CouchClimbs - Rock Climbing Videos from All Over the World

Video of the Week 2021

Best rock climbing videos from 2021. Weekly spotlight on the most watched climbing films.

The North Face Presents: "Return of the Sleepwalker" (9A/v17) (First Ascent)

Week of June 21, 2021

The North Face Presents: "Return of the Sleepwalker" (9A/v17) (First Ascent)

Daniel Woods goes all-in on one of the fiercest bouldering projects on the planet: Return of the Sleepwalker. Building on Jimmy Web’s iconic Sleepwalker, this film follows the push to add a brutal sit-start and turn an already legendary line into a full-on battle at the very top of the grade. What makes it so gripping is the raw, step-by-step fight: the failed attempts, the dialed details, the emotion, and the thin margin between progress and shutdown. If you like seeing what elite bouldering really demands—precision, obsession, and a willingness to go deep—this is a front-row seat.

mellow · 18:58 · 631K views

Black Diamond Presents: Big Walls to Low Balls with Alex Honnold

Week of May 31, 2021

Black Diamond Presents: Big Walls to Low Balls with Alex Honnold

In Black Diamond Presents: Big Walls to Low Balls, Alex Honnold steps away from the towering objectives he’s famous for and takes you into the smaller, subtler side of his climbing life in Red Rocks. What starts as expectations of endless big-wall grandeur turns into a tour of the compact projects he uses to stay sharp and expand his toolkit. It’s a quick hit of Honnold’s mindset: confidence comes from range, not just reputation. Watch for the contrast between “big send” legend and everyday training sessions on sandstone—where precision, control, and comfort on the rock get built one low ball at a time.

Black Diamond Equipment · 5:49 · 365K views

Everest for Mountaineers - Full Doc

Week of May 17, 2021

Everest for Mountaineers - Full Doc

Everest for Mountaineers is a feature-length expedition documentary following Brendan Madden and Patrick McKnight as they train, travel, and commit to a 2018 push toward the highest summit on Earth from the Chinese side. More than a summit montage, it leans into the full arc of the objective: long preparation, hypoxic training, the logistics of base camp life, and the stark reality of moving and thinking in the death zone. If you like big-mountain process, decision-making under stress, and the pull of one more step upward, this one delivers.

In Deep Films · 117:33 · 4.1M views

Free Solo Climbing With A Parachute - Dean Potter

Week of May 10, 2021

Free Solo Climbing With A Parachute - Dean Potter

Dean Potter’s “Free Solo Climbing With A Parachute” captures a rare moment in Yosemite history: a visionary climber pushing into his self-described “dark arts,” blending free soloing with the last-resort promise of a BASE rig. This remastered and extended cut revisits his 2008 FreeBASE ascent of The Rostrum, finishing through the infamous Alien Roof. What makes it unmissable is the uneasy tension between mastery and consequence—moving fast and unroped on steep terrain, with only a parachute and commitment as backup. It’s a sharp portrait of a singular mind in the Valley, and a glimpse into a bold, controversial idea that still feels ahead of its time.

REEL ROCK · 7:13 · 9.5M views

Chris Sharma's First Ascent of Es Pontás, Mallorca

Week of April 19, 2021

Chris Sharma's First Ascent of Es Pontás, Mallorca

Chris Sharma’s first ascent of Es Pontás is a masterclass in imagination and persistence: a wildly aesthetic line climbing the underside of a freestanding limestone arch above the Mediterranean, where every mistake ends in a clean splash rather than a catch. It’s worth watching for the sheer drama of psicobloc at its most committing—repeated falls, a huge dyno, and the final sequence that turns a dream into a modern classic. Beyond the send, the film captures why deep water soloing is so captivating: pure movement, high stakes, and a setting that feels almost unreal.

REEL ROCK · 6:55 · 4.1M views

Victimas Perez 9a | Commented climb by Adam Ondra | Margalef, Spain

Week of March 29, 2021

Victimas Perez 9a | Commented climb by Adam Ondra | Margalef, Spain

Adam Ondra takes viewers on an intimate, uncut journey through one of his most personally challenging routes: Victimas Perez, a 9a at Margalef, Spain. In this commented climb, Ondra narrates six attempts across three days on a steep overhang that demands relentless two-finger pocket pulling, power endurance, and a devilish final crux that repeatedly turned him around. What makes this film exceptional is the raw honesty Ondra brings to his own struggles. Far from a highlight reel, it is a detailed, self-analyzed record of a route he describes as his absolute nemesis, originally a side-project during his Perfecto Mundo campaign. Watching one of the world's best climbers dissect failure and persevere through bad skin, pumped arms, and a foot slip on the final headwall is both humbling and deeply inspiring for climbers at any level.

Adam Ondra · 12:01 · 419K views

The 1996 Disaster · STORM OVER EVEREST · PBS Documentary

Week of March 29, 2021

The 1996 Disaster · STORM OVER EVEREST · PBS Documentary

On May 10–11, 1996, a sudden storm turned Everest’s summit push into a desperate fight for survival. Storm Over Everest revisits that day through the eyes of renowned climber and filmmaker David Breashears, who returns to the mountain to reconstruct what happened when multiple teams were trapped high above Camp 4 in a brutal blizzard. More than a disaster chronicle, this film digs into the split-second decisions, exhaustion, and thin margins that define high-altitude mountaineering. With a clear, step-by-step account of the descent into the death zone—and the human stories behind the headlines—it’s a gripping watch that leaves you thinking about risk, leadership, and what it really costs to stand on top of the world.

David Snow · 100:59 · 6.7M views

Shawn Raboutou: Livin' Large (V16/8C+)

Week of February 8, 2021

Shawn Raboutou: Livin' Large (V16/8C+)

In the summer of 2019, Shawn Raboutou heads to Rocklands, South Africa to take on "Livin' Large"—a striking, 8-meter high arete and one of the most intimidating highball boulders in the world. The film follows his process and the moment he seals the third ascent of this modern testpiece at V16 (8C+). What makes this worth watching is the blend of raw difficulty and real consequence: powerful movement stacked above a serious landing, where precision and composure matter as much as strength. If you love seeing top-level bouldering pushed into the highball realm, this is a short, high-stakes hit of focus, commitment, and control.

mellow · 6:41 · 282K views