Mountains Planet Earth II


Mountains

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There are only a dozen peaks in the world that rise five miles high.

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All of them are here, in the Himalayas.

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Lethally cold, scoured by gales and blizzards,

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these mountains are among the most hostile places on Earth.

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Yet, a few special animals manage to live here.

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Snow leopards.

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Like all creatures of the high mountains,

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they have had to adapt both their body and their behaviour

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in order to survive.

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Life at extreme altitude

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has shaped some of the toughest animals on the planet.

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LEOPARD ROARS

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The sunbaked mountains of the Arabian Peninsula.

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They may only be a fraction of the height of the Himalayas,

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but they are still so dizzyingly steep

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that in many places it's almost impossible to get a foothold.

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Yet Nubian ibex have made this their home.

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BIRD CALLS

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The ibex choose the steepest cliffs to raise their young,

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in safety, beyond the reach of predators.

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But living in this sanctuary comes with a cost.

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These nursery slopes are so steep,

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there is almost no standing water up here.

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So to drink, an ibex family must descend into the valley...

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..1,000 feet below.

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The mothers pick out the safest way down.

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With soft cloven hooves that grip better than any climbing shoe,

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they are the most accomplished mountaineers.

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But the newborn kids are still having to find their feet.

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This is their first descent.

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One mistake could make it their last.

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Following the adults, the kids finally reach the valley.

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But once on level ground, they're vulnerable.

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Red foxes lie in wait.

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At the first sign of danger,

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the young ibex instinctively run back to steeper ground.

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KID BLEATS

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But heading for this particular rocky outcrop could be a mistake.

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It's a 30-foot drop.

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The fox has them trapped -

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or so it seems.

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This is what ibex were born to do.

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Scattering makes it hard for the fox to pick a target.

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And it certainly can't follow them up here.

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All it can do is wait for one to slip and fall.

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But these youngsters are fast learners,

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and they're now almost as sure-footed as their parents.

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The fox will have to find its meal elsewhere.

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It's just not been a good day.

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Now, at last, the young ibex can drink.

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But they'll soon need to return to the safety of the sheer cliffs.

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Mastering precipitous terrain is always challenging,

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but there are more fundamental problems for life in the mountains.

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The Alps. Europe's highest peaks.

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It's winter, and food is desperately short.

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A golden eagle has to spend every daylight hour

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scanning the slopes for something, somewhere, to eat.

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Her seven-foot wingspan allows her to glide effortlessly

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for 100 miles in a single day.

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Her extraordinary eyes enable her to spot prey from two miles away.

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But she is not the only one who's looking for food.

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When she spots a chance, she must move fast.

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She can dive at 200 miles an hour.

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Only a peregrine is faster.

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During winter, even eagles rely almost entirely on carrion.

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It's a dead fox, and it could sustain her for days.

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Other scavengers must defer.

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The hungry crows soon regain their courage.

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They'll try any trick to steal a morsel.

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And they are annoyingly persistent.

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But this mob are the least of her worries.

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A bigger eagle takes control.

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But this kill is too important to give up.

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So she must fight.

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For the moment, she's won the carcass back.

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But a kill like this will attract every eagle for miles around.

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As ever, the strongest wins the lion's share.

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Unable to defend the carcass any longer,

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the first eagle must now continue its search.

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It may be many days before she feeds again.

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Only the most competitive

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will survive the perils of the mountain winter.

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RUMBLING

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An avalanche.

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100,000 tonnes of snow

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travelling at 80 miles an hour,

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capable of smashing everything in its path.

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The mountains of North America

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are hit by thousands of avalanches every year.

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Yet one animal spends the whole winter

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slumbering within the snow on these avalanche-prone slopes.

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And when spring comes, they emerge.

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All across these mountains,

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grizzly bears make their winter dens

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10,000 feet up in the deep snow of leeward slopes.

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And while they were half-asleep in the depths of winter,

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their young were born.

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Now these cubs are taking their first steps into the outside world.

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This mother is leading her three youngsters

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to a place where they can find food.

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RUMBLING

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They need to descend as quickly as possible.

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The debris from an avalanche

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is clear evidence that this slope is still dangerously unstable.

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This is not a place to dawdle.

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And they have another reason to keep moving.

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After five months in the den, these bears are very hungry.

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Bears that have hibernated throughout these peaks

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now all descend to the valleys, where spring comes earliest.

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In the Rockies, seasonal change is swift and dramatic.

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In just a few days, the slopes turn from white to green.

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Meadows that only a few weeks ago were buried beneath the snow

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are now full of life.

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But in these mountains, the good times will not last long.

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So the bears must feed as fast as they can.

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During the summer months,

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an adult can put on 180 kilos gorging on plants

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and, if they can catch them...

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MARMOT CALLS ..a marmot or two.

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But just now, the bears have something else on their minds.

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It's becoming warmer,

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and the bears are keen to shed their thick winter coats.

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Mothers show the cubs what to do about this.

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They'll soon catch on.

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Some trees, it seems, are particularly suitable for rubbing.

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Bears have their favourites and will travel long distances to visit them.

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Some itches just have to be scratched.

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There are now around 30 bears in this one valley.

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As they rub, each leaves an individual and recognisable scent.

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So the tree soon carries a list of who's around,

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which might help individuals to avoid a fight.

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To best spread their scent,

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they really have to put their back into it.

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BEAR GRUNTS

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But summer is short.

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Itches satisfactorily scratched,

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it's time to eat.

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In a couple of months,

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they will have to return to their dens to hibernate,

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so now they must put on as much weight as they can.

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Winter in the mountains returns fast and hits hard.

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WIND HOWLS

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Temperatures in the Rockies will drop to -54 degrees,

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so cold that moisture in the air

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freezes into tiny crystals called diamond dust.

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This bobcat is one of the few hunters to remain active in winter.

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Most of his prey is now hidden beneath the snow

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that covers his entire territory.

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He hunts by listening for the faintest sound of movement.

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And to prevent crunching footsteps from revealing his presence,

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he uses boulders as stepping stones.

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A mouse.

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But one is not enough.

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The deeper the snow, the harder it is to detect prey,

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and the rewards for the effort can be disappointing.

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To say the least.

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By midwinter, the snow is so deep

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that bobcats are forced to leave their territories

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to try and find easier hunting.

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And this bobcat may be in luck.

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For this particular valley is blessed.

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A river here never freezes.

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It's fed by a volcanic hot spring

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that heats these waters

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to 50 degrees warmer than the surrounding air.

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Hungry animals of all kinds come here to feed.

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Throughout the winter,

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the river is full of food

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for those who know how to catch it.

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Here, even the coyotes have become fishermen.

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But hunting is hard for a cat that's not used to getting its feet wet.

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So he must choose his target with care.

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Goldeneye ducks.

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But can he get close enough to pounce?

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QUACKING

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Perhaps he'll have more luck on the other side.

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Here, steam from the river warms the surrounding trees,

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so up in the branches, there could be prey.

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CHIRPING

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If only he could get to it.

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It's 20 feet up.

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At last - a squirrel.

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Not much, but enough to keep him going.

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To survive a winter in these mountains takes tenacity,

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and bobcats have that in abundance.

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Snow on the equator.

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Unlike the Rockies, in these mountains

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there are no marked seasons.

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This is Africa's Mount Kenya.

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It's 17,000 feet high,

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which makes its summit some 30 degrees colder

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than the surrounding savanna.

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Giant heathers, lobelias and groundsel grow on its upper slopes.

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They all thrive in the tropical sun.

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After all, every day is summer.

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But once the sun sets, every night becomes as bitterly cold as winter.

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The temperature drops to five degrees below freezing,

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turning the mountainside into a garden of ice.

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CRACKLING

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Everything freezes,

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but the cabbage groundsels have a way of protecting themselves.

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They close up their leathery leaves to form an insulating blanket

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that shields their vulnerable central bud.

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Night comes to an end...

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..and the sunshine returns.

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The groundsels spread their leaves wide

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to bask in the sunshine once again.

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Dawn in the High Andes.

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Here too, the rising sun brings rapid relief

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to animals living amongst these volcanic peaks.

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Mountain viscacha are up early

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to claim the best places to catch the sun's first rays.

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For others up here, the sunrise is even more welcome.

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At over 14,000 feet,

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this is the highest flamingo colony in the world.

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At night, it gets so cold that even this salty water freezes over.

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And now the flamingos are trapped in the ice.

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FLAMINGOS CALL

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Eventually, the sun thins the ice,

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but it's still a struggle for the flamingos to break free.

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Walking on thin ice is always risky.

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And it's hard to retain one's dignity...

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..especially when you're wearing stilts.

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At these altitudes,

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the sun's power can quickly turn from salvation to threat.

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The atmosphere is so thin,

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there is very little protection from ultraviolet radiation.

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By mid-morning, it's risky to linger out in the open.

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The viscacha are forced to head for the shade.

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Out on the lake, there is nowhere to hide.

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The white crust of the soda lake

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reflects the sun's glare

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and increases the impact of its ultraviolet rays.

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By midday, uncovered human skin will burn in four minutes.

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But this doesn't seem to bother the flamingos.

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In fact, they are on parade.

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During the breeding season,

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the flamingos perform these peculiar courtship dances

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even through the hottest time of the day.

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They are so eager, they don't even pause to feed.

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The rules are something of a mystery

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but, after a month of dancing,

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all the birds will have paired off

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and will be getting ready to mate.

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Up here, there are few other creatures to bother the flamingos,

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but then, few other creatures

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could even tolerate these conditions.

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So for animals that have the endurance,

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mountains can be sanctuaries.

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But rocky peaks which to us, perhaps,

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seem a symbol of permanence,

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are more fragile than they appear.

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Today in the Alps,

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human encroachment is changing even the highest summits.

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In the Rockies,

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rising temperatures are shortening winter hibernation

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and stifling the growth of valuable food plants.

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And in the Andes, some glaciers

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have shrunk by 50% in just 30 years.

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Even the Himalayas are now vulnerable.

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With most of the world's tallest peaks

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and covering a third of a million square miles,

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this is the greatest mountain range of all.

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And here, temperatures are now rising

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faster than the global average.

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As the snow line retreats further and further up these peaks,

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there is less and less space for wildlife,

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and that is a challenge

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for one of the most majestic of all mountain creatures.

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The snow leopard.

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Seldom seen, the detail of their lives has long been a mystery,

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but now, at last, helped by the latest remote-camera technology,

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we are getting closer to them than ever before.

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They are very rare - only about four of them in 40 square miles.

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There is simply not enough prey to sustain more.

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They live solitary lives.

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Nonetheless, they are well aware of the presence and the movements of

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their neighbours, because they leave messages in a few special places.

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They rub particular rocks with their cheeks...

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..and then spray them with urine.

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The two perfumes create a unique signature.

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SQUIRTING

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Any other leopard can know which of its neighbours passed this way,

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without ever making direct contact.

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But there are times when snow leopards must come together,

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and the event is often violent.

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An adult female and her daughter.

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She has devoted the last two years to raising her cub

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and very soon, it will be weaned.

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For now, the cub is still entirely dependent on its mother.

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But staying together as long as this could cause problems.

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The female is now in heat again,

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and any male that smells her signature will know that.

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SQUIRTING

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From this moment on, her cub's life is at risk.

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Males kill cubs that are not their own.

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But the mother is now driven by an urge that she cannot control.

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She lets the males know exactly where she is.

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LEOPARD CALLS

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From up here, she can be heard for miles around.

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LEOPARD CALLS

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A young male emerges from the wilderness, eager to find her.

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Snow leopards meet so infrequently

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that there is uncertainty and tension.

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And it's about to get worse.

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Another, bigger male has arrived.

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The mother and cub are trapped between the rivals.

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GROWLING

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The cub is now in danger.

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Mother must act fast.

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To divert the males' attention from her cub,

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she rolls over submissively.

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With the males fixed on the female, the cub has a chance to escape.

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GROWLING

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The males close in on the mother from both sides,

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keen to claim her for their own.

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A fight is inevitable.

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The female moves to escape and protect her cub.

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But the big male follows her.

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He will not let her leave until he has mated with her.

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With the males gone, the female is at last reunited with her cub.

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But she has been injured.

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The cub, however, is alive, thanks to its mother.

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Until her injury heals, she won't be able to hunt.

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Mountain animals survive on the very edge of existence.

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Mother and cub were not seen again.

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Until over a month later, high on a ridge,

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a remote camera was triggered.

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The female cat.

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She's no longer limping, but she's now alone.

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Then, an hour after the female has left,

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the camera is triggered again.

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It's her cub,

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taking her first steps towards adulthood and independence.

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She is unlikely to see her mother again.

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But every now and then, they will be reunited

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through the messages they leave on the marking rocks.

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Her mother has succeeded in raising her,

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but life ahead will be challenging,

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and she will spend nearly all of it alone.

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Only the toughest can survive

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among the savage beauty of the world's highest mountains.

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Revealing a new perspective

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on the lives of golden eagles in the mountains

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would take two very different approaches.

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A traditional wildlife crew set out to film wild eagles

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closer than ever before.

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Whilst an aerial team aimed to capture the hunting flights

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of eagles high in the mountains.

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The helicopter crew soon have success in filming

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wild eagles high over the Alps,

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but there was one part of the story even they couldn't follow.

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Golden eagles can stoop at 200 miles an hour.

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To capture an eagle's-eye view of such a dramatic flight

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would take a more extreme approach.

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I'm Aaron Durogati and I'm a professional paraglider pilot.

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Aaron believes that to fly like a bird, he must think like one, too.

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It's a very special feeling to fly with eagles

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because I'm really looking how they are thermalling

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and where they go to soar.

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This helps me to become a better pilot,

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and I try to take inspiration from the nature.

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Wearing a specially designed helmet camera,

0:50:070:50:10

Aaron's aim is to film the perspective of a diving eagle.

0:50:100:50:14

But before he can jump off a mountain,

0:50:180:50:21

first he needs to climb it.

0:50:210:50:22

It's a tough 3,000m ascent for Aaron and his wingman, Armin,

0:50:250:50:30

as director Emma Brennand waits for news in the valley below.

0:50:300:50:34

The ascent is slowed by a series of dangerous crevasses.

0:50:380:50:41

After a tricky climb, they finally reach their launch site.

0:50:460:50:49

But the weather up here is unpredictable

0:50:530:50:56

and a change in wind direction makes it impossible to take off.

0:50:560:50:59

Aaron and Armin are forced to overnight in the summit shelter,

0:51:030:51:08

and with the cold knocking out their comms, Emma is worrying.

0:51:080:51:12

They're well-trained mountain guides,

0:51:120:51:15

but it doesn't make it any easier to know that.

0:51:150:51:18

I think it's going to be a fairly restless night for me as well.

0:51:180:51:22

Whilst the paragliders prepare for a night on the mountain...

0:51:220:51:25

..cameraman Barrie Britton is setting out early

0:51:270:51:29

on a more cautious quest to film wild golden eagles from a hide.

0:51:290:51:34

I've got to get everything set while it's still dark

0:51:400:51:42

and the eagles can't see what we're up to.

0:51:420:51:46

Or if they saw any movement around the hide, then they'd fly away

0:51:460:51:49

and probably wouldn't come back for a few days.

0:51:490:51:52

They're notoriously difficult birds to film.

0:51:520:51:55

Even hide work is not entirely without risks.

0:51:560:51:59

It's -20 outside. So this is a crucial part of the operation,

0:52:010:52:05

making sure the fire works so we don't freeze to death.

0:52:050:52:08

Aah! Well, that's all the hairs gone on my hand!

0:52:080:52:11

Oh, well!

0:52:110:52:13

And we just have to be really quiet now

0:52:130:52:16

and hope the eagles come in when first light comes up.

0:52:160:52:20

Eight sedentary hours later,

0:52:200:52:22

Barry's only reward is a dead leg.

0:52:220:52:26

We haven't done a single shot today.

0:52:280:52:30

Nothing has come.

0:52:320:52:33

Anyway, that's the way it goes.

0:52:350:52:36

After a long night on top of the mountain,

0:52:380:52:40

the weather is only getting worse.

0:52:400:52:43

The team need to get down, but visibility's so poor

0:52:430:52:46

that descending on foot past the crevasses is too risky.

0:52:460:52:50

Aaron decides it's safer to fly, but it'll be a bumpy ride.

0:52:500:52:55

TRANSLATION:

0:52:560:52:58

Thick cloud makes it hard to avoid the mountains, let alone film them.

0:53:120:53:15

Thankfully, they make it down in one piece, much to Emma's relief.

0:53:180:53:23

We are very, very glad to see you both.

0:53:230:53:26

Yeah, it's a bit hard up there.

0:53:260:53:27

The team spend the next two weeks chasing weather windows...

0:53:280:53:32

..until at last, a clear flight.

0:53:340:53:37

Trying to mimic a diving eagle,

0:53:520:53:54

the flying looks spectacular,

0:53:540:53:56

but the helmet-cam shots are less so.

0:53:560:53:58

To stay safe at these speeds,

0:54:010:54:03

Aaron must turn his head regularly to check his glider,

0:54:030:54:06

and that is making the shots unusable.

0:54:060:54:09

The team must quickly come up with a new plan.

0:54:130:54:16

Back in the hide, all has been quiet

0:54:210:54:24

until Barrie spots an eagle scavenging on a fox carcass.

0:54:240:54:27

Barrie repositions his hide to keep watch.

0:54:350:54:38

Good stuff!

0:54:460:54:47

After 100 hours in the hide,

0:54:480:54:50

finally, his luck changes.

0:54:500:54:53

That's one terrifying bird there.

0:54:550:54:58

For me, it's fantastic just to see them so close.

0:54:580:55:02

It's just beautiful.

0:55:030:55:04

With Barrie's success, it's now down to the paragliding team.

0:55:070:55:11

They've come to the Mont Blanc range with a new plan.

0:55:110:55:15

Aaron's decided that the best way to keep safe and get stable shots

0:55:170:55:21

is to fly tandem with a cameraman.

0:55:210:55:24

We've got to try and mimic how an eagle flies,

0:55:260:55:29

which is pretty hard because they're basically like the top bird of prey.

0:55:290:55:32

John is nervous.

0:55:320:55:34

It's his first-ever flight.

0:55:340:55:36

Three, two, one, go.

0:55:380:55:41

Eee...ahh!

0:55:420:55:44

Yes! Woohoo!

0:55:450:55:48

-How is it?

-Ah, man, that was a shock.

0:55:510:55:55

Overcoming his initial fears, John begins filming.

0:55:550:55:58

If you can go right of this, that'd be cool.

0:56:000:56:02

The tandem wing allows John to get the shots

0:56:040:56:07

that Aaron was unable to get flying solo.

0:56:070:56:09

Awesome, Aaron, very good.

0:56:110:56:13

But it's not all plain sailing.

0:56:130:56:15

The feeling of discomfort only gets worse

0:56:200:56:23

as Aaron begins the eagle dive.

0:56:230:56:26

JOHN LAUGHS

0:56:320:56:34

I feel sick!

0:56:340:56:36

Oh, man!

0:56:370:56:39

Flying low and fast like an eagle

0:56:390:56:42

leaves little room for error.

0:56:420:56:43

-LAUGHING:

-A little bit too much, do you think?

-Yeah!

0:56:540:56:59

-Sorry, what did you call it, an unplanned landing?

-Yeah!

0:56:590:57:02

They might not be as majestic as a golden eagle,

0:57:040:57:07

but they do capture a unique perspective

0:57:070:57:11

that conveys an eagle's life as never before.

0:57:110:57:14

Next time...

0:57:190:57:21

we explore the world's jungles.

0:57:210:57:23

Places of surprise and invention unrivalled on Earth...

0:57:250:57:29

..where the battle for survival is at its most intense.

0:57:310:57:35

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