02x02 - Honey I Torched The Homestead

[bunniefuu]

♪♪

Marty: let's go quickly,
quickly, quickly.

Whoa, whoa, whoa.
All together.

Matt: I can't see.

Don't think for a second
that my dad

Won't try to burn your house
down to prove a point.

Woman: I've never seen
anything like this.

Follow me.

Fire is all around
their homestead.

-Get in the car.
-Where's your wife?

-Mom?
-Jeremy?

I'm right here.

-Whoa.
-Dad!

Marty: watch out.
Everybody, out of the car.

This is the only way
that I can see to save you.

♪♪

Narrator:
marty raney's been building
homesteads for 40 years.

He's spent his life passing on
his homesteading skills.

Marty:
I was raised off-grid.

I've built a life
and a family

In the toughest place
on earth -- alaska.

And I've taught my kids
everything I know.

Narrator: daughter misty
has raised animals

And grown her own food
since she was a child.

Misty: a homestead needs to be
nurtured every day.

You get out what you put in.

Narrator:
son matt spent 12 years

As a guide and hunter in alaska.

Matt: I have the utmost respect
for wildlife.

Hunting is a privilege
and a necessity.

[ g*nsh*t ]
narrator: in the last decade,


Have moved off-grid.

Misty:
we're in the middle of nowhere.

Narrator: but the wilderness
is a tough place to survive.

I'm so afraid
we might end up dead.

Narrator: this year,

Tens of thousands
of homesteads will fail.

Man:
this threat is absolutely real.

[ Bear growls ]

We could lose this place
at any moment.

Raney family,
we need your help.

Marty: for those brave enough
to embark on this lifestyle,

We're here to help them
overcome the challenges

And fulfill that dream.

My résumé?

I'll show it to you
right now.

--Captions by vitac --
www.vitac.com

Captions paid for by
discovery communications

♪♪

This area of oregon is
the epicenter for forest fires.

You guys see that
up there?

-Yeah.
-Yeah.

That's the aftermath
of a massive forest fire.

Hey, guys.

I want to stop and look at this
a little bit closer.

-Wow.
-This thing got hot.

Check this out,
burned in a forest fire.

This fire is recent.

Narrator: the raneys
have left their base

In hatcher pass, alaska,

Traveling over 2,700 miles
to eagle point, oregon.

With an average 1,000 wildfires

Burning over 35,000
acres per year,

Homesteading here
is a constant battle

Against man's oldest

And most destructive enemy --
fire.

This heavily forested county
is a major stop-off point

For millions
of migratory birds,

Prime habitat for black bears

And, according to some,
legendary predators.

Raise your hand
if you believe in bigfoot.

No, you don't.

I've heard those stories.

Oh...ah!
-What?

Oh, I thought
I saw bigfoot,

But it was just
my reflection.

[ Laughs ]
you guys are so ridiculous.

Narrator: the raneys
have been called to save

A snowbound homestead
low on food,

Exposed to predators

And surrounded
by raging wildfires,

A threat marty learned to combat
from a young age.

Forest-fire danger has been
kind of a part of my life.

It was in these very mountains,
the cascades,

Where I basically got
one of my first jobs.

I was about 15 years old,

And we'd drive to the top
of the mountain,

And we would just sit
and look 360 degrees

For smoke,
forest-fire watch.

The homestead!

Matt: check out
these structures here.

Misty: oh, yeah.

And then up there,
that's geese.

That's a great sign.

Well, there you are.

I'm jerry hanson.

Welcome to pine meadows.

This is my son, jeremy.

-Hi.
-My name is becky.

-Nice to meet you, becky.
-Come on over here.

-I'm jaymi.
-Jaymi, nice to meet you.

So jerry,
jeremy and jaymi,

That's not going
to be confusing.

Marty, matt, misty,
I'm sensing a theme here.

I rest my case.

Narrator: after he lost his job,
jerry hanson decided

To stake everything he had
and move his family off-grid.

Living on a homestead, my goal
is to be as self-sufficient

And self-reliant as possible.

Narrator: so three years ago,
he spent his last $10,000

On a plot of land with a cabin,
installed solar panels

And hooked up
to a natural water source.

This is my dream and my passion,
to live this lifestyle.

This place means
everything to me.

Narrator: but after buying in
crops and livestock,

Jerry's dream
of living off the land

And being self-sufficient
started falling apart.

What we did have got
destroyed by pests.

Jerry: I'd watch deer jump
right over the fence

And eat a whole row of lettuce.

Narrator: jerry's animals are
providing a rich source

Of protein for predators

But not for his family.

I don't know how to
butcher a rabbit.

I've never done it before.

At this point, I would have
hoped to be able

To be providing food
for my table,

But right now,
it's just not happening.

There's no self-sufficing
going on.

We're not producing
any food right now.

We're buying it
at the grocery store.

My brother and I
were wanting to help him,

But he tends to want to do
everything by himself.

Narrator: hunger isn't
their biggest threat.

Last summer, a raging wildfire
almost wiped out the homestead

And the family.

The thought is
constantly on my mind

That we could lose this place
at any moment.

Jerry: the biggest fear
we have is forest fires.

I'm so afraid
we might end up dead.

We were looking forward
to you guys

To teach us some skills

To make this hobby farm
more successful.

What is a hobby farm?

-He just does it for fun.
-Okay.

He likes animals.
We don't eat our animals.

-I have a chicken coop.
-Okay.

We've got the bunny bungalow,

And we got what
I call the quack shack.

When jerry told me
about his...bunny bungalow,

It was hard for me
to hold it in,

But when he said, "quack shack,"

I just about burst
into [laughs] sorry.

You ask any farmer on
planet earth if it's a hobby,

And he'll answer, "no."

Anything related to
a farm is work.

It's not a hobby.

[ Laughs ]

Narrator: matt heads straight
into the woods to investigate

One of the many threats
to the family homestead.

So right here we found
a deer carcass, spine, skull.

The deer was just
out here in the wild?

Well, I think my dad
found it elsewhere,

And he just brought
it over here.

That's a thing that
will attract predators.

You don't bring animals in
by dragging out carcasses

That they feed on 40 yards
away from your food source.

I mean, that's the epitome of
an irresponsible homesteader.

We've had to replace
a lot of geese, chickens.

They keep getting eaten
off and not by us.

So you're telling me
that the predators

Eat your livestock,
but you and your family don't?

Yeah.

So do you hunt
animals for food?

Nothing.

If a bear is going to come in
and just eradicate

These animals, that's it.

This is their food source.

This is what they have to eat.

Narrator: misty wants to find
out why the hansons

Are not eating
their own livestock.

-I see a lot of food here.
-Yeah.

And I'm just wondering
what its purpose is.

My husband, he sells them
to people who want bunnies.

It's a future.
I think he just...

But the future
is now, right?

You have these meat
sources here.

Yeah.

It really became apparent
that he had more hopes

Than just a hobby farm when
he started his youtube channel.

Youtube videos?
I don't get it.

Showing other people how
to take care of the animals.

Jerry makes these
instructional videos,

And he has all these pets

That he is showing people
how to raise,

But this isn't homesteading.

Welcome to pine meadows
hobby farm.

I'm jerry hanson,
and I'll be your host.

This is a vlog demonstrating
how we're struggling

To learn how to be homesteaders.

Come with us on our journey.
Bye-bye.

How many videos
do you have?

Over 500.

What?!

This homestead is one
forest-fire ember

From you making your


"It's me, jerry,
from the hobby farm.

It all burned down."

♪♪

Narrator: marty wants jerry
to show him

How close last year's fire
came to the family homestead.

Jerry:


That whole mountainside
was ablaze.

-That's way too close.
-Yes, it is.

You might as well be
in the forest fire.

It is those conditions
that k*lled my neighbor.

A hot ember
landed on the grass,

And that grass engulfed
in flames within seconds.

He could not escape.

It burnt him alive.

Does your family actually get
how dangerous this place is?

Do they know?

It's a very serious,
ominous threat.

In alaska, we call this
gasoline on a torch.

I mean, this is
highly flammable,

And look around here.

It's everywhere.

Let's just see
how flammable it is.

♪♪

This makes me nervous.

Look what you have
surrounding your house,

The best
forest-fire fuel.

♪♪

Narrator: hot embers landing
on rooftops are responsible

For 90% of cabins burning down.

You have a 3-tab
asphalt-shingle roof.

This roof
is highly flammable.

With just eight days
before they move on

To the next homestead in need,

The raneys have
their work cut out.

♪♪

Misty must find a way
to build a greenhouse

Using materials on the land.

Matt much teach the hansons
hard lessons

On how to hunt
and harvest animals...

[ g*nshots ]

...but all this will be in vain

If marty cannot deal
with the tinderbox cabin

Surrounded by highly
flammable trees

And a family
with no clear escape

From the next forest fire.

The more I learn
about this homestead,

The more worried I am.

This homestead is outside of the
fire department jurisdiction.

What does that mean?

There's no one
that's coming to help him.

Light it up.

This oregon homestead is about
to undergo a forest-fire drill.

When we were really little kids,

My dad started
a controlled fire,

And the thing got
totally out of hand,

And the fire department came.

Like, it was a really big deal.

Matt: when my dad comes
onto a homestead,

Don't think for a second

That he won't try to
burn your house down

To prove a point.

Narrator: straight ahead,

The drill turns real
for the hansons.

-The fire is coming.
-Get in the car!

-Where's your wife?
-Mom?

-Whoa.
-Hold on!

Jerry: whoa, whoa, whoa.

Narrator: in the cascade
mountains of oregon,

The raneys have just one week

To save a family threatened
by raging wildfires.

Last summer,
the hansons' homestead

Came close to burning down.

It is those conditions
that k*lled my neighbor.

It burnt him alive.

If we get surrounded by fire,
and there's no way out,

Our plan "b" is to head
to the pond

And seek cover from the flames.

Narrator: now marty is putting
dad jerry's plan to the test.

Jerry: what are the raneys
doing lighting a fire?

We know one thing for sure.
Our dad is a pyro.

Hanson!
[ Whistles ]

What's going on?

Where's your family?
I want to see all four of them.

-They're right here.
-Get out of here.

-All right.
-Okay. Follow me, please.

If that house catches
on fire right now,

No fire department
is coming here.

You're outside
of the jurisdiction.

I figure you got about


And get out of here.

The fire is coming.

Starting now!

-Grab it and meet in the car.
-All right.

-Jeremy?
-Where's your son at?

-Jeremy?
-Right here!

Where's your wife at?
Where's your wife?

-Mom?
-She's right here.

Jerry: come on, let's get you
in the car.

I need to get my cat, dad.

I need my cat.
-Leave the cat.

All right.
Get in the car.

Get in the car!
-Dad, sorry.

[ Engine starts ]


Okay.

Camera, camera.
Hey, camera!

♪♪

-Oh, god.
-Oh.

Narrator: the only exit

From the burning property
is now a dead end.

[ Whistles ]
hold it!

What is that?

Jerry: that's a fallen tree
on fire.

-Can you get out?
-Not that way.

Get out of this car
and show me your plan "b."

-We're going to the pond.
-Let's go.

Marty: don't slip.
Don't slip.

Grab on, let's go.

Narrator: jerry's plan "b" is
to head to the only source

Of water on the property...

-Come on, mommy.
-I'm trying.

Narrator: ...a shallow pond
surrounded by trees.

-This is your escape plan?
-That's what...

I thought the pond would be
the most logical plan.

Why is it a bad idea?

Jeremy: we've got trees
right next to it.

If they were to catch fire,
they could fall on us,

And...
-What's the other reason?

I can't even breathe.
If I go in here

And wait for this forest fire
to come through,

I'm going to die
of smoke inhalation.

Agreed?
-Agreed.

Okay.
I've got a plan.

Follow me
carefully, please.

I can't see.
Oh.

[ Coughing ]

Look at that right there!
Look!

-Oh, my...
-That's what it comes down to.

This was the only way
that I can see to save you.

The house
is going to burn down.

It's come down
to the last resort.

Narrator: marty has organized
a rescue chopper

From the fire department,

But the hansons' homestead
is so remote

That it lies outside of
the county's fire jurisdiction,

So in a real wildfire,

They'd be last in line
to be rescued.

♪♪

Marty: okay, look down.

That's your homestead
burning to the ground.

♪♪

Where am I going
to take this chopper?

Now, we're homeless.
That's how dire this is.

♪♪

You guys got out of this
with your lives

And the clothes
on your back.

All your hard work,
buddy.

All right. Captain,
I think the party's over.

Captain: okay, guys,
coming back in.

♪♪

Narrator: the morning after,
and the hansons have woken up

To the harsh reality
of their situation.

I know yesterday was
pretty, pretty crazy,

But what did
you think about it?

-Eye-opening...
-Mm-hmm.

Jerry: ...very eye-opening.

It gives us insight of what
it could really be like.

I realized how much we need
to prepare more.

Jeremy: I knew it was
serious, but honestly,

I don't think
we were ready for that one.

I'm going to tell you something
that really inspired me.

There was a moment
in this thick, thick,

Thick smoke where
I saw all four of you,

Do it right now,
holding hands.

Hmm.

When it came down to the wire,
you were united.

This is what has to take place
on this homestead right here,

The united front on every job
in this homestead.

You guys in?
-We're in.

Okay.

We got to go
and fix stuff.

Jaymi: I'm really happy
the raneys are here helping us

See what we need to improve
on our homestead,

How we need to improve
our teamwork

Together as a family.

They don't beat around the bush
when they talk to each other,

And if we had more
open communication

Like that in our family,

You know, that would
really help.

Narrator:
with fire a priority,

Marty gets them started
on protecting their homestead.

We've talked about
this fire danger enough.

We need to start
clearing that brush.

Misty and matt were
born and raised in alaska.

They're like every other kid.

I mean, when they were young,
of course,

They wanted a bicycle,

And of course,

I bought them a chain saw.

None of the chain saws work.

-Let me see it.
-It's broken.

I picked it up free,
just recently,

From an estate cleanup.
-Okay.

So now, I see why
you got it for free.

I mean, not having a chain saw
in oregon, on a homestead,

Living off-grid is like
being in manhattan

And not having a computer
and a latte.

Here's the saw that
I want you to use today.

That chain saw there
is cheaper

Than the camera
that you purchased...

-Oh, it is?
-...to sh**t a youtube video.

Narrator: while son jeremy
gets to work clearing

The flammable underbrush
surrounding the cabin,

Marty has got big news
for dad jerry.

Let's cut
right to the chase.

I'm planning on putting
a metal roof on your home.

♪♪

Marty plans to cut a 200-foot
ring around the homestead

To stop flames
spreading in.

He'll also install a metal roof
to protect the cabin

Against burning embers.

If this house
gets a metal roof,

And we remove
this brush around it,

You can stay in this house

During the next forest fire
and ride it out.

Blow and go.

Let's get them off.

I've never seen
this paper product

On a roof underneath
asphalt shingles.

This might be the most
flammable roof

I've ever seen.

-I...
-It's okay.

I'm trying to
get this homestead,

So I can leave a legacy
for my wife and my kids,

So I don't have
to worry about it

Because this place
goes to them.

If we weren't doing
this right now,

You wouldn't be leaving
a legacy behind, so good man.

Narrator:
by the end of the day,

Son jeremy has cleared
over 100 foot of brush.

One thing that I've learned
in this homestead, it's this.

You're a worker, okay?

Your mom and dad
are going to rely on you

To make the homestead safe.

Jeremy: this homestead is
my father's dream.

It's an awesome dream,
but it's not mine.

I still have some decisions
to make whether I want this life

To be mine,
or if I'm going to move on.

Narrator:
straight ahead, the raneys

Turn the hansons
from hobby farmers...

Nobody said
this life was easy.

...to hunters.

Matt: here they come.
Get them!

[ g*nshots ]

Narrator:
in the oregon mountains,

The raneys have just four days

To save a family
in danger from forest fires,

Unable to grow their own crops

And unwilling to slaughter
their own livestock for food.

I still have never butchered
a rabbit or eaten one.

Narrator:
but that's all about to change.

Matt and misty want to teach
mom becky and daughter jaymi

How to k*ll
and skin their rabbits.

They're raised for only
one purpose,

In my opinion,
on a homestead,

And that is to keep
you guys alive.

Are you meaning, like,
butchering them?

Yeah.

So you need to butcher
one of these rabbits.

No, no.

Can you, um, participate?
Can you turn away?

-I can't.
-Why?

Jaymi: mom...

I'm crazy when it comes
to things like that.

We intend to learn
about butchering them.

-Yeah.
-Let's do it.

I would rather not.

So you want to leave
right now?

Okay.
Thank you.

-We'll see you.
-See you soon, becky.

Matt: make sure you get
those knives sharpened.

You, jaymi, seem like you
are the most motivated

To actually work
and do something,

Like, now.

Okay. All right.
Let's go.

Let's do this.

Her mom just
flat-out like,

"I don't want to be
a part of this."

That is not
the support they need.

You have to work
as a family.

You have to work
as a team.

She has what it takes to step up
and be a homesteader.

Yeah.

But, right now,
the rest of the family,

They're just hobbyists.

Nobody said
this life was easy.

♪♪

You basically grab
the back legs all together.

Upside down is good.

You kind of want, like,
get your hand around

The back of the neck,
pull down

And, like,
torque up, okay?

Jaymi: snap its neck?

Yeah, squeeze hard
and just wrench it.

Misty:
you got to get a grip.

Yeah, get a good grip,

And you want to just do
one real, like "kkrrkk."

-Okay.
-Go! You've got it.

Jaymi, you've got it.

-I don't see any signs of life.
-Or you knocked him out.

Jaymi: I did it.

But, to make sure,
we're going to slit its throat.

You're doing the best thing
that you could do

For your homestead that's
been done in a long time.

All right.
I think we're good.

Okay.

Narrator: matt then talks jaymi
through the process

Of skinning the rabbit.

First, they take off the head.

Matt: just keep, like,
cutting and sawing.

Next, matt gets jaymi to
separate the fur from the paws.

A cut is made in the center
of the body, and lastly,

The skin is pulled off
to preserve the fur.

Pull.
There we go.

Jaymi: my parents being able
to see me provide food

Can encourage them
that, you know,

We can all play
our own part on this homestead.

You're putting food
on the table

For your family
on your homestead.

♪♪

Narrator:
by butchering the rabbit,

Jaymi is taking steps
to transform this hobby farm

Into a real, working homestead,

But there's more
work to be done.

There needs to be, like,
a really consistent food source,

And right now,
there isn't a garden,

So this is
what I'm thinking.

You need, like,
a big greenhouse.

A quick tour of the homestead
throws up some greenhouse gold.

These are metal,
double-paned.

All the seals look
like they're intact.

We can definitely
use this.

These are worth
thousands of dollars.

Wow.

I'm super happy to have found
something like this.

Well, we'll frame up
a real basic wood structure,

And we'll set it
right on the ground,

And then all four walls

Are just windows
all pieced together.

Misty plans to build
a patchwork greenhouse.

Wooden frames will be
constructed

And the windows
fitted in like a jigsaw.


Filled with water

Will act as thermal batteries

And emit the day's heat
during the night

To keep the temperature
above freezing.

My dad already had
his garden going,

And I wanted to help him.

He didn't really want to change
anything that he was doing,

So I didn't have
a lot of input.

Misty: jaymi has told me
she's really eager to work,

But her dad kind
of holds her back.

I mean, if I was told by my dad,
"no, you can't work,"

I would work harder.

Whoo.

You start shoveling,
like, a square,


On that soft snow.

I'll try and thaw
as much as I can.

It's like concrete.

It's going to be
really hard to shovel.

Okay, so let's move
these windows.

Misty, one time, I got accused
of stealing a window,

But I was framed.

[ Laughs ]

I'm funny.
I'm funny.

♪♪

Narrator: the raneys
have just three days left

On the hanson homestead.

Marty: hit it.

Don't overtighten it,
and don't undertighten it.

Construction work on
the cabin's fireproof metal roof

And misty's new greenhouse
is well underway.

Misty:
framing always goes really fast,

And slapping these windows in
and piecing it all together

Like a puzzle
is going really quickly.

And try and pop it in.

We're in.
Sweet. Perfect.

♪♪

Narrator: to widen
the hansons' food stock,

Matt wants to hone son
jeremy's hunting skills,

So he's taken him
into the valley

To hunt wild geese.

Matt: this style of hunting
is a little bit crazy.

I think I can see them.

So here's the game plan.

We're going to bundle up
in our coffin blinds

And just wait for me
to call out,

"Let's get them."

Narrator:
decoy birds are used

To attract geese
into the sh**ting range.

I think I see
some over there.

All right, boy.
Hide.

[ Geese honking ]

There they go.

Matt lures them closer.

Here they come.

All right.
Get them!

[ g*nshots ]

All right, man.
Two down, that was awesome.

Here it is, man.

We'll call this one yours.

-Hey.
-That's your goose.

I see, not even bloody.

Narrator:
jeremy's hunting skills

Will be invaluable
on the homestead.

Matt: I didn't know he was
going to do this well,

And, you know,
you're in the coffin blind,

And you got a firearm,
and there's a lot of pressure,

And he couldn't have
done any better.

Matt:
this is pretty fun, huh?

Jeremy: it's not something
you do everyday.

It's something you could
do every day,

And this could help
on the homestead.

I mean, what are
your thoughts on living

On this homestead
in the future?

I just don't know
how to answer that.

That's a tough question
to answer.

Right now, I don't know
where I see my future at,

But I think I need to go
find my own life now.

♪♪

♪♪

Narrator: in the cascade
mountains of oregon,

The raneys have just three days

To save a desperate
homestead under threat

From raging forest fires

And a family
with no survival skills

That's close to starvation.

♪♪

Marty's installing
a fire-resistant roof

On the cabin,

And misty's building
a patchwork greenhouse

For crops....

Basically, pop it in.

Screw it down.

...while matt is hunting
for geese with son jeremy,

Who's uncertain
he wants to follow

His dad's homesteading dream.

Well, I definitely
see the homestead

As where my parents
are going to retire,

And I'm all for getting
this going for my dad,

And I want to help him,

But it just seems
like he's always

Chased his dreams
all our lives,

And it's led us
into really bad spots.

I mean, I had a bit of
a strained relationship

With my father.

Dads can be the hardest thing
in the world to deal with.

You don't think my dad's
a little crazy and out there?

Have you spent much
time with him?

Just from observation?

Do you think that he is,
oh, I don't know,

Maybe a little bit...
-Headstrong?

..."My way or the highway,"
you know?

I don't know.
I'm not saying that

My relationship
was bad with my dad.

He was trying his damndest
to make sure

That we got the skills
to survive in life,

You know, so being a dad,

It is really hard
sometimes,

And I do know
this for a fact.

The time you spend you spend
on this homestead

With your family,

Working with your dad,
this is the kind of stuff

That will shape a man
to be better in the future.

Yeah.

I got to do
something different

Because something's
not working.

♪♪

Narrator: back on the homestead,
matt shares his concerns.

Jeremy doesn't even
want to live here.

Clearly,
no one's communicating.

It's so difficult
for some families,

But we're doing it
right now.

Going on that hunt with jeremy,
he opened up to me.

Mm-hmm.

If we can somehow open
that line of communication

Within this family

And allow them to work
their own problems out,

You know, I think they have
a shot of surviving.

There's a saying that's been
around for 2,000 years,

"A house divided
cannot stand."

I don't care if it's jerry.
I don't care if it's jeremy.

If they're not talking,
this homestead has issues.

They need to work together,

And right now,
they're not working together.

♪♪

Narrator: the next day,
marty's got a plan

To help father and son
bond with hard labor.

Marty: explain to your son,
please, the, you know,

It's not just driving
that thing all the way.

-Pull it.
-Thank you.

Jerry: okay. Pull that screw up
and look at it.

There's a rubber grommet
right there.

-Yeah.
-That's a seal.

You don't...you push it down
too far, it squishes it out.

It makes it useless.
It'll leak.

Okay.

Narrator: and marty has got
another tip for father and son.

We're going to do
a homestead trick.

-Okay.
-You can cut metal...

-With a utility knife.
-...with a utility knife.

It's pretty wild.

Just come in here.

I'm going to score
this thing right here.

Am I off the roof yet?

-No. You got a ways to go.
-Okay.

You're getting
close there, cowboy.

Okay.
Now that it's cut,

Let's see if we can
snap it off of there.

See that?

It's not just for
cutting paper anymore.

-That is a good hack.
-Okay.

Let's put some screws in.

-Okay.
-Whew.

♪♪

Misty: nice, mama.

Narrator: over in the garden,

Jaymi is proving her
homesteading skills to misty...

We're rocking this,
girl.

...as well as dad jeremy.

-Oh.
-We're almost done.

Okay, done.

This has been a great day.
Been getting my hands dirty.

My dad is being able to see
misty and I down there building,

And maybe he'll realize

That I can take on
some projects myself.

This is it.

Now it's time for the door.

There we go.

Good job.
Amazing.

That's impressive.
I'm stoked right now.

Good job.
Good job.

♪♪

Narrator: with the greenhouse
now complete,

Misty adds a finishing touch
with another homestead hack.

We created
thermal batteries.

We found these barrels,
spray-painted them black

To absorb
all of that heat

From that sun
during the day

And retain it
and hold it, and then,

Through the night,
release it and help regulate

The temperature
of the greenhouse

All day year-round.

The black barrels
hold the day's heat,

Then emit it back
into the greenhouse

At night to prevent freezing.

Jaymi: this is
a really great idea.

It's so simple, and it's really
going to change the way

We grow things
on the homestead.

And the energy that is stored
and released is free.

It's not like you're paying
for fuel or, you know, gas.

This is what homesteading
is all about,

Is recycling a few things

And turning it into
something super useful

That has a purpose.

Narrator: seven days ago, the
raneys found the hanson family

Isolated, hungry

And surrounded
by raging forest fires.

♪♪

With just 24 hours left,
marty, jerry and son jeremy

Are finishing
the fire-resistant cabin roof.

Do you ever hear about the guy
that was at his kitchen table

Eating a bowl of soup
and his roof leaked?

It took 2 hours
to finish that bowl of soup.

Gross.

Exactly.

Hold it.
Stop.

That's the last screw
on your new metal roof.

How does that
make you feel?

Don't fall.
-We're done.

Hang on to it, okay?

Jerry:
jeremy, take the honors.

♪♪

I've got a safe place
for my family

And myself from wildfires.

I can't tell you how much
that makes me feel as a father

And the head of this house.

It's a good day
on the homestead.

This homestead now has
a metal roof, class a,

The best roof we could
have left them with.

A forest fire comes
through here,

They can just stay in the house,

No helicopter evacuation,

And they can ride it out,
and they will be fine.

[ Bell ringing ]

-All right.
-Whoo!

-Woo-hoo!
-Let's eat.

Narrator: but marty hasn't fixed
all the hansons' problems,

And, with just one night left,

He's hoping to unite the family

Over a meal of freshly
cooked goose.

When we came here,
we sensed all four members

Are kind of going
different directions.

We want to remind you guys
the importance of family.

When you go off-grid, that's
who you rely on, you know?

Jerry: mm-hmm.

I'm signed up for this dream.
I'm hard-core.

I've been watching and watching
you and misty interact

And just seeing
your talents come forth

I didn't know you had.

And it's all just
about communication, right?

You have to say what
you're really thinking

And what's really
on your mind.

Matt: this is what
we talked about

When we were on the hunt.

I don't think
that we can feel like

We've accomplished
something

Until we know that this family
is united, you know?

I guess for years,
it just always felt

Like you were
chasing a dream,

And we were dragging
along with you,

And overtime,
I grew resentful.

I don't want to be resentful...
-Mm-hmm.

...because that's not fair,
but I also want you to know

That you're one
of the hardest workers I know.

I understand why you're trying
so hard to make it,

But I had to make it
for myself, too, and...

That's okay, son.

I love you.

I love you, son.

Matt: it's a really good
thing, you know,

To get these weights off
your guys' shoulders

And really see
where your family is at.

Jerry: I think tonight
was a turning point

In the hanson family life.

I felt very proud of jeremy
for him to stand up

And have the strength to say it.

I love him either way.

I love him whatever
he decides to do.

♪♪

Narrator:
with the cabin fireproofed,

Fresh meat in the freezer

And a new greenhouse
for growing crops,

It's time for the raneys
to say goodbye.

Yes.
It was about a greenhouse

And subsistence hunting
and the metal roof,

But something
more happened here

That we never predicted.

You guys have put the home,
as a united family,

Into homesteading.

Okay.
Thank you.

You're quite welcome.

You're a good man.

Matt: jeremy,
this is farewell.

All of you,
thank you, safe trip.

It's really been a big help,

The raneys being here
and helping us through it.

Something good is going
to come out of it.

Matt: I really relate with
jeremy because I know

What it's like to grow up
in a family

Where there's big dreams,

But this homestead is his home,

And no matter what,
he's always going

To have a place
to come back to.

♪♪

Jerry is this far away
from being marty raney.

He just needs to recognize
the potential of his family

And this homestead
is a success story.

♪♪

We're absolutely thrilled
about the new roof.

Becky: it's given us
a peace of mind knowing

That if there's a fire nearby,
it won't catch fire.

We've made a lot of progress
here on the homestead.

We have food in the freezer.

We have food growing
in the greenhouse,

And the family
is really coming together

To learn how to work
together more.

You know what?
I've decided to stay.

I think I like this homestead
thing, and matter of fact,

I might even get my own one day.

Aah!