100 Adventure Films to Stream for Free: Part V

This fifth and final installment of our free streaming film series features mountaineering, free-diving, voluntary isolation, some hair-raisingly exposed climbs and an environmental classic (DamNation).

DamNation – The Problem with Hydropower: In our haste to branch out from fossil fuels, the world’s great rivers have been tamed. This film explores changing attitudes to dam construction in America.
Operation Moffat: A young climber looks to the legendary climber and writer Gwen Moffat for inspiration.
Wild Ocean: An educational exploration of man’s impact on ocean ecosystems.
Journey to the Edge of Nowhere: A marine biologist spends a year on the isolated island of Macquarie in the southwest Pacific Ocean.
Danakil Desert – The Hottest Place on Earth (Part 1): A team of scientists head into Ethiopia’s Danakil depression to investigate the incredible geology of the area.
Danakil Desert – The Hottest Place on Earth (Part 2)
Underwater Universe of the Orda Cave: In 2017, a group of divers enter the five-kilometre-long Orda Cave beneath Russia’s western Ural Mountains.
Mountain Unicycling: Yes, unicycling down mountains is a thing.
Fishpeople: A Patagonia documentary exploring the lives of those who have dedicated themselves to ocean pursuits.
Becoming Ruby: Mountain biker Brooklyn Bell explores how she shaped her own identity “in a mix of dirt, snow, art and inclusion.”
Photo: Patagonia
Emily Harrington Sends Golden Gate in El Capitan: “It was a bloody, tear-stained battle, done in the best style possible for me.”
Dirt Magic: A short documentary charting Downieville, California’s journey from dying mining town to mountain-bike mecca.
Antarctica Isolation Q&A: A live Q&A streamed last month featuring heavyweights Conrad Anker, Hilaree Nelson, Jimmy Chin and Jim Morisson.
The World’s Toughest Adventure Race – The X-Alps: A hike-and-fly adventure pits 31 paragliders against each other, and the Alps.
Magikistan – Paragliding into the Heart of Tajikistan: An inventive vol-bivy (a combination of paragliding, hiking and camping) trip through Tajikistan’s Pamir Mountains.
Behind Dark Matter: First-person perspectives of the Alaskan backcountry with snowboarders Travis Rice and Elias Elhardt.
The World’s Oldest Endurance Race: Sporting a frankly incredible moustache, ultra-runner Florian Neuschwander takes us through the challenges posed by the Western States 100 endurance race.
Dream Lines IV – Wingsuit Proximity: Footage that will either inspire you to take up wingsuit flying or to write the sport off as certifiably insane.
The Darién Gap: Journalists attempt the infamous Darién Gap, one of the most dangerous migrant crossings in the world.
Enchanted Isles: A 1981 documentary looking at indigenous fishing methods in the Solomon Islands.
The Solomon Islands Photo: Business Advantage PNG
The Superhuman World of Wim Hof – The Iceman: Wim Hof claims he can use meditation to influence his autonomic nervous system and immune system at will. Vice gives his training sessions a try.
Surviving Alone in Alaska: Six families were allowed to keep property in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in 1980. Now, only one man lives there year-round.
Los Plastico: Eight hundred kilometres off the Chilean coast, on the remote Isla Alejandro Selkirk, three surfers look for the world’s biggest waves.
Explorers – Amundsen: A good though dated BBC documentary on Roald Amundsen, presented by the venerable David Attenborough.
Monty Hall’s Dive Mysteries – The Curse of the Blue Hole: A marine biologist examines why there are so many deaths in the Red Sea’s Blue Hole.
76 Days Adrift: A dramatized tale of a true story. Steve Callahan survives for 76 days adrift in a life raft on the Atlantic Ocean.
The Man Who Climbed Everest 21 Times: National Geographic presents a short film on Nepali legend Apa Sherpa.
Antarctica With Nat Geo: Aboard the National Geographic Explorer vessel as it heads south from Chile to Antarctica.
The Secrets of Antarctica: A team of marine scientists embark on a 50-day expedition into the Great Southern Ocean to take a census of marine life.
The Hermit Kingdom: Vice heads to North Korea, alongside ex-NBA bad boy Dennis Rodman and a trio of Harlem Globetrotters.
Kim Jong-un (left) and Dennis Rodman make an unlikely pair. Photo: Vice
Lost in the Grand Canyon: A dramatized retelling of the true story of a woman lost in the Grand Canyon for 20 days.
Through the Eyes of a Free Diver: A mesmerizing National Geographic short film in which freediver Guillaume Néry takes us beneath the waves.
The Deepest Man on Earth: A short video of Austrian freediver Herbert Nitsch speaking about his craft.
Inclined: Six friends set off down the coast of south-east Alaska in search of perfect snow.
Life in a Day: Something a bit different. Produced by Ridley Scott, Life In A Day is a film made from thousands of user submissions, capturing what it was like to be alive on July 24, 2010.
Mountain: “A unique cinematic and musical collaboration between the Australian Chamber Orchestra and BAFTA-nominated director Jennifer Peedom, Mountain is a dazzling exploration of our obsession with mountains.”
Asia’s Forgotten Mountain: A team of climbers attempt to measure the height of Hkakabo Razi in Myanmar.
K2 the Abruzzi Route: First-person footage of the Abruzzi route on K2.
Dolomites: Mountaineer Hans Kammerlander introduces the Dolomites of South Tyrol.
Mountain Men, The Ghosts of K2: A BBC documentary explores the early days of mountaineering in Pakistan.
K2. Photo: Mick Conefrey
Deosai – The Last Sanctuary: A film about the Deosai National Park of Pakistan and its endangered Himalayan Brown Bears.
Piolet d’or 2017 – Tibet: Nick Bullock and Paul Ramsden take on a unique climb in the Nyainqentangla range of Tibet.
Skeleton Ridge – The Needles, Isle of Wight: A short video showing Skeleton Ridge, a chalky climb along iconic white cliffs off the coast of southern England.
Devils Tower: French rock climber Catherine Destivelle free soloing Devils Tower in Wyoming.
Catherine Destivelle – Mali: This time Destivelle takes on some sheer climbs in Mali.
Hazel Findlay – From Shoulder Surgery to Sending an 8C: Looks at a British climber’s return from major shoulder surgery.
Arc’teryx – The World Above: A team of climbers head to South Africa and open a new route on Slanghoek.
Northern Elements: Arc’teryx athletes head into British Columbia’s northern coast range to ski some wild lines.
Pete Whittaker – Pegasus Left Hand: A misty, slimy climb for Pete Whittaker, making an E1 5B much harder than usual!
Salbitschijen – South Ridge: The Sudgrat is one of the most beautiful climbs of its type in the Alps. Relaxing footage of the classic 16-pitch, 550m south ridge.
Sudgrat in the Alps. Photo: The Swiss Alpine Club
China – A Skier’s Journey: Modern skiing is fairly new in China, but the technology has been present in the Altai Mountains for thousands of years.
If You’re Not Falling: A short video following Sonnie Trotter and Cory Richards as Trotter attempts to break into new ground and climb Dave Macleod’s notorious E11 ‘Rhapsody’ at Dumbarton Rock in Scotland.
The Walk of Life: A hair-raising first ascent sent by James Pearson.
Ultra-Marathon Man: Endurance athlete Dean Karnazes attempts to run 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 consecutive days.
Cemetery Gates: Hazel Findlay solos the worryingly named Cemetery Gates in northern Wales.
300 Days Alone: Xavier Rosset strands himself for 10 months on Tofua, an island in the Pacific Ocean, with just a machete and a Swiss Army knife for company.
Dave Macleod – Indian Face: Dave MacLeod climbing “the worlds most notorious E9”, Indian Face.
Beyond Good and Evil: An oral history of the most difficult route in the Mont-Blanc massif.
Face to Face: Lorenz Frutiger and Louis Laurent revisit the mythical north face of the Eiger.
Alone on Ama Dablam: GoPro footage from Jost Kobusch as he became the youngest climber to solo Ama Dablam.
Jost Kobusch having fun. Photo: Jost Kobusch
The Canyon by Canoe: Eight Canadians take on the Grand Canyon in tandem canoes.
Limi: A team of climbers set off to find virgin climbs in the Limi range on the Nepal-Tibet border, and grapple with the thorny question of authenticity.
Rafa Ortiz Rides a Pool Toy Off a 70-Foot Waterfall: Exactly what it says on the tin.
The Old Man of Hoy: Catherine Destivelle again, this time soloing the legendary Orkney sea stack, The Old Man of Hoy.
Froggat: More soloing action, this time from Hazel Findlay and Will Stanhope, who take to Froggat to repeat some classic climbs.
Zambezi Foreva!: Spectacular paddling action on the Zambezi, set to some funky hip-hop.
Gramicci: Brad Gobright climbing hard trad in Indian Creek, Utah.
Soulmates: When Sergi Basoli set off to kayak the Mediterranean, he hadn’t counted on having a furry companion.
Boreal to Barrenlands – Crossing Labrador: Part 1 of a video series. A canoe journey that takes four friends 670km through Labrador’s interior.
Iran – A Skier’s Journey: Iran may not spring to mind as a skiing destination, but atop the Alborz and Zagros Mountains, there are some stunning runs.
Photo: Arc’teryx
Patagonia Dreamin’: Arc’teryx Athletes Jason Kruk and Marc-Andre Leclerc travel from Squamish, Canada to El Chalten, Argentina to climb on the legendary spires of the Torre massif.
In Constant Motion: One of the world’s top ultra-runners tries to come back from a horrific injury and ponders his athletic future.
The Backyard Project: Justin Lamoureux’s quest to ride all 30 mountains he can see from his backyard.
Stairway to Heaven: Made of steel cables, the 43m-long sky ladder in Austria stretches over an abyss some 700 meters deep.
The Dawn Wall – Behind the Scenes: Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson show you behind the scenes of the famous Dawn Wall documentary.
Bear Grylls and Yao Ming Go Wild: The strangest video I’ve found while putting together this list. Bear Grylls takes gargantuan NBA legend Yao Ming “into the wild.”
Solo Camping in the Yukon: Got four hours to kill? This mammoth video recounting 14 days camping in the Yukon is for you.
Felix Baumgartner’s Top Freefalls: Includes his wingsuit verses plane race and some sketchy base jumping.
The Ice Beard Surfer of Lake Superior: A Lake Superior local legend who won’t let winter end his surfing season.
A Mile an Hour: A different kind of marathon. Beautifully shot, an Aussie tries to get as much done as possible in a day.
Photo: Beau Miles
The Norseman: The toughest triathlon in the world?
Our Trails: A short history explaining why the Pyrenees has such a wealth of trails, including some great mountain biking footage.
Africa Solo – Cairo to Cape Town in 41 Days: Mark Beaumont smashes the world record for cycling the length of Africa.
Lessons from Jeju: “Seven months pregnant and apprehensive of the effect motherhood would have on her career as a professional freediver, Kimi Werner took a trip to the island of Jeju in South Korea to meet her heroes, the haenyeo –- a group of free-diving and fishing women.”
Forgiving Pipeline: Surf photographer Jon Mozo passed away while working at just 33. His daughter has now taken to the same career.
Fabiolous Escape 2: Mountain biker Fabio Wibmer bombs down the piste in Austria, incurring the wrath of the local “police” in the process.
Solo Sailing: Documents 27 days alone at sea aboard a small 23ft sailing yacht. Sam Holmes sailed over 3,000km from Los Angeles to Hilo, Hawai’i.
Via Ferrata: Climbing this via ferrata is no joke! The last stretch of the route features some sketchy-looking rings.
We The Keepers — Zion National Park: A look inside Zion National Park while we are all locked down.
Cascadia: Danny MacAskill takes to the rooftops of Gran Canaria on his bike.
Danny MacAskill takes off. Photo: Cycling Passion
The Deepest Dive in Antarctica: Part of Our Blue Planet, a joint venture between OceanX and BBC Earth, deep-sea explorer Jon Copley descends to 1,000m underwater in Antarctica.
The Complete Fisherman: A new Patagonia film, Il Pescatore Completo, introduces us to a 16th-century angling technique that still endures in northern Italy.
Wolfpack — The Family That Runs Together: The Braford-Lefebvre family live in the San Juan Mountains above Silverton, Colorado, running the trails together to “raise their family wild.”
Rotpunkt: Through failure and success, Alex Megos strives to be the best climber in the world through the art of rotpunkt (redpoint), the original form of free-climbing in Europe.
Seven – The BC Bike Race: Riders come together in British Columbia to spend seven days on some of the best single-track in the world.
The Way Down: A mountain bike film created by 18-year-old Raul Pfammatter. The Film is split into three parts: trail building, downhill and the fascination of mountains.
Swift Blade: Severe conditions in the Canadian Rockies, with low temperatures and fresh formed ice. Tanja Schmitt, Heike Schmitt and Matthias Scherer climb for 30 days on some spectacular lines.
Climbing Ice — The Iceland Trifecta: A former Banff finalist, this film shows a filmmaker and climbers take on icy crags in Iceland.
A Journey Beyond II: Some great footage of the moonscapes of the Pamirs, as a German cyclist sets off from Dushanbe towards Bishkek.
No Quarter — Unridden Lines Crossing the Purcells: A hardy crew of adventurers bikepacks into British Columbia’s Purcell mountains.
Photo: Max Berkowitz

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