The Real Reason You're Seeing Parker Schnabel Less And Less On Gold Rush

Parker Schnabel is one of the cornerstones of the popular "Gold Rush" franchise. The young protégé of a gold mining dynasty, Schnabel has appeared in every season of "Gold Rush," and even earned himself a spin-off show called "Gold Rush: Parker's Trail." This particular series sees Schnabel travel across the world in search of the valuable mineral that his family has always sought, and he has visited Guyana, the Klondike Trail, Australia, and Papua New Guinea.

Now in Season 12 of the main show, "Gold Rush" is seeing the stakes rise, and even the names of the episodes carry a hint of conflict, with titles like "Ground War," "Battle of the Greenhorns," and "The Vindication." This current season also sees Schnabel call in the heavy equipment known as Slucifer, while other members of "Gold Rush" face surprise inspections and seek out new locations for mining operations. However, astute fans may notice that Schnabel is appearing less and less on the show, but there's a clear reason why.

In a recent Facebook video in which Schnabel answered questions from fans, he spoke about his growing absence, saying, "People who are watching 'Gold Rush' don't see me as much as they used to. Because, as soon as a business starts getting big enough, you're dealing with so much paperwork, and permitting, and employee stuff, and accountants, and taxes, and the list goes on and on and on. And, I don't enjoy the day to day of that, but I enjoy the process, and I enjoy the outcomes."

Schnabel continued by saying that he appreciates the mining crew that he has assembled, and that having varied skills among them is immensely important. He also brought up the fact that when a gold mining operation is on the smaller side, members often need to wear many different hats and engage in different jobs, but now that his company is growing, the tasks need to be divided out appropriately. 

The "Gold Rush" star then added that he isn't a mechanic or a welder, but he's thankful for having people on his team who are, going on to explain that he is sacrificing a lot of his time in the field to run a bigger company, which he is thankful for because he doesn't like stagnation and wants to continue growing. Although fans might be sad that Schnabel will appear less on the show, it seems like he definitely has his priorities straight when it comes to his own professional goals.