Original subtitles

Below the airless peaks of the Chinese mountains

lies a secret valley, hidden from the outside world.

Official YIFY movies site: YTS.MX

Home to snow leopards.

A pregnant female settles in.

But a fierce male has already staked his claim.

She will need strength, and stamina,

to outwit the rivals in a crowded valley.

But a mother’s love is fierce.

Her devotion, strong.

This is a snow leopard’s story.

Rarely seen,

never before told.

This is the roof of the world.

China’s Qinghai Tibetan Plateau.

It’s a vast expanse,

home to snow leopards.

It’s February in China’s Qhinghai Mountains.

A herd of Himalayan blue sheep, or bharal,

moves through the rocky landscape,

tracked by a hungry, pregnant female.

The bharal are hungry too,

scratching for frozen grass beneath the snow.

The sheep seem like easy targets.

But the bleak landscape offers little cover for an ambush,

and the bharal are nimble.

Even with her snowshoe paws, hunting is hard work.

Still, she presses on, searching for her next meal.

Her pregnant belly hangs low.

Soon she’ll need to find shelter where she can safely give birth.

But this is unfamiliar territory.

She loses the bharal in a snowstorm.

When it clears, she finds herself on the edge of a hidden valley.

A gateway to a new world.

Tucked between the peaks sits a lonely outpost,

with signs of life.

It’s a yak farm.

Hunger drives her to investigate.

People here have raised yaks for generations

and depend on the beasts for everything.

Tibetan Mastiffs guard the livestock.

These dogs aren’t pets.

And they’ve never met a brush.

They live a feral life, shepherding the yaks.

Guns are prohibited here,

and killing snow leopards is forbidden.

So the dogs trail the yaks through the steep meadows, crusted with snow.

Bharal graze here, too.

The dogs sniff out a familiar enemy.

A male snow leopard is finishing his recent kill.

This valley is his.

He rules over this frozen kingdom,

defending it against pirates, including the dogs.

The valley holds both opportunity and danger for the female snow leopard.

She’ll need to avoid the dogs and the male leopard if she stays.

By March, she’s made her choice.

High in the cliffs above the farm, she searches for a den to give birth.

For the next hundred days,

she’ll stay hidden, emerging only to hunt.

By August, the valley has transformed.

The female has rejoined the world.

She’s now a mother,

with two brand-new cubs in tow.

One is already bold, and curious.

The twins will have summer to grow stronger

and learn about their valley home.

But this is a treacherous place.

For the next eighteen months,

their mother will struggle to keep them alive.

Half a mile below,

the yaks meander up the river valley.

The herd is mostly females with calves.

The old male has them in his sights.

This is his hunting ground

and he’s got the scars to prove it.

Yak handlebar horns can be deadly.

From her lofty post, the mother watches.

The yaks stay close together

but the veteran male is patient,

he’s even got time for a nap.

Snow leopards can spend 18 of 24 hours resting.

But the shrill cries of a redstart interrupt his dreams.

The yaks are still oblivious to his presence,

so he gets ready to roll.

It’s all about stealth.

He’s the master of this game,

and his avian audience applauds.

Within a few days,

the old boy has devoured most of the yak.

He tops off his meal with pure spring water,

naturally filtered through the rocks.

He’s left the paltry remains up for grabs.

Lammergeier vultures swallow bones whole.

They make up 80% of the birds’ diet.

The dogs are always hungry, too.

Despite being employed to guard the yaks,

they readily scavenge whatever they can.

High above the valley floor, the three-month-old cubs are thriving.

It’s September and they’re growing fast.

Satisfied that they’re safe,

their mother is free to search for food.

A few hundred feet below the snow leopard den,

Tibetan foxes have hidden their twins, too.

They were born at the same time as the cubs.

All of the youngsters are waiting for their parents to return.

After sneaking into the valley,

the mother cat has a bead on a herd of blue sheep.

She’s an ambush predator,

but can sprint at 40 miles per hour.

It was a valiant attempt.

With two cubs depending on her,

she can’t quit.

When night falls, she renews her efforts.

The bharal are wary.

They’re expert mountaineers able to dart straight up or down cliffs.

Morning reveals she’s had a successful night.

But her job isn’t done.

She must move her prize closer to her cubs.

It’s a struggle.

The carcass is awkward and heavy.

Every time she stops to rest,

she attracts attention.

The magpies will alert other carnivores and stir up the locals.

The noisy crowd attracts one of the semi-feral dogs.

It heads over to investigate.

Dogs have a legendary sense of smell

but the wind’s in her favor.

And her ability to remain motionless foils this one.

The mother will drag carcasses to where her cubs wait,

when she can.

She introduces them to meat for the first time.

Soon, they’ll no longer be nursing.

The family can’t eat in peace.

It’s impossible to keep food a secret from the vultures.

And the dog is back,

with a friend.

She’s not about to turn her precious kill over to these bandits.

The cubs escape to the cliffs where the dogs can’t follow.

While Mom stays behind to defend the carcass.

It’s two against one,

but she’s fighting for her family.

When the dogs give up, she recalls her cubs.

They will all have full bellies today.

In October, nights are freezing.

But the days are still hot.

Over the course of the summer,

the yaks have moved to higher ground to escape the heat.

The old male has followed them.

Adult snow leopards need to make a kill about every ten days.

He becomes part of the landscape,

creeping closer.

The yak smells him,

but even with their excellent vision,

they don’t see him.

He sets his sights on a youngster that’s wandered away.

The herd scatters.

The leopard won’t let go.

Then, the calf’s mother rushes in,

risking her own life to save her offspring.

The big cat hangs on.

But the mother charges again,

trying to shake the predator loose.

A wingman shows up to boost the defense.

It’s a remarkable escape.

And the leopard slinks off, frustrated.

On the valley floor,

Mom returns to a previous kill,

hoping there’s something left.

But someone else is at the banquet.

A red fox has beaten her to the food.

Any meat is a magnet here,

but the fox knows when to cut its loss.

Then, a big male yak takes exception,

determined to drive her far from his herd.

He’s not going to make this an easy meal for her.

They’re natural enemies,

though teeth and claws typically prevail.

Wherever there are yaks, the rogue dogs aren’t far behind.

But she’s a formidable opponent,

and her determination drives the dogs away.

She needs to make the most of this meal,

because life is about to get harder.

By December, the rivers are frozen.

This is the season when snow leopards mate.

With eight-month-old cubs,

the mother has no interest in breeding

and she must keep them hidden,

far away from the resident male.

He might kill them in order to force her into estrus.

The mother cat is vigilant,

but she can’t guard the cubs while searching for food.

Tucked away,

their fluffy fur should keep them warm while they wait.

The cubs now test their boundaries

and the braver of the two looks for a less windy spot.

Its twin chooses to follow.

But, will curiosity kill the cat?

They should stay where Mom parked them.

When their mother finally returns,

hours later, she calls for them.

There is no soft answer.

The cubs have vanished.

She sets off to find them.

Danger lurks everywhere in these mountains.

Some distance from where she left them,

one of the cubs has struggled onto a rocky ledge.

It seems to be injured.

The youngster waits, alone.

Its chance of survival is grim.

On the valley floor,

the worried mother ignores a yak herd

focusing on finding her cubs.

Desperate,

she checks every bleak nook and cranny for places they might hide.

She continues to call out.

But there’s no reply.

She searches through the night,

finally retracing her steps to the last place she saw them.

She refuses to give up.

Then, incredibly...

...a faint cry.

And this mother’s devotion is rewarded.

The reunion is bittersweet.

She doesn’t look for the other cub.

She knows.

It’s just the two of them now.

In February, a new threat arrives.

More snow leopards enter the valley in search of territory and mates.

It’s bad news for the mother.

Snow leopards are solitary animals,

and they need large spaces with abundant prey.

Today, these habitats are shrinking.

More cats are forced to travel farther,

and this valley is about to get cramped.

But the urge to mate overcomes caution.

Caterwauls echo through the valley.

The mother needs to keep her cub far away

from the hopeful suitors as they might kill it.

But the newcomers seem to be everywhere.

One pretender marks the ground with potent urine.

And then, incredibly,

another joins him,

followed by two more.

Four invaders gather on the mountainside.

It may be the first time so many adult snow leopards have been seen together.

The cats are so mysterious

that little is known about their social behavior,

but alpha males will send others packing.

Toward the end of the mating season,

in March, only one upstart male remains.

Until now,

he’s avoided a confrontation with the resident king.

But, the old boy misses nothing.

One unblinking glare sends the trespasser fleeing for safer ground.

The younger male will have to seek out space somewhere else.

Safe in the hidden valley,

the mother has so far escaped all would-be paramours.

She’s got another nine months before she’ll be back in the mating game.

She must still protect her cub

and hunt for the two of them.

After winter’s tough lesson,

the youngster knows to stay put until she returns.

Vultures circle over the remains of a week-old kill.

Dead meat is an easy meal.

But nothing here is free.

As always,

the dogs think the carcass belongs to them.

She hangs onto it for as long as she can.

This time there are too many of them.

She can’t win against these odds.

By September,

the female and her cub are hunting together.

The cub is now 15 months old

and must learn to hunt over the coming year.

One possibility is a musk deer,

less intimidating than a yak.

They’re prized by humans for their scent glands,

and by snow leopards for their meat.

Carefully marking his path,

the old male has been stalking one for hours.

His wide, furry feet

allow him to creep silently toward his target.

Another deer sounds the alarm.

Thwarted, he surveys his kingdom,

and spies the mother and cub.

She’s managed to avoid him,

until now.

He boldly heads their way.

After all,

this is his place.

The pair are at a disadvantage,

caught in a slight depression on the hillside.

The old male fearlessly approaches them.

She’s ready to engage

and defend her cub,

but he’s got the advantage.

Using his head,

he scent marks.

A direct challenge.

He sets his sights on the cub,

but the young cat holds its ground.

Surprisingly,

the old male ceases his attack.

No blood is shed today,

but this is only a temporary truce.

When they meet in the future,

it could go either way.

Snow leopards can live up to 15 years in the wild

and the old male isn’t ready to relinquish his territory yet.

The mother wisely leads her cub away.

They’ve escaped the biggest danger in the valley.

For now.

She’s proved to be a devoted mother,

and has raised a healthy, spirited cub.

In a few months

they’ll part ways forever,

and he will forge his own path through the frozen kingdom,

here, on the roof of the world.

Captioned by Visual Data Media Services