Ax Men Season 5, Episode 17: Swamp Gold

1

Ax Is Back

It's a new season of Ax Men and a new battle for "king of the mountain." Papac returns as reigning king of the mountain, but the stress of maintaining the title pushes hook tender Coatsy over the edge. Rygaard's dangerous blowdown site fights them at every turn. Shelby Stanga needs to start this season strong, but a gruesome accident puts him dead in the water. Veteran Pihl cutter Levi Brown breaks out on his own, and a new yarder company joins the competition. S&S logging returns to Florida to log against new rivals, but infighting trumps the competition.

60 min

2

Damage Control

Swamp Man Shelby Stanga is hired to remove a log from private property, but complications lead to disaster. Infighting reaches a fever pitch at S&S Aqua Logging, while the competition has a run-in with Mother Nature. A familiar face returns to Papac, much to Coatsy's dismay. Gabe Rygaard takes Dave out cutting, but things go awry. And the rookies of Big Gun Logging are adding to their ranks.

60 min

3

No Pain, No Gain

Jimmy Smith is smitten with his new assistant, while rivals Uncle Buck and Swilley push their equipment to the breaking point. Shelby Stanga scouts his newest log order with his darling wife Donna. Big Gun Logging faces an uncertain future when owner Levi Brown is admitted to the hospital. And at Rygaard and Papac, the chainsaws bite back.

60 min

4

Hell Hole

At Papac Alaska, the site is turned upside down when the yarder operator walks off in the middle of the day. In Florida, Swilley's determination to beat S&S in the Suwannee River Log Off leads to a life threatening mistake. With their leader still in the hospital, Big Gun Logging loses control of the Ole Keasy site. At Rygaard, the rigging crew is learning safety lessons the hard way. And in the swamp, the bigger they are, the harder they fall.

60 min

5

Cowboy Up

Start-up outfit Big Gun Logging hits a snag as their deadline approaches. In Florida, Buck & Swilley make a run for the lead in the Log-Off while Jimmy deals with a crew crisis. Shelby Stanga enlists the help of a voodoo team to get his cousin's ghost under wraps. In Washington, a string of accidents on Craig's watch threatens to shut down the site. And in the mountains Montana, a new company joins the ranks of the Ax Men, forcing everyone to "cowboy up!"

60 min

6

Fists of Fury

It's a fight to the death between Shelby Stanga and a massive standing tree. At Rygaard, the bad blood between Dave and Fernando boils over. In Alaska, Papac's men are on the run when two machines get tangled up while in Florida, Buck and Swilley raise the stakes. And in Montana, the newcomers from Siderius Logging are gambling on life and limb.

60 min

7

Wake-up Call

Shelby Stanga takes his newest assistant loggin' and froggin'. In Montana, young Siderius cutter Travis earns his stripes when he's forced into a deadly situation. The father and son team of S&S hits bottom, then hits gold. In Washington, a close call puts an end to the infighting, and at Papac, Joe lets loose.

60 min

8

Out of Control

When a back injury puts Danny out of action on Big Gun's new job, Levi starts trying out two greenhorns, Josh and Ryan; turns of massive logs bring a widow maker down on the Papac camera crew and threaten to rip out the new tail hold; Shelby and another cousin fight bumblebees and underwater wildlife in search of valuable timber for Swamp Man's latest order; after Rygaard's heavy-duty carriage breaks loose and hurtles all the way down the skyline, Gabe gets in an argument with Craig and storms off the site; Jimmy kicks James off the S&S boat again and works alone while dodging speedboating locals; as Uncle Buck chases down the pieces of a 300-year-old sunken raft, Swilley gets pinned at the bottom of the Suwannee.

60 min

9

Rygaard vs. Rygaard

Unable to see eye to eye, Rygaard runs two yarders side by side, doubling their production but increasing their odds of making errors. Meanwhile, Jimmy and James Smith are tired of fighting and look to an anger management counselor for help.

60 min

10

Down & Dirty

The season hits the halfway mark, and everyone is upping his game. In the swamp, Shelby and cousin Belinda are under the gun to find a huge Cypress. In Florida, S&S hires a new diver but says goodbye to an old one. In Montana, the cowboys of Siderius must break in their greenhorn without breaking him for good. And at Rygaard, two yarders bring in twice the wood and twice the trouble.

60 min

11

Let 'Er Rip

As the season moves on, everyone's going to greater lengths to stay on top. At Papac, an accident sends one man over the edge of the landing. In horse country, the loggers take to new heights in order to get the final tree of the job on the ground. At Siderius, greenhorn Jesse Kelleher is in need of redemption. And in the bayou, the swamp man gets into a shootout with another logger who's after Shelby's profits.

60 min

12

Burning the Bear

In the swamp, the battle between Shelby Stanga and his nemesis Richard comes to a head. On the river, Buck and Swilley's boat goes boom. At Big Gun, one of their greenhorns shows his dark side. And at Papac, Joe and Coatsy bury the hatchet.

60 min

13

Where's Willy?

On the mountain, Gabe's two-yarder plan goes further off track when one crew member defects to the other team. Big Gun races their tightest deadline yet, while in Alaska, Joe and the new guy get into it. On the river, an accident could take S&S out of the Log-Off for good, and in the swamp, Shelby's trusty assistant Willy goes missing.

60 min

14

Falling Apart

From Alaska to the bayou, the hits are coming fast and hard. At Rygaard, a crew shakeup leaves everyone scrambling. In Florida, the tides are turning as S&S suffers a blow while Buck & Swilley get unexpected help from James. In Alaska, Papac takes to the open seas for a fishing trip, while, Big Gun must bring in a new yarder operator to have a chance at conquering their dangerous downhill site. And in the swamp, an accident may cost Shelby another one of his assistants.

60 min

15

Up in Flames

As the season enters the homestretch, everyone is risking more to stay on top. Jimmy Smith braves the depths of the Suwannee River for the first time in three years, but his fears may get the better of him. In the swamp, Shelby also takes on an old enemy--the log that flipped his winch last season. In Montana, the boys of Siderius are playing fast and loose, while at Rygaard, the crew pushes their yarder to the brink of disaster.

60 min

16

Family Rivalry

At Rygaard, Gabe's two yarder sides are reunited, but the infighting that's plagued them all year is worse than ever. In Florida, the alliance between Team Buck and James Smith comes to a bitter end. At Papac, Joe's hard-yarding style sends the rigging crew running for cover. In the swamp, Shelby Stanga won't stop until he gets his revenge. And in New Hampshire, two new teams of ox loggers enter the race.

60 min

17

Swamp Gold

Shelby stumbles upon something of potentially great value in the swamp; Craig and Wayne prank Dave in Washington; personality clashes in New Hampshire lead to ox-logger walk-offs; and James returns to S&S on the Suwannee.

60 min

18

Up in Smoke

Shelby searches for gold in Lake Pontchartrain; a log-off in Florida goes to sudden death; and a potentially disastrous mistake occurs at Big Gun.

60 min

19

Betting It All

From Alaska to Florida, one of the toughest seasons on record is almost over. At Papac, pushing hard pushes Joe to his breaking point, while at Rygaard, Dave has officially worn out his welcome. On the Suwannee, the teams are fighting to win the final round of the Log-Off, but a season's worth of bad blood between Jimmy and James comes to a head. In Louisiana, the Swamp Man gambles on a helicopter to search for a multi-million dollar sunken log raft.

60 min

20

The Ax Stops Here

It's the nail-biting conclusion of the race to be crowned King of the Mountain. While Papac battles to bring their yarder operator back from the brink, Craig Rygaard forces Gabe to choose between him and Dave. At Big Gun, Levi drops a bomb, while in the swamps of Louisiana, Shelby's in a desperate race to find swamp gold. And in Florida, the Great Suwannee River Log-Off comes to a close, but when Jimmy doesn't like the results, he takes matters into his own hands.

60 min