Morgan Lauren is the newest lady to join the Gold Rush crew, but she has already made quite the impression as part of Rick’s small crew.
If you have tuned in to watch the newest season of Discovery’s hit Alaskan-based mining show, Gold Rush, then you will know that this season has been a real treat for longtime fans of the franchise.
Not only do we get to watch the fan-favorite Parker Schnabel and Kind of the Klondike Tony Beets square off for yet another nail-biting season, but season 14 has also seen the return of Rick Ness.
The new girl on the block
Ness infamously disappeared from the franchise without another word in the previous season, but he has now returned for season 14 with a renewed hunger for gold, a mountain of debt, and a brand new crew.
So, while this new season is harkening back to the very beginning of Gold Rush for many viewers, it also features a brand new face in the form of Rick’s new equipment operator – Morgan Lauren.
Women are notoriously few and far between in the rough world of remote Alaskan gold mining, but Morgan is well equipped for the job, with more than 10 years of equipment operation in the oil field under her belt.
She is also an Alaskan native, so adapting to the absolute frigid temperatures and difficult work environment has been nothing new for this young miner.
And since we have already seen her moving piles of dirt and preventing a massive dredge fire so far in this season, it seems like she might just be the perfect addition to Rick’s very bare-bones crew.
The season 14 crews
This season, Rick has been dealing with the consequences of taking a season off and as a result, he only has a small crew comprising himself, Morgan, Buzz Legault and occasionally Brian Zaremba.
It has certainly been entertaining to watch Rick attempt to train the newbie, Morgan, whilst also managing the rest of the claim, and trying to reach his 1000-ounce goal with insanely limited resources.
But this does not mean that Parker’s and Tony’s crews have had it any easier this time around.
All in all, the crews for season 14 of Gold Rush and the various claims that they have set out to mine this season are as follows:
| Crew | Claims |
| The Schnabel crew |
|
| The Beets crew |
|
| The Ness crew |
|
How Morgan got her role on the show
Morgan revealed on her Instagram stories that she actually got the job with Rick before she found out that he was going to be joining Gold Rush again for another season.
Apparently, Morgan had been persuaded to give up her job in the oil industry and was introduced to the “nicer in person” Rick by their mutual friend, Billy Long.
She recently thanked Billy for this introduction and for making the “summer of a lifetime” possible for her in an October 11, 2023, Instagram post.
Morgan’s mining aspirations
When fans asked Morgan about whether she would be returning to Gold Rush next season, she responded, “immediate answer is yes” and that she would “love to in another season”.
However, as is always the case with the miners who we love to watch on this show, she also explained that she would have to check in with her friends and family before deciding to spend another six months away from everything and everyone that she loves.
However, we suspect that the mining bug has already bitten Morgan, as she has also revealed that she is interested in possibly even mining for herself at one point in the future.
And since her family already has a few claims in Alaska, there is a distinct possibility that Morgan may just be heading up a crew of her very own, Parker-style, in one of the show’s upcoming seasons.
The women of Gold Rush season 14
Even though Morgan has already made quite the impact on Gold Rush fans with her willingness to learn this season, she is not the only lady who has been holding her own out there in the remote Alaskan wilderness.
In fact, Morgan is only the newest link in a long line of women who have stepped up to the plate on the show thus far.
This season features the Beets women – Minnie (Tony’s wife) and Monica (Tony’s daughter) – quite heavily, who have been a crucial part of his mining operation not only this season, but in every season before that.
It also includes Tatiana Costa, who has become an invaluable member of Parker’s ever-expanding crew.
