Yesterday, the Internet and Television Association released a documentary titled Every Last Mile. It features three communities, including Lakewood Township MN.

Telecompetitor reports on the video…

The Mediacom crew in Lakewood Township, Minn., had a nature-imposed deadline — getting fiber in the ground during the short season when the ground isn’t frozen solid. The area, in the state’s Iron Range, has impenetrable bedrock in some sections.

As the crew chief notes, a mile of cabling in a major metro area might pass 2,000 people, but in rural areas of the state, a mile of cabling might pass two houses. At one point, some of the crew members must wade into cold water that comes above their knees to help meet the crew’s goal of deploying a mile of fiber every day.

It’s an interesting look at how the broadband sausage is made. They talk about the impact of weather, protecting artifacts and sacred land in the field, staying out of traffic and away from snakes, running into rocks. (Spoiler alert: earlier today I posted a press release from Mediacom celebrating the completion of the network in Lakewood Township.)