The set of the movie The Grey, on the prairie atop Hudson Bay Mountain, should now be completely clear of any sign of the film set and crew, according to Location Manager Dominic Main.
Two weeks ago, a crew spent a week in snow, rain and occasional sunshine, sweeping the area by hand, picking up anything left by the cast and crew of the movie filmed there last winter.
“There were a few pieces of plane left, and the rest of it’s just small debris. Everybody now has just been on their hands and knees picking up all the tiny pieces,” said Main. “We line up 12 or 15 people, and we’re just doing gridwork. We line everybody up and we all move forward slowly, and we’re just criss-crossing it, doing it back and forth.”
The cleanup was delayed due to the late snow melt this year, but once the process began, it went quickly, he said. The first days saw five net loads carried away by helicopter, while the rest was loaded out on foot.
Main said the cleanup crew were all hired locally, from the Bulkley Valley Backpackers, the BV Quad Riders Club, and Jobwaves. A dozen or more people a day took part, taking care not to disturb the local ecosystem while combing through the base camp area of over 800 square metres, and the main set area covering over 13,000 square metres.
“We’re being very conscientious of the lichens and everything else up here,” he said.
Main said he was very pleased with the interest from Smithers in getting the set fully cleaned up.
“The community has just been fantastic. I tried to get everyone who was interested in the community involved,” he said.