dangerous as Lee's crew must balance on a second story beam to get work done. Tony attempts to take a day off but stumbles upon a mysterious cabin that could be his next project. Meanwhile, Derek and his crew attempt to clear the site to create the ski hut's foundation pylons in the face of wicked winds, making it dangerous for the helicopter pilot to sling gravel to the guys.

Lee's crew scrambles to correct a mistake after a mighty framing miscalculation at Bulchitna Lake. Tony makes a dangerous call to fix a problem that could destroy his own log cabin and potentially injure his team, and excitement builds for Derek's crew as transport of the ski hut begins, until the helicopter goes missing and sends the crew into an outright panic while they wait for answers.

Lee's crew must push through waves of mosquitoes and fatigue to finish the deck of their Bulchitna Lake build before the floatplane arrives to take them home for a day of rest. In Haines, Tony and his crew wrestle the largest and heaviest pieces of the build into place without any kind of machinery, and Derek pushes the panic button after more bad weather and mechanical problems delay his build once again.

Just as Derek and his band of buddies are about to give up on their dream of a cliffside ski hut, Alaska hands them a miracle that turns a down day into game day. Lee loses one of his hardest working crew members out at Bulchitna Lake just as they have to lift an 800 pound truss into place, and Tony's hideaway cabin is in good enough shape to take a break and fish for halibut on the Lynn Canal.

The drama at Derek's cliffside build near Valdez escalates after rain saturates the region and an accident on the roof almost takes out a crew member. Tony leaves his build in Bobby's hands to tend to another job and returns to find an injury has occurred. Lee discovers the culprit behind a messy footprint while the crew faces sketchy conditions to install the custom windows on their 2500 square foot Bulchitna Lake build.

Lee and his crew install a new woodstove to dry out the drywall mud and tape, and while he's waiting, Lee takes time to enjoy everything Alaska has to offer. Derek and his band of ski buddies race to protect the cabin from bears and construct homegrown countertops from materials on the site. And Tony finally makes it to the roofing stage of his Porcupine Creek build while his build partner Bob takes a new gig felling trees for a local homeowner.

Lee is down to just a crew of three as he races to finish the interior of the cabin before the lake freezes over and prevents their floatplane from landing. Tony's crew discovers a serious miscalculation that will force them to miss their deadline unless a miracle occurs, and Derek and his crew push through the endless rainfall, dangerous conditions and dwindling materials to complete the project.