Awesome Mountains

Most of the snowboarding videos we’ve seen have been edited to show the best action. Olympic and X Games snowboarding medalist Sage Kotsenburg shared nine minutes of unedited first-person GoPro footage from his rides through the fresh powder at Eagle Pass, BC. If you’ve never taken a backcountry route, it’s the closest you’ll get to being there.

Anakeesta in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, is home to the Rail Runner, a single-rail mountain roller coaster. Alex Ojeda took a ride on the open-air coaster and shared this first-person footage. Each car holds a single rider and has its own handbrake to control speed if it’s going too fast for you. The track is just 1600 feet long, but it still looks like a blast.

This amazing scene played out in Turkey’s Cappadocia region. Watch as mountain bikers Nikolaj Juhlsen Rasmussen and Korbinian Engstler ride along a gorgeous stretch of trails on hilly terrain as dozens of hot air balloons float in the skies above. The POV footage was captured with the Insta360 Ace Pro action camera with photography by Luke Maximo Bell.

Come along for a ride on a cogwheel train that takes passengers to the top of Switzerland’s Mount Pilatus. The first-person footage from Switzerland is Life will make you feel like you’re riding along with the conductor as you ascend to the alpine summit. Watch it in 4K full-screen with headphones for maximum effect.

This water slide in Tianjin, China, gives riders a chance to float down the side of a mountain in a raft. The slide is made with glass panels on its sides and bottom and offers 360º views of the tree tops and surrounding scenery. For more thrills, there’s a more sketchy looking slide that hugs the side of a cliff.

This generously-sized glass beer stein features a topographic impression of Oregon’s Mt. Hood at its bottom. Each stein holds 25 oz. and is handblown from borosilicate glass with a double-wall design to help keep your beer cool. Huckberry also sells Whiskey Peaks rocks glasses, and a decanter.

We’ve seen what it’s like at the top of the Matterhorn for a wingsuit flyer. Now, head back to the peak of Hornli Ridge for an epic drone flight courtesy of pilot Joshua Turner. He captured the incredible footage of the iconic mountain summit using an Iflight Chimera 7 drone, a DJI Air Unit rig, a GoPro Hero 10 Black camera.

Take a trip to Japan with each sip from this glass inspired by the shape of the famed Mount Fuji. While it works for sipping whiskey, we like how the foamy head from beer resembles the snow-capped peak of the 12,380-foot-tall mountain. Holds 360 ml or about 12 oz.

Didn’t make it to the mountains for winter vacation? Then live vicariously through this first-person toboggan ride captured in the Swiss Alps. The 10 km (6.2-mile) downhill trail goes from soothing, to thrilling, to awe-inspiring and includes a few especially sketchy spots zooming close to the edge near the trees.

Atulie’er village is situated on the edge of a cliff in Sichuan, China. Historically, it took villagers a half-day to climb a series of 17 wood, rope, and vine ladders to get there. The China Traveller takes us on a tour of a more recent addition to the community, a metal ladder made from pipes that offers a more direct, but still exhausting route.

After gulping down a can of sponsor Monster Energy’s high-powered drink, snowbiker and X Games athlete Cody Matechuk headed into the snow-capped mountains of British Colombia for a thrilling ride on his motorized snowbike. Expect lots of daring jumps off of rocky cliffs into a thick cushion of fresh powder.

A few years back, we took a POV ride-along on a coaster ride that winds through the mountains in Kandersteg, Switzerland. That original video was fun, but shaky and a little grainy. The Flying Dutchman took the same ride, but wearing a better camera that shoots in crisp 4K and has image stabilization for a much smoother ride.

Most times, hiking involves walking on some kind of solid ground. But this awe-inspiring via ferrata path in Interlaken, Switzerland has adventurers walking along skinny metal rails hammered into the side of a cliff. There’s a cable system you tie into for safety, but it still looks like a walk for daredevils only. Video by enjoytavie.

Jet packs might seem like a novelty, but this video from Gravity shows how their jet suits could save lives. With poor visibility that would ground helicopters, Company founder Richard Browning flew to the summit of a 3100-foot mountain to simulate a rescue mission, getting a medic on the scene in less than 4 minutes.

North Drinkware makes these unique drink coasters based on the topography of mountains. Each laser-cut birch wood coaster features a shape and engraving inspired by famous mountain locations, from Oregon’s Mt. Hood to Vermont’s Camel’s Hump. Sold in sets of two. We also love their mountain glassware.

Skiers Sam Cohen and Michelle Parker set out to conquer a hard-to-reach mountain peak in the Cascades. After a long hike and five days of camping, they made it to the Northeast face of the appropriately named Mount Fury. Kudos to director Mike Rogge and the Verb Cabin team for following along on this incredible adventure.

Living in a big city, the view outside our front door is a bunch of other houses, parked cars, and traffic. But from this old lookout point high atop Mt. Rainier in Washington state, you open the door to a vista so spectacular that even a vertical video can’t diminish its majesty.

Hailing from rural China, a man going by the nickname “Mr. Tiger” has been painstakingly digging into a mountainside to build a house. He used various hand and power tools to gradually chip away at the rock to create a small living space, which he hopes to expand over time. Follow his progress on YouTube or Ixigua.

Drone pilot Shaggy FPV takes us on a ride through the mountains of Austria with breathtaking footage of the Dorfertal Valley he captured with his aerial photography rig. The reverse perspective offers a great sense of speed and changes things up a bit from the typical forward view.

Take a soothing 360º flight through the snowy and scenic mountains of British Columbia, Canada. Helicopter pilot Bradley Friesen and videographer Devin Olsen captured more than 50 minutes of their flight using a GoPro MAX action camera. It’s even more immersive if you’ve got a VR headset to watch it on.

FPV drone pilot Mactac takes us on another epic flight, this time traversing the tops of a steep mountain range on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, as the UAV flies between the trees and craggy rocks, it comes across the glorious sight of Cobalt Lake. After a long hike up, it required patience between all the clouds that rolled in.

You don’t need an 8K display to enjoy the stunning white imagery captured by video production company Armadas around Japan’s Mt. Moriyoshi. The conditions there are ideal for covering trees with an snowy and icy mix that occurs when clouds and fog freeze onto their branches and leaves.

UAV flyer Mactac takes us on a beautiful and majestic ride through craggy rocks, tall trees, steep cliffs, and waterfalls in this buttery-smooth first-person flight. The nature sounds and soundtrack really help bring it all together. Original through-the-goggles recording here.