Highway Thru Hell

Highway Thru Hell is a Canadian documentary TV series that follows the operations of Jamie Davis Motor Truck & Auto Ltd., a heavy vehicle rescue and recovery towing company based in Hope, British Columbia. Quiring Towing, Aggressive Towing, MSA Towing, Mission Towing and Reliable Towing are also featured in the series.[1] The show focuses on the hardships of operating along the highways of the BC Interior, especially the Coquihalla Highway (Coq).

Not to be confused with Highway to Hell, Hell's Highway, or Saskatchewan Highway 35.
Highway Thru Hell
Heavy wrecker
GenreDocumentary, reality
Created byMark A. Miller, Kevin Mills, and Neil Thomas Great Pacific Television
StarringJamie Davis
Colin McLean
Cam Niño
Al Quiring
Gord Boyd
Cary Quiring
Jason Davis
Chris Mervyn
Ken Duperon
Dylan Greenwood
James Luke
Mitch Karr
Narrated byDavid Pettitt
ComposersMark A. Miller and Paul Airey
Country of originCanada
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons11
No. of episodes164 (list of episodes)
Production
Production locationsHope, British Columbia, Canada
Aldergrove, British Columbia, Canada
Merritt, British Columbia, Canada
Running time43–44 minutes
Release
Original networkDiscovery Channel Canada (September 2012-present)
Discovery Channel (Spring 2012-October 2013)
The Weather Channel (October 2013-present)
National Geographic (2012-present)
National Geographic Channel (UK and Ireland) (2013-present)
TV3 (New Zealand) (2015-present)
ABC2 (2016-present)
National Geographic Channel (Scandinavia) (2013-present)
Original releaseSeptember 4, 2012 (2012-09-04) –
present
Related
Heavy Rescue: 401

Episodes
Main article: List of Highway Thru Hell episodes

[2]

SeasonEpisodesSeason PremiereSeason Finale
1 10 September 4, 2012 December 25, 2012
2 13 September 3, 2013 November 19, 2013
3 13 September 2, 2014 November 25, 2014
4 13 September 8, 2015 December 1, 2015
5 13 September 13, 2016 December 6, 2016
6 14 September 5, 2017 December 4, 2017
7 17 September 4, 2018 December 25, 2018
8 17 October 7, 2019 January 27, 2020
9 18 September 14, 2020 January 11, 2021
10 18 September 6, 2021 January 17, 2022
11 18 September 26, 2022 January 9, 2023

Production

Highway Thru Hell was created by Mark A. Miller, Kevin Mills, and Neil Thomas. Thomas met one of the heavy rescue operators for Jamie Davis Motor Truck & Auto after Thomas' moving truck broke down on Highway 5 in the summer of 2010. In the early winter of 2011, cameraman Mills and executive producer Miller dropped in on Davis' company while passing through Hope. The idea of a show about heavy recovery was discussed. The winter of 2010–2011 had been a record-setting season for Davis' business, and he expressed a desire to change the public's perceptions about his industry.

In his review of High Arctic Haulers, another reality-TV series produced by Great Pacific Media, Jim Bell of Nunatsiaq News described the formula used by this and similar shows: "Rugged teams of blue-collar heroes, mostly male, struggle against bad weather, bad luck and other hardships to transport the necessities of life ..."[3]

Highway Thru Hell debuted on Canada's Discovery Channel on Tuesday, September 4, 2012.[4] Steep hills, lethal drop-offs, killer rockslides, and the worst weather in a decade captivated audiences, resulting in the most-watched series premiere in the channel's history.

The second season premiered on September 3, 2013, and included 13 new episodes, as well as four re-edited Season 1 episodes featuring new content, factoids, and viewer tweets.

After Season 2, competition in the Hope area became more intense, causing Davis to seek out new territory, and expand his business (and fleet) along Alberta Highway 63.[5] In Season 3, Davis is seen dealing with the stresses of business expansion, especially as senior drivers step into managerial roles in his absence, and sometimes leave chaos in their wake. As an active avalanche season occurs on the Coquihalla, the issue of post-traumatic stress disorder is tackled by the series, as some drivers encounter difficult situations. Al Quiring's family business, Quiring Towing, is featured more prominently in this season.

Filming for Season 4 took place in British Columbia and Alberta during the winter of 2014–2015, when the days-long Hope Ice Storm occurred. Davis' company is split into two "camps", and he sometimes calls in his brother's company, Aggressive Towing, for backup. Mission Towing, a family business including generations of tow-operators, headquartered in British Columbia's Fraser Valley, is first featured in this season.

Season 5 kicked off on September 13, 2016, with an episode depicting a teary-eyed Davis selling his beloved rotator. Quiring Towing tackles some difficult excavator recoveries in British Columbia's nasty peat bog, and Davis' crew suffers some near-misses.

In Season 6, Davis closes his company's Alberta offices, shrinking his operation to Hope and Chilliwack, British Columbia. In an effort to make his business more lean, Davis begins buying and restoring older equipment to add to his fleet, such as a vintage 22-ton Holmes Python wrecker.

Season 7 began airing on September 4, 2018. At Davis' yard in Hope, classic Holmes tow trucks – some nearly half a century old – are replacing newer, costlier wreckers. For Davis, the vintage trucks are more than just a passion; they represent survival. Under pressure to reduce costs and stay competitive, Davis is confident he and his crew can tackle some of the toughest jobs – on and off the Coquihalla – using an older, rebuilt fleet. Colin McLean is back in Hope as lead driver, but since he has driven some top-of-the-line hydraulic trucks, Davis' "old iron" takes some getting used to. The seventh season sees some of the younger generation stepping up, with Cary Quiring one of the first to respond to a mass-casualty event[6] on the Coquihalla, and Dylan Greenwood of Mission Towing taking the lead on some big wrecks and recoveries in the Fraser Valley. Reliable Towing, out of Merritt, makes its debut in the second half of Season 7, first responding to a small wreck of a truck and trailer with pigs inside, and then to a six-semitrailer crash on the Coquihalla, north of Merritt. Mudslides and rockslides contribute to a tough time for recovery crews all around. The season ends with a tearful goodbye as Davis sells HR 117 to Reliable which adds the truck to their Mission fleet.

Season 8 opens with the winter of 2019 and the Hope Mudslide which almost destroys Davis' yard and buries The Coq in 20 feet of mud cutting off access to Merritt and Abbotsford. Davis buys a new Mack Anthem and dubs it HR 127 to close out the season.

Season 9 begins with Davis hiring Greg to drive HR 127 and marks the return of TR 37 to service which was under repairs in Davis' shop at the end of Season 7 to get a new motor. The season ends with the return of Colin and the passing of Ken Monkhouse who died in May 2020. Davis tries to get Colin back by ordering HR 130 but ends up selling HR 126 to pay for the truck. Quiring Towing is profiled as Quiring shows us his hobby of recovering and restoring old bulldozers and excavators and several recoveries featuring Quiring using his dozers to recover wrecks and trapped machinery from the peat bogs following the landslides.

Season 10 opens with Davis buying Columbia Towing and acquiring some of his former trucks back which he sold to them at the end of Season 3 when he closed Alberta and opening a new yard in Golden. Davis also gets Brandon back who now works for a flagging crew out of Golden. Mission is forced to bring out all their trucks and even ask for help when a logging truck goes over the edge. Jr. joins the Davis crew as a swamper and Davis announces his projects for the year. The COVID-19 Pandemic forces Davis to lean back his operation as mandates go into effect. The Season ends with Davis teaming up with Aggressive to recover a truck that went over the edge, Davis in Ely, Nevada buying one of his project trucks and a used boom for 47, and Davis in LA buying HR 56 from the LA Fire Department and adding it to his fleet. The Rotator is also profiled recovering two wrecks after its arrival from LA, a lumber truck that went off the road in the same spot another one did in Season 6, a logging truck that went over the edge in Fraser Canyon, and a tanker which almost causes a chemical spill. Davis also reminisces on 10 years of Highway Thru Hell on the air.

Season 11 opens with another mudslide in Hope which threatens to take out Davis' yard, Davis Towing acquires several new trucks some of which appeared on Ice Road Truckers and other shows, The Coq is rebuilt so Davis can help with the cleanup, Davis says goodbye to some of his fleet after HR 127 is lost in a fire and COVID forces him to make selloffs to pay Miller for replacements to keep his fleet running, and an old warhorse returns to the Coq while Jr. profiles his projects with Davis working on some of his own.

International broadcast
  • National Geographic Channel began airing the show on its American and Scandinavian channels in spring 2013,[7] and has also aired the first two seasons on its British and Irish channel.
  • The Weather Channel broadcast the show in the United States as well, beginning in October 2013.
  • TV3 screened the first season in New Zealand in 2015.
  • Season 1 was also shown in France on RMC Découverte in 2015.
  • Australia's ABC2 screened the first three seasons in 2016.
  • ProSieben Maxx has been broadcasting the show in Germany, under the title Highway Heroes Canada, since March 2015.[8]
  • In Iran, the show is broadcast on IRIB Mostanad.
  • Seasons 1 through 5 were available in some territories on Netflix by January 2017. By January 2020, the series was no longer available on the platform.[9]

Fleets

Jamie Davis Motor Truck fleet

Jamie Davis Hope Yard

  • HR 63 "Mighty Mo" – Western Star Holmes 850 (40 ton)
  • HR 100 1988 Peterbilt 377 Century 1050 (50 ton)(purchased 2023 replacement for HR 56 which suffered a bad crash and is in the shop getting bodywork done, see below)
  • MR 134 2022 Freightliner M2 Century 3212 16 ton (replacement for Coastline's TR 43 which was sold)
  • LR 19 – 2019 F550 Chevron 408 (Jr.'s personal truck)
  • TR ? – 1996 KW
  • TR 37 – 1974 Peterbilt Tractor
  • low bed trailer

Golden Yard

  • HR 130 - 2020 Peterbilt 389 Holmes Wrecker (30 ton)
  • 129 – 2017 Chevy 4 door tow truck (1 ton)
  • TR 128 - 2016 Volvo
  • TR?? 2005 Freightliner Coronado with Landoll trailer (bought from Central Valley Towing in 2022)
  • FD 131 – 2021 Ford F-550 22 ft Century flat deck truck (5 ton)

Coastline Trucks

  • 46 – 2000 Peterbilt DTU
  • 48 – 2020 Ford F-550 22 ft century flat deck truck (sold Feb 2023)
  • 49 - 2021 Ford Jerr Dan self loader (sold Feb 2023)
  • 51 – 2016 Freightliner M2 22 ft Century single axle flat deck truck (5 ton)

Out of Service (Project List)

  • HR??? 1985 Kenworth c500 with 2022 century 9055XL (being built at commercial truck)
  • HR??? 1994 Peterbilt 379 with 2022 century 5230 (currently being built at commercial truck)
  • Coastline 50 – 1985 Western Star Holmes 750 (25-ton, rebuilding, close to completion)
  •  ? – Holmes 1601 Python (22 ton, rebuilding onto Peterbilt chassis, unknown completion)
  • TR 47 – 1979 Holmes 500 (10 ton, awaiting upgrade to Holmes 600, to be renumbered to Coastline 47 its original number)
  • HR 50 – DTU, Bruce "Crazy Horse" Hardy's Former Truck
  • TR 52 – Kenworth Tractor Trailer "007" (blown engine, supposed to be stretched and get a 1701)
  •  ? – Coastline GM with twin line Holmes 480 unit
  •  ? – yellow GMC currently tandem axle gas engine
  •  ? – old Yeller Holmes 750
  •  ? – 1990 Chevy Silverado with AATAC body (Jr.'s project truck, to be mounted onto a Ford F350 XLT , will be assigned to Hope Fleet)
  •  ? – 1998 Ford F350 XLT crew cab (new chassis for Jr.'s project truck, see above)
  • HR 56 – 1995 Peterbilt 377 Century 1040 (40 ton rotator, suffered a bad crash on Highway 5 near the Coq, in the shop to have hood replaced and frame rebuilt)
  •  ? – Holmes 1625 Legend (was suppose to go on HR 50 but Jamie needed that truck back on the road, unit in storage until Jamie can get a heavier tractor to go under it)

Incident Response

  • IR 105
  • IR 106
  • IR 108 – 4-wheel drive

Jamie's former fleet
  • R 120 – Rescue truck
  • TR 44 – used for parts, see HR 50 above (Project List)
  • MR 60 – Army Truck Holmes 600
  • MR 62 – Holmes 600
  • MR 64 – Peterbilt (15 Ton)
  • HR 66 – Century/International chassis (25 ton), sold to Columbia towing
  • HR 70 "The General" – 1980 GMC, Holmes 1801 (45 Ton), sold June 2021 to Hustler Towing in Olds Alberta
  • HR 52 – 1999 Kenworth W900 Century 7035 (35 Ton), sold to Peninsula Towing on Vancouver Island (current owner)
  • HR 52 – 2012 Kenworth T800 Century 5230 (30 Ton), sold to Tonk's Towing in Richmond B.C, 2022 sold to Mario’s Towing in Kelowna B.C.
  • HR 68 – 2007 Western Star 4900sb Century 2012 5230 (30 ton), sold to Berg's Towing in IL, sold to Val-U Auto & Towing in Owego, NY, and in July 2021 at Lil Pete's Automotive in Mahopac, NY
  • HR 116 – 2015 Western Star 4900sb Century 9055 (50 Ton), sold to Reliable Towing Merritt, BC, currently in the Mission Fleet
  • HR 117 – 2015 Western Star 4900sb Century 9055 with SP-850 XP side puller (50 ton), sold to Berg's Towing in Monmouth, IL, traded in to Zip's and then to A+ Towing
  • HR 126 – 1999 Peterbilt 379 Vulcan V70, Wrecker body is a 2015, truck went into service in 2016 (25 ton), sold to Peninsula Towing in Vancouver Island January 2021
  • HR 127 – 2019 Mack Anthem, Century 5230 (30 ton) Burned in a fire on May 16, 2022.
  • HR 85 – 1985 KW LW900 Century 1040 (bought from Ben's Towing in 2021), sold to Steve's Towing, Clinton, British Columbia
  • FD-114 Freightliner tandem deck truck (sold to peninsula Towing September 2022)

Rotators

  • HR 150 – 2009 Peterbilt Century 1075 (75 ton), sold to United Towing Services Inc in Canmore, AB, sold to FIFE in Washington state, then sold to Purdys towing in Oregon
  • HR 150 "The Famous Rotator" – 2012 Western Star 4900sb Century 1075 (75 ton), sold to Berg's Towing in Monmouth, IL, traded in to Zip's, July 2021 Ron's Towing Lincoln, IL

Miscellaneous former trucks

  • Coastline 51, sold to Logan Lake Towing
  • Coastline TR 43
  • FD 121 – Flatdeck, sold to Aggressive Towing
  • FD 124 – Robs truck that was rolled
  • FD 45 - Hino flat deck
  • TR 57 – Western Star, sold to Van Horne towing
  • TR 58 – Western Star, sold
  • HU 55 - International Incident Response Truck
  • AC 103
  • IR 109
  • IR 118 – Toyota Tundra
  • IR 104/105 – Toyota Tundra

Quiring Towing fleet

[10]

  • Unit 90 "The Green Goblin" – 2007 Kenworth T800H with a Vulcan V100 tri-axle wrecker with side puller
  • Unit 55 "Plan B" – 2017 KW T800 X15 565/2150 with def and dpf v100 Vulcan tandem wrecker
  • Unit 95 – 2009 Kenworth T300 single axle, Challenger (20 ton)
  • Unit 85 – 2016 Kenworth T800 28 ft Tandem NRC 40TB Flatdeck
  • Unit 50 – 2016 Kenworth T470 26 ft Jerr-Dan Flatdeck with SRS10 Side Recovery System (10 ton)
  • Unit ??- 2021 Ford 22 ft Deck truck
  • Unit C60 – 1973 GMC 3 TonnHolmes 500 Wrecker
  • Unit 25 – 1985 GMC Service Truck
  • Unit ?? - 1964 D9 Dozer
  • Unit ?? - 1967 D9 Dozer

Spinoff

On October 10, 2016, the pilot for Heavy Rescue: 401, a spinoff series set in Ontario, aired on the Discovery Channel.[11] The first season of Heavy Rescue: 401 debuted on January 3, 2017.

References
  1. Alex Strachan (September 7, 2013). "TV weekend: Boardwalk Empire back for Season 4; Highway Thru Hell storms in with Season 2 (with video)". O Canada. Canada.com. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
  2. Highway through Hell
  3. Jim Bell (2020-01-08). "Review: Northerners will love CBC's High Arctic Haulers". Nunatsiaq News. Retrieved 2020-01-09. Nunavut's lands, seas and communities also function as stars of the show, revealed in stunning digital video, some of it shot from overhead drones. Future episodes will feature communities like Naujaat, Gjoa Haven, Kugluktuk, Pangnirtung and Hall Beach.
  4. John Doyle (Sep 4, 2012). "Highway Thru Hell: tough, but Canadian-style tough". Globe and Mail. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
  5. Edmonton Journal (November 9, 2013). "Highway Thru Hell takes a spin on Highway 63". University of Alberta. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
  6. CTV (February 26, 2018). "Bus passengers describe terrifying scene after pileup on B.C. highway". CTV. Retrieved February 26, 2018.
  7. "Global Showbiz Briefs: Nat Geo Channel Picks Up 'Highway Thru Hell', Al Clark Honored, Jackie Chan, Berlin Film Festival". Deadline Hollywood. November 20, 2012. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
  8. "ProSiebenn Maxx Showpage".
  9. "Netflix availability".
  10. "Quiring Towing Fleet". Quiring Towing>>Services. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
  11. Sarah Godard, Renee Dupuis (March 21, 2016). "Closure is Not an Option: Production Underway on Discovery's New Series HEAVY RESCUE: 401 From Producers of Top-Rated HIGHWAY THRU HELL". Bell Media. Bell Media. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
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