Ax Men

As dawn breaks over a new logging season in the Pacific Northwest, the Ax Men prepare for the battle that lies ahead. Behind every turn, danger lurks. To survive, they must escape falling trees and bone-crushing machinery, face impossible deadlines and the worst weather Mother Nature can throw at them.

The battle to be crowned king of the mountains has just begun - and already, men are bowing out of the race.

Ax Men soars to new heights as a helicopter logging outfit enters the competition. At Pihl, Dustin tries to talk his father into coming back to work and Rygaard's greenhorn faces his fears when he must climb a 100-ft tree.

At Rygaard, the bosses clash over greenhorn Brad Hewitt. R&R Conner Aviation must choose between safety and production. Meanwhile, Jimmy Smith and son James are still waging war against the mammoth deadhead known as Moby Dick.

The mountain's men face the firing squad. Jimmy heads into uncharted waters, but hidden below the surface is a minefield that could sink his business for good, and at R&R, a sudden fog rolls in and traps a pilot in zero visibility.

The mountain seeks its revenge. Weather traps R&R's helicopter pilot in the fog. Trees fight back against Pihl's timber fallers and rivers mount their defense, threatening to rip Jimmy Smith's barge in half.

The tables are turned and the mountain's underdogs get their chance. Jimmy Smith finds the holy grail of underwater logs when he attempts to pull a dock out of the water and helicopter logging suffers under the direction of its new pilot.

Dead weight must be shed. Inexperienced hook tender Jesse Browning, junior pilot Steve Smith and greenhorn Brad Hewitt all have been struggling since day one, but their company bosses are out of patience and out of options.

New faces are welcomed to the fraternity of men known as Ax Men. Rygaard and Conner Aviation hope their new greenhorns fare better than the last class and at Pihl, a missing cutter sends the crew on a search mission.

The gap between winners and losers is narrowing. Rygaard's new greenhorn battles to prove himself, while Conner Aviation's substitute pilot gets wild with the chopper.

The final week of logging's toughest season begins. Impossible goals leave no room for error, as each crew races the clock. While Rygaard and Browning are locked in a fight to the finish, Conner Aviation battles for survival.

As the logging season winds to a close, the drama heats up. Conner fights off defeat, while the men of Pihl fight each other. As for Browning and Rygaard, eleventh hour catastrophes send the competition down to the wire.