Mountain climbers stuck on rock face on snow

Young climbers try to scale alpine peak and are trapped by avalanche.

Three climbers are stranded on mountain as darkness sets in.

Over a gleaming ice field and up steep cliffs of bare rock, the camera follows members of the Alpine Club of Canada. Before they set out we are introduced to the climbers' basic equipment and learn the uses of rope and ice axe. Excitement mounts as the alpinists leap gaping chasms, inch their way along icy ledges, and drag themselves up what looks like a sheer wall of rock. Arriving breathless at the top, they pause in triumph for a view of the magnificent mountains lying around their vanquished peak.

Trapped on a mountain in a terrible snowstorm in the dead of night, one of the climbers reports his tentmate missing. Now they have to embark on a dangerous search.

Ueli Steck (Switzerland), Simone Moro (Italy) and Jon Griffith (GB) are not like 95% of the climbers on Everest: they don't use oxygen, altimeters (improperly called Sherpas), or fixed ropes. In 2013, the trio aims to repeat the arduous Western Spur. The Sherpas have the mission to equip the mountain with fixed ropes on this famous day, up to Camp 3: ropes without which customers of commercial expeditions could not climb Everest. An argument ensued, insults were hurled from both sides. The confrontation at Camp 2 degenerated: a Sherpa water bottle physically attacked the trio of Europeans. Blows and stones were thrown and threats led the trio to flee the mountain. The Réel Rock film crew, which is part of the climbing team, films this chaos without complacency.

Trapped near the summit of K2, the world's second-highest mountain, Annie Garrett radios to base camp for help. Brother Peter hears Annie's message and assembles a team to save her and her group before they succumb to K2's unforgiving elements. But, as Annie lays injured in an icy cavern, the rescuers face several terrifying events that could end the rescue attempt -- and their lives.

In 2013, the world's media reported on a shocking mountain-high brawl as European climbers fled a mob of angry Sherpas. Director Jennifer Peedom and her team set out to uncover the cause of this altercation, intending to film the 2014 climbing season from the Sherpa's point-of-view. Instead, they captured Everest's greatest tragedy, when a huge block of ice crashed down onto the climbing route...

Four mountaineers descend a snow-covered mountain.