Curated list
Best Alpine and Mountaineering Films
13 films · updated 2026-09-10
Most of the mountaineering films people recommend, from Meru to The Alpinist and 14 Peaks, are behind a subscription. This is the list of the ones that are not. It is shorter than a streaming catalogue and heavier on rock than on snow, because that is what the brands and filmmakers have released for free, but it covers the Eiger north face, Everest, Greenland, Baffin Island, the Karakoram and a winter line on Longs Peak.
The order goes from the big documentaries to the shorter expedition and field pieces. If you only watch one, make it The Ghosts Above: thirty six minutes of Renan Ozturk on Everest, and the best argument that a camera operator can be the most interesting person on the mountain.

01 · 2020 · 36 min · Sony Alpha
The Ghosts Above
Renan Ozturk on Everest during the search for Sandy Irvine's body, shooting the expedition and questioning why he is there.

02 · 2026 · 1 hr 18 min · Documentary+
The Man Who Redefined Climbing | Metanoia - The Jeff Lowe Story | FULL DOCUMENTARY
Jeff Lowe's solo winter line on the Eiger north face, and the life that led to it. Seventy eight minutes.

03 · 2024 · 1 hr 34 min · National Geographic
Arctic Ascent with Alex Honnold: Mega Episode
Six weeks in eastern Greenland: an ice cap traverse, a glaciologist's fieldwork, and the first ascent of a 4,000 foot sea wall.

04 · 2024 · 45 min · National Geographic
Alex Honnold Survives Deadly Ice Falls | Arctic Ascent
The middle episode on its own, with the ice fall and the first traverse of the Renland Ice Cap.

05 · 2022 · 11 min · Guillaume Broust
Odyssee (Eiger North Face, 1400m, 8a+) with Tobias Suter and Cédric Lachat
Tobias Suter and Cédric Lachat on Odyssee, 1,400 meters of 8a+ on the Eiger north face, in an eleven minute raw edit.

06 · 2022 · 56 min · Petzl
Swissway to Heaven - Full movie
Lachat across the Eiger, Gastlosen, Wendenstöcke, Lauterbrunnen and the Rätikon, with the people who opened the routes.

07 · 2025 · 33 min · Petzl
Making History on the Trango Towers, Pakistan - Edu Marin
Edu Marín with his brother and father on Nameless Tower above the Baltoro Glacier. A compact Karakoram field report.

08 · 2026 · 27 min · Louder Than Eleven
Push the Lines - Three friends. One winter line. Years in the making.
Jesse Huey, Matt Segal and Quentin Roberts return over several winters to one mixed line on the Diamond of Longs Peak.

09 · 2016 · 16 min · Arc'teryx
Arc'teryx Presents: Baffin
Marc-Andre Leclerc and Brette Harrington make two first ascents on Great Sail Peak, Baffin Island, in August 2016. Sixteen minutes.

10 · 2022 · 33 min · The North Face
The North Face Presents: Earthside
Emily Harrington, Brette Harrington, Christina Lusti and Hilaree Nelson climb and ski first descents in the Canadian Arctic.

11 · 2013 · 54 min · Xpedition Films
China Jam
A 4,000 foot wall in a remote valley in western China, found and climbed by the Belgian crew in 2013.

12 · 2026 · 55 min · Xpedition Films
Asgard Jamming
Mount Asgard on Baffin Island with Sean Villanueva, the Favresse brothers, Stephane Hanssens and Silvia Vidal.

13 · 2025 · 25 min · Magnus Midtbø
I Attempted to Climb Europe’s Most DEADLY Mountain… Solo
Magnus Midtbø's single day solo alpine push, honest about being out of his element.
More lists



Best Free Solo Climbing Films
The best free solo climbing films free to watch online: Alex Honnold on El Sendero Luminoso and The Phoenix, Dean Potter's FreeBASE, and more ropeless ascents.
8 films



Best El Capitan Climbing Films
Free films about climbing El Capitan in Yosemite: free ascents of The Nose, Golden Gate, Zodiac and El Corazón, aid speed records, and Dawn Wall attempts.
12 films



The Hardest Climbs Ever Filmed
Watch the hardest rock climbs ever recorded on film: Adam Ondra's Silence (9c), Shawn Raboutou's Alphane (V17), Burden of Dreams, Lexicon E11 and more.
12 films



Best Short Climbing Films Under 15 Minutes
The best short climbing films free to watch, all under 15 minutes: Es Pontàs, El Sendero Luminoso, Margo Hayes, Ondra's hardest flash, Black Pearl and more.
14 films



Best Full-Length Climbing Documentaries
Feature-length climbing documentaries free to watch online: Stone Locals, Metanoia, Rotpunkt, Wide Boyz, Rampage, The Death Consequence and more.
13 films



Films Featuring Women Climbers
Free climbing films led by women: Margo Hayes, Babsi Zangerl, Emily Harrington, Janja Garnbret, Nina Caprez, Katie Lamb, Paige Claassen and more.
19 films