How you can take an outdoor adventure without leaving Columbia
Each fall, in the Canadian Rockies of Banff, Alberta, one of the world’s best known film festivals lures movie fans for nine days of screening bliss.
The Banff Mountain Film Festival is an international competition of short films and documentaries. Once it ends, a selection of the best movies from the festival goes on a World Tour, giving folks in about 450 cities throughout 40 countries the opportunity to watch.
Columbia is on that list of cities. Tuesday and Wednesday, 17 of the festival’s films will be screened at Music Farm Columbia, hosted by Half-Moon Outfitters.
“This is hands-down our favorite event of the year as it encompasses two of our passions – outdoor adventure and our community,” said Katie Chitty, manager of Half-Moon.
Proceeds go to support the South Carolina Nature Conservancy.
“This organization protects our playgrounds,” Chitty said. “We cannot thank them enough for what they tirelessly do to protect and preserve our outdoors.
“Banff Mountain Film Festival is a great event for anyone who wants to be inspired and compelled to get outside.”
This year’s films explore the mountain world, highlighting new landscapes and remote cultures, and exposes audiences to exciting adventures and adrenaline-packed sports.
Here are the films that will be shown in Columbia:
Tuesday
“ACE AND THE DESERT DOG”
Run time: 9 minutes
For his 60th birthday, adventure photographer Ace Kvale and his dog, Genghis Khan, set out on a 60-day trek in Utah’s canyon country.
“FOR THE LOVE”
Run time: 14 minutes
When you want to make first descents, you have to push the limits of what’s possible and what’s known as you explore the most difficult and remote whitewater in the world.
“POUMAKA”
Run time: 15 minutes
With hopes of summiting the elusive Poumaka Tower, American bouldering champion, Angie Payne, leaves everything she knows behind as she ventures deep into the French Polynesian jungle with veteran climber and explorer, Mike Libecki.
“FOUR MUMS IN A BOAT”
Run time: 30 minutes
When four middle-aged working British mums announced they wanted to row the Atlantic Ocean, their families thought they had lost their minds.
“Ruin and Rose”
Run time: 7 minutes
Follow these talented free-skiers as they tackle different terrain in search of gorgeous jumps in Whistler and big lines in Alaska.
“THE PERFECT FLIGHT”
Run time: 5 minutes
When some neighborhood kids gave Shawn Hayes an abandoned red-tailed chick, it launched him on a lifelong journey into the medieval traditions of falconry.
“DOING IT SCARED”
Run time: 12 minutes
Eighteen years after a catastrophic accident left him partially paralyzed, climber Paul Pritchard returns to the Totem Pole to find out whether he has recovered enough to finish the climb.
“SHIFT”
Run time: 28 minutes
Near a sacred mountain in the Yukon, an indigenous community transforms itself into a world-class mountain biking destination through the hard work of its young trail crews.
“DANNY MACASKILL’S WEE DAY OUT”
Run time: 6 minutes
Explore the rural landscape around Edinburgh in a film that sets out to capture the simple fun of a ride in the country with moments of incredible riding and a touch of humor.
Wednesday
“METRONOMIC”
Run time: 5 minutes
High above the Gorges du Verdon, a skillful blend of artists and high-level balancing athletes play a high energy symphony devoted to risk. It’s a hymn that melds visual performance and contemplative poetry into pure entertainment.
“IRAN: A SKIER’S JOURNEY”
Run time: 12 minutes
Cautioned not to travel to Iran, Chad Sayers and Forrest Coots decide to go, regardless. They find comfort, bedazzlement, and a surprisingly cool ski culture.
“THE ACCORD”
Run time: 19 minutes
Being so far removed from the hustle and bustle of the tropical surf world hardens Iceland’s surfers to confront the harsh reality they all must face – that old and unforgiving North Atlantic wind.
“THE YOUNG GUNS”
Run time: 30 minutes
Meet the new faces of climbing: 14-year-old Ashima Shiraishi and 15-year-old Kai Lightner. Pushed outside their comfort zone, Kai and Ashima learn some hard but important lessons that will carry them to even greater heights.
“DREAMRIDE”
Run time: 5 minutes
Enter a dream world where the trails never end. Where the promise of joy and freedom exist around each bend. Take a magical trip through beautiful landscapes and join us on this DreamRide, a mountain bike adventure unlike any other.
“PACKING IT OUT: CLEANING AMERICA’S WILD TRAILS”
Run time: 4 minutes
Follow the guys from the “Packing It Out” crew as they pick up litter – and inspire everyone they meet – along the Pacific Coast Trail.
“SEA GYPSIES: THE FAR SIDE OF THE WORLD”
Run time: 46 minutes
The vessel is Infinity, a 120-foot, hand-built sailing ketch, crewed by a community of wanderers. The journey – a 12,800-kilometer Pacific crossing from New Zealand to Patagonia with a stop in Antarctica, weather permitting. This film epitomizes the spirit of adventure.
“MAX YOUR DAYS”
Run time: 5 minutes
Summer solstice on Canada’s West Coast – the possibilities are endless.
If you go
Tickets are $12 in advance for each day and can be purchased at www.ticketfly.com/event/1129861-banff-mountain-film-festival-columbia/ or www.halfmoonoutfitters.com/banff-mountain-film-festival-world-tour-tickets/bmff_tickets/product.
Shows begin at 7 p.m. both days at Music Farm Columbia in the Vista.
This story was originally published March 16, 2017 at 10:25 PM with the headline "How you can take an outdoor adventure without leaving Columbia."