First, there was life on the high seas with fishermen from Dutch Harbor. Then came Ariel Tweto flying wild, which was followed by Sarah Palin and the treasure seekers. Now get ready to meet the real rural Alaskans -- the Hailstones.
Edward "Chip" Hailstone and his wife, Agnes, and their seven children are set to join the reality television craze this weekend when they are part of a National Geographic series focusing on life in the rural parts of the state.
The series is called "Life Below Zero." This is how National Geographic is touting the show:
Six people separated by hundreds of miles, all linked by the common cause of surviving the upcoming winter in the Alaskan bush. Their daily challenges are real, and the environment is a brutal opponent. Get to know the people featured in Life Below Zero.
"We did the work, now we can see what the editors did," said Hailstone, a 43-year-old hunter from Noorvik who has lived in rural Alaska for the past 20 years.
As part of the show, National Geographic film crews spent several days following the Hailstones as they harvested caribou, fish and other wild animals for food, clothing and other items. In all, the film team covered four different Alaskans in the Arctic Circle to piece together the show, which is titled, "Life Below Zero."
"Life Below Zero" airs Sunday, May 19.