The Banff Mountain Film Festival was on tour in Burlington again, so I had to see it!  I love adventure films, even if they’re about adventures I have no desire to go on.  The basic spirit of it is very inspiring, regardless of the sport portrayed.  Here are the films I saw this year:

Ice Call

Basically a short film of a skier shredding it on a glacier in the Mont Blanc mountains in the French Alps.  He glides through glacial tunnels and does flips and tricks off of ice half-pipes. Watch the clip here.

My Irnik

One of my favorites, this film follows young parents as they raise their son in the Arctic Circle in Canada, emphasizing shared adventures and tradition while teaching him Inuit culture and dogsledding. Watch the teaser here.

Edges

Yvonne Dowlen, at 90, has been ice skating as long as she can remember and became a professional skater. She overcame multiple health issues in her later years to stay out on the ice and is definitely an inspiration to keep moving. Watch the full film here.

2.5 Million

Skier Aaron Rice set a world record of skiing 2.5 million human-powered vertical feet in the backcountry in a calendar year. As a graduate of the University of Vermont, he was on hand for the showing, which added to the experience. Watch the full film here.

Where the Wild Things Play

A beautiful take on how badass women are. I love this video and had already watched it many times but was happy to watch it again. Another great piece on women in the outdoors from Outdoor Research. Watch the full film here.

Winter on the Blade

Climbers head to Tasmania to climb Blade Ridge on Federation Peak in winter. Not only is it way out in the wilderness, but it turns out to be the wettest winter on record there. A great sufferfest. Watch the teaser here.

Johanna

Johanna Nordblad became interested in cold water freediving after her recovery from a biking accident involved cold water treatments. In this short film, she cuts a hole in some Arctic ice and goes under. Totally crazy and totally mesmerizing. Watch the full film here.

The Frozen Road

The British are exceptionally good at picking sufferfests to go on. Ben Page is cycling round the world and documenting all of it. In this film, he cycles through the Canadian Arctic in winter, totally alone except for the wolves. Watch the full film here.