Highlights

A very cold morning, the tops remaining dusted with snow, who wouldn't smile at this?
Last day of the festival today - I presented Mountaineering1 & a 'Best of' session. So what were my highlights?
* Without a shadow of a doubt talking with & listening to Tashi Sherpa will resonate for a long time in my heart & mind. Never have the words "a good soul" seemed so apt.

The movies?
* For sheer impact - Denali a tale of loss and love. This film (available on a free view, so I'm not breaking any copyright) WILL make you cry, but its also very uplifting. At 7'30" I'd suggest you watch it twice. With tissues and maybe a brandy to hand.Winner of Best Short Film, certainly the most talked about movie all weekend.

* A Line across the Sky - the world's two best 'fairweather' rock climbers (their description, not mine), the irrepressible Tommy Caldwell & Alex Honnold turn their hand to Alpinism and walk away with probably the greatest prize in modern Alpinism - the Fitz Roy skyline of Patagonia. Alex isn't really sure how the ice axe works, so resorts to one finger pull ups using the holes left by Tommys axe. Rightful winner of mountaineering's greatest honour the Piolet d'Or. Goodness only knows what they'll set their sights on next.

* Chris Bonington Life & Climbs. Seven decades of climbing - a true legend - and yet in 25 minutes still able to convey some mesmerising truths regarding what lies at the heart of why we climb - in what is essentially a one person straight to camera piece - the emotional power conveyed as Chris stumbles on his words and his still bright eyes fill with tears - completely relevant to any climber of any age.

* Operation Moffat. Winner of best climbing film. Who'd have seen that coming? This year's best climbing film isn't the latest hotshot cranking it out on some 45degree overhanging suffererfest; its a (now) 91year old, relatively unknown, lady from Penrith, Gwen Moffat... And she totally rocks - filmed by up & coming young Jen Randall - its a testament to living a life true to yourself - before anyone knew to even look Gwen rewrote the rule book and did it on her own terms (my favourite example? She was the first female British Mountain Guide - she just applied using her initials GM so that they had to see her climb).

& of course as ever - the festival is the only place I can imagine where you can ask Ben Moon to move up a bit, get chatting to Kenton Cool buying a t-shirt, get asked by a current world champion to take their photo or just hear everyone speaking a language of crimps & gnarly & poppers & slopers  and not feel like you're the odd one....roll on 2016 :-)