The five day Fort William Mountain Festival 2022 programme includes:
A selection of the finest mountain/outdoor/adventure films to entertain, enthral and inspire, from the Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival World Tour.
Meet Charlie Ramsay, creator of the Ramsay Round in 1978; Nicky Spink, who recently broke the Ladies Lake District 24-hour record climbing 65 peaks in 23.45 hours. From Fort William meet our very own Es Tressider and son Aaron (9) both keen climbers and runners based in Lochaber. In 2019 Es set the record for the fastest completion of Ramsay’s round (subsequently broken by Finlay Wild) and ever since then Aaron had been interested in the round. In 2021 they wanted to do a long multi-day adventure locally, so set out to do Ramsay’s round over three days, carrying all their stuff and camping along the way. A strong line-up including members of the Black Trail Runners, a group campaigning and encouraging more black members to trail running.
Everything snowy, powdery, exhilarating and perhaps even scary. Supported by MDV (Marker, Diablo, Volkl) and Paddy Graham, freestyle skier and a major contributor to the collective group ‘Legs of steel’, producing awesome snowsport films. A night not to be missed.
TV presenter, film-maker, outdoor broadcaster, outdoor swimmer, and fluent Gaelic speaker. In 2017 Calum was nominated by The Wild Swimming Brothers (The Hudson Brothers]) as Wild Swimmer of the Year. In 2019 he was invited to speak at the RSGS Inspiring People series. He makes short, often comical, films on outdoor swimming, wild camping and related challenges for BBC Scotland’s ‘The Social. This
Meet members of the Adventure Syndicate, and Karen Darke. The Adventure Syndicate is a collective of extraordinary cyclists, who happen to be women, and who aim to challenge what others think they are capable of, adventurers and storytellers who promote mental and physical wellbeing through their outdoor endeavours. In 2021 they recreated an epic Scottish 500-mile cycle and youth hostelling adventure from the 1930’s. Karen Darke MBE, FRSGS is an author, global speaker, transformational Coach, mindset architect, and adventuring soul. She is also a British paralympic cyclist, paratriathlete, adventurer. At the 2016 Rio Paralympics Karen won Gold in the Women’s road time trial, following her success in the 2012 London Paralympics where she won a silver medal in the Women’s road time trial H1-2
Audiences are invited to relax at a night of award-winning outdoor adventure films. The winners of the 2022 competition categories will be announced: People’s Choice, Best Short Film, Best Mountain Sports Film, Best Exploration and Adventure Film and the John Muir Trust Wild Places Film Prize. The 2022 Photographer of the Year Award will also be presented.
Both recipients will receive their awards at a special ceremony. These prestigious awards recognise and celebrate lives spent in pursuit of adventure; the overcoming of personal challenges; the achievement of the highest performance and recognition in their chosen specialisms whilst inspiring others along the way. The 2022 winners will be announced in early February.
Meet Bekah Drummond and Rob Mackenzie and hear about Bekah’s successful attempt of Skye Wall, E7, 6B, one of the most stunning looking routes in Scotland. Bekah finally managed to time the weather and holidays right and scrape in her goal of climbing this stunning line before she turned 25. working in the UK. Graeme has a background in youth work, community education and community development. As Vice-Chair of the Federation for Detached Youth Work, Graeme represents the UK in Dynamo International, an international network of street educators. This presentation considers the link between philosophy and walking in general and introduces the practice of ‘Philosophy Walks’ in particular. Walking, of all outdoor activities, seems to offer a particular means to think about these experiences, but also the world beyond. People who write about walking almost always make philosophical claims. And those who write about philosophy often describe how walking helps them to clarify their thoughts.
A presentation from the Scottish Mountaineering Press, publishers of the book The Fox of Glencoe by Hamish MacInnes. The Fox of Glencoe chronicles the adventures of the legendary Hamish MacInnes and his achievements in the field of mountaineering. Throughout this rich collection of tales, Hamish’s unorthodox character and pragmatic approach to risk and loss are conveyed with wry, elegant style, offering a glimpse into the mind of one of the greatest mountaineers of our time.
Meet Sasha Doyle along with those who have experienced the work of the Venture Trust. The Venture Trust support people struggling with involvement in Scotland’s criminal justice system, long term unemployment and mental health and wellbeing. The Venture Trust work with people to gain the life skills, stability and confidence needed to reach their potential. Through person-centred support in communities and experiential learning in the outdoors we challenge individuals to reflect on beliefs, attitudes and behaviours so they can unlock skills and learn new, more positive, ways of approaching situations.
The diaries of a Scottish Snow Hunter. Meet Iain Cameron, who was nine years old when snow patches first captured his imagination, and they have been inextricably bound with his life ever since. He developed his expertise through correspondence (and close friendship) with research ecologist Dr Adam Watson, and is today Britain’s foremost authority on this weather phenomenon. There are few more beautiful places than Scotland’s winter mountains. But even when most of the snow has melted, isolated patches can linger well into summer and beyond. In The Vanishing Ice, Iain Cameron chronicles these remarkable and little-seen relics of the Ice Age, describing how they have fascinated travellers and writers for hundreds of years, and reflecting on the impact of climate change.
Reserve a place to meet an interesting and inspiring person – but you won’t know who it is until you meet them. Surprise yourself! Food will be provided. Book your place through the Festival website.
A non-ticketed event. From 22:00 until late, with Riska Ceilidh band. Everyone welcome. Always a good night.
The Photographer of the Year competition is open to everyone. Applicants have been invited to submit one photograph with the theme ‘These are my Mountains’, taking us on a journey to a place that inspires. The judges are local, including photography legend and all-round mountain hero Alex Gillespie. The winning photographs will be displayed in the Exhibition Zone. The winners will receive their prizes at the International Film Award night.
Festival organisers have put together a wide range of workshops with plenty of opportunities for both novices and experts alike to get out and about amidst the beautiful Lochaber winter landscape. Winter Mountaineering Skills, Philosophy Walks, Wild swimming, Biking, Running, Yoga, Outdoor Art.