Étoiles Et Tempêtes

How do you brave acute mountain sickness? We talk to researchers, doctors and mountaineers about a syndrome whose mechanisms are still poorly understood.

Nina Caprez and Cédric Lachat are passionate climbers. A passion they share and pushed them to become professionals. They travel around the world in search of walls and cliffs of exception. In Spring 2014 they set up camp beneath one of the most difficult multi-pitch routes in the world – Orbayu (2000 meters). Orbayu is a large limestone tooth which rises above the natural park of Picos de Europa in Spain. This huge wall is among the most beautiful in the world. It’s a mixture of extreme difficulty (8c). But the major problem with this type of wall lies in the fact that weather changes are very fast: rain, low temperatures, wind, etc… The ascent of such walls demand unusual experience. Nina and Cédric document joy, fear, danger, but also the beauty of climbing in Orbayu.

REEL ROCK cranks it up to 11 with our latest collection of electrifying climbing films showcasing the sport's biggest stories and athletes. Featuring Ashima Shiraishi, Will Stanhope, Matt Segal, Brette Harrington, Kai Lightner, Mike Libecki and the Wild Bunch.

Record of the first ascent of Everest made without the use of oxygen equipment, made in May 1978 by Reinhold Messner and Peter Habeler. Could it be done? Would their blood vessels burst? Would they suffer brain damage leading to madness? Nobody was sure. Messner: 'I would never come here for trying Everest with oxygen. That is not a challenge for me.' A fascinating piece of history, well filmed by Leo Dickinson and Eric Jones (above the South Col Messner used a cine camera to continue the filming), featuring Messner and Habeler's thoughts. The film follows the usual sequence from Namche to Base Camp, through the Icefall, to Camps I, II and III. It also shows historical footage of the pioneering Mallory and Shipton expeditions.

Discreet legend of Fontainebleau, Charles Albert, nicknamed Mowgli, continues to push the limits with his barefoot block creations. Climbing without slippers forces him to find original methods, to compensate with the strength of his arms and fingers. "Climbing is not just about a grade", he explains, "We have the possibility of doing what we want, climbing blindfolded, barefoot... All while seeking fluidity in our movements. The only limit to creating new challenges is your imagination.” He very rarely appears in the specialized media, has not made the Olympics or even major international competitions. Yet he is one of the best bouldering climbers in the world. For the record, in January 2019, he was the second in the world to offer a 9a rating for his long-standing project "No Kpotes Only". A year later, his boulder will be downgraded to 8c/+, still remaining one of the most extreme passages on the planet.

After the great crossing of Fitz Roy, in Patagonia, and the Nose in less than 2 hours, in Yosemite, Alex Honnold and Tommy Caldwell embark on a new adventure: the Continental Divide Ultimate Linkup (CDUL), i.e. the chain of 17 summits of Rocky Mountain National Park, in Colorado in 36 hours. The CDUL totals 56 kilometres, 6,000 meters of elevation gain and 65 pitches, with 11 routes from 5a to 6b+ climbed in simultaneous climbing. A project by Adam Stack, Caldwell's childhood friend, who gave the iconic American rope a hard time.

Capturing the greatest stories and sends from the year in climbing, the new films of Reel Rock 16 will deliver a joyful dose of inspiration, heart, and humor. The Reel Rock 16 lineup is our biggest release yet, with films starring Alex Honnold, Tommy Caldwell, Alex Johnson, Charles Albert, Pete Whittaker and Tom Randall. FEATURING FOUR WORLD-PREMIERE FILMS Bridge Boys A horizontal big-wall adventure on the longest, most ridiculous crack climb ever attempted. Featuring: Pete Whittaker, Tom Randall Big Things to Come An elite boulderer’s struggle with a project propels her on a decade-long journey of self-discovery. Featuring: Alex Johson Barefoot Charles Meet the opera-singing, cave-dwelling Frenchman who climbs futuristic boulder problems sans chaussons. Featuring: Charles Albert Cuddle A massive link-up of 17 alpine summits pushes a famed climbing duo to the brink - and into each others' arms. Featuring: Alex Honnold, Tommy Caldwell, Adam Stack

Movie about David Lama climbing the Patagonian mountain Cerro Torre for the first time free, a mountain that has been dubbed the most difficult to climb in the world.

The most legendary 'sequence' ever achieved by a mountaineer: on 12 and 13 March 1987, in 40 hours, 26-year-old Christophe Profit managed to climb three of the highest north faces in the Alps, in winter: Grandes Jorasses, Eiger, and Matterhorn. But over and above this 'coverage' of the feat, we discover the wings, the story behind the project, the peaks and troughs of the preparations for it, and the personality of the man behind the climbs, a dancer on sheer rock faces, focusing all the energy and reflexes of life itself in his fingertips.