The Great Summits
The Great Summits is a NHK documentary series that explores ten of the world's most famed mountains: Mont Blanc in the Alps, Huascaran in Peru, Mount McKinley in North America, Klyuchevskaya Sopka in the Kamchatka Peninsula of Russia, The Matterhorn in the Alps, Auyantepui in Venezuela, Mount Kinabalu in the island of Borneo, Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, Mount Aspiring in New Zealand, and Mount Wilhelm in Papua New Guinea. Guided by expert climbers, viewers can experience what it feels like to climb these mountains.
| Episode 01 - Mont Blanc: White Queen of the Alps |
Episode 01 - Mont Blanc: White Queen of the Alps
Mont Blanc or Monte Bianco, both meaning "White Mountain", is the highest mountain in the Alps and the highest peak in Europe outside of the Caucasus range.
Episode 02 - Huascaran: Highest Peak in the Tropics
Huascaran or Nevado Huascaran is a mountain in the Peruvian province of Yungay, situated in the Cordillera Blanca range of the western Andes.
Episode 03 - McKinley: Grand Mountain of the Far North
Mount McKinley or Denali is the highest mountain peak in North America, with a summit elevation of 20,321 feet (6,194 m) above sea level.
Episode 04 - Klyuchevskaya: Mountain of Fire and Ice
Klyuchevskaya Sopka is a stratovolcano, the highest mountain on the Kamchatka Peninsula of Russia and the highest active volcano of Eurasia.
Episode 05 - Matterhorn: Majestic Peak that Pierces the Sky
The Matterhorn is a mountain of the Alps, straddling the border between Switzerland and Italy. It is a huge and almost perfect pyramidal peak in the Monte Rosa area of the Pennine Alps.
Episode 06 - Auyantepui: Lost World in the Sky
Auyan-tepui, also spelled Ayan, is a tepui in Bolivar state, Venezuela. It is the most visited and one of the largest (but not the highest) tepuis in the Guiana Highlands.
Episode 07 - Kinabalu: The Majestic Tropical Sanctuary
Mount Kinabalu is a prominent mountain on the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. It is located in the East Malaysian state of Sabah and is protected as Kinabalu Park, a World Heritage Site.
Episode 08 - Kilimanjaro: White Mountain of the Equator
Mount Kilimanjaro with its three volcanic cones, Kibo, Mawenzi and Shira, is a dormant volcanic mountain in Tanzania. It is the highest mountain in Africa.
Episode 09 - Aspiring: Glistening Peak Forged by Wind and Water
Mount Aspiring / Tititea is New Zealand's highest mountain outside the Aoraki/Mount Cook region. Set within Otago's Mount Aspiring National Park, it has a height of 3,033 metres.
Episode 10 - Wilhelm: The Summit of Spirits
Mount Wilhelm, 4,509 metres (14,793 ft), is the highest mountain in Papua New Guinea. It is part of the Bismarck Range and the peak is the point where three provinces, Simbu, Western Highlands and Madang, meet.
| Related Links |
| Planet Earth - Mountains This episode focuses on the mountains. All the main ranges are explored with extensive aerial photography. |
| Human Planet - Mountains: Life in Thin Air This episode explores the extraordinary ways in which people survive at extreme altitudes where nature becomes utterly unforgiving, including hunting with Golden eagles in the Altai mountains of Mongolia and avalanche control in the Swiss Alps. |
| Mountain: Life at the Extreme This is a three-part BBC documentary series narrated by Douglas Henshall, which takes us to the greatest mountain ranges of the world - Rockies, Himalaya and Andes. |
| Walking the Himalayas This is a five-part documentary series following explorer Levison Wood who sets out to walk the length of the world's highest mountain range, from Afghanistan to Bhutan. |
| How the Earth Was Made This is a documentary series aired on the History Channel, showing how geological processes have shaped our planet. |