The film opens as five skiers travel for 150 hours to reach the Altai Mountains of Central Asia. Sam Anthamatten, Cody Cirillo, Elisabeth Gerritzen, and Andrew Pollard have journeyed back to the roots of skiing in this remote range 10,000 years ago.
Just reaching their base camp, located on the Mongolian side of the remote Mongolian-Chinese-Russian border region, was an odyssey. The mixed U.S. and European team met up in Geneva for the flight to Ulaanbaatar via Istanbul. From Mongolia’s sprawling capital, they pack into a bus for another 30 hours, then into some very old vans for a further day.
Finally, they pack their gear onto a team of camels, which look on good-naturedly as they are loaded down with modern ski bags and equipment.
The team was surprised to see their ski bags on camels. The camels, for their part, seem as unimpressed as ever. Photo: Screenshot
In the Altai
Finally, they reach the foot of high, snow-covered Khüiten Peak. With only mild complaining, they trudge through the snow and rocks for many kilometers. Then, tiny dots against the vast white mountainsides, they zip down again on their skis.
Andrew Pollard tries a new line. Photo: Screenshot
Between lines, we meet the rest of the team. Etienne is the director; he envisions the movie more as an epic vlog than as a skiing compilation. Drone operator and photographer Matt captures all the footage, as Cody notes, with an exhausting amount of energy. Saihan, their local guide, is an expert ice climber. The team’s favorite seems to be Bambar, the chef.
As they explore the area, finding new lines and summiting the surrounding peaks, cut-away interviews ask why they chose the Altai. The team stops to look at petroglyphs depicting the ancient residents of the area on skis.
Ancient petroglyphs in the region show what may be the first skiers. Photo: Screenshot
The weather is perfect for several days, but finally turns. Fierce winds and avalanche conditions trap them at base camp. Taking a few days to read, paint, and play cards, Elisabeth says, provides a nice contrast to the high-intensity days. But when conditions improve with only three days left, no one hesitates to hit the slopes again.
As the film wraps up, Matt’s intense footage of their last ski days is interspersed with more interviews. For Cody, Elisabeth, and Andrew, the trip was a sort of ski adventure boot camp under the more experienced Anthamatten. In such a remote environment, many hours away from medical aid in case of an emergency, slipping up could have been serious, even deadly.
But as Andrew concludes, “it’s through putting ourselves in these situations that we can learn.”
