‘Gold Rush’ Season 8 Rumors: Parker Schnabel’s Girlfriend, Ashley Yule, Could Take On Bigger Role This Year

Gold Rush fans could be seeing a lot more of Parker Schnabel’s girlfriend in Season 8, with rumors that he and Australian beauty Ashley Yule are starting to get very serious.

The 23-year-old has been a fixture of the Discovery Channel show since he was a teenager, taking over his grandfather’s gold mining operation, and viewers have seen him grow into one of the most efficient and work-minded miners in the region. While Parker has been focused almost entirely on his work, he recently started a relationship with the Australian, Ashley Yule.

As Parker said in an interview with Channel Guide magazine, he and Ashley hit it off almost instantly after meeting. He said that she fits perfectly with his lifestyle and sense of humor, and knows how to give him space in his more difficult moments.

“Ashley and I met in Australia. We hit it off pretty well so I invited her over to spend some time in North America. Neither one of us knew what to expect but we had a lot of fun — she’s super easygoing, which is what you need out at a place like that. Ashley just rolls with the punches and helps out where she’s needed. If we need her to drive trucks she’ll drive trucks. She ended up cleaning gold a lot of the summer or helping do fuel things or whatever we needed her around the place. She stayed busy and tried to stay out of my way when I’m in rage mode. Yeah, it was fun. It was a good summer. I’m really glad Ashley was there for it.”

There were initially some rumors that Ashley Yule may be leading Parker Schnabel away from his mining home in Alaska. In a Facebook Live chat with fans last year, Parker hinted that he might be taking a mining trip back to Ashley’s home country.

“You know, I wanted to get out to the gold fields in Australia,” Parker said of his visit there, as relayed by Starcasm. “I didn’t know anybody over there, so I didn’t end up going out and looking at any ground. But, I definitely would have liked to have gone to look at some operations and stuff. I’m always interested to see what people do in other countries. Last winter I spent in New Zealand and went to a bunch of gold mines there, and that was a ton of fun — a really good experience.”

But Parker is not only back and ready for the next season, he is once again taking a front-and-center role in Gold Rush. Previews for this season have focused on his continued rivalry with fellow miner Todd Hoffman, with the two sharing a friendly wager about which crew will haul more gold this year.

The crew is back tomorrow night starting at 8p ET LIVE on @Discovery #GoldRush pic.twitter.com/8T6fnhFYj7

— Parker Schnabel (@goldrush_parker) October 12, 2017

Fans of Gold Rush have already seen Ashley Yule in the past, making some brief appearances including picking up a bit of truck-driving work with Parker’s crew. She can be seen in another clip below discussing Parker’s mining goals.

While rumors indicate that Ashley Yule could be taking a bigger role in Gold Rush Season 8, she and Parker Schnabel may not be moving too far ahead in their relationship anytime soon. In his Facebook Live chat with fans last year, Parker said he wasn’t quite ready to settle down and get married.

[Featured Image by David Becker/Getty Images for Professional Bull Riders]